PRS-650 problem pdfs - is it the file or the reader

mazmac · 02-21-2011, 10:46 PM

I would like to read the pdfs on the following site on my PRS-650: http://acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_312356

I can open them on my computer in the Sony Library software and in Calibre, but if I try to open them on my Reader, all I see is a blank page with "Invalid Page!" written in the middle.

Can anyone help me work out what is going on?

(And, since I cannot decide whether this is a pdf problem or a Sony problem, I have posted on both boards. Apologies for cross-posting.)

amujee · 02-22-2011, 01:02 AM

I get the same thing on my 350.
It seems the file is encrypted or restricted for viewing on computers.

I ran it through calibre's conversion to pdf and it sort of worked on the reader, but after several pages in, it's just blank pages. On the computer, the converted pdf is missing all the graphics.

mazmac · 02-22-2011, 03:59 AM

Ahhh, thanks so much for that - I didn't think of trying to convert the file.

It seems that I will be tied to my computer for some time to come...

dwig · 02-22-2011, 08:03 AM

I don't know if my experience with a different file is related or not, but you might try my "solution".

I have a PDF, from the Internet Archive, that displayed fine on my PC in Acrobat Reader but displayed blank pages with the occasional image when viewed on my Kindle 3. I "fixed" the file by printing from Acrobat Reader using the PrimoPDF printer driver which creates a PDF file.

The printing took a long time, ~15 sec / page for 175 pages just to spool the file and about as long for PrimoPDF to create the output file. The results were fine and view properly on my K3.

mazmac · 02-23-2011, 02:25 AM

Thanks for the tip. Just tried it and ended up with the following message:

Conversion to PDF failed: Attempted to read or write protected memory. This is often an indication that other memory is corrupt.

Which (from my perspective) is just plain weird. There's something wrong with my six-month-old computer? Oh, I hope not.

(I'll try playing with this again tomorrow when I don't have a four year old attacking my mouse...)

delphin · 02-23-2011, 04:23 AM

It doesn't sound like a PDF encryption or DRM problem, it's just a screwed up PDF file.

Another technique I have used to get a usable ebook from a badly formated PDF is to use the Open Office PDF import feature (requires the optional PDF import plugin), then after fixing anything that needs it, re-exporting the document as HTML and converting to EPUB with Calibre or Sigil (Open Office also now has a promising EPUB export plugin)

But don't be too surprised if this doesn't work.

Some files have interactive java script or other advanced features, that don't work except on the very latest PC versions of Adobe Reader.

In other cases the file is just corrupted.

In yet other cases, nasty folks have even figured out how to embed viruses in PDFs, which normally requires that they intentionally create an internal structure that overruns memory and crashes the reader.

elcreative · 02-23-2011, 11:25 AM

Having just taken a look at the first pdf from the website, all I can say is I'm not surprised... it views perfectly on my computer but I wouldn't dream of trying to view it on an eReader. It is graphic intensive with charts, graphs etc on nearly every page, it uses coloured text on many pages with intensive indent, table and other formatting. If I really wanted to have it on a Sony or other reader then I'd download the Word version and use OpenOffice or LibreOffice to convert to epub and hope for the best...

doreenjoy · 02-24-2011, 03:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by elcreative

Having just taken a look at the first pdf from the website, all I can say is I'm not surprised... it views perfectly on my computer but I wouldn't dream of trying to view it on an eReader. It is graphic intensive with charts, graphs etc on nearly every page, it uses coloured text on many pages with intensive indent, table and other formatting. If I really wanted to have it on a Sony or other reader then I'd download the Word version and use OpenOffice or LibreOffice to convert to epub and hope for the best...

There's also a very affordable PDF-OCR reader called ABBYY PDF Transformer. I've used it on many PDF files to create an RTF, which I can then EPUB.

