Sigil 0.2.0 betas available

[theducks]

Originally Posted by Valloric

You mean you want all the XHTML files opened in their tabs on load? That would be very, very slow. A large part of the speed increase comes from the fact that a flow is loaded only when needed, and then cached for future use even if you close the tab.

No, Exactly for the reason mentioned

You mean you want the currently selected item in the Book Browser to change to match the tab to which a user switched?


What would be the use case for that? What does a user gain from this feature? I just don't see how would this be useful. You already know what file is loaded in your tab, the filename is in the tab title. The Book Browser should really be thought of as a "view" into the "filesystem" of your book. It's not conceptually connected to the tabs.

Yes,
I am working on a Chapter that contains Navigation elements (They do work properly in Sigil book view). If I click and the tab was not present, it opens..
Now the index is wrong. It is just convenient to know the next place to go if the navigation element is not used for the next page.
Not a show stopper if it was not easy to do

[Valloric]

Originally Posted by ghostyjack

A few things I've noticed:
1. When importing a HTML file that includes the CSS code in it (and not in a separate CSS file) and then inserting a chapter break, all the css code now appears in the new xhtml file. I take it Sigil can't at present extract the CSS code and place it in a CSS file so that when splitting the file, I don't have to modify the CSS code in every split.

The intent is always to preserve original content the way it was. If your HTML file has CSS style tags, it will have them when you open it in Sigil.

If you want those style rules in a separate CSS file:

1. Open Code View;
2. Cut the CSS code;
3. Right-click "Styles" folder in the Book Browser and create a new CSS file;
4. Paste in the CSS.
5. Add a new link element to you chapter.

Takes about 10 seconds.

Originally Posted by ghostyjack

2. When splitting a file all the new files are xhtml files, but the first file is showing as a html file (a html file was opened in Sigil to create the book) and I can't rename it. Is this typical behaviour?

Already on the tracker. Although I still wonder why you people care whether the extension is htm, html, xhtml or whatever. Your Reading System doesn't care, and no one will be able to even see those files when you make an epub.

[ghostyjack]

Originally Posted by Valloric

The intent is always to preserve original content the way it was. If your HTML file has CSS style tags, it will have them when you open it in Sigil.

If you want those style rules in a separate CSS file:

1. Open Code View;
2. Cut the CSS code;
3. Right-click "Styles" folder in the Book Browser and create a new CSS file;
4. Paste in the CSS.
5. Add a new link element to you chapter.

Takes about 10 seconds.



Already on the tracker. Although I still wonder why you people care whether the extension is htm, html, xhtml or whatever. Your Reading System doesn't care, and no one will be able to even see those files when you make an epub.

So it sounds like I'll need to move the css code to a new css file before splitting the file, thats fine with me. BTW, I'm still working my way through learning XHTML, so what does a link element look like?

As to having all the text content files with the same extention, I suppose it's a lot to do with keeping things "neat and tidy". Also if you are not that experienced with book creation (as a lot of users of Sigil will be, because Sigil makes knowing how a book is created redundent due to its doing the hard work for you), you might be a bit concerned that you have one HTML (of HTM) file and lots of XHTML files and worried that you might be doing something wrong.

[Valloric]

Originally Posted by ghostyjack

So it sounds like I'll need to move the css code to a new css file before splitting the file, thats fine with me. BTW, I'm still working my way through learning XHTML, so what does a link element look like?

Link element at w3c schools.

[ghostyjack]

Ahh!

Thanks Valloric, now get it.

Cheers.

[afv011]

Originally Posted by Valloric

It's here!

The first beta of Sigil 0.2.0 has been released. This will be the official beta thread, and it will be updated as new beta releases come out.

More details in this blog post. Please keep the discussion on the betas in this thread.

Man am I glad I finally got this out of the door...

Excellent work! Running it on Ubuntu 9.10 32-bit, fast and smooth!

[mjfontec]

Awesome release thanks Valloric.

Have a couple questions - I created an epub using Adobe InDesign CS4 that opens in Digital Editions with table of contents entries. However, those are lost when opening in Sigil. Is there something I can do to preserve those? The epub file contains only 1 xhtml file now, so it's pulling the TOC from a style created in the Indesign document. I wonder if that is the problem.

Would it be possible to break the 1 xhtml file into separate files based on a class defined in the CSS (maybe through a find/change)? What about having TOC entires appear based on a predefined css style?

Thanks for any assistance.
Mike

[Valloric]

Originally Posted by mjfontec

Have a couple questions - I created an epub using Adobe InDesign CS4 that opens in Digital Editions with table of contents entries. However, those are lost when opening in Sigil.

I'd have to see the file. Read this wiki page.

Originally Posted by mjfontec

Is there something I can do to preserve those? The epub file contains only 1 xhtml file now, so it's pulling the TOC from a style created in the Indesign document. I wonder if that is the problem.

I don't know how InDesign creates a TOC, but in the end it has to end up as an NCX file. Again, I'd have to see the file.

