NickelTypeFix: a mod for better typography and typesetting (kepub only) - Page 11

fogice · 09-24-2026, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrSilverstrike

It was so much fun to hear your voice! And I love the name Kobalt.

I have a question about Kobalt's tap zones. Does it just inherit the zones from Kobo's settings, or do you have control over the tap zones? If you control it, there's a setting I've always wanted.

99%+ of a user's inputs when reading is to go to the next page. Therefore, I believe that a normal tap ANYWHERE on the screen should advance to the next page. I often find myself tapping too low, and bringing up the user interface rather than turning the page.

Going back a page would require a back swipe. Opening the interface would be an up swipe or down swipe. Setting a bookmark would be a long tap in the upper corner. Word lookup would be a long tap on a word.

Falkor · 09-24-2026, 02:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrSilverstrike

Any particular ones you want to point out? If you have an epub you can link that leverages these features, that'd be even better. I can integrate it into my test suite if I find it's too much of an omission.

I just remembered one more: the "tranform" property is not supported either. No big deal for most users I guess.

And I can't make it fill the page before full page images. apprently that is because "float" has some issues: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=369346

JSWolf · 09-26-2026, 07:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Falkor

I just remembered one more: the "tranform" property is not supported either. No big deal for most users I guess.

And I can't make it fill the page before full page images. apprently that is because "float" has some issues: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=369346

It is a big deal that transform is not supported. That means it's lacking a basic ePub3 feature. I've seen it used a lot in ePub3 for small-caps.

Falkor · 09-26-2026, 08:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

It is a big deal that transform is not supported. That means it's lacking a basic ePub3 feature. I've seen it used a lot in ePub3 for small-caps.

For small caps? Any decent epub3 renderer should support actual small caps. What's the benefift of using transform for that?

I do find transform very useful, but I've only used it for mirrored text and some playful titles so for.

JSWolf · 09-27-2026, 06:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Falkor

For small caps? Any decent epub3 renderer should support actual small caps. What's the benefift of using transform for that?

I do find transform very useful, but I've only used it for mirrored text and some playful titles so for.

Some books use it to make sure the text is in the correct case. To use small-caps in ePub3, the text has to be lowercase. For some books that were originally ePub2 and converted to ePub3, the text was uppercase. Now it needs to be lowercase for ePub3. It's easier to use text-transform to make the text lowercase then to change the text to lowercase.

Without transform, small-caps can break.

Falkor · 09-27-2026, 10:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Some books use it to make sure the text is in the correct case. To use small-caps in ePub3, the text has to be lowercase. For some books that were originally ePub2 and converted to ePub3, the text was uppercase. Now it needs to be lowercase for ePub3. It's easier to use text-transform to make the text lowercase then to change the text to lowercase.

Without transform, small-caps can break.

Text-transform is an entirely different property. With transform you can rotate, shift and scale objects.

xyclonei · 09-28-2026, 01:41 AM

Seems like NickelTypeFix v1.0 was released yesterday with the below changes.

Fixed

Restored vertical Japanese glyph forms with fast shaping enabled. Brackets, long-vowel marks and punctuation now use the correct vertical variants.

Added

Public-domain EPUB fixtures and a device test guide for comparing the typography fixes.
Long chapters load without Nickel's fixed 100 ms pauses between local EPUB chunks. Set ntf_fast_epub_delivery:0 to keep those pauses.

Improved

Lowered the supported firmware floor to 4.21.15015 after compatibility and rendering checks. The smallest optional line spacing still has a page-edge clipping limitation on this firmware.
Removed the development-only page and page-boundary probes. The fixes and normal diagnostic logging are unchanged.
The unexpected-thread warning names the caller and clarifies that the fix is skipped for that call.
Reduced chapter layout work by skipping Qt's repeated preparation of text lines whose glyphs are already ready.
Reduced page-boundary correction work in long chapters by searching only the line rectangles that can affect each page.

