PRS-T3 cover stretched in sleeping mode

[MiniMouse]

Hi,

I don't know if anyone can help me but I have to ask.

I make a lot of covers for my fanfiction and I have the problem that Sony makes a border left and right, and with that stretches the cover, when using the book cover in sleeping mode. Even when I use Sony's own resolution size 758 x 1024 (96 dpi)!

I can solve this my actually not keeping aspect ratio when making the epub. That will stretch the image in sleeping mode to full size (which is actually the right size!), ignoring here that the image on the first page of the book is then stretched too (this side is not THAT important for me).

I'm asking because I'm thinking about making my covers wider for fitting full size on my tablet and was thinking about using SVG on the cover to slice left and right when on a smaller divice like my reader (I would optimize my covers to work both ways of course). But that doesn't work if I can't solve the problem of Sony stretching the cover when going into sleeping mode if I want it or not.

Has anyone any ideas for me?

Mini

[Ghitulescu]

The cover is stretched because so it was said when assembling the book.
In Calibre click on keep aspect ratio to have it checked.

[MiniMouse]

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

The cover is stretched because so it was said when assembling the book.
In Calibre click on keep aspect ratio to have it checked.

No, that is not right!

I tried both keep aspect ratio and NOT keep aspect ratio while making an epub. Like I said, a kept aspect ratio cover with the recommended size of 758 x 1024 is perfectly fine in the epub BUT will end up stretched in Standby-mode.

Mini

[Ghitulescu]

Open the titlepage.xhtml from that ePub and see if the values there correspond with yours.

In my case width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 507 765" PreserveAspectRatio="xMidYMid meet"> <image width="507" height="765" xlink:href="cover.jpeg" and the physical image has indeed those values.

[MiniMouse]

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

Open the titlepage.xhtml from that ePub and see if the values there correspond with yours.

In my case width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 507 765" PreserveAspectRatio="xMidYMid meet"> <image width="507" height="765" xlink:href="cover.jpeg" and the physical image as indeed those values.

Calibre is making this out of my cover when I make an epub.

width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 556 751" preserveAspectRatio="xMidYMid meet">
<image width="556" height="751" xlink:href="cover.jpeg"

But even when I change it from hand to this

width="100%" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 758 1024" preserveAspectRatio="xMidYMid meet">
<image width="758" height="1024" xlink:href="cover.jpeg"/>

and of course save it, I get the same result.

It doesn't matter, Sony always stretches the cover in standby-mode because the cover gets then a left and right white-border. The only way to get it in the right size is to forget about aspect ratio, then the cover will be stretched to full size in standby-mode and the cover is actually the right size. Problem is only that then the cover is stretched in the book.

I even made me a test cover to better see the result. The lines in the circle have the same length and the squares are exactly 150 to 150 pixel.


Any more ideas?

Mini

[Ghitulescu]

These (mine) values are the closest values to the 800x600 pixels a Sony has (minus borders).

Now, have you deleted the book each time and copied the new one in place, or rather imply overwritten it?

PS: I assume the image with 758x1024 looks natural on the PC screen

[MiniMouse]

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

These (mine) values are the closest values to the 800x600 pixels a Sony has (minus borders).

Now, have you deleted the book each time and copied the new one in place, or rather imply overwritten it?

Always deleted and put new on the reader

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

PS: I assume the image with 758x1024 looks natural on the PC screen

Sorry, you don't know my thread right? See here, if you are inetrested
So by now I make a lot of covers from scratch and of course it looked right on my screen you can see and test for yourself with the cover I posted above. I would be very interested to hear what happend on your reader.

If you have any ideas for me, that would be great

Mini

[Ghitulescu]

It happens that I have a T3 as well.

How about put a copy of the book, to check on my T3. Mine has the automatic cover, but the power button still works .

Photos would have helped a lot. I read your thread, just that sometimes people assume too much.

[MiniMouse]

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

It happens that I have a T3 as well.

How about put a copy of the book, to check on my T3. Mine has the automatic cover, but the power button still works .

Photos would have helped a lot.