02-21-2011, 10:46 PM	#1
mazmac Member Posts: 19 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Sony PRS-650	problem pdfs - is it the file or the reader I would like to read the pdfs on the following site on my PRS-650: http://acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD/pc=PC_312356 I can open them on my computer in the Sony Library software and in Calibre, but if I try to open them on my Reader, all I see is a blank page with "Invalid Page!" written in the middle. Can anyone help me work out what is going on? (And, since I cannot decide whether this is a pdf problem or a Sony problem, I have posted on both boards. Apologies for cross-posting.) Last edited by mazmac; 02-21-2011 at 10:50 PM. Reason: cross-posting...

02-22-2011, 01:02 AM	#2
amujee Connoisseur Posts: 58 Karma: 272 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: Orange County, SoCal Device: Kindle Voyage (soon, I hope)	I get the same thing on my 350. It seems the file is encrypted or restricted for viewing on computers. I ran it through calibre's conversion to pdf and it sort of worked on the reader, but after several pages in, it's just blank pages. On the computer, the converted pdf is missing all the graphics. Last edited by amujee; 02-22-2011 at 01:08 AM.

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02-22-2011, 03:59 AM	#3
mazmac Member Posts: 19 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Sony PRS-650	Ahhh, thanks so much for that - I didn't think of trying to convert the file. It seems that I will be tied to my computer for some time to come...

02-22-2011, 08:03 AM	#4
dwig Wizard Posts: 1,613 Karma: 6718541 Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Paradise (Key West, FL) Device: Current:Surface Go & Kindle 3 - Retired: DellV8p, Clie UX50, ...	I don't know if my experience with a different file is related or not, but you might try my "solution". I have a PDF, from the Internet Archive, that displayed fine on my PC in Acrobat Reader but displayed blank pages with the occasional image when viewed on my Kindle 3. I "fixed" the file by printing from Acrobat Reader using the PrimoPDF printer driver which creates a PDF file. The printing took a long time, ~15 sec / page for 175 pages just to spool the file and about as long for PrimoPDF to create the output file. The results were fine and view properly on my K3.

02-23-2011, 02:25 AM	#5
mazmac Member Posts: 19 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Sony PRS-650	Thanks for the tip. Just tried it and ended up with the following message: Conversion to PDF failed: Attempted to read or write protected memory. This is often an indication that other memory is corrupt. Which (from my perspective) is just plain weird. There's something wrong with my six-month-old computer? Oh, I hope not. (I'll try playing with this again tomorrow when I don't have a four year old attacking my mouse...)

02-23-2011, 04:23 AM	#6
delphin Evangelist Posts: 434 Karma: 346901 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: SONY PRS-650	It doesn't sound like a PDF encryption or DRM problem, it's just a screwed up PDF file. Another technique I have used to get a usable ebook from a badly formated PDF is to use the Open Office PDF import feature (requires the optional PDF import plugin), then after fixing anything that needs it, re-exporting the document as HTML and converting to EPUB with Calibre or Sigil (Open Office also now has a promising EPUB export plugin) But don't be too surprised if this doesn't work. Some files have interactive java script or other advanced features, that don't work except on the very latest PC versions of Adobe Reader. In other cases the file is just corrupted. In yet other cases, nasty folks have even figured out how to embed viruses in PDFs, which normally requires that they intentionally create an internal structure that overruns memory and crashes the reader.

02-23-2011, 11:25 AM	#7
elcreative Wizard Posts: 2,888 Karma: 5875940 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: PRS505, 600, 350, 650, Nexus 7, Note III, iPad 4 etc	Having just taken a look at the first pdf from the website, all I can say is I'm not surprised... it views perfectly on my computer but I wouldn't dream of trying to view it on an eReader. It is graphic intensive with charts, graphs etc on nearly every page, it uses coloured text on many pages with intensive indent, table and other formatting. If I really wanted to have it on a Sony or other reader then I'd download the Word version and use OpenOffice or LibreOffice to convert to epub and hope for the best...

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