Quote:
Originally Posted by SensualPoet
Yah, now that we have the ability to change font size; and in some cases "word per line" which alters margins or font family; I'm hungry for more. 
Is it really so hard to add the control: full justify vs ragged right vs "as shipped"?
Or for spacing between paragraphs: remove a line vs add a line vs "as shipped"?
Or for line spacing: more vs less vs "as shipped"?
Having access to these minor tweaks would go a LONG way to solving almost all the inept, thoughtful or plain bloody-minded formatting that passes for "commercial grade".
And, yes: strictly "on device" tweaks -- I have NO desire to ever even consider touching the actual file under the hood. |
And where does it stop? What if users want a 1.5em indent on new paragraphs instead of 1em? What if they want chapter headings to be 140% the body font size and flush left instead of 120% and centered? Etc.
Most commercial ebooks are prepared by outside digital production units that have little or no background in applying the basic typographic standards that have become standard in print. Publishers need to bring this in-house and ensure that their works are produced by people whose knowledge extends beyond designing a few web-pages. The finished product should be as suitable for reading as a printed book, without the user having to wade through a morass of options to customise the typography to his liking.
The only real justification for user-control is to handle the needs of large print, and that would be best handled with support for a separate css media-type to switch to formatting suitable for type which is large relative to the screen.