Problem with custom CSS for reader

[lual]

Hi guys, I've been having trouble to customize body text styles in the e-book reader:

What I'm trying to accomplish
- Set the styles for the body text (paragraphs and related).

What I've tried so far
- Change the serif family in the font preferences: it doesn't change it at all.
- Use custom CSS for p elements: it only allows me to change the color but it doesn't allow me to change the font, nor the line height. It even doesn't recognize the CSS examples provided by the app itself.

Environment
- Linux Mint 17.3
- Calibre 1.25

Any thoughts on how to solve this issue?

Thanks in advance

[theducks]

Originally Posted by lual

Hi guys, I've been having trouble to customize body text styles in the e-book reader:

What I'm trying to accomplish
- Set the styles for the body text (paragraphs and related).

What I've tried so far
- Change the serif family in the font preferences: it doesn't change it at all.
- Use custom CSS for p elements: it only allows me to change the color but it doesn't allow me to change the font, nor the line height. It even doesn't recognize the CSS examples provided by the app itself.

Environment
- Linux Mint 17.3
- Calibre 1.25

Any thoughts on how to solve this issue?

Thanks in advance

Wow, that is a really old Calibre version. I assume there is a reason for not being more current? Calibre 3 is in Betas

Assuming your CSS works in other ways

This is a common DEVICE issue. The ignore certain CSS styling that they provide user controls for.
Some devices have a "use Publishers Styles" setting

I

[JSWolf]

Update your Calibre to a new version and try again. Mange fixes/changes have been made and maybe your problem isn't a problem. It's not worth our time tying to help support such an old version since there is no reason not to update.

[jackie_w]

... also showing your info details as 'Reader:Whatever' is singularly unhelpful for someone to assist with CSS issues.

Be more specific how you're planning to read the book and in what ebook format. Every branded device and/or reading app I've ever used is different in some way to the rest - especially when it comes to fonts.

[lual]

Thank guys! I guess I'm using a version from the "trusted channels" (they tend to be older than current versions), so I'm going to download the newest version and I'll keep you posted.

Regarding "reader: whatever", I'm using it on desktop, so I'm not sure what is the proper way to refer to this type of device (I guess this field is meant for something like Kindle or iPad xD).

Thanks again for the help, hopefully downloading the new version will work

[theducks]

Calibres viewer is very forgiving.

But even it has overides. Inside the viewer, use the configuration icon to review all your option choices.

[lual]

Now I'm using version 2.85.1 and the problem is still there. For some reason it doesn't allow to change the paragraph font (not even with the built-in options under "Preferences" :/).

Any thoughts?

[theducks]

Originally Posted by lual

Now I'm using version 2.85.1 and the problem is still there. For some reason it doesn't allow to change the paragraph font (not even with the built-in options under "Preferences" :/).

Any thoughts?

Nope!
You need to look at the code and figure out what styles affect what you see

<p> <span class="foo2">Ugly</span></p>

changing the <p> will not override the span.foo style

[lual]

You need to look at the code and figure out what styles affect what you see

I understand the specificity thing, however, I haven't found documentation about the specific classes/ids that are used within the ebook's source HTML, nor anything about how to access the source using Calibre or other app (when I googled it I only found tutorials on how to go from HTML to .epub but not the other way around).

Do you know a way of seeing the source? and on the other hand, should I report it like a bug (since it doesn't even work with the default GUI as displayed in the image)?

Moderator Notice
Please read forum rules on Image size (600x600 max). Oversize image deleted. shrink and repost

[kovidgoyal]

The GUI options provide a fallback font, which is used when the document being viewed does not specify its own fonts. You want those to work you need to remove the fonts specified int he document itself, which you do by using the relevant options in the Look & Feel section of the conversion dialog, or using the calibre Edit Book tool.

[lual]

The GUI options provide a fallback font, which is used when the document being viewed does not specify its own fonts. You want those to work you need to remove the fonts specified int he document itself, which you do by using the relevant options in the Look & Feel section of the conversion dialog, or using the calibre Edit Book tool.

Wow, I didn't know Calibre is this powerful!

@kovidgoyal Thanks for introducing me to these functions and also thanks to @theducks, @JSWolf, and @jackie_w for your valuable input

[theducks]

Originally Posted by lual

Wow, I didn't know Calibre is this powerful!

@kovidgoyal Thanks for introducing me to these functions and also thanks to @theducks, @JSWolf, and @jackie_w for your valuable input

Welcome to Calibre.
Where many users like myself, barely scrape the surface of ALL the features and power Kovid has built into it.
This forum is the most likely place to find someone who uses the feature YOU need help with. All you need to do after posting, is to wait for the right person to drop by and to clarify your post when we miss on what you need