2026.
FBReader improved EPUB format support on desktop
FBReader has updated its desktop versions for Linux, macOS and Windows. Reliability of bookmark syncing with mobile devices has been improved, ePub support has been significantly enhanced and the interface has been translated into Esperanto. It also includes support for OPDS 2.0 and integration with the Readino bookstore. The Android app is optimized for devices with Viwoods e-ink devices, includes the same ePub support improvements as the desktop versions and fixes several long-standing issues, including a crash when editing bookmarks.
2026.
Send to Kindle is now a paid feature in Instapaper
Instapaper, the service for delayed reading of online articles, has announced that the "Send to Kindle" feature is now available only to subscribers of the paid Instapaper Premium plan. A representative stated that creating Kindle digests is a resource-intensive process. It involves parsing numerous articles, downloading images for each article, burning everything to disk, creating an ePub file and sending it to Kindle email address. As the number of subscribers grew, creating Kindle digests became more expensive for everyone and the service had been operating at a loss for some time. Instapaper Premium costs $5.99 per month.
2025.
Google Play Books purchases on iOS now can be done without App Store’s commission
Google has
managed to wrangle permission to sell its e-books and audiobooks directly through its Google Play Books app on iOS. This is, of course, a bit like being given permission to breathe, but only after filing the appropriate paperwork in triplicate. Historically, iOS apps have been allowed to display content you purchased elsewhere—like a book you heroically hunted down on the vast and treacherous plains of the internet—but actually directing users to a website to make a purchase has required a special dispensation from Apple, presumably written on parchment and delivered by a messenger on horseback. Now, thanks to an announcement that was likely drafted with a certain amount of quiet glee, Google has revealed that users will be able to click a handy little “Get book” button, which will whisk them away to the Google Play website, where they can finalize their purchase using their Google Account and saved payment details, all while carefully sidestepping Apple’s infamous 30% toll. This, naturally, is a development that Apple will watch with the enthusiasm of a cat observing a rival feline encroach upon its sunbeam.
2025.
Smashing - AI-powered app for reading articles
Smashing, a new application curating the finest of the web from Goodreads co-founder Otis Chandler, is now accessible to the public. Like Goodreads, the app aims to build a community around content. But this time, instead of books, the emphasis is on web content — such as news articles, blog posts, social media updates, podcasts and more. Additionally, Smashing is unveiling an AI Questions feature that enables you to interact with the content being shared in various ways, including by viewing a news story from alternate perspectives or asking the AI to critique the story, among other things. By exploring different facets of a story, you can see how both the political left and right perceive the topic. Or, in the case of a company’s stock, you might be shown both the optimistic and pessimistic viewpoints.
