Koreader running on Kobos (all of them, hopefully!)

[freekobo]

This may have been asked before, but I was unable to find it via searching.

Just wondering, in koreader is it possible to double tap or something to make images in epubs larger/full size? I tried but it doesn't work for me..

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by freekobo

This may have been asked before, but I was unable to find it via searching.

Just wondering, in koreader is it possible to double tap or something to make images in epubs larger/full size? I tried but it doesn't work for me..

Not as of now, for those of us without "multi-touch" enabled, at least. It would be a nice feature to have.

For me, the images that I would like to see enlarged from .epubs, would most often be maps, of fantasy geography. One thing I can do is extract the wanted image files from the .epub (it is just a .zip file) and use Gimp2 to size them for full screen display on my AuraHD. If I have looked at them and have them in the "History", along with my current read, I can leave off reading and call up the History and select the map I want from those I have in History. Then I can select my current read entry in History and return right back where I left off. For some stories you can download better maps off the internet. The History can be a very handy way to move between various ebooks and image files.

It might be an interesting feature for Koreader, if there were generated from .epubs a "History" like "Illustrations" function/menu item. Any useable image file could be found within the .epub file and listed. Naming them, could be an issue, but would not be critical. The image files would have to filtered by size to eliminate "Drop caps" and such. Maybe a longpress option could be to "Make this the Sleep image".

Luck;
Ken

[freekobo]

That's a good idea. For me I have some training material in epub from work, and some of the screen shots of programs would be nice to make larger, it even says at the beginning of epub to double tap images to make bigger, but unfortunately it doesn't work in Koreader.

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by freekobo

That's a good idea. For me I have some training material in epub from work, and some of the screen shots of programs would be nice to make larger, it even says at the beginning of epub to double tap images to make bigger, but unfortunately it doesn't work in Koreader.

Hmm... you could turn doubletap on in Koreader, and maybe an epub that has the coding to respond to double taps on the image coordinates by calling a larger version of the image, perhaps a full screen version, would work.

Open defaults.lua script file in the free "Notepad++" and scroll down to:

-- gesture detector defaults
DGESDETECT_DISABLE_DOUBLE_TAP = true

and change the true to false.

Who knows it might work.

Luck;
Ken

[hawhill]

No, it won't.

In order to enforce such behaviour, an EPUB would have to contain active content like JavaScript. However, I don't think any API for that JS has ever been standardized. There seem to exist readers with proprietary APIs, probably most using whatever the browser engine (*cough*webkit*cough*) offers. That said, CREngine, which koreader uses, has no notion of active content. Ebooks can't tell the reader how to behave.

[Ken Maltby]

Since Koreader lets you provide an image that you can have displayed when you place the device in suspend/sleep mode, and it is just a flick of the power switch to call that image up and dismiss it, that might be an even better way to have an often referenced image available.

You could name the image file Sleep_pic and overwrite it with the "Sleep_pic" for your current book.

Luck;
Ken

[roger64]

Hi

After some months without trying Koreader (github is not well received everywhere), I tried the latest nightly (30.04) on my Kobo Glo. There have been some nice progresses. Here are two wishes:

1. - Adjusting font-weight
I still miss the possibility to use a slightly darker font for reading. I tried side-loading some Kindle fonts (the difference with normal ones is that they look nearly like semi-bold on Linux) but they just appear like normal ones on Koreader.

Is there any hope that Koreader one day implement such a feature? On my Kobo eReader.conf file (v. 2.8.1.), I can read

Spoiler:

[Reading]
readingAdobeShowPageNumbers=false
readingAlignment=left
readingFontFamily=Linux Libertine
readingFontSharpness\Linux%20Libertine=@Variant(\0 \0\0\x87<#\xd7\n)
readingFontSize=33
readingFontWeight\Linux%20Libertine=@Variant(\0\0\ 0\x87>\xa3\xd7\n)
readingLeftMargin=2
readingLineHeight=1.25
readingRightMargin=2

In Koreader, there is no default setting for font-weight that we can adjust, and, I think this kind of feature is missed to allow a comfortable reading.

2. - .lua files
Koreader creates a new .lua configuration file for each new book and puts it in a new folder on KoboeReader. Visually, it quickly takes a lot of place. Would it be possible to stack all these new .lua files in a single folder?

[NiLuJe]

@roger64:

1. Isn't there a 'contrast' setting in the wheel (or B, actually, cf. Ken's answer ) bottom menu? (Or is that only in PDF? Away from a device at the moment).

2. IIRC, it does both, there's the sidecar folder, and a global one somewhere in Koreader's main directory.

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by roger64

Hi

After some months without trying Koreader (github is not well received everywhere), I tried the latest nightly (30.04) on my Kobo Glo. There have been some nice progresses. Here are two wishes:

1. - Adjusting font-weight
I still miss the possibility to use a slightly darker font for reading. I tried side-loading some Kindle fonts (the difference with normal ones is that they look nearly like semi-bold on Linux) but they just appear like normal ones on Koreader.

