FLAG - webservice update & feedback request

[erayd]

Quick version:
I've just written a new ePub renderer for FLAG (http://flag.erayd.net/), and would appreciate some feedback on the resulting files. Anything goes - bugs, complaints, suggestions, feature requests etc.

For those who don't know what FLAG is - it's a fanfic grabber for fanfiction.net. Enter a story ID, and it fetches the whole thing and spits it out in an ebook file for offline reading.

Long version:
As nobody really seems to be interested in collaborating on a new version of FLAG (see history - lots of talk, minimal action), and the webservice is seeing pretty substantial levels of traffic these days (i.e. several thousand stories per day), I've decided to do a ground-up rewrite of the app myself.

This rewrite will be a webservice only, although it will be designed in a way that allows me to add a CLI interface to it later - the current CLI version has never seen much use due to the difficulties for end users in setting up a proper CLI PHP stack on Windows, and generated more support requests than I had the time (of frankly the inclination) to deal with.

The first bit of this rewrite is the new ePub rendering class. While it was never really intended to work with the current version of FLAG, I've bolted it on to the webservice in order to get some larger-scale testing done, and feedback on how it could be improved. Any and all comments are appreciated, no matter how trivial - better if I can incorporate things at the beginning rather than have to retro-fit them later.

In order to facilitate the support of additional output formats, I've decided to simplify the way these are handled. The new version generates ePub files internally, with all metadata already included - this finished file will then be passed to Calibre for conversion to other formats as required. As everything (except raw HTML output) will be passing via ePub as an intermediary format, this obviously needs to be as good as possible.

So... please comment - I'd love to hear from anyone who uses or may use this service what you love, hate, want, etc in your ePub files, and where you'd like to see FLAG go.

[audreythefan]

Hello! First, I just wanted you to know that I *love* this tool! Been using it quite a bit.

I tried downloading some fics to my iPhone thru the Stanza app yesterday and had a bit of a problem. Normally, when I download, it usually gives a number of the file that it's downloading (maybe the fic ID, can't remember).

Yesterday, I dl'd Starry Eyed Inside and this time it said something like "downloading 'getstory'". Worked fine.

But then I entered a dif fic ID number to dl a different story, I think it was Four Summers. Again it said "downloading 'getstory'". But before it completed, it said, "Starry Eyed Inside has already been downloaded"

I think there's something that's not getting overwritten or something bc it wouldn't let me download any other fics to my phone despite using different fic IDs.

Haven't tried the web version on my laptop yet, so I could try that in the meantime.

Thanks!

[erayd]

Hi Audrey,

Thanks for letting me know about this issue - I wasn't aware that Stanza was capable of using FLAG as a source, so I didn't think to test it!

Your desktop browser should work OK - could you please confirm this for me?

Please also test with the standard iPhone browser (i.e. not via Stanza) if possible.

I don't own an iPhone myself, but if we can narrow down what is causing the issue I should be able to fix this anyway.

Thanks,
Erayd

[spacegirl07]

Hi!
Im having the same problem as audrey with stanza on my ipad. After downloading one fic, it won't let me download a second fic because it claims that it is already in my library even though the second fic had a different fic ID from the first one. Anyway, goodluck in trying to find the problem! I love the app btw

[erayd]

Originally Posted by spacegirl07

Hi!
Im having the same problem as audrey with stanza on my ipad. After downloading one fic, it won't let me download a second fic because it claims that it is already in my library even though the second fic had a different fic ID from the first one. Anyway, goodluck in trying to find the problem! I love the app btw

Thanks for letting me know. If my suspicions are correct, I think this is caused by a logic error in the way Stanza manages its sources.

I've implemented a workaround that I hope will work - could you please test this and let me know?

Thanks :-).

[Lisambb]

Since the upgrade I have been unable to get a pdf file either directly or via email. It comes up with an error message.

Server error
The website encountered an error while retrieving http://flag.erayd.net/getstory.php?j...34a85bcd5b7819. It may be down for maintenance or configured incorrectly.
Here are some suggestions:
Reload this web page later.
HTTP Error 500 (Internal Server Error): An unexpected condition was encountered while the server was attempting to fulfill the request.

ETA: This happened while using Google Chrome so I tried it with firefox and the screen remains blank but no error message comes up. It doesn't grab the file either.

[JaneD]

I just used it to download a mobi for my Kindle 3 and it looks fantastic. Excellent formatting throughout. Thanks again!

[santa muerte]

When I type in a FFN ID # it keeps telling me the address isn't right.? Help.

[Lisambb]

I just checked again and it's working for pdf's. Thanks!

[erayd]

Originally Posted by santa muerte

When I type in a FFN ID # it keeps telling me the address isn't right.? Help.

Which id are you typing?

[LizzieD1211]

Hi,

LOVE this wonderful tool. I'm having a problem downloading to the new Mobi (Kindle). I've tried 3 times today unsuccessfully. I am able to download to HTML.

Please let me know what I'm doing wrong!! Thanks, Liz in NC

[erayd]

Originally Posted by LizzieD1211

Hi,

LOVE this wonderful tool. I'm having a problem downloading to the new Mobi (Kindle). I've tried 3 times today unsuccessfully. I am able to download to HTML.

Please let me know what I'm doing wrong!! Thanks, Liz in NC

When you try to download to mobi, what error messages (if any) are you seeing, and which story ID were you trying to download?

[santa muerte]

Originally Posted by erayd

Which id are you typing?

Just the 7 digit FFN id #.

[erayd]

Originally Posted by santa muerte

Just the 7 digit FFN id #.

Thanks for that. Unfortunately, it doesn't really give me enough information to diagnose your problem .

Other IDs are working fine, so I need to know the *specific* ID you are typing in, so I can determine if there is something strange about the story you're downloading that is preventing it from working correctly.

[santa muerte]

Originally Posted by erayd

Thanks for that. Unfortunately, it doesn't really give me enough information to diagnose your problem .

Other IDs are working fine, so I need to know the *specific* ID you are typing in, so I can determine if there is something strange about the story you're downloading that is preventing it from working correctly.

Sorry my bad. The Id # is 5431454 well this is one of the id #s that was giving me trouble.