Rtf, LRF or epub ?

[edman]

Hi

I just got my sony reader 505 and after being pissed of by the appallingly bad sony software I was very glad to find this forum and Calibre.

I have a few books in rtf format and I was wondering a few things:

What are the advantages of ebooks formats like lrf and epub over a rtf ebook ? (My concern being for the future, if i change reader i know rtf will always be supported)(i guess same thing applies for html/pdf as well)

lrf vs epub ? if i convert my rtf ebook, which one of these two format is better ? and should i wait for the epub conversion from calibre to be out of beta testing or is it good to go right now ?

thanks in advance

Ed

[kezza]

I'm not an expert on the different formats, but I tend to stick with RTF for my non-DRM'd books. While it makes for a larger text file than LRF (I think), going back and fixing the formatting if anything is wrong is very easy, and I've never had any wonkiness with reading RTF files on the device.
One of the real advantages to LRF, though, if you use Calibre, is that you can put in a table of contents and title/author info at the top of each page, as well as other bells and whistles I haven't explored very deeply. If you just want to read the book, and don't want to fiddle around a lot, just stick with RTF.

One thing I've noticed with LRF over other formats on the Sony is that the files are generally smaller, faster and have somewhat more predictable formatting than just dropping the RTF directly in. But even with that, I still keep the RTF even if I make a converted LRF simply because it's good to have options later.

Best thing about HTML is that you can convert that to any other format. It makes an excellent base for conversion even if your current reader doesn't handle it and the basic format itself is an easily worked and known variable for all other formats.

[DDHarriman]

With the 505 and if your rtf’s do not have images … I think you will be well served just using rtf then.

In the future, well, or the next reader sees rtf files and you still do not have to concern yourself with conversions, or it does not, then, just convert the rtf’s to what format suits the reader better and maintain the rtf’s as backup.

Good reading,

[Amalthia]

For stories I want to use the Table of Contents and have graphics I convert to LRF. For everything else I just adjust the size to 20 Arial font in RTF and load to my device.

[acidzebra]

Originally Posted by kezza

you can put in a table of contents and title/author info at the top of each page

Personally I consider that a waste of space as I am not prone to suddenly forget what book I am reading and who wrote it - but to each his own

Other than that, LRF all the way, especially since batch conversions in Calibre are so easy to perform. Also I figure Sony engineers have spent the most time on their own native format.

But I keep the source format around always; in HTML if possible. Disk space is cheap.

[Stingo]

I opt for LRF. I've found the Epub tends to be faster but LRF seems more solid. RTF makes no sense. It is so easy to convert in Calibre that there is no need to waste all of that space on the reader. Just conver and if you need to go back, do so, make your change and convert again.

[ShellShock]

Also note that the epub viewer on the PRS does not do fully justified text (i.e., you'll have a jagged margin on the right), whereas the LRF viewer does. You may prefer one over the other--a lot of people do.

[pepak]

I was using RTFs for a while before finally switching to LRF. LRF has these advantages:

- easy meta tags support (there is some support for metainformation in RTF, but it's pain in the ass to set it up)
- I never managed to put international characters into a RTF document
- images, intra-document links
- faster display, smaller size
- I used to have font size problems with RTF
- if I copied RTFs to the device directly, the result was pretty bad
- it is relativelly difficult to edit RTFs (change files from different sources into unified format); it is much easier with HTML, which can be easily converted to LRF.

As for LRF vs. EPUB:

- no international characters in EPUB for me (probably my own laziness, I am sure there are ways to modify the built-in fonts)
- no block justification!!!
- slower to display, reset the reader more often
- very slow intra-document links
- little point: it really makes little difference to me whether I convert my books (in HTML format) into EPUB or into LRF, so I stick with what works better for me (LRF)

[llasram]

Like most other responders have said, if your RTF books look good as-is then there's no real reason to convert.

For things you do need to convert, I'd urge you to go with EPUB. The EPUB renderer is much more advanced, and removes a conversion layer, which can only trim down on formatting bugs. The ADE EPUB renderer may not do justified text, but LRF doesn't provide true italics, which has a much much greater impact on actual legibility for me.

[tech_au]

When I have to convert files using calibre I use LRF.
My order of preference for formats is:
LRF/LRX
EPUB
RTF
PDF
TXT