MAL Updater OS X

Open Source macOS Scrobbler for Kitsu and AniList

MAL Library

Year in Review and Roadmap to the Future

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With 2018 coming to a close, it’s time to take a glimpse of what we accomplished

  • Raised about $323.39 in total donations for 2018.
  • Pushed out 53 stable releases in total (Hachidori, MAL Updater OS X, MAL Library, Nekomata, Shukofukurou, and Shukofukurou for iOS)
  • Added AniList and Kitsu support to Hachidori and Shukofukurou
  • Released an iOS version of Shukofukurou
  • Created an list exporter for Windows Users

While MyAnimeList disappoints with their takedown of their public API, we are still able to generate enough funding to continue the project and add features to our software and applications.

Here is what we have planned for 2019.

Patreon

Since there is now one active patron, we will wait to see how it goes and evaluate it in a few months.

Hachidori

We plan on rewriting parts of Hachidori so it will become easier to maintain and add new services in the future. This work will start with Hachidori 3.1. Also, we plan on adding a few more features for donors as well. More will be revealed in the future.

Shukofukurou for iOS

While we are still waiting for MyAnimeList API to return, we plan on possibly creating an Apple Watch app that allows users to make simple edits to their libraries for titles they are currently watching or plan to watch. The Watch App will be free and included in the iOS version of Shukofukurou as you need the app to authenticate the app on the Apple Watch.

Offline updating support will possibly be added in the next release as well.

List Syncing

Another feature I want to add for Shukofukurou is List Syncing. This will not be a free service as I would need to build a web API to translate title ids for both Anime and Manga and host it somewhere. I will possibly add support for online list backups as well. I plan to make this into a yearly subscription service for a low price of possibly $2.99 a year to help cover server costs. Other app developers will be able to use this service as well as long they pay a yearly fee similar to a regular user would for an API key. The web API implementation will be open source.

With that, this is what we have planned for 2019. With that, we wish everyone a Happy Holidays and a safe and Happy New Year.

MyAnimeList API Update

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Dear Users,

Thank you for using MyAnimeList.

We are currently reviewing the steps necessary to complete development of a new API, which would allow third party applications to function again. Up until this point, third party applications have made use of an older API to interface with MAL, allowing them to interact with the site and function. When the API was disabled at the end of May, this caused the majority of third party applications to stop functioning, as they were no longer able to interact with the site. It was also at this time that we elected to remove the official MyAnimeList application from the Google Play Store. In the spirit of fair competition, we intend to keep the official application only available to those who already had it downloaded, until such a time as third party applications are again available.

At this point we have no other information to share, but aim to provide bi-weekly updates on the situation.

Thank you for your patience, understanding and continued support of MyAnimeList.

In short, we still do not know when the new API will be finished. While some work on using the new API was done in April/May for MAL Updater OS X, they pulled the private beta. We currently do not know when the API will be finished as their statement suggests. This means that it will take weeks, if not months for them to complete the new API. We do not intend to do any workarounds until the official API returns.
With that, the Unofficial MAL API will be taken down by the end of September since the old API will not returning and most of the main functionality will not work since it depends on the old API. We intend to have all our MyAnimeList apps (MAL Updater OS X, MAL Library (list updating and basic info only), and Shukofukurou) to use the official API exclusively once it releases. Note that it will probably take less time to implement the new API for MAL Updater OS X since the work is done, but it may need a few changes if there are any differences since the new API was last up.
We apologize for the continued inconvenience for over 100 days. This situation is out of our hands, but hopefully it will end well.

MAL Library 2.5.7 Released

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This release will show a notification for end of life support as MAL Library will only receive bug fixes. This is because MAL Library will not be transitioning to the new Official MAL API, which will happen later this year, only Shukofukurou. MAL Library will be usable until the end of the year, which is subject to change when the legacy Official MAL API is shut down.

Note that we cannot provide upgrades via the Mac App Store nor we can reference the free upgrade through the non-app store version, only the full Mac App Store version. If you purchased MAL Library recently (after March 1, 2018), you can request a free promo code by sending proof of purchase (iTunes receipt) to  ateliershiori@moyit.pro.

New Official MAL API and future of our Apps

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As the New Official MAL API comes near, we will outline the plans we have for our apps. Everyone should be aware that we released the first alpha of MAL Updater OS X 2.5, which uses the new API. As the new API matures, we plan on transitioning Shukofukurou and Hachidori to use the new API for MyAnimeList.

If you are a developer and trying to figure out how to implement the new API, I suggest taking a look at our code. The new API uses OAuth just like AniList and Kitsu, but it have a few differences as it requires the application to generate a PKCE (Proof Key for Code Exchange) key.

As for future support, MAL Updater OS X 2.3.x, Shukofukurou and Hachidori will transition to the new API sometime this year. However, MAL Library won’t since Shukofukurou replaces it. However, it will be usable until the end of the year.

In short, once we fully transition, the unofficial API server is no longer needed, which reduces our development costs sightly. In short, we still have the cost of the Apple’s Developer Program, which costs $99.

With that, thanks for the continued support.

MAL Library 3.0 Alpha 6 now released

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The 6th alpha of MAL Library 3.0 is now released. This release includes a bunch of bug fixes and adds importing of MAL, AniDB, and Kitsu anime lists to AniList. This is the last Alpha build I plan on creating as we will head to the Beta stage. The Beta stage will focus on optimizing, refactoring, creating unit tests and reviewing all the code for the final release around in late May or early June.

You can update to this build by checking for updates.

The changelog is below;

New Features

  • Add Support for importing MAL XML, AniDB XML and Kitsu anime lists into AniList.

Bug Fixes and Enhancements

  • Tweaked how Manga types appear
  • Kitsu search results will no longer duplicate itself and properly show 40 search entries
  • Add missing Add Title Popover for Season and Airing views for AniList
  • Improved AniList <> Kitsu and AniList <> MAL Title ID conversion
  • Fix enabling/disabling of login and authorize button.
  • Kitsu logged in username will no longer erase itself when the user logs out of the AniList account
  • Fix crashes when user attempts to load a NSFW title and the application not properly loading the placeholder image.
  • Kitsu User id no longer loads the AniList User id
  • Use existing AniList APIs to retrieve AniList anime library to import
  • Add missing chapters info in title information view
  • Use large poster images for Kitsu in the Title Information view
  • Reset Profile Browser and Character Browser windows when they are closed
  • Close the List Statistics for a profile when the Profile Browser window is closed

Known Issues

  • Character browser still using MyAnimeList data when Kitsu service is used. This is because the Character and Staff APIs are incomplete on Kitsu.
  • This release may use a lot of memory (up to 100mb). I am working on memory optimization in the next few release after the feature set freeze before Beta;
  • MAL Library Safari Extension does not fully work yet. It will work in the Beta
  • Other undiscovered bugs.

MAL Library 3.0 Alpha 5 is now Released

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At last, after several hours of work, MAL Library now works with AniList with almost the same feature set as MyAnimeList. Things like the character browser will use AniList data. However, Adult content is censored by default, meaning that no poster image nor summary will come up. This is because I want to comply with Mac App Store guidelines in regards to rating. The same will eventually apply to MyAnimeList and Kitsu. However, these changes will only apply to the App Store version so we can comply to the 12+ App Store rating.

With that, this only leaves importing of Kitsu/AniList Manga lists and list importers support for AniList. Once finished, we can finally go to Beta, hopefully in mid-May which will only focus on optimization. I am hoping to release a final version in June. In short, we are getting closer.

To download MAL Library 3.0 Alpha 5:  MAL Library Prerelease (1 download)