MobileRead Forums - View Single Post

Jamp · 11-01-2009, 03:12 PM

Hi all, no this is not yet another thread about scifi uber format made by nonprogrammer to be never specified, nor coded. I will do it on my own (hopefully), but I want to be sure i am not reinventing the wheel.

My idea basically is that there is bad way of todays formating of ebooks.
Everyone tried converting books and everyone had problems, because formats are too specific. I want technically return to pre-css ages, with XML-based format that gives you set of basic tags to format ebook. Customization and f.e. re-flow will be done client-side, using some css-like file. This is where HTML basically was, but due to much bigger monitor flexibility, css files became very powerful, and too specific, so its now problem to convert book to smaller device. Similarity can be found in every other format, starting in post-script (but its purpose was to be specific) and ending anywhere (maybe excluding plain text).

So, my plan is to make XML-based, hand-editable, opensource, open specification very simple format, and some basic converters. I want just to know that there is not something like it, so I could just help it.

Hope someone understood.

11-01-2009, 03:12 PM	#1
Jamp Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2009 Device: PRS 505	Format idea Hi all, no this is not yet another thread about scifi uber format made by nonprogrammer to be never specified, nor coded. I will do it on my own (hopefully), but I want to be sure i am not reinventing the wheel. My idea basically is that there is bad way of todays formating of ebooks. Everyone tried converting books and everyone had problems, because formats are too specific. I want technically return to pre-css ages, with XML-based format that gives you set of basic tags to format ebook. Customization and f.e. re-flow will be done client-side, using some css-like file. This is where HTML basically was, but due to much bigger monitor flexibility, css files became very powerful, and too specific, so its now problem to convert book to smaller device. Similarity can be found in every other format, starting in post-script (but its purpose was to be specific) and ending anywhere (maybe excluding plain text). So, my plan is to make XML-based, hand-editable, opensource, open specification very simple format, and some basic converters. I want just to know that there is not something like it, so I could just help it. Hope someone understood.