Viewer fails, as do the suggested fixes

[Gary_M_Mugford]

Why? Well, Windows 10 is a crappy, supposedly lowest common denominator that can be idiot-proofed for those among us incapable of running Update any time. That I am now forced to run this because my own software development IDE does not run in Linux makes the problem beyond irritating to debilitating.

The viewer rewrite was forced upon the Calibre team, not by Microsoft, but by Python and Qt to a secondary degree. Thus, I am not going to rail about the viewer not working on my computer. Even when I reboot into Safe mode, even when I uninstall PowerToys and even when I disable my Anti-Virus, which is actually a step too far, but necessary for testing purposes. And yes, my hardware driver update claims all graphic thingmabobs are up to date.

I suspect that the fact that I have a Portrait monitor sitting beside a Landscape monitor, both being 4K, is PROBABLY the reason things don't work. And that's the end of my trying to make the viewer work.

For those frustrated non-viewers amongst the Calibre set, here's what I did to get the most minimal of solutions. I went into Preferences\Behavior and unchecked the usual book formats I run into.

Then, in Windows Settings for Apps and Defaults and By FileTypes, I changed them all to Sumatra PDF Viewer. You might have an alternative. Maybe even a book reader not of Calibre's programming. After that, double clicking on the file format in Calibre's meta-data display of the 'Formats' data, brings up the book in (my case) Sumatra PDF. It also brings up the meta data details window, but that's easy to close.

Now, this is NOT the solution I want. And maybe, when I get the urge to do more, I will NOT be using Sumatra PDF for the task. It shows the book and page turn buttons, plus page data at the bottom with a barometer. But FIND is curiously screwed up and frankly, my reading ON MY COMPUTER, minimal as it was, is only an emergency thing now. Calibre is now my database, not my reader. And I hardly ever used the editor.

This is NOT the solution to the random failure of the Calibre reader to work in Windows 10 computers. It's a poultice on a wound that won't go away. Sadly, those that don't have it work 'out of the box,' are unlikely to get a real solution because the numbers don't add up to making the work worthwhile. There are other things to do.

But at least you have one more thing to try and see if it meets your standards for a solution. Best of the holidays to all, especially the folks that make Calibre a reality. Be safe and have a Healthy, Happy New Year!

[JSWolf]

Gary, why should we help you if you are going to be so abusive?

Windows 10 is not crap. I've been using Windows 10 since it came out and it works rather well.

Calibre is not forced upon you. You don't have to use it. Nobody is forcing you.

[kovidgoyal]

Did you try turning off hardware acceleration as described here: https://doc.qt.io/qt-5/qtwebengine-debugging.html

[Gary_M_Mugford]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Gary, why should we help you if you are going to be so abusive?

Windows 10 is not crap. I've been using Windows 10 since it came out and it works rather well.

Calibre is not forced upon you. You don't have to use it. Nobody is forcing you.

It is true, I was harsh regarding Windows 10, for which I do not apologize. You can disagree. Your opinion is valid. But it is not mine. And that does it for the abusive language in this post.

I absolved the Calibre team of all responsibility (mostly) in the small-case issue of some of us not being able to use Viewer. I understand it's not a common enough issue to raise itself in Kovid's eyes. I will address his response in another post.

Having tried the offered 'fix' tries and still not having a functioning Viewer, I found a solution that I find usable. Not necessarily acceptable, but usable. Calibre was created as a database and remains an incredible piece of work. Years ago, I helped in that work in a very small way. I still feel proprietary. I even suggested I might be responsible due to my unusual monitor arrangement.

And I really didn't ask for help at all in the original post. Why did I post?? Because I read a dozen threads on the subject. Some of them succeeded in fumbling their way to a solution without seeming any rhyme or reason. Make a change, reboot, hope for the best. And the best did happen. Just not all the time. And this issue is NOT going away due to insufficient evidence as to what the problem is in the first place. I'd LIKE Kovid to make it a priority. He isn't going to do that. And, as the architect of this, he's perfectly within his rights to do so.

So, I offered a kludge that some people could use to get by.

[Gary_M_Mugford]

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

Did you try turning off hardware acceleration as described here: https://doc.qt.io/qt-5/qtwebengine-debugging.html

Yeah, I had to dive through that page because I just couldn't get why you and others had pointed me at it. I think it was the third read before I realized what was being asked for. So that joined the one at a time change train.

I really think being on Monitor 2 where a system is running Portrait as 1 and Landscape is 2 and the both at 4K, is involved. And I can't change that. I might try a VirtualBox session and see if I can contain things there. Maybe run it in Windows 7. It would also give me the option of running v3 if I so wanted. (I have backups of everything that was on the Win7 box that died last month, forcing me into a new box, which was Win10 unfortunately. I have come to loathe the system for all kinds of things other users might not encounter.)

Right now, I have a LOT of new tech and Bridge books in PDF format that read perfectly fine on my screens. And the reading pile on the two Kindles and one Fire remains about 100 molecules deep on each. So, entertainment is taken care of that way. In all cases, Calibre manages that content.

Best of the Holidays to you and the family. GM