Smart Book

Next week, an update containing a number of changes to the dictionary’s functionality will be released in the beta test. Functionally, nothing will change and you won’t notice any difference – this is an infrastructure update but it may cause temporary issues when using the dictionary. If you’d prefer to avoid these issues, you can opt out of the beta test via the link https://play.google.com/apps/testing/com.kursx.smartbook

I've refreshed the look of the website: https://smart-book.net You probably won't find anything useful for yourself there—there's nothing new. I just moved the core features overview and the FAQ section over. In the near future, I'll add user authentication so you can view purchase details and transaction history. I've wanted to give it a proper cleanup for a long time. Along with this one, I also updated the rest of my websites—feel free to check them out too if you're interested: https://tetsy.net https://alcogram.net https://kursx.net

Reading with translation from different translation services

Playing all words from the dictionary⁠⁠

How to get a free NVIDIA key and use it for reading and translation of books using open AI models

Instructions on how to add your API key for ChatGPT and use AI without a MAX subscription (but with PRO) and with any models (if you can pay for ChatGPT independently)

How to change a pronunciation voice, speaking rate, intonation and accent in iOS?

Autotranslation setting has been added to the iOS app P.S. The app is finally reaching a stage where I’m at least not ashamed of it. It’s still a long way from being a “highly recommended” app, but at least it’s usable 😁

Beta test: the ability to use any AI services with OpenAI-compatible chat protocols. Please ensure you have at least version 3.6.1717 installed You can share in the comments which free services you use, or which services offer free tokens

Problem resolved

There are problems on the servers provider side: Dear Customer, An emergency situation occurred while work was being performed on the cooling system. As a result, the normal operation of one of the data center modules has been disrupted. At this time, we are observing a significant rise in temperature and the shutdown of some equipment. Representatives from the service company, together with data center engineers and our technical support team, are doing everything possible to resolve the situation. The exact timeline for resolution is currently unknown. To assess the consequences as quickly as possible and restore equipment operation, the on-duty shift has already been reinforced with additional specialists. A detailed report on the incident will be provided once all the details have been clarified.

Premium users can now mark all the words in a chapter as Learned in just three taps

I have added the ability to save custom themes. This idea was suggested by a user here.

Today is the last day to buy Premium PRO at the cuurent price. Tomorrow, the price will increase by more than 50%.

The library of new books, featuring over 75,000 free titles

I’m continuing the topic of limitations that I started here. We have now fully switched to the new naming of plans: PRO (one-time payment) and MAX (subscription). We’ve tested API key functionality in PRO, so in terms of capabilities it is now almost on par with MAX. Therefore, I will continue increasing the price of PRO — if you’ve been postponing the purchase and missed the previous price, it’s better to hurry. I understand that many people don’t need all these AI features and API keys and just want to read and view word translations. That’s why the app now allows you to separately disable ads or remove limits with a one-time payment, which is much cheaper than the PRO plan. In addition, new limits for free users will be introduced in the app. There won’t be strict restrictions, but after reaching certain limits (for example, the number of imported books, notes, or words in the dictionary), you’ll need either to make a payment or watch an ad. P.S. I’ve started thinking about implementing a desktop version that will be available only to premium users (at least initially). I don’t believe that standalone desktop software can generate revenue (especially considering the widespread use of pirated versions that people are used to on desktop — my app gets cracked regularly, and there are dozens or hundreds of semi-functional hacked versions circulating online). But a desktop version as a premium-user privilege seems interesting to me and motivates me to work on it.

There are be technical issues with the main server today and, most likely, tomorrow. A temporary solution: switch to the US server in the Advanced Settings.

Screen brightness adjustment with swipes

📱 iOS 2.34 update - the app is gradually becoming more user-friendly - Dynamic translation panel with swipe controls - Adding your own AI actions - New store screen

🎁 But enough about the sad stuff. There are some positive outcomes too. 🎁 Access to any AI has been simplified, for any issue and at minimal cost. As far as I know, this level of customization flexibility is currently unmatched anywhere else. I think this functionality will prove its worth. AI services are becoming increasingly prevalent in our lives, and it will soon be difficult to imagine interacting with anything without AI. 🍎 Finally, the development of the iOS app has accelerated. Next year, it will go even faster, and many new features will be released on both platforms at once. Over the next year, the main functionality and appearance of iOS will come very close to Android. A lot of time was spent on this this year, which is not yet visible. 🌸 I started working on redesigning the app. It's not very noticeable yet, but gradually, I hope, the whole app will undergo a pleasant transformation. 🎁 We now have Tetsy. Although I've put it on hold, I'll soon devote some time to it so that AI speech synthesis has minimal delays. As it turns out, this app is more suitable for blind people who use smartphones through TalkBack, and for them it is much more important to hear a pleasant voice instead of a robot voice. Prices for high-quality speech synthesis are gradually falling, so soon it will become much more accessible to everyone.