calibre 5: Beta testers needed

[kovidgoyal]

@nixsee: Glad to hear it and you should be happy to know that the next beta will have the ability to add arbitrary quick highlight buttons for any defined highlight style.

[kovidgoyal]

Released 4.99.12 with the following changes:

New features:
1) Basic support for vertical writing (Japanese, Mongolian)
2) Content server viewer: Panels for browsing bookmarks and highlights
3) Allow creating buttons in the popup bar for applying specific highlight styles with a single click
4) Allow exporting annotations from the annotations browser
5) Allow adding a create bookmark button to the selection bar
6) Content server: Show the edit metadata panel in the same window as the book rather than new window/tab

Bug fixes:
a) Fix multiple dots for highlights with notes that have multiple internal ranges
b) Fix immediately re-opening a book in the content server viewer not preserving last read position
c) Fix scrolling to last column immediately after load not working in some books on Chrome
d) Fix processing of books with non-BMP characters in their metadata not working
e) Sync annots from browser to server when using the sync button

[sebastost]

Hi Kovid. Many thanks for this annotation integration, is one of the features that I hoped for for a long time to use in research on my computer. I installed the beta and so far I have no problems.
A thing that I wish, if is possible, is that when I have the book open and browse highlights I could see them without jumping (like a popup with the whole highlight on mouse over or an expand when you simple click on them). For me is helpful that I can have the toc on the left and the highlights on the right but if I double click to see the highlight I dont know how to get back to where I was previously (maybe is already possible, I will search for this)
Anyhow, thanks again for the astounding job you are doing.

[kovidgoyal]

If you click the highlight in the highlights panel the notes are displayed at the bottom. Or if you double click the highlighted text in the book, the notes are displayed as well.

[The_Ad]

With this new release of beta, everything is perfect now. As user of calibre we can proudly say that calibre have got full-pack of modern eBook viewer/reader too.

And since it's still in beta version (which means bugs and features can still be improved), so as a regular user of calibre, some of my suggestions would be as follows :-

1. It would be better if along with highlighted text, book title can also be exported as text file.
   
2. Again, I must say the adjustment handlebars looks bigger and It's frustrating as well as distracting. The ways it can be solved is as follows:-

1. Changing the design in which the oval shape will be replaced by small rectangular shape. The rectangular shape should be hanged down (not sidewise which is in our present beta). the reference is in first image.
   
   or
   
2. Replacing the handlebar with buttons which when hover over gets appeared. this feature is in adobe acrobat. the reference to it is in second image.
   
   or
   
3. Making the overall shape of present handlebar small.

I know that it was made big so that there won't be problem for users who are on touch screen. But since I have used it in touch screen too, I assure you that won't be a problem if the size of the handlebar gets reduced by 50-60%.

Since it's still in beta version why not give it a try and make the calibre viewer a perfect reader. Hope you'll connect with me.

[nqk]

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

Released 4.99.12 with the following changes:


4) Allow exporting annotations from the annotations browser

Dear Kovid, it doesn't mean the Browser Viewer?

Regarding the size of the selector handles, I too think a touch screen doesn't require them to be that big. I don't even touch on them, just next to them, and they work alright.

[kovidgoyal]

No, it doesnt. It means the browse annotation tool in the main calibre program.

[sebastost]

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

If you click the highlight in the highlights panel the notes are displayed at the bottom. Or if you double click the highlighted text in the book, the notes are displayed as well.

This I know. I wanted to see all the highlighted text. I see only a fragment in the right and is not word wraped (you have to make the area in witch the highlighted text apears realy big to see all the line (until the tree dots apear indicating that there is more text but is not diplayed). Also I know that if i double click on the note I go to the text and see it, but then i cant return where I was before double clicking. So if I want to skip to a highlighted text to read it (because i can not see it in the browser on the right) I can not go back to where I was in the book. I am sure that i can find workarounds, the general browser (from the main window) let you see all the highlighted text. I hope is clearer now. But again, maybe is not the main focus now.
I ecountered an error in a book where i made highlights and annotations, on the second and third (highlight and annotation). When I double click on the second or third highlight I get this:
calibre, version 4.99.12
ERROR: Unhandled error: Uncaught TypeError: elem.scrollIntoView is not a function<br><span style="font-size:smaller">Error at userscript:viewer.js:12372:18</span>

