Aura HD cbz files on Aura H2O - sorting issue

[ChaosTwin]

Hello.

I just got my Aura H20 which replaces my iRiver Story HD.
I will mainly use the H2O for reading Mangas so I've put some cbz archives on the Kobo to give them a try.
The cbz-files consist of several folders which represent the chapters.
Each folder then consists of several jpg-files which represent the pages.
The jpg-files are named 001.jpg and so on.

The problem I have right now is that the Kobo reader starts displayed all 001.jpg files first following by all 002.jpg files it can find in all folders and so on instead of just showing all jpg from one folder. So it looks like the Kobo ignores subfolders.

Any hints how I can solve this issue?
Thank you.

[davidfor]

Yes, there is a problem with how the Kobo firmware sorts the files in CBZ files. It has been discussed before with a solution. Do a search and you should find it.

[ChaosTwin]

Hello.

The only potential solution I have found is to install Koreader.
I've tried converting the cbz to pdf but this leads to smaller images due to page numbering on the bottom of each page.

Thank you.

[davidfor]

As I said, it has been discussed here and there is a solution. A search for "cbz sort" found https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=246314. The second last post explains a way to do it. Not a nice thing to need to do, but it would work.

[ChaosTwin]

For a Manga / Comic with 100 or more chapters this is no suitable solution, in my opinion.

How about converting the cbz to another file format?
I've tried pdf but this leads to additional page numbering on the bottom of the page.
Would mobi or epub be a better format? Thank you.

[baochan]

Bulk Rename Utility for Windows will let you find all .jpg files in all subdirectories, and append the directory name to the beginning of the file which should make them sort properly. It's a tremendously awesome tool if you take the time to figure it out.

For converting, epub would probably work. Calibre lets you choose the output format with a list of devices, choosing Tablet (I think that's what it calls it) will convert without resizing images, thus maintaining the full image quality. If the files are properly named though cbz/cbr is the way to go with comics, Kobo's reader works really well - fast, fullscreen, and nice rendering. Avoid mobi, Kobo doesn't handle them very well. I always convert mobi to epub.

[ChaosTwin]

Awesome. Thank you.
I will try Bulk Rename Utility tomorrow. Sounds like an easy solution.

[ChaosTwin]

I've just adapted four mangas using bulk rename utiltiy.
it's such an easy and fast solution.

Thanks again for your help!

[Phogg]

Do you find the screen large enough? I have been considering an Onyx Boox M96 for manga.

[baochan]

Partly as a learning exercise, I made a Bash shell script to automatically change the files so they sort correctly on Kobo devices. I'll post it here in case any other Linux users might find it helpful. It renames the files in the CBZ or CBR files by padding all one- or two-digit numbers with leading zeros, and appending the directory/chapter name to the beginning of any files that are in subdirectories. The zero-padding and directory-appending code can be pulled off into their own scripts as well, they should work stand-alone as written.

It should work on any system with Bash, including Cygwin I think, as long as it has rar, zip, and perl (needed for the regex I used - if anyone can figure out a way to do it with sed let me know). It also accepts spaces or apostrophes in filenames, but check the new files to make sure they're about the same size as the old ones.

#!/bin/bash
# kobocomic: Modifies CBR and CBZ files to be displayed correctly on Kobo devices
# Requires perl, rar, unrar, zip, unzip

if [ "$#" -lt 1 ]; then
  echo Supply a CBZ, CBR, ZIP, or RAR file to modify. 
  exit
fi

if [ -d "tmp_kobocomic" ]; then
  echo Directory tmp_kobocomic exists
  exit
fi

for z in "$@"
do
  mkdir tmp_kobocomic
  if [ ${z: -4} == ".cbz" ] || [ ${z: -4} == ".zip" ]; then
    filetype="zip"
  elif [ ${z: -4} == ".cbr" ] || [ ${z: -4} == ".rar" ]; then
    filetype="rar"
  else
    continue
  fi

  if [ $filetype == "rar" ]; then
    echo Unraring: $z
    unrar x "$z" tmp_kobocomic >/dev/null
  else
    echo Unzipping: $z
    unzip -d tmp_kobocomic "$z" >/dev/null
  fi

  cd tmp_kobocomic

  # Add leading zeros to any single or double digits in files, recursively
  # perl is needed for lookahead/behind
  echo \ \ Padding numbers with leading zeros
  find . -depth | while read i; do
    mv -n "$i" "$(dirname "$i")/$(basename "$i" | perl -ne 's/(?<!\d)(\d)(?!\d)/0$1/g; s/(?<!\d)(\d\d)(?!\d)/0$1/g; print;')" 2>/dev/null
  done

  # Append directory name to all files in subdirectories
  echo \ \ Appending directory name to all files
  find . -mindepth 2 -type f | while read i; do
    dir=$(dirname "$i")
    mv "$i" "$dir/$(basename "$dir")_$(basename "$i")"
  done

  if [ $filetype == "rar" ]; then
    echo \ \ Compressing: ${z:0:-4}_new.cbr
    rar a "${z:0:-4}_new.cbr" * >/dev/null
    mv "${z:0:-4}_new.cbr" ..
  else
    echo \ \ Compressing: ${z:0:-4}_new.cbz
    zip -r "${z:0:-4}_new.cbz" * >/dev/null
    mv "${z:0:-4}_new.cbz" ..
  fi

  cd ..
  rm -r tmp_kobocomic
  
done

[Haesslich]

Originally Posted by Phogg

Do you find the screen large enough? I have been considering an Onyx Boox M96 for manga.

I find the ~7 inch screen works well for manga (being around the standard tankubon size) , although it's best if it's already at a decent resolution so as to avoid either very small images, or downscaling. It's a pain reading through images that have to be massively downscaled back to the 1430x 1080 resolution.

I've gotten manga both from the Kobo Store (resolution is 1221 x 980) and it looks pretty good. More so with the lighter background on the H2O (which I finally got to use in store, next to an Aura HD) .

[ChaosTwin]

Hi.

I've started reading Mangas using a Sony PRS-505 and later an iRiver Story HD. For some Mangas the display of the Sony was simply too small and had too less resolution. The iRiver was a nice upgrade due to the higher solution but with the H2O I think I have now found the perfect device for my application.
I also thought about buying a M96 first but after reading/watching some reviews I decided buying the Kobo.
- The M96 is too big for me. I would need a backpack to carry it every day with me.
- In a direct comparison the M96 is slower in terms of paging

I will post some photos of different Mangas on the H2O later.

Originally Posted by Phogg

Do you find the screen large enough? I have been considering an Onyx Boox M96 for manga.

[Phogg]

Originally Posted by ChaosTwin

Hi.

I've started reading Mangas using a Sony PRS-505 and later an iRiver Story HD. For some Mangas the display of the Sony was simply too small and had too less resolution. The iRiver was a nice upgrade due to the higher solution but with the H2O I think I have now found the perfect device for my application.
I also thought about buying a M96 first but after reading/watching some reviews I decided buying the Kobo.
- The M96 is too big for me. I would need a backpack to carry it every day with me.
- In a direct comparison the M96 is slower in terms of paging

I will post some photos of different Mangas on the H2O later.

Thank you. I have planned on getting an H2O anyway to replace my wife's ageing Sony PRST-1. Not sure I can justify a new reader for me since my original KPW is fine and our phones are in need of replacement.

But I want something to read Manga while outdoors.

[peterwardgd]

Please do post some screens i'd like to see who the h20 fairs with manga. ta

[AcidWeb]

Our Kindle Comic Converter also fix file order. And optimize images inside for e-ink screens :-)