Aura Moving from Nook to Kobo

[the.Mtn.Man]

Originally Posted by the.Mtn.Man

It would be a lot easier if the Kobo just used the same rendering engine across the board. Is there any way to force it to do so without converting your entire library to kepub? I have nearly 800 epubs in my collection, and the thought of converting and transferring them all back to my Aura is not an attractive one, especially when I'd really like to keep the "Read" tags intact.

I did a simple A/B comparison between epub and kepub using the ESV Global Study Bible which is a particularly complex file (thousands of embedded links), and the kepub version does seem to open and operate faster, I assume because it's using the kepub rendering engine.

If there was a way to force the Aura to always use that engine even with epubs, that would be great. Actually, what would be ideal is a software switch that allows you to change the rendering engine on the fly.

Yeah, responding to myself.

I guess the solution at the moment is to only convert those books that would actually benefit from kepub features, such as any book with embedded footnotes/endnotes.

[ZodWallop]

Got my Kobo today. Haven't read anything on it yet, but I'll be reading tonight.

I may never see the difference between ePub and kepub, because I formatted the SD card based on DNSB's advice. I then installed Kobo Extended Driver which will convert ePubs to kepubs as I transfer them to the device (thanks booklover6).

Next I'm going to learn about transferring fonts to the Kobo.

[MGlitch]

Fonts are easy

1) gather the font files you want, ideally you'll have regular, bold, italic, and bold italic and they will be .ttf format.
2) Plug your Kobo in to your computer and open the Kobo drive that appears
3) create a folder/directory called fonts and open it
4) drag font files in to that fonts folder/directory
5) Power down and restart your Kobo

The styles aren't strictly needed, however if a book you're reading utilizes say bold italic, and you don't have the style it may choose bold, which depending on how the book uses the styles could be confusing.

I know .ttf is preferred over .otf, at least if you have used any patches to enable the advanced font features for fonts you load yourself. I believe there was another reason, but I can't recall it offhand.

[booklover6]

The patch to "enable advanced font controls" is highly recommended for added reading pleasure.

[ZodWallop]

Thanks for the advice guys. It sounds very easy.

I'm going to try installing Bookerly and Literata as well as Ubuntu (a font I've always admired, but I'm not sure how it'll work when reading an entire book) and a nice serif font called Bree.

I'm pretty sure at least one of them is .OTF only, so I guess I'll see the difference in how Kobo handles them.

[ZodWallop]

One other thing: I couldn't find any option for screensavers when the Kobo is asleep. All I get right now is a box with 'fnac' in it.

I know there's a wealth of information on this board alone about Kobo and I don't mind the research, but hey, while I have my little soapbox here...

[PeterT]

You have to change the affiliate in the kobo.conf file. Off hand I forget what a suitable affiliate would be (any BUT fnac :P )

[MGlitch]

You don't get much in the way of choice for screensavers by default with Kobo, even with a different affiliate. You've got the option of a fairly blank screen with reading stats for your currently read book, or the cover of that book with or without the stats.

However you can tweak it so you can have your own images as screensavers. https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=255238 will get you there. You wont be able to select a single image unless you only load one image.

[jackie_w]

Originally Posted by PeterT

You have to change the affiliate in the kobo.conf file. Off hand I forget what a suitable affiliate would be (any BUT fnac :P )

The affiliate file to manually edit is .kobo/affiliate.conf

My H2O contains this

[General]
affiliate=Kobo

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Next I'm going to learn about transferring fonts to the Kobo.

Have you checked the Summary of Modified Fonts thread yet. The first post covers much of the basics.

Two main caveats that have caused issues:

1. The font naming convention is strict.
   
2. You need to power cycle your Kobo after adding fonts.

[Rbneader]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Thanks for the responses guys.



That has me a little worried. I broke my original Nook screen in a car mishap and bought a used one off of eBay and had no concerns about how well it would work. Whatever else people feel about Nook, they are pretty damn solid. The only reason I'm replacing it now is because my replacement feel victim to the dreaded screen tear.

Honestly, every time I've dealt with Kobo it's been such a hassle I can't recommend relying on their customer service or warranties to provide any value whatsoever.

The savings by going with an open-box eBay device is probably higher than any value you'll get from a Kobo warranty, once you factor in the hassle of trying to get them to do what you need.

[ZodWallop]

Thanks for the responses guys.

I changed my affiliate to Kobo and I note have the book cover screensaver.

I also installed the fonts and they appear to be fine.

I tried using the patch to enable advance font options, but I got an error when I ran the .bat file.

I had to run errands after work and didn't get to spend much time on Kobo stuff tonight, but since everything worked except the advanced font patch, I'm pretty happy.

You guys have been a wealth of information.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by Rbneader

Honestly, every time I've dealt with Kobo it's been such a hassle I can't recommend relying on their customer service or warranties to provide any value whatsoever.

The savings by going with an open-box eBay device is probably higher than any value you'll get from a Kobo warranty, once you factor in the hassle of trying to get them to do what you need.

Yeah, I agree. I got the device for $50. If it breaks after a bit and I have to replace it, it's not like I'll have lost much. And I really do like the Aura.

I wonder if it's refurbished or something. The seller has sold 340 of them and had more in both black and pink. The box is open, but everything seems to be in new shape. I'm tempted to get one for my mother in law who's still on an old unlighted Kindle: http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item...740867&alt=web

[Ripplinger]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

I'm pretty sure at least one of them is .OTF only, so I guess I'll see the difference in how Kobo handles them.

I think the only major difference you'll notice is that the patch that enables the advanced settings for font weight will not work on .otf files. So depending on the font itself, it may or may not matter to you at all.

[the.Mtn.Man]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

I may never see the difference between ePub and kepub, because I formatted the SD card based on DNSB's advice. I then installed Kobo Extended Driver which will convert ePubs to kepubs as I transfer them to the device (thanks booklover6).

Well, there are some advantages to epubs. For one thing, kepub has a permanent header showing the book title while epubs don't (personally, I don't need a banner across the top of the page to remind me what book I'm reading). And apparently font rendering in epubs is more "print-like" than kepubs with better kerning and justification algorithms. As far as speed differences are concerned, you won't notice it with the majority of book files. It's only especially large and complex files that can benefit from the kepub rendering engine.

See the following thread for a more comprehensive breakdown:

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=256757

I plan on keeping the majority of my books as epubs and only converting to kepub on a case-by-case basis.