Please make footnotes usable!

djloewen · 12-17-2010, 08:44 AM

So I'm a big fan of Kobo, and with the latest firmware update the device is even better. I have two single complaints left with it, and since one of those two issues (that it ignores imbedded fonts) just got its own thread, I figured I'd start one for the other

.

The books I purchase from Kobo are about 50% fiction, 50% non-fiction. The books I read on my Kobo are 90% fiction. The problem, of course, is footnote links. The books that I've bought that have them, I'm just sitting on for now, waiting for Kobo to implement one crucial feature to make them readable.

Currently I have two options: When I get to a footnote, I can attempt to use the index to browse to the "footnotes" section, then page through until I find the right one, then use the index to go back to the chapter I was in and page through to where I was. This just flat out isn't going to happen. Do other people do this?

My other choice is to read the book ignoring the footnotes, and then read them all in a bunch at the end of the book. This it really, really useless. I've chosen the third option of waiting until Kobo implements a link-clicking feature.

Here's a possible solution: whenever the book is on a page with links on it, the up/down arrows switch from "text size" mode (which can still be changed from the "display" menu) to "select links" mode, where each click up/down moves you to the next/previous link on the page. Pressing "select" (center on the d-pad) activates the link and sends you to the footnote.

If anyone has better suggestions, please share. If you've ever read a book with a footnote and this sounds good to you, please make some noise! If you haven't, but it sounds like a good idea anyway, feel free to make some noise too

pholy · 12-17-2010, 09:28 AM

Your suggestion looks reasonable to me, although you didn't mention how to get back

For that I would suggest the automatic on-the-fly creation of the back link (pushing on a stack of back links?), then using the back button to return. (I don't like the amount of work involved in embedding the back links in the footnote text.)
There was a discussion of footnote implementation in the Workshop/Epub forum some time ago; it's probably worth reviewing (left as an exercise for the interested reader

).

djloewen · 12-17-2010, 10:01 AM

I believe that (usually at least) the footnotes include links in both directions - so if there's an linked asterisk in the text, you click and it takes you to the footnote. Then you click the asterisk (or number or whatever) next to the footnote and it takes you right back to where you were. It's a very neat solution IMO

dmacmart · 12-17-2010, 11:22 AM

I don't read a lot of books with footnotes. But I would use my iPhone, the desktop app, or ADE to read the footnotes in the very rare instances I encounter them.

taming · 12-17-2010, 12:40 PM

Hyperlinks are enabled for newspapers and magazine, so it can be done. The trade-off in that case is that the top and down positions on the dpad no longer adjust font size--one does that from the menu. I have no idea if Kobo is thinking about including it in a future release or not. My preference would be to see it as an option, in the way we can choose different sleep behaviours. That would let folks who almost never read books with footnotes or end notes keep it the same, if they wish. I have absolutely no idea if that is doable, or not.

artig · 12-17-2010, 02:38 PM

My Kobo reading consists of about 95% non-fiction, and probably 90% of those books have footnotes or endnotes. The first books were bought and downloaded in Kobo format. Which does not display illustrations, making many non-fiction books useless. I was ready to dump the Kobo until I learned about ADE and Calibre.

Now my main complaint is the lack of a simple means to go to footnotes or endnotes and then return to the original point in the text. I always read footnotes, but don't always read endnotes when reading paper books, so I've lived with it, but would like Kobo to fix it in the next release. In the meantime I have the Kindle which does allow reading footnotes.

taming · 12-17-2010, 03:32 PM

Kepubs now display illustrations, artig!

