Ipad Work With Safari Books Online?

SCION · 04-05-2010, 03:43 PM

Anyone know (or can check) if the Ipad works with Safari Books Online? I may have to purchase one simply for accessing material on Safari and for PDFs. Don't know if I can hold out for the next generation.

GuntherM1466 · 04-05-2010, 04:32 PM

It works really well in the Safari browser. The fonts are crisp, and the formatting superb. Scrolling is natural. It uses the HTML view.

Safari Online books was one of the big reasons I got the iPad (another big on was reading technical Pdf, and Goodreader is working out well there). Love the iPad, and now I have a nice way of reading technical books away from my desk :-)

There are a few glitches in Safari Books Online, for example it only displays a few books in my folders - but it's not a show-stopper since I can get to them via bookmarks or searching.

SCION · 04-05-2010, 04:42 PM

That's wonderful!!! I figured a Safari user would chime in quickly.

I've placed the iPad on my list of must haves.

Oh, welcome to MobileRead!

GuntherM1466 · 04-05-2010, 04:47 PM

Thanks for the welcome :-)

neous · 04-23-2010, 09:24 PM

it didn't work for me, i tried reading a book on the bookshelf but no go.

after reading this thread I got all exited, told my wife I was going for my next toy and so i went to Apple store ready to buy an Ipad in order to have my Sarfari books and Books 24/7 library in my hands on demands, but that wasn't the case
i got to the store and while talking to the genius about not knowing which version of the ipad to get i logged in to my safari account to launch a book and see how nice it was i got the error message that the page needed adobe flash.
so i walked out in order to do more research

GuntherM1466 · 04-24-2010, 04:20 PM

You need to make sure that the HTML View is selected.

It seems to select the HTML View automatically for me, but I'm not sure if that is because of a setting I'd set long ago.

pwalker8 · 04-25-2010, 09:24 AM

There are some books that are flash only. I have no idea why. Most of the books that I have pulled up let you choose, but I have run across three or four that are flash only.

menevets · 04-25-2010, 02:49 PM

Safari Books was one of the first web sites I tried. Since there's no Flash, books like the Head First Series are Flash only, no HTML view, then those won't render. It seems some books are "scanned" in and available as images/Flash only.

But it just occurred to me to try the mobile version - m.safaribooksonline.com.

I don't have one, but live near a store. I'll have to try that - if it senses your hardware isn't mobile, it won't work. I wonder what the it'll reject the iPad.

Books that don't render as html look fine on the iPhone in the mobile version.

Update: Ah, looks like Safari Books, the mobile version does work on the iPad. See the Apr 2nd Tweet:

http://twitter.com/Safaribooks

neous · 04-26-2010, 08:34 AM

Thanks.
Someone on the Macrumors forum pointed me to that html button which i tested on my iphone and the books on my bookshelf are working.
Too bad about the Head first series cuz that's on my list.

Anyway my order is in for the Ipad
Thanks

RoseStClair · 04-26-2010, 02:21 PM

Safari Books Online is developing an app specifically for the iPad which will be available in July 2010. In the meantime, if you encounter books in the library that require flash (like the Head First books) you may consider viewing them via m.safaribooksonline.com.

menevets · 04-29-2010, 08:51 AM

OK, I rerouted my morning run towards the Apple store and tried Safari Books Online with the non-html books and based on a 10 minute test, I found some caveats.

First, you have to use the m.safaribooksonline url - you don't get redirected because you have an iPad.

With the Head First Books, say iPhone Development, the pages render as an image, so if you zoom out, you lose some image quality, but not too bad.

With books that render as html in mobile but not the regular site, they look like they do on the iPhone, just bigger obviously.

The biggest annoyance is the CAPTCHAs I kept getting. Every 3rd or 4th page in the Head First book, I got a CAPTCHA. That made it very unusable.

Just a general complaint with the mobile version is that with all that real estate, they don't take advantage of the room to make navigation easier.

GuntherM1466 · 10-24-2010, 08:30 AM

Just and FYI - the Safari Ipad App is close to complete and should be released soon. It certainly looks awesome :-)

http://safaribooksonline.wordpress.c...-safari-to-go/

kennyc · 10-24-2010, 08:39 AM

See here: http://safaribooksonline.wordpress.c...ith-a-browser/

menevets · 10-24-2010, 08:47 AM

Thanks for the heads up Gunther.

Love the offline feature - according to the response, you can have up to 10 books offline at a time and up to 30 different books a month if you're unlimited. That's awesome. Saves having to look for wifi and the battery.

Also you can adjust the backlight color. That's handy too - I use white on black often.

murraypaul · 10-25-2010, 04:45 AM

Oh, that looks so nice. This would be a really useful tool for me.
I wonder is the book limit is tied to your subscription type, and if so whether Library (vs Bookshelf) subscribers would have unlimited offline downloads.

04-05-2010, 03:43 PM	#1
SCION Séduisant Posts: 4,706 Karma: 2107018 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Texas, USA Device: Boox Note Air2+; Kobo Libra2; Kindle Scribe, Oasis3; iPad Mini6	Ipad Work With Safari Books Online? Anyone know (or can check) if the Ipad works with Safari Books Online? I may have to purchase one simply for accessing material on Safari and for PDFs. Don't know if I can hold out for the next generation.

