Asian Languages in Cybook?

leebok21 · 11-16-2007, 02:41 PM

Hello all,

I'm new here.
Is there anybody have tried putting Chinese/Japanese/korean font to Cybook yet? I wonder how that simple font-drop is working.

Expressing foreign language is not just the matter of font. Sony's PRS series have the limitation of showing other language, too. If somebody have tried Non-Alphabet-Based language with cybook, please let me know (picture would be super).

Another question is about JPG format. Do they provide any comic book complier with Cybook? If all the comic JPG files go to one folder, any bookmark function can be used to resume the last page later?

BTW, I've been using NUUT NP-601 for a while. So far so good, although there are many minor software bugs to be fixed. As everybody know, recent book reader use 3rd Generation Vizlex panel, means there is no big differences in screen quality. Design and software makes every machines different. NUUT announced that they are going to fix most of the bugs reported by the middle of December, may include comic book compiler (unfortunately, NUUT does not support JPG at this version).

Well, if I could read Korea/Japanese in Cybook (reading comic book is plus), I am certainly going to buy one as second reader.

Thanks in advance,

nairbv · 11-23-2007, 01:53 AM

I'm also curious about this.

I tried emailing them to ask if it was fully tested and never got a reply.

I found a youtube.com video (but don't have the link) showing Chinese text on a cybook. ... but it could have been a PDF. Any that display PDF's will show any characters in PDF format, ... but I felt like the purpose of the video was to show that Chinese really worked, so maybe it does really work. It seems to say on their site that if you have the fonts it will work.

I'm considering the hanlin v3. It's made in China and so I think it must be able to use asian characters. It also has the visplex screen. The hanlin looks quite nice.

Can the nuut read any DRM files, like mobipocket? What else can you say about it? I'm curious about this one but the site is all in korean and I don't know korean.

IceHand · 11-23-2007, 06:31 AM

I don't have a Cybook yet, but why don't you just upload an asian font and text for anyone with a Cybook to test?
I know of one limitation: text is only displayed from left-to-right so the usual (as far as I know) top-to-bottom then right-to-left orientation won't work (yet).

As for comics: they're planning to add the possibility to read from ZIP-files, so what you're asking for should be possible in the future. For now you can convert your comics to PDF, if you're using Windows with Manga2Ebook and I've made a script for Linux that does more or less the same thing -- if you want it, just ask.

sm69lover · 11-26-2007, 10:10 AM

Upload of asian fonts can only be used under the .prc books. txt and html will give out rubbish characters. Bookeen still not fix the problem. They only tested unit under latin fonts. But I wonder how they OEM the starebook to china and taiwan that can read chinese characters. God knows.

tribble · 11-26-2007, 10:47 AM

The starebook has completely different software. Which sucks extremely by the way. And Bookeen has stated on their homepage in the specs, that the CyBook can only do left to right languages.

nairbv · 11-30-2007, 02:04 AM

OK, if the hanlin can't display asian fonts in txt files, I think that pushes me farther towards buying the hanlin v3. Thanks...

re: "the CyBook can only do left to right languages." .... most languages are left-to-right. Korean has funny compound characters, and chinese/japanese have thousands of characters, but they're still essentially left to right. The Arabic-like languages are the only ones I know of that are right to left.

eimert · 11-30-2007, 04:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nairbv

OK, if the hanlin can't display asian fonts in txt files, I think that pushes me farther towards buying the hanlin v3. Thanks...

re: "the CyBook can only do left to right languages." .... most languages are left-to-right. Korean has funny compound characters, and chinese/japanese have thousands of characters, but they're still essentially left to right. The Arabic-like languages are the only ones I know of that are right to left.