12-17-2010, 08:44 AM	#1
djloewen Connoisseur Posts: 52 Karma: 30 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo eReader	Please make footnotes usable! So I'm a big fan of Kobo, and with the latest firmware update the device is even better. I have two single complaints left with it, and since one of those two issues (that it ignores imbedded fonts) just got its own thread, I figured I'd start one for the other . The books I purchase from Kobo are about 50% fiction, 50% non-fiction. The books I read on my Kobo are 90% fiction. The problem, of course, is footnote links. The books that I've bought that have them, I'm just sitting on for now, waiting for Kobo to implement one crucial feature to make them readable. Currently I have two options: When I get to a footnote, I can attempt to use the index to browse to the "footnotes" section, then page through until I find the right one, then use the index to go back to the chapter I was in and page through to where I was. This just flat out isn't going to happen. Do other people do this? My other choice is to read the book ignoring the footnotes, and then read them all in a bunch at the end of the book. This it really, really useless. I've chosen the third option of waiting until Kobo implements a link-clicking feature. Here's a possible solution: whenever the book is on a page with links on it, the up/down arrows switch from "text size" mode (which can still be changed from the "display" menu) to "select links" mode, where each click up/down moves you to the next/previous link on the page. Pressing "select" (center on the d-pad) activates the link and sends you to the footnote. If anyone has better suggestions, please share. If you've ever read a book with a footnote and this sounds good to you, please make some noise! If you haven't, but it sounds like a good idea anyway, feel free to make some noise too

12-17-2010, 09:28 AM	#2
pholy Booklegger Posts: 1,801 Karma: 7999816 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada Device: BeBook(1 & 2010), PEZ, PRS-505, Kobo BT, PRS-T1, Playbook, Kobo Touch	Your suggestion looks reasonable to me, although you didn't mention how to get back For that I would suggest the automatic on-the-fly creation of the back link (pushing on a stack of back links?), then using the back button to return. (I don't like the amount of work involved in embedding the back links in the footnote text.) There was a discussion of footnote implementation in the Workshop/Epub forum some time ago; it's probably worth reviewing (left as an exercise for the interested reader ). Last edited by pholy; 12-17-2010 at 09:29 AM. Reason: typo - insensitive keyboard...

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12-17-2010, 10:01 AM	#3
djloewen Connoisseur Posts: 52 Karma: 30 Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo eReader	I believe that (usually at least) the footnotes include links in both directions - so if there's an linked asterisk in the text, you click and it takes you to the footnote. Then you click the asterisk (or number or whatever) next to the footnote and it takes you right back to where you were. It's a very neat solution IMO

12-17-2010, 11:22 AM	#4
dmacmart Fanatic Posts: 531 Karma: 696908 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Ottawa Canada Device: Kobo Mini, Glo, Arc, H2O, iPhone, iPad 2, (husband)Touch	I don't read a lot of books with footnotes. But I would use my iPhone, the desktop app, or ADE to read the footnotes in the very rare instances I encounter them.

12-17-2010, 12:40 PM	#5
taming Trying for calm & polite Posts: 4,012 Karma: 9455193 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mostly in Canada Device: kobo original, WiFI, Touch, Glo, and Aura	Hyperlinks are enabled for newspapers and magazine, so it can be done. The trade-off in that case is that the top and down positions on the dpad no longer adjust font size--one does that from the menu. I have no idea if Kobo is thinking about including it in a future release or not. My preference would be to see it as an option, in the way we can choose different sleep behaviours. That would let folks who almost never read books with footnotes or end notes keep it the same, if they wish. I have absolutely no idea if that is doable, or not.

12-17-2010, 02:38 PM	#6
artig Zealot Posts: 137 Karma: 681012 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: New Zealand Device: kobo, kindle pw	My Kobo reading consists of about 95% non-fiction, and probably 90% of those books have footnotes or endnotes. The first books were bought and downloaded in Kobo format. Which does not display illustrations, making many non-fiction books useless. I was ready to dump the Kobo until I learned about ADE and Calibre. Now my main complaint is the lack of a simple means to go to footnotes or endnotes and then return to the original point in the text. I always read footnotes, but don't always read endnotes when reading paper books, so I've lived with it, but would like Kobo to fix it in the next release. In the meantime I have the Kindle which does allow reading footnotes.

12-17-2010, 03:32 PM	#7
taming Trying for calm & polite Posts: 4,012 Karma: 9455193 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Mostly in Canada Device: kobo original, WiFI, Touch, Glo, and Aura	Kepubs now display illustrations, artig!

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