Originally Posted by mjfontec

Would it be possible to break the 1 xhtml file into separate files based on a class defined in the CSS (maybe through a find/change)?

In the next beta, you'll be able to insert chapter break markers with a S&R operation and then break files on those.

Originally Posted by mjfontec

What about having TOC entires appear based on a predefined css style?

Sounds like a nice idea, could be possible to do in the future. Something like this could be integrated in the direct NCX editing feature I have in mind. Add a feature request on the tracker.

[mjfontec]

Thanks for the reply. I guess I was hoping to get around having to create each chapter as it's own document in InDesign (as the file I have now is simply 1 file), but it seems I'll need to do it if I want the TOC preserved.

I noticed that I can apply a heading to an entry and it will then appear in the TOC. I'll put in a feature request that there be a drop down box for CSS styles and that the CSS styles can be mapped to the TOC.

Thanks for all the hard work on this.

[ShellShock]

I much prefer the 0.2.0 design, so congratulations!

Do you have any plans to support tiling of tabbed windows? I tend to work a lot in the stylesheet--it would be good to have that and the target file (in split view) visible at the same time. Then using a "refresh" you could easily see the effects of the stylesheet changes.

By the way, at the moment I'm not sure how best to get changes in the stylesheet to take effect. Closing and opening a tab always works, but is not instant. Saving (when the stylesheet is active) sometimes works, but not always. Do we need a "refresh" option (F5)?

I like your VS type interface--VS 2008 is my epub editor at the moment, but I can see Sigil will soon replace it. The one thing holding me back at the moment is the lack of search & replace across files (Ctrl+Shift+H)--pretty please!

Some minor things:

How about Ctrl+F4 to close the active tab? I suppose would be part of a normal "Window" menu, so you can select the tabs, tile, cascade, etc using the keyboard (and/or mouse).

Also Find will not find "CHAPTER" in book view given the following partial html:

<body class="text sgc-1">
  <div class="chapter" id="ch18">
    <div class="chapterHead">
      <h2 class="chapterNumber" id="calibre_pb_44"><span class="bold">CHAPTER 18</span></h2>
    </div>

[Valloric]

Originally Posted by ShellShock

Do you have any plans to support tiling of tabbed windows? I tend to work a lot in the stylesheet--it would be good to have that and the target file (in split view) visible at the same time. Then using a "refresh" you could easily see the effects of the stylesheet changes.

Yes, naturally. In VS, I always use two vertical tab groups, one for cpp files, and one for h files. I'd love to have something like that in Sigil.

Add it to the tracker, but bear in mind it will probably be a while before I can get to it.

Originally Posted by ShellShock

By the way, at the moment I'm not sure how best to get changes in the stylesheet to take effect. Closing and opening a tab always works, but is not instant. Saving (when the stylesheet is active) sometimes works, but not always. Do we need a "refresh" option (F5)?

Whenever you make a change in a CSS tab and then switch back to a chapter tab which links to that CSS file, it should refresh.

There's code that checks whether any linked CSS files have changed when the chapter tab regains focus and that then refreshes the tab. It should work, and if it doesn't, that's a bug. Try to make it repeatable and add it to the tracker.

I've thought about a "Refresh" option for chapter tabs, but that's just admitting defeat. The tab should know when it needs refreshing, the user shouldn't have to tell it.

Originally Posted by ShellShock

The one thing holding me back at the moment is the lack of search & replace across files (Ctrl+Shift+H)--pretty please!

I've mentioned in the blog post that this is the main reason why you are looking at a "beta" and not a "release candidate".

Originally Posted by ShellShock

How about Ctrl+F4 to close the active tab? I suppose would be part of a normal "Window" menu, so you can select the tabs, tile, cascade, etc using the keyboard (and/or mouse).

Tab-related keyboard shortcuts (that mimic those from FF) are scheduled for the beta process, yes.

Originally Posted by ShellShock

Also Find will not find "CHAPTER" in book view given the following partial html:

<body class="text sgc-1">
  <div class="chapter" id="ch18">
    <div class="chapterHead">
      <h2 class="chapterNumber" id="calibre_pb_44"><span class="bold">CHAPTER 18</span></h2>
    </div>

Sounds like a bug, add it to the tracker.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Valloric

Yes, naturally. In VS, I always use two vertical tab groups, one for cpp files, and one for h files. I'd love to have something like that in Sigil.

Add it to the tracker, but bear in mind it will probably be a while before I can get to it.

brilliant ! i was going to request the same thing. i guess i'll just go add a star to the tracker instead.

