Import DRM-free EPUB books into Strobe on your Mac, navigate by chapter, and control playback with the keyboard or trackpad.
Which EPUBs Strobe can open
Strobe imports DRM-free EPUB 2 and EPUB 3 books. It checks for encrypted reading content during import and reports protected books.
Some DRM-free books include an encryption file only to obscure their embedded fonts. That is not DRM, and those books import normally.
Public-domain classics are easy to find as DRM-free EPUBs from Project Gutenberg and Standard Ebooks, and some publishers and stores sell DRM-free editions of newer books. Strobe also reads plain text and Markdown files.
Import a book
Choose File > Import File… or press Command-O and select the EPUB, or drag the file from Finder onto the library window. Strobe reads the book in its intended order, strips the markup, and removes page furniture such as page numbers and repeated headers.
The book’s table of contents becomes its chapter list, nested sections included. Strobe gives each book a generated cover, and the book you are reading waits at the top of the library under Continue Reading.
To read something that isn’t a file, such as an article, press Command-N for New Text… and paste it in.
Read by chapter
Opening a book shows its page: the cover, a button to start, resume, or read again, your progress, and every chapter with its reading time at the book’s speed. Choose a chapter to start there.
At a new chapter, Strobe briefly shows the title, then continues past the heading. You can also keep the book title or current chapter at the top of the screen during playback.
Chapter lengths are estimated from the word count and the book’s speed. With Smart Timing or Punctuation Pauses on, each chapter takes somewhat longer than its estimate.
Keyboard and trackpad controls
Space starts and pauses reading. The left and right arrow keys step back or forward one word, and Escape closes the reader or the book’s page. While paused, the reader lists these shortcuts at the bottom of the screen.
You can also click and hold to read. While holding, drag up or down to change speed for that stretch; letting go returns to the book’s speed. The slider at the top of the reader sets the book’s speed, and each book keeps its own.
Strobe’s windows can be any size, and long words shrink to fit a narrow one. A small reader window beside your notes works well for study reading.
Settings for long books
Open Quotes and Parentheses, in the Display tab of Settings, keeps an opening mark above the word until it closes. Previous and Next Words shows neighboring words beside the current one: readable while paused and dimmed during playback.
For evening reading, choose a softer Text Color such as Soft, Sepia, or Night; the true black background is on by default. Strobe includes seven typefaces and text sizes from 24 to 72 points.
Punctuation Pauses give dialogue and long sentences natural beats, and Blank After Sentences adds a short empty screen between sentences if the stream feels relentless. Both are in the Timing tab.
Sources
Product sources
This guide is written by Jaafar Abdeen, Strobe’s developer. For current app compatibility and features, check the Strobe App Store listing. The public source code documents the implementation.