Discuss iPad apps here.
Jul 10th, 2014, 5:31 am
My folks are going to visit family in Ireland, and asked if I could get some ebooks for them to read on their flight. They both have tablets they've never really used, which I thought were the same as mine (A Samsung Galaxy Tab 3), so it was my intention to download the same reading app I use on mine (UB Reader) to theirs, and then import the ebooks to that for each one. As a result, I downloaded all their books in epub format.

It turns out my da's is actually an ipad- which I know next to nothing about- so I'm kind of in a bind.

I was wondering if, with the appropriate reading app, epub can even be read on an ipad?

And if so, could anyone recommend a free reading app for the ipad that is similar to UB Reader for Android?

If you're not familiar with UB Reader, it's a pretty basic reading app, which is what I want for them, since they aren't tech savvy.

The main features I'd like for it are:

1) Free
2) epub format friendly
3) Bookshelf View & List view (by title, author, date added, etc.)
4) A simple reading interface: a slider to go back or forward on pages; the ability to bookmark the current page, and ability to change text size (they both wear glasses, so increasing text size would be a great thing.
5) Other features I'd like, but aren't pivotal: ability to highlight/make notes, and ability to select a word that you can then choose to look up in a dictionary or on online (I know for the dictionary feature, I'll have to also upload a dictionary app too).


The most important thing is an easy interface- I'm afraid my da will get frustrated and just give up if it's too complicated. I've uploaded some screenshots from UB Reader, to give you an idea of what I'm looking for, aesthetically.

I do use Calibre, so worst case scenario, I can convert epub to another format, but I'd really like to keep epub if at all possible.


Any suggestions would be hugely appreciated. TIA :)

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Jul 10th, 2014, 5:31 am
Jul 10th, 2014, 6:12 am
I've an iPad and use it for all my reading. iPad comes with iBooks installed, which manages ePUBs just fine.

I rarely read books in any format other than ePUB, and until someone here recommended another reading app, iBooks was the only app I used. Just added whatever books I wanted to iTunes, then copied them over to the iPad.

Now I'm hooked on Marvin, a reading app exclusively for ePUBs, and the one that had been recommended by another Mobilist. I began with the free version, but within a day coughed up the few dollars to buy the full app. Marvin is loaded with features but what sold me was being able to download ePUBs from my DropBox account, directly from within the reading app. Works like a breeze.
Jul 10th, 2014, 6:12 am
Jul 10th, 2014, 7:14 am
RE: Marvin

I don't use dropbox, and my da definitely doesn't. Right now, I have the epub files for him saved to my SD card; nexxt time I see him, I plan to copy the files from the SD card to his ipad, so I don't have to give him my SD card.

That said: if I've downloaded Marvin already, where should I save the epub files, when I copy them from the card to the ipad? To a folder? To itunes? To Marvin?

For example, with my SG tab, I copy files from Calibre (on my laptop) to a “downloads” folder on the SG tab; once that's done, I open the UB Reader app, and then I manually import the new files from the “downloads” folder into UB Reader's library.

So where do I save the epub files to first? If it's a folder, do you know what it's called?

Also, do I need to run them through itunes before I import them to Marvin, or did you only have to do that when you used ibooks?


And about the free vs. premium:

I totally get what you're saying- I upgraded to premium with UB Reader after a day b/c I loved it so much, but all it really did was remove the ads. This was totally worth the cost for me, but I don't see my da using the ipad to read much after the flight, so I'd rather not pay for a premium version if it's not a big difference. That said, are there any major features that he won't get with the free one? Or is basically the same thing- to remove the ads?

Thank you so much for your help :)
Jul 10th, 2014, 7:14 am