Quick question about formatting

drogo · 07-09-2007, 03:48 PM

All these deals going with the prs500 are getting to me. First the $99 Tiger Direct, then the $49 Sony credit card, now I find out there's a demo model just up the street from where I work.

I can't take it anymore.

I've tossed some content onto an SD card and am going to head down to have a look. Any tips on how I should format it?

Right now, the card is formatted with FAT filesystem, and I've put a few versions in a folder called "ebooks". Can I just put the SD card in and check them out, or do they have to be in a specific folder? (I hope not, but I wouldn't put anything past Sony). No folder at all?

I currently have PDF, TXT, RTF, DOC, HTML, and CHM files (I don't expect the HTML or CHM files to work, I just wanted to see what happens if try.)

I also whipped up a VM and installed the Connect software, can I export a file in the native format(LRF??) or does it have to be connected to a reader to push it out. I guess I could/should also try out the LRF conversion software as well.

Thanks for any suggestions!

NatCh · 07-09-2007, 04:41 PM

Hey, drogo, long time no see!

FAT should be fine, I think my SD card is FAT32, and I've not had a problem with it. It doesn't matter where you put them on the card, the Reader will go through the whole thing and find them.

Of the file types you've mentioned, only TXT, PDF, RTF and LRF will show up on the Reader -- it'll ignore the other files entirely. You also don't need to load the files through the ConnSoft, just dropping them on the card from your OS will work fine -- including the LRFs.

If your PDFs are A4/Letter sized, they'll be way to small to read, but if you want to try out a PDF sized correctly for the Reader's display, you can find the details for that in the Reader's Wiki Entry.

Have fun playing with the toys, and don't blame me if you can't bring yourself to leave the store without one.

drogo · 07-09-2007, 04:49 PM

Hunh, it doesn't do DOC? I thought I read somewhere that it did. Ah well, no big deal. If you have something in DOC, it's trivial to convert it out to RTF or TXT.

Thanks!

NatCh · 07-09-2007, 04:55 PM

It doesn't do DOC directly -- the ConnSoft converts DOCs to RTFs when you import the DOC into ConnSoft (it requires Word to do the conversion, but it's transparent to the user), but for that you, obviously, would have to use ConnSoft, and it sounded like you were wanting to dispense with doing that that.

drogo · 07-09-2007, 05:06 PM

Ahh, I see.

I was kind of trying to get around it. It's not so much that I don't want to use it, but that I'd like to know there are multiple ways of getting content onto the device. I had/have an HieBook that was so limited in loading content, it got to be frustrating after a while. Some things about it were nice, but a lot of things weren't.

Thanks again!

NatCh · 07-09-2007, 05:42 PM

Glad to help. Be sure to tell us what you think, and what you decide.

drogo · 07-11-2007, 10:57 PM

I just got back from a local Borders, and I have to say, I'm really impressed! It took a couple of days, but the one I was going to check out was near where I work (DC) and it's been hot, I've been lazy, etc.

So went to one near home just a bit ago. Again, very impressive.

When I walked up to it, I thought to myself, "Darn, it's a display model with a fake screen." Then I remembered that it's supposed to look like paper. So I picked it up and pressed the Next Page button. It refreshed and turned the page. "Wow".

I popped in my SD card, it did it's refresh thing, and my books showed up. Cool.

I tried a couple of PDFs, not too great. They were all legal size, but only one looked good. That one has hideously large fonts when you view it on a normal computer screen, but the others weren't really legible. Needs to be XGA. Maybe next model? Fingers crossed. The other files were fine. I tried to resize the text, and that went well.

Well, I need to setup an alert on my rss feeds to (hopefully) catch the next sale. I've been waffling on the price, but $99 is a no-brainer. I considered the credit card thing, but the wife's not to keen on the idea, so I'm going to pass on that. But I want one. And this is after borrowing a Nokia N800 for today.

Is there no way to have it render without the large spaces around the edges? Just wondering. One of the things I like about Haali Reader on my Axim is that there is no wasted space.

HarryT · 07-12-2007, 03:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by drogo

Is there no way to have it render without the large spaces around the edges? Just wondering. One of the things I like about Haali Reader on my Axim is that there is no wasted space.

You've probably got margins on your documents. Create them with no margins, and all you'll get is the Reader's "built in" margins, which are no more than a couple of mm all around.

JSWolf · 07-12-2007, 10:53 AM

I've found that using small margins actually does look better (for LRF). And less margins means longer lines for more text and less pages overall means less page turns means less use of the battery before it needs to be charged,

RWood · 07-12-2007, 11:22 AM

Letter and A4 sized PDFs on the Reader is a well known problem. That has been beaten to death in the forums.

There is a guide published by Sony that explains how to make PDFs for the Reader that look good and work well. I can't find the reference to it at the moment, maybe NatCh (who can find everything including the graphic above) can help.

Studio717 · 07-12-2007, 11:41 PM

I've used the instructions from Sony about converting to PDF formatted for the Reader and I think it works very well. I've been buying my ebooks in html for a while now and I've set up a template in Word that I just insert the text into and then Save As PDF. Works great.

(Hmm, I just tried to locate the link for these instructions and the link on the Reader site is not there. It says Click here for instructions, but there's no link.

)

I should mention that the "author" in the properties needs to be changed (otherwise you'll be listed as the author of everything you convert).

Cover images need to be resized, too, at least in my experience. Easy enough to do, though, so the whole process is finished in a matter of minutes.

I do recommend it if you have access to the original (non-PDF) documents. If you only have the PDF, then I'd recommend Rasterfarian (correct spelling?). It's always worked very well for me.