Traceback (most recent call last):
at Number.onload (userscript:viewer.js:16852:21)
at IframeBoss.content_loaded (userscript:viewer.js:24670:18)
at IframeBoss.content_loaded_stage2 (userscript:viewer.js:24696:26)
at IframeBoss.jump_to_cfi (userscript:viewer.js:21820:13)
at scroll_to (userscript:viewer.js:13798:33)
at ScrollViewport.flow_scroll_into_view (userscript:viewer.js:12372:18)
TypeError: elem.scrollIntoView is not a function

If I click ok the program enters a loop with the message ”Loading next section from ”book title” please wait and I have to kill calibre viewer. I am on windows 10 (last variant 2004 I think).
I did not read all the messages until now (from back) so if is already a known issue, pleas ignore. Otherwise, if there are other things you need, just ask.

[jony08]

I like the improvements in the new version 4.99.12 but I have some suggestions.

1) Hovering of icons in the selection bar and the controls turns the icons red, the color is very bright when you are using a dark theme. Please do any of the options:

1. Use a less bright color when hovering.
2. Do nothing when hovering.

2) Border around the notes field. Please do any of the options:

1. Use a less bright color for the border.
2. Don't use a border.

3) I agree with @The_Ad suggestions above.

4) Make it possible to see the controls and the Hightlights panel while selecting some text.

5) I get the same error as @sebastost

6) Is it possible to have more outstanding headers of the panels to make it easier to separate them when having many open at the same time?

[kovidgoyal]

@sebastost: Not sure I follow, you can read all the text in the highlights panel, you might have to scroll a bit that's all.

EDIT: Never mind, I managed to replicate the error, will fix for next beta.

[nixsee]

Another great update!

I support Jony's support of The_Ad's suggestions:

1. Export Title and Author of book - useful in general, but especially when exporting with the new Export from Browse Annotations function. If I select multiple books, there is no way to discern which it is from.

2. Smaller selection handles - an old suggestion that had a few supporters a while back, and it now seems that Touch users are also saying that they don't need to be so large. Just thinking about it more generally, most touch screen functions - selecting words, choosing cursor location in a text field, etc... - are extremely precise, so even up to 80% smaller could probably work.

#1 and #3 of The_Ad's UI suggestions seem preferable to me, but the popup bar UI is extremely pleasant, so I trust that you're able to find a suitable solution!

As The_Ad said, we're still in Beta. If the handles end up being too small (which honestly seems unlikely), a happy middle ground could be found later.

I think I'm out of feedback and eager to get back to highlighting. Nice work!

[kovidgoyal]

Do you people all have chopsticks for fingers? I am 6'4' and the current handle size just about matches my finger size. But ok, I will make the handles two lines high instead of three so a 30% reduction in size, for the next beta. That's as far as I am willing to go.

[The_Ad]

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

Do you people all have chopsticks for fingers? I am 6'4' and the current handle size just about matches my finger size. But ok, I will make the handles two lines high instead of three so a 30% reduction in size, for the next beta. That's as far as I am willing to go.

Thanks for your consideration Kovid.

We all know that there are 3M+ end users of calibre spread all around the world and they all have their own taste of UI customization. And as far as I know Calibre is only the tool that makes it possible.

Having said that, what I wanna add is if making selection handlebars smaller or bigger creates distraction or other trouble for any users then why not make it customizable too.

1. If it's possible, adding an option to adjust the size(shape) according to users will be the best solution for now.
   
2. Also it would be better if it have an option to disable or enable the handlebars in the first place.

[nqk]

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

Do you people all have chopsticks for fingers? I am 6'4' and the current handle size just about matches my finger size. But ok, I will make the handles two lines high instead of three so a 30% reduction in size, for the next beta. That's as far as I am willing to go.

I tested it on my PC just now, and I could drag the handles without even holding on to the protruding part of the handle, but under it.

The red areas is where I grab the handles.

[kovidgoyal]

Originally Posted by nqk

I tested it on my PC just now, and I could drag the handles without even holding on to the protruding part of the handle, but under it.

The red areas is where I grab the handles.

Yes, the handles, like everything else in HTML are rectangles, with some invisible portions, so? If you are saying there should be more invisible areas and less visible ones, I disagree, the point of the large visible areas is to make it easy to grab without worrying about missing. And in any case I have reduced the size of the handles by 30% at this point this subject is closed.

In fact IIRC if you accidentally click or tap just outside the handles calibre will not close the selection bar, in order to tolerate mistakes.