file formats?

fishcube · 10-18-2007, 12:10 AM

What file formats work best with the Sony Readers? I've found quite a few free sites with ebooks, but want to download the best file format.

Example: Manybooks.net has Sony lrf, RTF and ereader etc. and what format at Gutenberg do I choose?

RWood · 10-18-2007, 12:19 AM

LRF is the Sony format. It can also display RTF and TXT files (without graphics.) It is said that DOC files can also be used as they are translated through the new Sony Connect software (does not work with my current software for the PRS-500.)

On the MobileRead Wiki Conversion page is a link to Stingo's Word Macro that will remove the hard line breaks at the end of each line in the Project Gutenberg text files. The file can then be saved as RTF and loaded to the Reader.

Most of us use either libprs500 or BookDesigner to create LRF files for the Reader. Both can take almost any file and create an LRF file. Many prefer to use an HTML as the source file.

JSWolf · 10-18-2007, 02:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fishcube

What file formats work best with the Sony Readers? I've found quite a few free sites with ebooks, but want to download the best file format.

Example: Manybooks.net has Sony lrf, RTF and ereader etc. and what format at Gutenberg do I choose?

If you download books from Manybooks, what I do is download in HTML and then run the text through Book Designer since their machine generated LRF is not very nice to read. Margins way too big, line spaces after every paragraph, and no ToC. So I make my own version which is a lot nicer.

From PG, I download in HTML if possible and format it using either html2lrf or Book Designer. if I cannot get HTML from PG, then I download the text and use Word to clean it up and then use BD to make the LRF.

if you find a decently formatted LIT file (without DRM), you can always use lit2lrf to convert fairly easily.

dhbailey · 10-18-2007, 04:41 AM

JSWolf and RWOOD have given great answers.

Regarding PG books, I simply run the text files through a program I downloaded from one of the librie groups at yahoogroups, which strips out the extraneous HRt characters so the text within each paragraph flows nicely on the Sony Reader and I don't bother with fancy tables of contents and links to each chapter, etc that are possible with BookDesigner and other tools you can download from this site.

But then I haven't shared any of the e-text files I have since they are not ready for prime-time and anybody can simply download the same files I start with and do the same thing with no trouble whatsoever. I enjoy reading them and simply haven't got the time necessary to do more to fancy them up.

There's even a Microsoft Word macro somewhere in this forum (or at least a link in one of the sticky FAQs on preparing files for the reader) that does the same thing but I don't have Microsoft Word on my computer, and it actually takes longer to use a macro on a text file in WordPerfect than to use the standalone converter program.

So it all depends on the reading experience you want -- there are wonderful books (many of them!) which the gracious members of this forum have posted for download, already fancied up with linked tables of contents and much more work than I do on files for my own reading, so you already have a wonderful library available for free.

rgd · 10-19-2007, 03:17 PM

I apologize for this basic question...but I am planning to buy a Sony Reader soon and I have a question on the books that are available to download here...

What do I exactly have to do? Click on the link and save it and then transfer it to the Reader? Is that how it works?

I am sorry for the stupid question but I'm a newbie here.

delphidb96 · 10-19-2007, 04:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgd

I apologize for this basic question...but I am planning to buy a Sony Reader soon and I have a question on the books that are available to download here...

What do I exactly have to do? Click on the link and save it and then transfer it to the Reader? Is that how it works?

I am sorry for the stupid question but I'm a newbie here.

Don't remember the process right off-hand, but it's pretty simple. And there are *NO* stupid questions - just stupid answers

Derek

RWood · 10-19-2007, 04:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgd

I apologize for this basic question...but I am planning to buy a Sony Reader soon and I have a question on the books that are available to download here...

What do I exactly have to do? Click on the link and save it and then transfer it to the Reader? Is that how it works?

I am sorry for the stupid question but I'm a newbie here.

Click on the attachment in the post of the book you want and when it asks if you wish to save it select yes and select a place for it on your hard disk. I use a folder called "MR Downloads"

Once the download is complete you can use the Sony Connect/ELib software or libprs500 to move it to your Reader. You can also load it to an SD card and put that into your Reader. (Remember to insert and remove the SD cards to the Reader while the Reader is powered on.)

mdhuang · 10-19-2007, 04:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgd

I apologize for this basic question...but I am planning to buy a Sony Reader soon and I have a question on the books that are available to download here...

What do I exactly have to do? Click on the link and save it and then transfer it to the Reader? Is that how it works?

I am sorry for the stupid question but I'm a newbie here.