07-09-2007, 03:48 PM	#1
drogo Connoisseur Posts: 54 Karma: 321 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: PRS-500	Quick question about formatting All these deals going with the prs500 are getting to me. First the $99 Tiger Direct, then the $49 Sony credit card, now I find out there's a demo model just up the street from where I work. I can't take it anymore. I've tossed some content onto an SD card and am going to head down to have a look. Any tips on how I should format it? Right now, the card is formatted with FAT filesystem, and I've put a few versions in a folder called "ebooks". Can I just put the SD card in and check them out, or do they have to be in a specific folder? (I hope not, but I wouldn't put anything past Sony). No folder at all? I currently have PDF, TXT, RTF, DOC, HTML, and CHM files (I don't expect the HTML or CHM files to work, I just wanted to see what happens if try.) I also whipped up a VM and installed the Connect software, can I export a file in the native format(LRF??) or does it have to be connected to a reader to push it out. I guess I could/should also try out the LRF conversion software as well. Thanks for any suggestions!

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07-09-2007, 04:41 PM	#2
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	Hey, drogo, long time no see! FAT should be fine, I think my SD card is FAT32, and I've not had a problem with it. It doesn't matter where you put them on the card, the Reader will go through the whole thing and find them. Of the file types you've mentioned, only TXT, PDF, RTF and LRF will show up on the Reader -- it'll ignore the other files entirely. You also don't need to load the files through the ConnSoft, just dropping them on the card from your OS will work fine -- including the LRFs. If your PDFs are A4/Letter sized, they'll be way to small to read, but if you want to try out a PDF sized correctly for the Reader's display, you can find the details for that in the Reader's Wiki Entry. Have fun playing with the toys, and don't blame me if you can't bring yourself to leave the store without one.

07-09-2007, 04:49 PM	#3
drogo Connoisseur Posts: 54 Karma: 321 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: PRS-500	Hunh, it doesn't do DOC? I thought I read somewhere that it did. Ah well, no big deal. If you have something in DOC, it's trivial to convert it out to RTF or TXT. Thanks!

07-09-2007, 04:55 PM	#4
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	It doesn't do DOC directly -- the ConnSoft converts DOCs to RTFs when you import the DOC into ConnSoft (it requires Word to do the conversion, but it's transparent to the user), but for that you, obviously, would have to use ConnSoft, and it sounded like you were wanting to dispense with doing that that.

07-09-2007, 05:06 PM	#5
drogo Connoisseur Posts: 54 Karma: 321 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: PRS-500	Ahh, I see. I was kind of trying to get around it. It's not so much that I don't want to use it, but that I'd like to know there are multiple ways of getting content onto the device. I had/have an HieBook that was so limited in loading content, it got to be frustrating after a while. Some things about it were nice, but a lot of things weren't. Thanks again!

07-09-2007, 05:42 PM	#6
NatCh Gizmologist Posts: 11,615 Karma: 929550 Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Republic of Texas Embassy at Jackson, TN Device: Pocketbook Touch HD3	Glad to help. Be sure to tell us what you think, and what you decide.

07-11-2007, 10:57 PM	#7
drogo Connoisseur Posts: 54 Karma: 321 Join Date: May 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: PRS-500	I just got back from a local Borders, and I have to say, I'm really impressed! It took a couple of days, but the one I was going to check out was near where I work (DC) and it's been hot, I've been lazy, etc. So went to one near home just a bit ago. Again, very impressive. When I walked up to it, I thought to myself, "Darn, it's a display model with a fake screen." Then I remembered that it's supposed to look like paper. So I picked it up and pressed the Next Page button. It refreshed and turned the page. "Wow". I popped in my SD card, it did it's refresh thing, and my books showed up. Cool. I tried a couple of PDFs, not too great. They were all legal size, but only one looked good. That one has hideously large fonts when you view it on a normal computer screen, but the others weren't really legible. Needs to be XGA. Maybe next model? Fingers crossed. The other files were fine. I tried to resize the text, and that went well. Well, I need to setup an alert on my rss feeds to (hopefully) catch the next sale. I've been waffling on the price, but $99 is a no-brainer. I considered the credit card thing, but the wife's not to keen on the idea, so I'm going to pass on that. But I want one. And this is after borrowing a Nokia N800 for today. Is there no way to have it render without the large spaces around the edges? Just wondering. One of the things I like about Haali Reader on my Axim is that there is no wasted space.

07-12-2007, 10:53 AM	#9
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,962 Karma: 128903250 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	I've found that using small margins actually does look better (for LRF). And less margins means longer lines for more text and less pages overall means less page turns means less use of the battery before it needs to be charged,

07-12-2007, 11:22 AM	#10
RWood Technogeezer Posts: 7,233 Karma: 1601464 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: Sony PRS-500	Letter and A4 sized PDFs on the Reader is a well known problem. That has been beaten to death in the forums. There is a guide published by Sony that explains how to make PDFs for the Reader that look good and work well. I can't find the reference to it at the moment, maybe NatCh (who can find everything including the graphic above) can help.

07-12-2007, 11:41 PM	#11
Studio717 Addict Posts: 208 Karma: 575 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: California Device: Various Kindles, iPhone, iPad, Galaxy 10.1	I've used the instructions from Sony about converting to PDF formatted for the Reader and I think it works very well. I've been buying my ebooks in html for a while now and I've set up a template in Word that I just insert the text into and then Save As PDF. Works great. (Hmm, I just tried to locate the link for these instructions and the link on the Reader site is not there. It says Click here for instructions, but there's no link. ) I should mention that the "author" in the properties needs to be changed (otherwise you'll be listed as the author of everything you convert). Cover images need to be resized, too, at least in my experience. Easy enough to do, though, so the whole process is finished in a matter of minutes. I do recommend it if you have access to the original (non-PDF) documents. If you only have the PDF, then I'd recommend Rasterfarian (correct spelling?). It's always worked very well for me.

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