[GUI Plugin] Marvin XD (closed)

[GRiker]

The Marvin XD plugin works with Mavericks. The problem with Mavericks is only that iBooks is not supported as a reader application. Marvin is supported under Mavericks.

If you're experiencing a crash with this plugin, refer to the first post in this thread for instructions on how to create an issue with a debug log.

If you're seeing an error message that you don't understand, please provide more detail about you're doing leading up to the error.

G

[HowardBrazee]

I didn't get a crash. I do have a configuration message - "Annotations" column due column label not being unique. When I left click the "Marvin" button, it opens my browser to Marvin help. But when I tell Marvin on my iPad which is plugged into my computer, and click on Get Books/Calibre, I get the calibre connector screen - the only buttons that works are "disconnect" and "Show me how this works" (which gets me to the tutorial blog which I already have open on my Mac). Calibre says "Marvin not connected".

So what I'm getting is stuck. No error message when I try to use it. No crash when I try to use it. No connection when I try to use it.

I see in iTunes, the free Marvin epubs that were downloaded, although I don't see how to get them from there to Calibre. I assume that when I get the Marvin plugin working, it will only download Calibre .epub books and not the duplicate formats. (Although most books are already on my iPad in multiple formats for different readers).

[GRiker]

Originally Posted by HowardBrazee

I didn't get a crash. I do have a configuration message - "Annotations" column due column label not being unique. When I left click the "Marvin" button, it opens my browser to Marvin help. But when I tell Marvin on my iPad which is plugged into my computer, and click on Get Books/Calibre, I get the calibre connector screen - the only buttons that works are "disconnect" and "Show me how this works" (which gets me to the tutorial blog which I already have open on my Mac). Calibre says "Marvin not connected".

So what I'm getting is stuck. No error message when I try to use it. No crash when I try to use it. No connection when I try to use it.

I see in iTunes, the free Marvin epubs that were downloaded, although I don't see how to get them from there to Calibre. I assume that when I get the Marvin plugin working, it will only download Calibre .epub books and not the duplicate formats. (Although most books are already on my iPad in multiple formats for different readers).

Once you've started the calibre connector in Marvin, you can safely turn your attention to calibre and your PC for all subsequent steps. The calibre connector needs to be running in Marvin on your iPad for calibre to connect to it.

Assuming that you're properly configured the iOS reader applications plugin with Marvin as your preferred reader application, calibre should recognize Marvin as a connected device.

The only time you should see an error message about an Annotations column not being unique would be when configuring the Marvin XD plugin from its configuration dialog. Try this:

• Start calibre without your iPad connected
• Open Preferences|Advanced|Plugins
• Enable the checkbox Show only under installed plugins
• Expand the User Interface Action plugins list
• Double-click the Marvin XD entry, or select it and click Customize plugin
• In the Custom column assignments section, find Annotations, then select the blank entry (first one) from the dropdown list
• Click OK, then close all dialogs and exit calibre
• Reconnect your iPad, start Marvin and the calibre connector, then start calibre.

G

[HowardBrazee]

My "Customize Marvin XD"/CSS window looks like the two in file:///Users/HBrazee/Library/Preferences/calibre/plugins/Marvin_XD_resources/help/help.html.

I have not found a "Match Status" button. My plugged-in iPad's Marvin's Calibre connector says "Ready...", my OSX's Calibre's button goes to the web when I press it, or shows as disconnected when I select the drop down button.

What do I do next?

[HowardBrazee]

Originally Posted by GRiker

Once you've started the calibre connector in Marvin, you can safely turn your attention to calibre and your PC for all subsequent steps. The calibre connector needs to be running in Marvin on your iPad for calibre to connect to it.

Assuming that you're properly configured the iOS reader applications plugin with Marvin as your preferred reader application, calibre should recognize Marvin as a connected device.

The only time you should see an error message about an Annotations column not being unique would be when configuring the Marvin XD plugin from its configuration dialog. Try this:

• Start calibre without your iPad connected
• Open Preferences|Advanced|Plugins
• Enable the checkbox Show only under installed plugins
• Expand the User Interface Action plugins list
• Double-click the Marvin XD entry, or select it and click Customize plugin
• In the Custom column assignments section, find Annotations, then select the blank entry (first one) from the dropdown list
• Click OK, then close all dialogs and exit calibre
• Reconnect your iPad, start Marvin and the calibre connector, then start calibre.

G

I can't find the Show only under installed plugins checkbox in the plugins page, but I did find the "Marvin XD (1.0.9) entry and opened it to get the same menu I get from the Marvin button's drop down button. This time I didn't get that warning. But nothing is connecting.

[HowardBrazee]

I missed the other plug in selecting my default reader, now it is connecting.

I didn't have the help screen open in my browser, so after I saw the 10 free books in the default library, I selected one and didn't figure out how to get it into Calibre, so I selected "Show me how this works" in my Calibre connector on my iPad. I guess the iPad doesn't multi-task well, as that disconnected. So I went back to Calibre and it connected again, and found the help from Calibre's plug in.

So I read that page trying to discover how to get those 10 books over to Calibre. That page mentions synchronization, but I'm just not seeing how to tell it to synchronize either way.