There are two ways. Imported into Sony eBook Library and then transfer to the reader. Or simply copy to the memory cards which show up as drives.

rgd · 10-19-2007, 05:01 PM

Thanks RWood and mdhuang for the replies. It sounds easy.

I am going to try tomorrow...after I get a Reader

JSWolf · 10-19-2007, 05:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rgd

Thanks RWood and mdhuang for the replies. It sounds easy.

I am going to try tomorrow...after I get a Reader

You will love your reader. Now when you go to download books in LRF, makesure they have he name JSWolf as the name as the one who uploaded the book.

rgd · 10-19-2007, 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RWood

(Remember to insert and remove the SD cards to the Reader while the Reader is powered on.)

So the Reader won't recognize the SD card if the reader is not powered on from the start?

rgd · 10-19-2007, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You will love your reader. Now when you go to download books in LRF, makesure they have he name JSWolf as the name as the one who uploaded the book.

Thanks JSWolf. I will keep my eyes open

RWood · 10-19-2007, 09:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You will love your reader. Now when you go to download books in LRF, makesure they have he name JSWolf as the name as the one who uploaded the book.

Don't let him fool you, there are more good books there than most people read in a lifetime (and not all of them by Wolfie either.)

JSWolf · 10-19-2007, 09:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RWood

Don't let him fool you, there are more good books there than most people read in a lifetime (and not all of them by Wolfie either.)

Yes, this is true. But the one thing I can say is I have posted the most number of recent books. That being books written in the 21st century

RWood · 10-19-2007, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Yes, this is true. But the one thing I can say is I have posted the most number of recent books. That being books written in the 21st century

No question there Jon, you are the master of the 21st.

The problem is that there are just not a lot of good books written in the 21st century that I want to read. Well, not yet at least.

10-18-2007, 12:10 AM	#1
fishcube Connoisseur Posts: 99 Karma: 27 Join Date: Sep 2007 Device: Archos 5	file formats? What file formats work best with the Sony Readers? I've found quite a few free sites with ebooks, but want to download the best file format. Example: Manybooks.net has Sony lrf, RTF and ereader etc. and what format at Gutenberg do I choose?

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10-18-2007, 12:19 AM	#2
RWood Technogeezer Posts: 7,233 Karma: 1601464 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: Sony PRS-500	LRF is the Sony format. It can also display RTF and TXT files (without graphics.) It is said that DOC files can also be used as they are translated through the new Sony Connect software (does not work with my current software for the PRS-500.) On the MobileRead Wiki Conversion page is a link to Stingo's Word Macro that will remove the hard line breaks at the end of each line in the Project Gutenberg text files. The file can then be saved as RTF and loaded to the Reader. Most of us use either libprs500 or BookDesigner to create LRF files for the Reader. Both can take almost any file and create an LRF file. Many prefer to use an HTML as the source file.

10-18-2007, 04:41 AM	#4
dhbailey Guru Posts: 604 Karma: 733 Join Date: Mar 2007 Device: HP iPAQ211 / PRS 500, 700 and 505	JSWolf and RWOOD have given great answers. Regarding PG books, I simply run the text files through a program I downloaded from one of the librie groups at yahoogroups, which strips out the extraneous HRt characters so the text within each paragraph flows nicely on the Sony Reader and I don't bother with fancy tables of contents and links to each chapter, etc that are possible with BookDesigner and other tools you can download from this site. But then I haven't shared any of the e-text files I have since they are not ready for prime-time and anybody can simply download the same files I start with and do the same thing with no trouble whatsoever. I enjoy reading them and simply haven't got the time necessary to do more to fancy them up. There's even a Microsoft Word macro somewhere in this forum (or at least a link in one of the sticky FAQs on preparing files for the reader) that does the same thing but I don't have Microsoft Word on my computer, and it actually takes longer to use a macro on a text file in WordPerfect than to use the standalone converter program. So it all depends on the reading experience you want -- there are wonderful books (many of them!) which the gracious members of this forum have posted for download, already fancied up with linked tables of contents and much more work than I do on files for my own reading, so you already have a wonderful library available for free.

10-19-2007, 03:17 PM	#5
rgd Member Posts: 15 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: NYC Device: Sony PRS-505 Reader	I apologize for this basic question...but I am planning to buy a Sony Reader soon and I have a question on the books that are available to download here... What do I exactly have to do? Click on the link and save it and then transfer it to the Reader? Is that how it works? I am sorry for the stupid question but I'm a newbie here.

10-19-2007, 05:01 PM	#9
rgd Member Posts: 15 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: NYC Device: Sony PRS-505 Reader	Thanks RWood and mdhuang for the replies. It sounds easy. I am going to try tomorrow...after I get a Reader