Why Alethia?

This was a solo-dev POC born from the lack of features existing iOS readers offer, and was a good learning experience shifting to learning mobile-first development.

It is mainly self-driven by my own needs as a reader, and I wanted to build something that solved the problems I had with existing apps.

The main incentive was visuals - there is a lot of untapped potential in iOS for a reading experience that is not being explored and utilised by existing apps.

The other spiel is that after switching from Android to iOS, a large number of features I used to have were just not considered or supported in the iOS space.

Ultimately, this project holds a 'me-first' philosophy of features I wanted to see in a reader. Gatekeeping the effort to just myself feels off-putting, so sharing to the wider community with no expectations on how it is received - just putting it out there. Feel free to request additional features or report bugs but ultimately this is a side-project I work on in my spare time.

A New Model for Multi-Source Reading

Alethia uses a similar model to other multi-source readers — you still find and connect to sources. The core difference is where those sources live.

The main incentive of this model is to reduce maintenance and improve reliability for developers who create and maintain sources, in a way where a basic understanding of web APIs and hosting is all that is required.

Server-Side Sources

Instead of installing and managing extensions, Alethia connects to hosts that run sources for you. Find a host, connect once, and you're set.

• No extensions to manage — Sources just work, no installing or updating
• Fixes happen automatically — When something breaks, fixes from the maintainer are designed so you get the fix immediately
• New features with one tap — When a host adds new capabilities, the app notifies you and you update with a tap
• Your host, your data — Reading activity stays between you and your host

What This Means in Practice

This architecture shifts responsibility. Alethia is just a client — the app connects to hosts and displays what they provide. Whether your reading experience is good or bad depends largely on the hosts and sources you choose to use.

• Alethia doesn't control sources — If a source breaks or disappears, that's on the host maintainer, not Alethia
• No guarantees — Hosts are maintained by their own developers with their own priorities
• Your mileage may vary — Some hosts are well-maintained, others aren't

This isn't a criticism of the model — it's just how it works. The tradeoff is less complexity on the app side and more flexibility for source developers.

Layers of Trust

This new architectural design may be unfamiliar to some, but is ultimately identical to what currently exists. You should find and use only hosts you trust, much like the traditional extension model. Here are some tips to help you choose a host you can trust:

• Reputation — Look for hosts with a good track record in the community
• Transparency — Prefer hosts that are open-source or provide clear information about their operations
• Privacy Policy — Review the host's privacy policy to understand how your data is handled
• Community Feedback — Check forums or communities for user experiences with the host

Offline-First

Your library, reading progress, and metadata are stored locally on your device. Browse your collection, see what's unread, and pick up where you left off — even without an internet connection.

Download chapters for offline reading. Content you've downloaded is always available, no network required.

Your data stays put. Some readers will remove chapters, titles and metadata from your library if they disappear from a source — Alethia doesn't. Your library only changes when you choose to change it.

The Name

From my professional experience its often better to just think of a cool sounding name, and roll with it.