I can post photos when I'm home. And an epub in two versions if needed.

And the automatic cover... no chance for me. Then ALL my cover-making would be for nothing

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

I read your thread, just that sometimes people assume too much.

That is so true (and yes, most of the time I ask the simple questions first too)

[MiniMouse]

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

It happens that I have a T3 as well.

How about put a copy of the book, to check on my T3. Mine has the automatic cover, but the power button still works .

Photos would have helped a lot. I read your thread, just that sometimes people assume too much.

Here are pictures, not the best (a bit blury) but I think you get the idea AND the test-epubs.

Like I said I wouldn't bother with the cover size if I didn't want to start them making even wider for my tablet and was thinking about slicing the cover left and right in SVG (and that doesn't work with the strange behavior of Sony im standby-mode).

And by now it is bothering me why Sony does that at all... I make a lot of covers and I don't like them getting deformed!

Mini

[Ghitulescu]

Indeed, the stretched cover looks more "stable"...

[Ghitulescu]

Strange, the image you put was 758x1024 yet the viewport is the "old" one (of the earlier models, 800x600, minus borders).

https://jwatt.org/svg/demos/preserveAspectRatio.xml

My images are not deformed. But they are exactly as viewport allows.

[MiniMouse]

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

Strange, the image you put was 758x1024 yet the viewport is the "old" one (of the earlier models, 800x600, minus borders).

https://jwatt.org/svg/demos/preserveAspectRatio.xml

My images are not deformed. But they are exactly as viewport allows.

You really tried them on your reader? With the cover of the epub in standby-mode? Fist the simple questions again

What settings do you use when making an epub?

Mini

[Ghitulescu]

Originally Posted by MiniMouse

You really tried them on your reader? With the cover of the epub in standby-mode? Fist the simple questions again

Yes, I did.

It is my understanding that the viewport (id est the space reserved for picture, something like screen size minus borders) defines the size in "normal" mode, while in "sleeping mode" the screen is used all, and the Sony tries to enlarge the photo to fit its screen, because the image is larger. It's a theory, not a fact.

My settings are simple: they use the presets for Sony devices in calibre, which defaults to my understanding to a screen resolution of 800x600. The image is automatically resized to something less, while keeping its DAR.
This also works for my T3, despite a better resolution.

Now, a last question.

Somewhere "hidden" on the READER partition there is a tree with thumbnails. These are the images used in the Sony's library. It is my understanding that Sony takes the covers from the ePubs and store them there for a quicker access (that's why you have to delete the books via Sony and not via calibre, sure is sure). In the same tree are also stored the annotations if any.
See whether the cover has kept its DAR (it should if one so instructs calibre).

You can also alter the values there by hand to a little less than 1024x758 (ie margins).

[MiniMouse]

Originally Posted by Ghitulescu

Somewhere "hidden" on the READER partition there is a tree with thumbnails. These are the images used in the Sony's library. It is my understanding that Sony takes the covers from the ePubs and store them there for a quicker access (that's why you have to delete the books via Sony and not via calibre, sure is sure). In the same tree are also stored the annotations if any.
See whether the cover has kept its DAR (it should if one so instructs calibre).

You can also alter the values there by hand to a little less than 1024x758 (ie margins).

I found the thumbnails on my reader and they look fine (though very small and hard to see) but I found no way to change anything.

I set my epub conversion by now to Sony T3 (what I didn't have before), I tried tablet (because someone said then there would be no resizing of the image) - all of that changed the viewbox and image settings but NOTHING changed the outcome! When on standby-mode (with kept aspect ratio) the epub's first side image has a left and right white margin and gets stretched!

I even checked a book that was pre-installed on the reader, same result (meaning stretched cover in standby-mode again)!

What I don't understand why you don't have the problem on your reader? At least with my epubs the result should be the same, if not that means that the problem is not with my epub but with my reader. I have two T3 and I tested with both and they both have the same isue!

I'm ad a loss...

I know that the problem is not there when I use a concret image as standby, only when I choose the last read title of the book as image.

I think I have to live with stretching the covers.

Thanks for your help anyway.

Mini