Well, traditional Chinese writing is in columns from top to bottom and the columns are read from right to left. Although, this seems to be rarely used nowadays except in reprints of classical Chinese novels and poems. I you want to read that kind of texts you will most likely have some problems. I am not even sure if you can embed that into pdf, unless you save it as jpgs.

jotheman · 05-26-2008, 02:57 PM

I recently (-_-)'' lost (-_-)" my Chinese ILIAD and to 'save' some money, I now bought myself a Cybook instead of a new iRex device.

What motivated me to do so was the simple support for Asian languages they boast about on their website. Just install the fonts and there you go! Problem is: it doesn't work. I haven't got any chinese html, pdf or txt file to work yet and my last hope is the mobipocktet conversion, which is kind of cumbersome for me, as I am a Mac user (Mac compability being another thing Bookeen boasts about)...

Anyway, why is it so difficult to create a usable, multi-language, stable and responsive firmware for a closed device like the Cybook? I have used it for a day now and it has crashed on me at least 5 times. Whenever there's a big file to be displayed or a chinese pdf or a large non-chinese pdf or ... it will just hang itself. Not to mention that there isn't even the simplest navigation of them all: a folder structure for files (OK, I was aware of that before I bought it, but still, how hard can it be to implement this?).

Feeling kind of disappointed right now. The guys at Mobipockted don't show any intention of producing a Mac version of their software and I am at my whits's end as how to quickly and simply do my Chinese reading on the Cybook. If they could at least clarify how a chinese html file for example has to be formated so it can be displayed. Not to mention clarify that displaying Asian languages isn't as easy as advertised to begin with.

I had some problems with my ILIAD as well, so I get the impression, that all these devices are kind of in a commercialized test phase, letting users pay a hefty prize and then having them give feedback on how to do things better. We're in the 21st century, for God's sake!

jo.

PS: Nowadays, Chinese is written from left to right just like most other language, so that's not a problem.

Indigo Ink · 05-27-2008, 02:19 AM

Again apologies to the thread starter, I don't have a cybook…hence….
But seeing that cybook supports true type fonts, I was wondering - long before the multiple languages were made available on windows OS, I remember using Indic languages with MS Word by simply installing a ‘true type’ font. The menu and everything else continued to be in English but the text in Indic languages showed up in MS Word. I was wondering if the same will not be true for the cybook. Can a cybook owner enlighten us with how fonts are installed in Cybook?

delphidb96 · 05-27-2008, 02:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Indigo Ink

Again apologies to the thread starter, I don't have a cybook…hence….
But seeing that cybook supports true type fonts, I was wondering - long before the multiple languages were made available on windows OS, I remember using Indic languages with MS Word by simply installing a ‘true type’ font. The menu and everything else continued to be in English but the text in Indic languages showed up in MS Word. I was wondering if the same will not be true for the cybook. Can a cybook owner enlighten us with how fonts are installed in Cybook?

One finds the particular TrueType fonts one likes and one drags them into the \Fonts directory on the Cybook.

Derek

HarryT · 05-27-2008, 02:32 AM

You just copy the TTF file into the "Fonts" folder.

tompe · 05-27-2008, 05:35 AM

You can always try to use mobiperl and html2mobi to convert html files.

Is the font information in the html files you tested correct?

If the mapping for the characters is hard coded in the Cybook html displayer one solution would be to just recode the html files using for example the Gnu program recode.

wallcraft · 05-27-2008, 11:51 AM

It is strange that TrueType fonts don't work for TXT/HTML. This suggests that they are using a really old HTML renderer that does not use TTF fonts, or perhaps that it can only uses its prescribed default font. For PDF, do type 1 fonts work?

adamtaurus · 05-28-2008, 01:30 AM

For Chinese readers (I myself am one too), you do have no trouble reading txt, prc files in Chinese, as long as you choose the right font(s)!!
And the right fonts are what you can easiliy get from your computer (Chinese version of MS). The three TTF fonts I'm using now are named NSimSun, SimHei, SimSun. Copy them and paste them in the Font folder in your cybook. Then there you go!

