Quote:
Originally Posted by AJ Starr
So what is it about the different ebook formats that causes a person to prefer one over the other?
I have experience with Word Perfect files, txt, rtf, prc/mobi, epub, and of course pdb. I have not had experience with fb2, ereader, lit, ???, ...
|
1) Different devices read different formats differently. Sony PRS's read LRF as fully justified, but won't read ePub as justified, regardless of the CSS involved. Astaks are not good with .lit files; something about the way they're set up is prone to being scrambled. (I don't have an Astak device so I don't know the details; I'd assume the margins are likely to be too big, or indents are too big, or it adds extra line breaks between paragraphs, and it may move images around horribly. It may also run paragraphs together if they're short, depending on how the .lit was set up.)
The default fonts & character support may be different for different formats--some readers make txt files look good; on others, they're awful. And other device features vary by program--the Kindle doesn't annotate PDFs; the Sony doesn't allow metadata for txt files; other devices might only allow bookmarks or dictionary support for some filetypes.
2) Customizability. The device may allow custom settings for some formats and not others; the user may know how to edit some formats and not others. The ability to make personal CSS files allows a person to adjust (non-DRM'd) ePubs to his or her preferences; RTF is easily changeable by anyone.
3) Graphics. EReader PDB allows a max of 64kb per image; that means no quality graphics that'll fill a grayscale 600x800 pixel screen. (PDB was designed for 160x160 pixel screens on devices with 8mb total internal memory.) Not sure if Mobi has limitations on image size, but Mobipocket Creator may automatically condense images. Some formats don't support images (txt, palmdoc PDB); some devices may not see images in some formats (the Sony series doesn't see images in RTFs, and there've been problems with some ePubs).
4) Conversion/creation ability. I prefer custom PDFs designed for the 6" screen--but that's in part because I have all the software necessary to make them, and a lot of practice doing so. People comfortable with Mobipocket creator may prefer those to ePub because they're familiar with them, because they know what features to expect and what features they won't encounter in a file.
5) Professional ebook design. Some publishers are more careful with others about their formatting, and a person could learn to prefer whichever format their favorite publisher does best.
I'm probably missing other nuances, but that's what comes to mind right off.