Whenever you make a change in a CSS tab and then switch back to a chapter tab which links to that CSS file, it should refresh.

i always work in split view and i've noticed that after making changes in the code, the "book view" will refresh as soon as i click inside it (switch the focus to book view pane). i've not noticed a problem with css changes not showing up, with this method.


a question : last night when i tried to edit the toc the changes wouldn't "stick". i edited the titles directly in the toc but when i closed it and came back to it (or saved the file) the changes had not been applied ; neither changes to titles, nor changes to "include / don't include" list (checkboxes). this works in sigil 0.1.* versions. bug ?


another question : i see sigil 0.2 now supports fonts. this overjoys me, you can imagine. however, i cannot for the life of me figure out how to add them through the interface. i tried dragging the files onto the sigil file navigator, no joy. and i didn't find an "import" command in the menus. if i created a "Fonts" folder directly in the epub, sigil didn't see it and add the files. i had to manually add the files to the epub and *also* to the .opf ; after that, they were recognised. is this feature not finished, or am i missing something really obvious ? either way, thank you SO MUCH for adding it ! the book i was working on, The Professor and the Madman (i bought the mobi version since no epub was available, and it came out of calibre thoroughly mangled, i was absolutely horrified when i looked at the code ), uses a LOT of special characters to show phonetic pronunciation ; if i don't embed a font supporting these characters, the book becomes partially unreadable.

[Valloric]

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

a question : last night when i tried to edit the toc the changes wouldn't "stick". i edited the titles directly in the toc but when i closed it and came back to it (or saved the file) the changes had not been applied ; neither changes to titles, nor changes to "include / don't include" list (checkboxes). this works in sigil 0.1.* versions. bug ?

Already on the tracker, issue #277.

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

another question : i see sigil 0.2 now supports fonts. this overjoys me, you can imagine. however, i cannot for the life of me figure out how to add them through the interface. i tried dragging the files onto the sigil file navigator, no joy. and i didn't find an "import" command in the menus. if i created a "Fonts" folder directly in the epub, sigil didn't see it and add the files. i had to manually add the files to the epub and *also* to the .opf ; after that, they were recognised. is this feature not finished, or am i missing something really obvious ? either way, thank you SO MUCH for adding it ! the book i was working on, The Professor and the Madman (i bought the mobi version since no epub was available, and it came out of calibre thoroughly mangled, i was absolutely horrified when i looked at the code ), uses a LOT of special characters to show phonetic pronunciation ; if i don't embed a font supporting these characters, the book becomes partially unreadable.

Have you tried right-clicking the Fonts folder in the Book Browser and selecting "Add existing items..."? That opens a dialog where you can select the files you want to add.

Yes, I need to start writing some documentation. I plan on starting very soon.

And font embedding will be officially supported when I figure out a way to query the system for the font files installed (plus some QtWebKit support). The user should be able to have a font drop-down box like in Word, only with just a "<add new font>" option for epubs with no fonts. Selecting that option would open a standard font selection dialog for the OS, and selecting a font should make Sigil pull it out of the system (and any font variants present, like bold, italic etc.), add it to the epub file and attach the required CSS to the file and the current selection.

But that will have to wait until QtWebKit supports font variants. Currently it won't display italic or bold, only the regular.

In 0.2.0 I've made it easier to do this by hand, but that's far from ideal.

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by Valloric

Already on the tracker, issue #277.

and starred. thanks. i should really check there first, i know.

Have you tried right-clicking the Fonts folder in the Book Browser and selecting "Add existing items..."? That opens a dialog where you can select the files you want to add.

i knew it would be something obvious i had missed. i don't know why i didn't think of right-clicking. thanks for the answer.

Yes, I need to start writing some documentation. I plan on starting very soon.

And font embedding will be officially supported when I figure out a way to query the system for the font files installed (plus some QtWebKit support). The user should be able to have a font drop-down box like in Word, only with just a "<add new font>" option for epubs with no fonts. Selecting that option would open a standard font selection dialog for the OS, and selecting a font should make Sigil pull it out of the system (and any font variants present, like bold, italic etc.), add it to the epub file and attach the required CSS to the file and the current selection.

oh wow. that will be BRILLIANT. i can't wait.

But that will have to wait until QtWebKit supports font variants. Currently it won't display italic or bold, only the regular.

In 0.2.0 I've made it easier to do this by hand, but that's far from ideal.

...well, okay, i guess i *can* wait, then. anyway, thanks very much for the partial support already, it makes a HUGE difference. the last time i was working with embedded fonts i would do all my editing in sigil, export the epub, unzip it, edit the .opf / .css by hand (i was smart enough to stick my bits of code in a .txt file so it was just a matter of copy / paste) and add the fonts folder, rezip, test, go back to sigil for further editing if necessary... lather rinse repeat. this way is much, much better.

[droople]

Originally Posted by Valloric

Already on the tracker, issue #277.



Have you tried right-clicking the Fonts folder in the Book Browser and selecting "Add existing items..."? That opens a dialog where you can select the files you want to add.

i'm not sure it's a bug or not, the only thing I can't open through add existing items... are the fonts file under windows fonts folder . I have to copy the fonts to other folder to let sigil to add them.


ps: I embed Arial MS Unicode to epub (I tried to let ADE show CJK characters), ADE still shows question marks , I also tried Atlantis Word Processor, the epub file show correct CJK characters in ADE.

Cheers