jotheman · 05-28-2008, 04:27 PM

Finally managed to get chinese text on the Cybook using the mobipocket desktop software. I run Win XP as a virtual machine under Mac OS X, so this isn't really ideal. It's funny how quick you come to expect a certain macish style and usability with any new software and I noticed that the Mobipocket Reader, while mostly managing to do what it is supposed to do (import works great), isn't really a very nice peace of software. The only positive thing I can say about it is that it is the ony RSS reader I know that fetches complete articles event when the original feed is abbreviated. Apart from that, it doesn't even correctly sync the eBook info to the Cybook (or an SD card, for that matter). Title, Author and other details I entered are somehow reset when the book is copied over. Add the stupid folderless interface of the Cybook and what you get is a perfect mess.

I want to do mainly newsreading, RSS, articles from the web etc, changing content is the keyword. Having to convert files fist, one way or another is a hastle I don't wanna have (thanks for the tips, anyway). Plus the Cybook can't even delete files that on the fly, so I would have to remember which are read and which are unread. And no, I don't wanna wait half a year til the next firmware comes out to finally map that delete button.

Long story short: I decided to return the device and go with the Hanlin V3 aka BeBook. It's cheaper and comes with more acessories in the box. The only thing that came with the Cybook was a USB cable.

Why has nobody come out with a really great reader yet? I can only laugh when I see the ugliness of the Kindle and even though the Iliad had quite impressive features, it still didn't 'feel right' (who on earth invented that crazy USB hub/travel adapter?!).

I pray that Apple will relieve us from our missery soon by entering the eReader/eBook business.

Peace,

jo.

PS: I didn't check whether txt files worked or not, actually. But anyway, what I was looking for was html support. And some reading comfort. The buttons and button layout on this thing are really not thought through. The Hanlin isn't ideal either, but I see it as a temporary solution anyway. All these devices seem to come from the last century, designwise and regarding their basic features (USB 1.0? Come on! Cybook's got 2.0, BTW).

11-16-2007, 02:41 PM	#1
leebok21 Member Posts: 21 Karma: 110 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: USA Device: NUUT/Dell Axim, PRS-505	Asian Languages in Cybook? Hello all, I'm new here. Is there anybody have tried putting Chinese/Japanese/korean font to Cybook yet? I wonder how that simple font-drop is working. Expressing foreign language is not just the matter of font. Sony's PRS series have the limitation of showing other language, too. If somebody have tried Non-Alphabet-Based language with cybook, please let me know (picture would be super). Another question is about JPG format. Do they provide any comic book complier with Cybook? If all the comic JPG files go to one folder, any bookmark function can be used to resume the last page later? BTW, I've been using NUUT NP-601 for a while. So far so good, although there are many minor software bugs to be fixed. As everybody know, recent book reader use 3rd Generation Vizlex panel, means there is no big differences in screen quality. Design and software makes every machines different. NUUT announced that they are going to fix most of the bugs reported by the middle of December, may include comic book compiler (unfortunately, NUUT does not support JPG at this version). Well, if I could read Korea/Japanese in Cybook (reading comic book is plus), I am certainly going to buy one as second reader. Thanks in advance,