04-25-2010, 02:49 PM	#8
menevets Connoisseur Posts: 88 Karma: 750010 Join Date: Nov 2009 Device: PRS-300/Kindle 4 basic/iPad/iPod Touch/iPhone/Nexus 7	Safari Books Online Safari Books was one of the first web sites I tried. Since there's no Flash, books like the Head First Series are Flash only, no HTML view, then those won't render. It seems some books are "scanned" in and available as images/Flash only. But it just occurred to me to try the mobile version - m.safaribooksonline.com. I don't have one, but live near a store. I'll have to try that - if it senses your hardware isn't mobile, it won't work. I wonder what the it'll reject the iPad. Books that don't render as html look fine on the iPhone in the mobile version. Update: Ah, looks like Safari Books, the mobile version does work on the iPad. See the Apr 2nd Tweet: http://twitter.com/Safaribooks Last edited by menevets; 04-25-2010 at 03:15 PM. Reason: Tweet

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04-05-2010, 04:32 PM	#2
GuntherM1466 Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 30 Join Date: Jun 2009 Device: Kindle	It works really well in the Safari browser. The fonts are crisp, and the formatting superb. Scrolling is natural. It uses the HTML view. Safari Online books was one of the big reasons I got the iPad (another big on was reading technical Pdf, and Goodreader is working out well there). Love the iPad, and now I have a nice way of reading technical books away from my desk :-) There are a few glitches in Safari Books Online, for example it only displays a few books in my folders - but it's not a show-stopper since I can get to them via bookmarks or searching.

04-05-2010, 04:42 PM	#3
SCION Séduisant Posts: 4,706 Karma: 2107018 Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: Texas, USA Device: Boox Note Air2+; Kobo Libra2; Kindle Scribe, Oasis3; iPad Mini6	That's wonderful!!! I figured a Safari user would chime in quickly. I've placed the iPad on my list of must haves. Oh, welcome to MobileRead!

04-05-2010, 04:47 PM	#4
GuntherM1466 Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 30 Join Date: Jun 2009 Device: Kindle	Thanks for the welcome :-)

04-23-2010, 09:24 PM	#5
neous Member Posts: 15 Karma: 10 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: none	it didn't work for me, i tried reading a book on the bookshelf but no go. after reading this thread I got all exited, told my wife I was going for my next toy and so i went to Apple store ready to buy an Ipad in order to have my Sarfari books and Books 24/7 library in my hands on demands, but that wasn't the case i got to the store and while talking to the genius about not knowing which version of the ipad to get i logged in to my safari account to launch a book and see how nice it was i got the error message that the page needed adobe flash. so i walked out in order to do more research

04-24-2010, 04:20 PM	#6
GuntherM1466 Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 30 Join Date: Jun 2009 Device: Kindle	You need to make sure that the HTML View is selected. It seems to select the HTML View automatically for me, but I'm not sure if that is because of a setting I'd set long ago.

04-25-2010, 09:24 AM	#7
pwalker8 Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,195 Karma: 70314280 Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Atlanta, GA Device: iPad Pro, iPad mini, Kobo Aura, Amazon paperwhite, Sony PRS-T2	There are some books that are flash only. I have no idea why. Most of the books that I have pulled up let you choose, but I have run across three or four that are flash only.

04-26-2010, 08:34 AM	#9
neous Member Posts: 15 Karma: 10 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: none	Thanks. Someone on the Macrumors forum pointed me to that html button which i tested on my iphone and the books on my bookshelf are working. Too bad about the Head first series cuz that's on my list. Anyway my order is in for the Ipad Thanks

04-26-2010, 02:21 PM	#10
RoseStClair Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: iPad	Safari Books Online is developing an app specifically for the iPad which will be available in July 2010. In the meantime, if you encounter books in the library that require flash (like the Head First books) you may consider viewing them via m.safaribooksonline.com.

04-29-2010, 08:51 AM	#11
menevets Connoisseur Posts: 88 Karma: 750010 Join Date: Nov 2009 Device: PRS-300/Kindle 4 basic/iPad/iPod Touch/iPhone/Nexus 7	OK, I rerouted my morning run towards the Apple store and tried Safari Books Online with the non-html books and based on a 10 minute test, I found some caveats. First, you have to use the m.safaribooksonline url - you don't get redirected because you have an iPad. With the Head First Books, say iPhone Development, the pages render as an image, so if you zoom out, you lose some image quality, but not too bad. With books that render as html in mobile but not the regular site, they look like they do on the iPhone, just bigger obviously. The biggest annoyance is the CAPTCHAs I kept getting. Every 3rd or 4th page in the Head First book, I got a CAPTCHA. That made it very unusable. Just a general complaint with the mobile version is that with all that real estate, they don't take advantage of the room to make navigation easier.

10-24-2010, 08:30 AM	#12
GuntherM1466 Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 30 Join Date: Jun 2009 Device: Kindle	Just and FYI - the Safari Ipad App is close to complete and should be released soon. It certainly looks awesome :-) http://safaribooksonline.wordpress.c...-safari-to-go/

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10-24-2010, 08:39 AM	#13
kennyc The Dank Side of the Moon Posts: 35,872 Karma: 118716293 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Denver, CO Device: Kindle2; Kindle Fire	See here: http://safaribooksonline.wordpress.c...ith-a-browser/

10-24-2010, 08:47 AM	#14
menevets Connoisseur Posts: 88 Karma: 750010 Join Date: Nov 2009 Device: PRS-300/Kindle 4 basic/iPad/iPod Touch/iPhone/Nexus 7	Thanks for the heads up Gunther. Love the offline feature - according to the response, you can have up to 10 books offline at a time and up to 30 different books a month if you're unlimited. That's awesome. Saves having to look for wifi and the battery. Also you can adjust the backlight color. That's handy too - I use white on black often.

10-25-2010, 04:45 AM	#15
murraypaul Interested Bystander Posts: 3,725 Karma: 19728152 Join Date: Jun 2008 Device: Note 4, Kobo One	Oh, that looks so nice. This would be a really useful tool for me. I wonder is the book limit is tied to your subscription type, and if so whether Library (vs Bookshelf) subscribers would have unlimited offline downloads.