Open-source e-book manager Calibre 9.16 released with new features
The latest version of the open-source e-book management software, Calibre 9.16, introduces Kokoro text-to-speech voices, enhanced PDF import capabilities, and performance improvements.
Calibre, the open-source e-book management software, has released version 9.16, bringing notable updates to its text-to-speech (TTS) functionality and file handling.
The new version integrates Kokoro, a synthetic voice technology, which can be selected through the Piper backend. Developers state that the Kokoro voice offers a more natural-sounding output, particularly for English text, compared to previous options.
Significant improvements have also been made to PDF import. Calibre 9.16 now supports recognizing right-to-left text within PDF files and enhances the handling of multi-column layouts. The software's ability to convert and process multi-column HTML into PDF formats has been optimized, addressing previous content loss issues.
Performance enhancements are also a key focus in this release. Operations such as launching the application, bulk deleting books, sorting by series, searching, and refreshing the tag browser have been accelerated. Additionally, Calibre's news download feature now supports Camoufox, a browser-based solution for extracting content from websites that employ anti-scraping measures.
Other updates include expanded functionalities for the editor's Check Book tool, improved tag mapping and sorting, and a reset button for the main window layout. Several conversion issues have also been resolved, including problems with EPUB 3 navigation links and DOCX file handling, alongside security hardening for the built-in content server.