05-26-2008, 02:57 PM	#8
jotheman Sleeper. Posts: 109 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: Boox Max2, Kinde Voyage, reMarkable, Dasung Paperlike Pro	I recently (-_-)'' lost (-_-)" my Chinese ILIAD and to 'save' some money, I now bought myself a Cybook instead of a new iRex device. What motivated me to do so was the simple support for Asian languages they boast about on their website. Just install the fonts and there you go! Problem is: it doesn't work. I haven't got any chinese html, pdf or txt file to work yet and my last hope is the mobipocktet conversion, which is kind of cumbersome for me, as I am a Mac user (Mac compability being another thing Bookeen boasts about)... Anyway, why is it so difficult to create a usable, multi-language, stable and responsive firmware for a closed device like the Cybook? I have used it for a day now and it has crashed on me at least 5 times. Whenever there's a big file to be displayed or a chinese pdf or a large non-chinese pdf or ... it will just hang itself. Not to mention that there isn't even the simplest navigation of them all: a folder structure for files (OK, I was aware of that before I bought it, but still, how hard can it be to implement this?). Feeling kind of disappointed right now. The guys at Mobipockted don't show any intention of producing a Mac version of their software and I am at my whits's end as how to quickly and simply do my Chinese reading on the Cybook. If they could at least clarify how a chinese html file for example has to be formated so it can be displayed. Not to mention clarify that displaying Asian languages isn't as easy as advertised to begin with. I had some problems with my ILIAD as well, so I get the impression, that all these devices are kind of in a commercialized test phase, letting users pay a hefty prize and then having them give feedback on how to do things better. We're in the 21st century, for God's sake! jo. PS: Nowadays, Chinese is written from left to right just like most other language, so that's not a problem. Last edited by jotheman; 05-28-2008 at 04:30 PM.

05-28-2008, 04:27 PM	#15
jotheman Sleeper. Posts: 109 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: Boox Max2, Kinde Voyage, reMarkable, Dasung Paperlike Pro	conclusion Finally managed to get chinese text on the Cybook using the mobipocket desktop software. I run Win XP as a virtual machine under Mac OS X, so this isn't really ideal. It's funny how quick you come to expect a certain macish style and usability with any new software and I noticed that the Mobipocket Reader, while mostly managing to do what it is supposed to do (import works great), isn't really a very nice peace of software. The only positive thing I can say about it is that it is the ony RSS reader I know that fetches complete articles event when the original feed is abbreviated. Apart from that, it doesn't even correctly sync the eBook info to the Cybook (or an SD card, for that matter). Title, Author and other details I entered are somehow reset when the book is copied over. Add the stupid folderless interface of the Cybook and what you get is a perfect mess. I want to do mainly newsreading, RSS, articles from the web etc, changing content is the keyword. Having to convert files fist, one way or another is a hastle I don't wanna have (thanks for the tips, anyway). Plus the Cybook can't even delete files that on the fly, so I would have to remember which are read and which are unread. And no, I don't wanna wait half a year til the next firmware comes out to finally map that delete button. Long story short: I decided to return the device and go with the Hanlin V3 aka BeBook. It's cheaper and comes with more acessories in the box. The only thing that came with the Cybook was a USB cable. Why has nobody come out with a really great reader yet? I can only laugh when I see the ugliness of the Kindle and even though the Iliad had quite impressive features, it still didn't 'feel right' (who on earth invented that crazy USB hub/travel adapter?!). I pray that Apple will relieve us from our missery soon by entering the eReader/eBook business. Peace, jo. PS: I didn't check whether txt files worked or not, actually. But anyway, what I was looking for was html support. And some reading comfort. The buttons and button layout on this thing are really not thought through. The Hanlin isn't ideal either, but I see it as a temporary solution anyway. All these devices seem to come from the last century, designwise and regarding their basic features (USB 1.0? Come on! Cybook's got 2.0, BTW). Last edited by jotheman; 05-28-2008 at 04:40 PM.

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11-23-2007, 01:53 AM	#2
nairbv Connoisseur Posts: 88 Karma: 15 Join Date: Nov 2007 Device: still looking for an ebook reader device	I'm also curious about this. I tried emailing them to ask if it was fully tested and never got a reply. I found a youtube.com video (but don't have the link) showing Chinese text on a cybook. ... but it could have been a PDF. Any that display PDF's will show any characters in PDF format, ... but I felt like the purpose of the video was to show that Chinese really worked, so maybe it does really work. It seems to say on their site that if you have the fonts it will work. I'm considering the hanlin v3. It's made in China and so I think it must be able to use asian characters. It also has the visplex screen. The hanlin looks quite nice. Can the nuut read any DRM files, like mobipocket? What else can you say about it? I'm curious about this one but the site is all in korean and I don't know korean.

