BookCover-DL

BookCover-DL is a wxPython app I created to make it easier to grab book covers from a couple of services (currently lubimyczytac.pl and legimi.pl). I initially considered adding an ISBN lookup feature, but it didn't get fully developed. Right now, it can only verify whether the entered ISBN is a valid or invalid number.

Usage

Simply launch the app, paste the URL of the book (preferably lubimyczytac.pl) and click Ok or press enter. The cover will be saved in the same dir as an executable or main.py if executable not built. Note that legimi.pl adds their branding on the cover which I didn't know when I writing this app; but don't worry: the app will warn about it.

Why did I make this?

The main reason I built this was to help out a blind friend who needed an easy way to get book covers. It also served as a way for me to dive into Python and the wxPython library. That said, this code is more of a playground than a polished piece of software. So, don’t take it as a guideline on how things should be done.

What to expect?

The code is pretty messy, to be honest. I don't plan on making any big improvements – mostly because I don't have the time or the motivation anymore. But if you find it useful, that's awesome! There isn’t much out there that does this with a simple, screen reader-friendly UI, so I hope this fills that gap for someone.

Future Improvements

This code could really use a major rewrite and modularization. The current structure is quite messy, and a more modular approach would make it easier to maintain, extend, and understand. If you're interested in contributing, this could be a good area to focus on.

Another important aspect that could be improved is the look of the user interface (UI). Since I am blind, I designed the UI primarily for screen reader compatibility, focusing on making it accessible and functional rather than visually appealing. I can't personally verify how the UI looks, so it's possible that it could benefit from enhancements to make it more visually intuitive and attractive.

If you have experience with UI design, your contributions would be especially valuable in improving the visual aspects of the app. This could involve refining the layout, adding better styling, or making the interface more user-friendly for sighted users, while ensuring it remains accessible for those using screen readers.

How to develop?

If you want to tinker with the code, here's how you can get started:

1. Clone the repository:

   git clone https://github.com/PatrykMis/bookcover-dl.git

2. Navigate to the project directory:

   cd bookcover-dl

3. Install the required dependencies:

   pip install -r requirements.txt

   Note: This project has been tested with Python v3.12.x, v3.13.x and wxPython v4.2.x.

4. Run the application:

   python main.py

How to Build?

If you want to create an executable, here's how to do it using pyinstaller:

1. Build the application:

   pyinstaller build_split.spec

   Note: It's recommended to use the multi-file output option (build_split.spec instead of build_onefile.spec) as it works better for various reasons, including better handling of dependencies and easier troubleshooting.

2. After building, make sure to keep the generated .exe file together with the _internal folder. The executable relies on files in that folder to function properly.

How can you help?

Feel free to fork the repo or send a pull request if you want to clean up the code or add features. I’d appreciate any contributions, though my involvement in maintaining this project may be limited.

Final Thoughts

I hope this little app is useful to someone out there. It was fun to work on, and if it helps even one person, then it was worth the effort.

License

Copyright (C) 2024 Patryk Mis

This program is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program. If not, see https://www.gnu.org/licenses/.

This project uses third-party libraries with the following licenses:

• wxPython - wxWindows Library License
  Copyright (c) Robin Dunn

• validators - MIT License
  Copyright (c) 2013 - 2024 Konsta Vesterinen

• requests - Apache License 2.0
  Copyright (c) Kenneth Reitz

• isbnlib - GNU Lesser General Public License v3
  Copyright (C) 2014-2023 Alexandre Lima Conde

• urllib3 - MIT License
  Copyright (c) 2008-2024 Andrey Petrov and contributors

• Beautiful Soup 4 (bs4) - MIT License
  Copyright (c) Leonard Richardson

• pathvalidate - MIT License
  Copyright (c) 2016-2024 Tsuyoshi Hombashi

• unidecode - GPL v2
  Copyright 2024, Tomaž Šolc