# Install getxbook with Homebrew, Nix Tools to download ebooks from various sources. Version 1.2 via Homebrew; verified from local package data. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:getxbook ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install getxbook ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata ### Linux - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#getxbook ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/ge/getxbook/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:getxbook - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 1.2 - **Source summary:** Tools to download ebooks from various sources - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** ISC - **Source archive:** - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - getabook (cli) - getbnbook (cli) - getgbook (cli) - getabook (alias) - getbnbook (alias) - getgbook (alias) ## Dependencies - openssl@3 ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on arm64_big_sur, arm64_linux, arm64_monterey, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, arm64_ventura, big_sur, catalina, monterey, sonoma, ventura ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 1.2 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://njw.name/getxbook/ - info: No package-manager update timestamp was available. - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage getxbook is a small C toolkit for downloading page images from Google Books previews, Amazon Look Inside, and Barnes & Noble Book Viewer. Its place in package history is tied to offline reading, book privacy, and scriptable capture of preview-page services rather than to a large application ecosystem. ### Project history Nick White published getxbook as a collection of one-purpose tools: getgbook for Google Books, getabook for Amazon, getbnbook for Barnes & Noble, and an optional Tcl/Tk graphical frontend. The official page frames the project around reading privacy and offline control of page scans, while the download list records public source and binary releases in 2013 and 2015. ### Adoption history Adoption remained niche but visible in Unix package-manager culture. Homebrew carried the macOS formula, and the input package facts also list Nix packaging, which fits the tool's small, source-buildable shape. ### How it is used Practitioners use getxbook by choosing the site-specific command for a book source, letting the tool save page images into a local directory, and resuming partial downloads when a run is stopped. The surrounding scripts support conversion workflows such as searchable PDF, DjVu, and OCR-derived text. ### Why package nerds care getxbook is notable as a compact, portable C package with few dependencies beyond libc, sockets, and OpenSSL. For package maintainers, that makes it a classic small utility: easy to build, easy to audit, and heavily shaped by the fragility of the remote services it automates. ### Timeline - 2013: Version 1.1 binaries were published for Linux and Windows. - 2015: Version 1.2 source was published. - Homebrew era: A macOS formula made the command-line tools installable with brew. ### Related projects - The official comparison page discusses PySheng, Google Book Downloader, and a Google Book Downloader userscript as nearby tools with narrower service coverage or heavier dependencies. ### Sources - - - - ## Security Notes broad file, network, media, or database tool signal. - **Geiger risk:** blue / medium - broad file, network, media, or database tool signal ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** getxbook - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 1 - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Nix - getxbook: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/ge/getxbook/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Related links - [Secret-risk packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/secret-risk-packages/) - Has protected-tool coverage, approval-gate, or non-low Geiger security signals. - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Networking and protocol packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/networking-protocol-tools/) - Matched network, protocol, or remote-service metadata. - [Productivity CLI packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/productivity-cli-packages/) - Matched curated productivity category metadata from av.db. - [openssl@3](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/openssl-3/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [papeer](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/papeer/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, ebooks, productivity. - [cbonsai](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cbonsai/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c, cli, productivity. - [joe](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/joe/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c, cli, productivity. - [liblouis](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/liblouis/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c, cli, productivity. - [moodle-dl](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/moodle-dl/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, downloader, productivity. - [nedit](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/nedit/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c, cli, productivity. - [odt2txt](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/odt2txt/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c, cli, productivity. - [snownews](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/snownews/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: c, cli, productivity. - [megatools](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/megatools/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, download, openssl, openssl-3, productivity. - [alpine](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/alpine/) - Local package facts share a topical domain. Shared terms: cli, openssl, openssl-3, productivity. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/getxbook.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/getxbook.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph