[Nook Touch Themes and Apps] nmyshkin:
9-5-21: Well...there are new SSL issues with all comics in the list that have an "a" designation. All of the "u" comics continue to work and if you exclude "a" selections from your list, the app functions properly. I'm looking at this but so far have come up empty. It's a shame. If I can find a workaround or alternate source for the affected comics (or at least some of them), I'll update the app. Otherwise.... In the meantime, the Washington Post has an Opera Mini-friendly comics page which includes quite a few selections (many on the "a" list): https://washingtonpost.com/entertainment/comics/

*updated to version 1.4--uninstall any previous versions first

fixed issue with Sunday comics

This app is designed to shamelessly emulate one of my favorite little apps that never did run below Jellybean and is now gone from the PlayStore anyway. A long time ago I posted a simple HTML template to enable viewing a selection of newspaper comic strips from a few sites in your browser. Time marches on and now those sites have mostly left browsers like Opera Mobile in the dust :(

Today's Comics is a Tasker-created app that allows you to download any of 157 newspaper comic strips at present. It has a simple GUI designed for the NST/G and relies on apps you might already have for ancillary tasks like viewing the comics and editing the list of comics to download. See screenshot below.

How to install

Download the attached zip. Unzip the file and transfer the contents to your Nook SD card. If you already have one of my other Tasker-generated apps or have previously installed GApps, you don't need the two Google maps library files and can delete them. If you do need them, copy the two files into the locations shown below:

/system/etc/permissions/com.google.android.maps.xml

/system/framework/com.google.android.maps.jar

Set permissions for both files to rw-r--r-- and reboot. Without these files resident, the app will not install.

Next, create in the root of your SD card the folder "TodaysComics" (exactly as you see here--this has changed from earlier versions!). Move the comics_list.txt file from the contents of the zip to this folder. This is where your comics will end up.

Install the app by tapping on it in your file manager (wherever you put it).

Download the CURL zip package, unzip and follow the instructions contained inside to install CURL on your device. Reboot after the install.

How to use

The comics_list.txt file lists all of the comics currently available. The file as you get it has every choice "commented out" by a period (.) at the beginning of each line. That means if you select the "Get Comics" option without doing anything else, you will get NO comics! You can edit the file on your NST/G if you have some kind of app that handles txt files. I use the text editor that is part of ES File Explorer [included with the zip]. You can also pull the file, edit the text file on a PC and then put it back on the NST/G. To select a comic for download simply remove the period (.) from the beginning of the line. Don't make any other changes, introduce line breaks, etc. If you designate your chosen editor as the "default" for the action then it will automatically open when you select the "Edit Comics" option in the future. On closing the editor you will return to the Today's Comics screen.

Even if you select only 5 comics, the app must scan the entire list. This actually does not take too long, but if you want to streamline things, you could create your own comics_list.txt file containing only the comics you want (i.e., there would be

no

lines beginning with a period). Put the original in a safe place or rename it comics_list.bak

Once the list is edited you're ready to download comics!

In the current version you have the option to autoview the comics once the download is complete. You can tap on that box if you like ("x" should appear and will be remembered until you tap again). Then tap on "Get Comics".

You need to be connected to WiFi (in fact, you will be warned about that if you are not). As comics download there is a toast for each one and then finally a completion toast. Basically the system is "locked" until that point. You can actually make the app screen disappear by tapping either "Exit" or the "Back" button, but the collection of comics will continue until done. I do not recommend trying to force an exit. You might be left with a screen artifact that is difficult to get rid of.

Once the download is complete, you will be taken to the viewer of your choice if you have the "autoview" box checked. Otherwise you can select the "View Comics" option. You can also "Exit" and return to view the comics later. The next time you download comics the new ones will overwrite the old ones. You can, of course, use your file explorer to find the comics and view them outside the app menu system. If you are using the app, you will be presented with a variety of choices based on what else you have installed. Again, I happen to like ES File Explorer's Image Viewer but QuickPic also works (and is in the zip file). Some viewers run in full screen and you need a way out so I have added a discreet semi-transparent "back" arrow at the upper left corner of whatever viewer you have (

root required

to access keyevent). If you need it, it's there. If you don't, ignore it until you're done and then tap it to make it go away. The "Exit" button of the app will also clear the back arrow. Unfortunately the "Gallery" app that is on the NST/G only sees .pngs and only in the /media folder--and doesn't update. I'm sure there are other options.

I highly recommend landscape mode

, considering the shape of most comic strips.

Can I run this app on other devices?

Maybe. There's no reason why the "innards" would not perform correctly, but the one drawback of Tasker-generated apps is that the GUI is device specific. That means this is designed for an 800x600 screen. On larger screens you'll probably see a floating app, while smaller screens will scrunch things up.