Thank you, MrSilverstrike!

rantanplan · 09-28-2026, 03:57 AM

By the way, do these customizations survive updates or should I create a list for me with all the stuff I have to re-install after each firmware upgrade?

xyclonei · 09-28-2026, 04:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rantanplan

By the way, do these customizations survive updates or should I create a list for me with all the stuff I have to re-install after each firmware upgrade?

Mods usually do survive a firmware update.

rantanplan · 09-28-2026, 05:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xyclonei

Mods usually do survive a firmware update.

Nevertheless, maybe I should have documentation on that, in case I have to setup a new device.

MrSilverstrike · 09-28-2026, 07:57 AM

I don't want to claim that the mod survives every upgrade, because there's no guarantee that it will. Generally speaking, it will remain until an incompatible update is released, at which point it disables itself.

For example, if you choose to install the 6.0 pre-release update, it stops working because it isn't compatible.

JSWolf · 09-28-2026, 10:49 AM

Does NickelTypeFix 1.0 work with the newly released 4.38.23828 firmware?

MrSilverstrike · 09-28-2026, 12:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Does NickelTypeFix 1.0 work with the newly released 4.38.23828 firmware?

It should work with any 4.x firmware since 4.21, including potential future updates to the 4.x line, yes.

JSWolf · 09-28-2026, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrSilverstrike

It should work with any 4.x firmware since 4.21, including potential future updates to the 4.x line, yes.

Thanks. I'm considering updating to the new firmware for the Libra 2. So it's a good thing it will work.

Now I just need to know if NickelMenu will work.

DNSB · 09-28-2026, 02:58 PM

Sheesh... Jon, NickelMenu works with 4.38.23828.

09-28-2026, 01:41 AM	#157
xyclonei Groupie Posts: 157 Karma: 81356 Join Date: Dec 2018 Device: Kobo Clara HD	Seems like NickelTypeFix v1.0 was released yesterday with the below changes. Fixed Restored vertical Japanese glyph forms with fast shaping enabled. Brackets, long-vowel marks and punctuation now use the correct vertical variants. Added Public-domain EPUB fixtures and a device test guide for comparing the typography fixes. Long chapters load without Nickel's fixed 100 ms pauses between local EPUB chunks. Set ntf_fast_epub_delivery:0 to keep those pauses. Improved Lowered the supported firmware floor to 4.21.15015 after compatibility and rendering checks. The smallest optional line spacing still has a page-edge clipping limitation on this firmware. Removed the development-only page and page-boundary probes. The fixes and normal diagnostic logging are unchanged. The unexpected-thread warning names the caller and clarifies that the fix is skipped for that call. Reduced chapter layout work by skipping Qt's repeated preparation of text lines whose glyphs are already ready. Reduced page-boundary correction work in long chapters by searching only the line rectangles that can affect each page. Thank you, MrSilverstrike!

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09-28-2026, 03:57 AM	#158
rantanplan Weirdo Posts: 1,357 Karma: 13544822 Join Date: Nov 2019 Location: Wuppertal, Germany Device: Kobo Libra 2, Tolino Vision Color, reMarkable PaperPro	By the way, do these customizations survive updates or should I create a list for me with all the stuff I have to re-install after each firmware upgrade?

09-28-2026, 07:57 AM	#161
MrSilverstrike Zealot Posts: 149 Karma: 969522 Join Date: Apr 2024 Location: Belgium Device: Kobo Libra Color, Kobo Clara Color	I don't want to claim that the mod survives every upgrade, because there's no guarantee that it will. Generally speaking, it will remain until an incompatible update is released, at which point it disables itself. For example, if you choose to install the 6.0 pre-release update, it stops working because it isn't compatible.

09-28-2026, 10:49 AM	#162
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 85,317 Karma: 154365101 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	Does NickelTypeFix 1.0 work with the newly released 4.38.23828 firmware?

09-28-2026, 02:58 PM	#165
DNSB Bibliophagist Posts: 55,082 Karma: 182340534 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Vancouver Device: Kobo Sage, Libra Colour, Lenovo M8 FHD, Paperwhite 4, Tolino epos	Sheesh... Jon, NickelMenu works with 4.38.23828.