Ahh, I found out how to get a book from Calibre to Marvin - I click on the book and then the "Send to device" button. It is now in my Marvin Library.

Then I found out how to get a book from Marvin to Calibre - right click the book. Maybe this post will help others to figure it out more easily.

[GRiker]

@HowardBrazee, thanks for your detailed feedback. I'm glad you're up and running.

I have reviewed the first post in this thread to confirm that it's very clear that Marvin XD also requires the iOS reader applications plugin to be installed (with Marvin as the preferred reader application), and that Marvin is running in the foreground on your iDevice with the calibre connector active.

G

[HowardBrazee]

I copied all of my books from Marvin. A few books took a couple of tries, as i needed to remove the DRM from them.

These books don't appear to be on device "Main", the others appear to be on it (can I rename that device to know whether they are sorted to my iPad or my iPhone (I haven't yet tried my iPhone)).

I tried to load these and get a message saying "Replacement of existing books is disabled in the plugin's Marvin Option settings". I looked for the option settings but didn't find them, or at least that option setting. Should I delete the book using the Marvin Library review then add it again?

I went to iTunes and looked at what books were loaded - and most of them have incomprehensible names. Is there a way to let iTunes know the book names? (I first tried deleting the books from there, but that doesn't appear to be an option).

[GRiker]

Originally Posted by HowardBrazee

I copied all of my books from Marvin. A few books took a couple of tries, as i needed to remove the DRM from them.

So you had added books to Marvin with DRM? You wouldn't have been able to read them.

Originally Posted by HowardBrazee

These books don't appear to be on device "Main", the others appear to be on it (can I rename that device to know whether they are sorted to my iPad or my iPhone (I haven't yet tried my iPhone)).

Nope, 'Main' is the currently connected device, whatever it may be.

Originally Posted by HowardBrazee

I tried to load these and get a message saying "Replacement of existing books is disabled in the plugin's Marvin Option settings". I looked for the option settings but didn't find them, or at least that option setting. Should I delete the book using the Marvin Library review then add it again?

Click the down arrow next the red Marvin icon to show the context menu for iOS reader applications. Open the config dialog, tab to Marvin options.

Originally Posted by HowardBrazee

I went to iTunes and looked at what books were loaded - and most of them have incomprehensible names. Is there a way to let iTunes know the book names? (I first tried deleting the books from there, but that doesn't appear to be an option).

No.

You are definitely swimming against the tide here. Most calibre+Marvin users begin by populating calibre with their ePubs, then adding them to Marvin, either wirelessly by using calibre's server, or via USB with the iOS reader applications plugin.

G

[HowardBrazee]

Last week I got my books to Marvin. Today I bought some more books, added them to Calibre, started Calibre connection on my iPad, restarted Calibre, and am not getting Marvin connected. Nothing has changed since it last worked. I guess I will drag the books to iTunes. Hey, that works better, the name shown there is the real name of the book!!!!

[HowardBrazee]

Some of my books show up in Marvin with authors of last name, first name, even though none of them are that way in Calibre. I know that Kindle books come that way (I change them in Calibre). I wonder why a few still are that way. I'm not seeing a pattern.

[GRiker]

Originally Posted by HowardBrazee

Some of my books show up in Marvin with authors of last name, first name, even though none of them are that way in Calibre. I know that Kindle books come that way (I change them in Calibre). I wonder why a few still are that way. I'm not seeing a pattern.

Marvin displays the author as it is specified in the book's metadata when you add it to Marvin's library. Perhaps you added those books from a source other than calibre.

G

[Wyndham]

MXD is great in the way that it allows you to update (refresh) the annotations and other columns (such as progress, etc).

The question I have is prompted by the fact I have Marvin on my iPhone and my iPad and there are slight differences in what I call the MXD columns. For example, a book may be completed on one device, but I haven't yet got around to updating the other device to mark the book as completed (read).

Do you have any ideas or thoughts on this?

This would not be a problem if Marvin had a library sync options (not the books, just the settings and metadata), so in the meantime this needs to be managed manually.

[GRiker]

Originally Posted by Wyndham

MXD is great in the way that it allows you to update (refresh) the annotations and other columns (such as progress, etc).

The question I have is prompted by the fact I have Marvin on my iPhone and my iPad and there are slight differences in what I call the MXD columns. For example, a book may be completed on one device, but I haven't yet got around to updating the other device to mark the book as completed (read).

Do you have any ideas or thoughts on this?

This would not be a problem if Marvin had a library sync options (not the books, just the settings and metadata), so in the meantime this needs to be managed manually.

@Wyndham, this comment belongs in the Marvin XD plugin thread. I moved it from the iOS reader applications thread where you initially posted it.

This is an active feature request for Marvin XD with an open GitHub issue.

This feature requires changes to Marvin's database structure, which Kris (developer of Marvin) has agreed to implement. Once Kris has implemented the necessary changes in Marvin, I will add this feature to Marvin XD.

You can subscribe to that issue at GitHub to receive notifications when there is some news to report.

G

[Valkrider]

Coming rather late to the party I have finally got XD up and running on my iPhone with Calibre.

Question: Am I supposed to be able to add a book to Marvin from Marvin XD? If I am I don't seem to be able to as the send to device only shows Main Memory as an option not Marvin in iPhone.