Is there any hope that Koreader one day implement such a feature? On my Kobo eReader.conf file (v. 2.8.1.), I can read

Spoiler:

[Reading]
readingAdobeShowPageNumbers=false
readingAlignment=left
readingFontFamily=Linux Libertine
readingFontSharpness\Linux%20Libertine=@Variant(\0 \0\0\x87<#\xd7\n)
readingFontSize=33
readingFontWeight\Linux%20Libertine=@Variant(\0\0\ 0\x87>\xa3\xd7\n)
readingLeftMargin=2
readingLineHeight=1.25
readingRightMargin=2

In Koreader, there is no default setting for font-weight that we can adjust, and, I think this kind of feature is missed to allow a comfortable reading.

2. - .lua files
Koreader creates a new .lua configuration file for each new book and puts it in a new folder on KoboeReader. Visually, it quickly takes a lot of place. Would it be possible to stack all these new .lua files in a single folder?

The bottom Reader menu has a B icon under which you should find both "Font Weight" and "Contrast". The Font Weight options are "regular" and "bold". As for many of the options in Koreader, if you long press on a selection you will be given the option of making that selection the default.

In the Kobo Start Menu 7 there is, under "Tools", a "koreader diverse.msh" which has a script "delete dead history entries.sh", that might meet your needs. (I have my external uSD card mounted as read/write, and the script says it doesn't try to delete those with a mnt/sd location, so I just delete them myself.)

To be able to write to and delete from your external drive, including using the File Manager's long press options for deleting files, the mnt/sd must be remounted as read/write. To do so I add this to the koreader.sh file, just before "reader.lua" is called:

#remount SD card as read/write
mount -o remount,rw /mnt/sd

Luck;
Ken

[tshering]

Originally Posted by Ken Maltby

In the Kobo Start Menu 7 there is, under "Tools", a "koreader diverse.msh" which has a script "delete dead history entries.sh", that might meet your needs. (I have my external uSD card mounted as read/write, and the script says it doesn't try to delete those with a mnt/sd location, so I just delete them myself.)

To be able to write to and delete from your external drive, including using the File Manager's long press options for deleting files, the mnt/sd must be remounted as read/write. To do so I add this to the koreader.sh file, just before "reader.lua" is called:

#remount SD card as read/write
mount -o remount,rw /mnt/sd

Luck;
Ken

In KSM (in "configure"), there is a key "deleteSDRsOnboard" in the section "[Koreader]". If you set it to true all sdr folders that have a corresponding lua file in the history folder, get deleted each time you exit Koreader. Therefore, I would enable this option and run (and exit) koreader, before deleting any files of the history folder.

The reason why "delete dead history entries.sh" does not affect history-files that refer to books on the external sd, is that it cannot decide whether a book has actually been remove from the currently inserted external sd or maybe lives on another sd card (for instance, when you are switching between several sd cards).

[roger64]

Thank for your replies and informations.

font-weight

The settings under B do not seem to be apprporiate. The first control switches a regular font to a semi-bold - or more - font -weight which is way too strong for a sustained reading (for me). The second one (contrast) improves slightly the display but not the weight.

lua files

I will put the "deleteSDRsOnboard" to "true".

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by tshering

In KSM (in "configure"), there is a key "deleteSDRsOnboard" in the section "[Koreader]". If you set it to true all sdr folders that have a corresponding lua file in the history folder, get deleted each time you exit Koreader. Therefore, I would enable this option and run (and exit) koreader, before deleting any files of the history folder.

(You need KSM7 + update1 + update 2)
It's under the "add item" selection, in "[Koreader]".

Originally Posted by tshering

The reason why "delete dead history entries.sh" does not affect history-files that refer to books on the external sd, is that it cannot decide whether a book has actually been remove from the currently inserted external sd or maybe lives on another sd card (for instance, when you are switching between several sd cards).

Yes, that would be an important consideration.

Luck;
Ken

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by roger64

Thank for your replies and informations.

font-weight

The settings under B do not seem to be apprporiate. The first control switches a regular font to a semi-bold - or more - font -weight which is way too strong for a sustained reading (for me). The second one (contrast) improves slightly the display but not the weight.

lua files

I will put the "deleteSDRsOnboard" to "true".

In the "Advanced settings" several gamma numeric settings are available; including:
DCREREADER_CONFIG_DARKER_FONT_GAMMA = 25
DCREREADER_CONFIG_LIGHTER_FONT_GAMMA = 10
and
DCREREADER_CONFIG_DEFAULT_FONT_GAMMA = 15 (In my case)

But remember that the reader settings are only one of a number of factors that can effect how the text gets displayed.

Luck;
Ken

[roger64]

@Ken Maltby

Thanks for your informations. On my version of koreader, this file is named "defaults.lua". Following your advice, I modified the settings (gamma to 35 for default...). It did improve somewhat the sharpness of the font and - for me - the quality of reading.

It's still not on a par with the kind of emboldening we can get this way. But it looks like it's a trade secret.

[Ken Maltby]

Originally Posted by roger64

@Ken Maltby

Thanks for your informations. On my version of koreader, this file is named "defaults.lua". Following your advice, I modified the settings (gamma to 35 for default...). It did improve somewhat the sharpness of the font and - for me - the quality of reading.

It's still not on a par with the kind of emboldening we can get this way. But it looks like it's a trade secret.

The "Advanced options" are available through Koreader's menu and make changes to the "defaults.lua" that you found. Making the changes directly in the defaults files, is a better way, in my opinion, but not everyone finds it as natural as using a menu on the device.

Luck;
Ken