11-23-2007, 06:31 AM	#3
IceHand Linux User Posts: 323 Karma: 13682 Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Germany Device: Kindle 3	I don't have a Cybook yet, but why don't you just upload an asian font and text for anyone with a Cybook to test? I know of one limitation: text is only displayed from left-to-right so the usual (as far as I know) top-to-bottom then right-to-left orientation won't work (yet). As for comics: they're planning to add the possibility to read from ZIP-files, so what you're asking for should be possible in the future. For now you can convert your comics to PDF, if you're using Windows with Manga2Ebook and I've made a script for Linux that does more or less the same thing -- if you want it, just ask.

11-26-2007, 10:10 AM	#4
sm69lover Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2007 Device: Bookeen GEn3	Upload of asian fonts can only be used under the .prc books. txt and html will give out rubbish characters. Bookeen still not fix the problem. They only tested unit under latin fonts. But I wonder how they OEM the starebook to china and taiwan that can read chinese characters. God knows.

11-26-2007, 10:47 AM	#5
tribble iLiad Maniac Posts: 1,382 Karma: 2369 Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Germany Device: Bookeen Opus (i love that thing) and iPad (what an irony)	The starebook has completely different software. Which sucks extremely by the way. And Bookeen has stated on their homepage in the specs, that the CyBook can only do left to right languages.

11-30-2007, 02:04 AM	#6
nairbv Connoisseur Posts: 88 Karma: 15 Join Date: Nov 2007 Device: still looking for an ebook reader device	OK, if the hanlin can't display asian fonts in txt files, I think that pushes me farther towards buying the hanlin v3. Thanks... re: "the CyBook can only do left to right languages." .... most languages are left-to-right. Korean has funny compound characters, and chinese/japanese have thousands of characters, but they're still essentially left to right. The Arabic-like languages are the only ones I know of that are right to left.

05-27-2008, 02:19 AM	#9
Indigo Ink The curious one! Posts: 82 Karma: 10 Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: India Device: Kindle 3, Nook, Ebookman 901	Again apologies to the thread starter, I don't have a cybook…hence…. But seeing that cybook supports true type fonts, I was wondering - long before the multiple languages were made available on windows OS, I remember using Indic languages with MS Word by simply installing a ‘true type’ font. The menu and everything else continued to be in English but the text in Indic languages showed up in MS Word. I was wondering if the same will not be true for the cybook. Can a cybook owner enlighten us with how fonts are installed in Cybook?

05-27-2008, 02:32 AM	#11
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383043 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	You just copy the TTF file into the "Fonts" folder.

05-27-2008, 05:35 AM	#12
tompe Grand Sorcerer Posts: 7,452 Karma: 7185064 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Linköpng, Sweden Device: Kindle Voyage, Nexus 5, Kindle PW	You can always try to use mobiperl and html2mobi to convert html files. Is the font information in the html files you tested correct? If the mapping for the characters is hard coded in the Cybook html displayer one solution would be to just recode the html files using for example the Gnu program recode.

05-27-2008, 11:51 AM	#13
wallcraft reader Posts: 6,975 Karma: 5183568 Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Mississippi, USA Device: Kindle 3, Kobo Glo HD	It is strange that TrueType fonts don't work for TXT/HTML. This suggests that they are using a really old HTML renderer that does not use TTF fonts, or perhaps that it can only uses its prescribed default font. For PDF, do type 1 fonts work?

05-28-2008, 01:30 AM	#14
adamtaurus Member Posts: 10 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2008 Device: Gen 3 cybook	For Chinese readers (I myself am one too), you do have no trouble reading txt, prc files in Chinese, as long as you choose the right font(s)!! And the right fonts are what you can easiliy get from your computer (Chinese version of MS). The three TTF fonts I'm using now are named NSimSun, SimHei, SimSun. Copy them and paste them in the Font folder in your cybook. Then there you go!

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