02-11-2018, 02:44 PM | #16 |
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You don't understand ePub. ePub's margins are based on the CSS code. If the CSS code says to have wide margins, then th ePub will have wide margins. It's nothing to do with software on a Kobo Reader. If the ePub has no DRM or you can remove the DRM, you can easily edit the margins in the editor.
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02-11-2018, 03:30 PM | #17 | |
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And here's the review where my claim about Kobo's outrageous margins came from https://youtu.be/P-PWy-KaF2g?t=194 As said, I don't own a Kobo, but based on this review, if I bought one and found the inbuilt app to be an obstacle like it seems to be, I'd install another reading app. This does not mean I hate Kobo. For me it's good to know that I can make the software likeable when needed (and from reviews I have gathered it's needed). I would buy it mainly for the hardware. In the OP's comparison, the Tolino has better hardware. Last edited by mobama; 02-11-2018 at 03:40 PM. |
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02-11-2018, 04:44 PM | #18 |
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I find totally more unreasonable those apps which don't honor the css inside the books (a dime a dozen in android app). Indeed, I've only found two which really honors it, and one of them doesn't work well in an eInk screen. So, every approach has its problems.
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02-11-2018, 05:34 PM | #19 | |
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02-11-2018, 09:26 PM | #20 | |
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There are plenty of screenshots of Kobo devices posted in the Kobo forum that show the narrower margins that the device is capable of. Of course, finding them will be a pain. This thread shows a kepub (probably sideloaded) with much narrower margins than in that review. Kepubs do have larger minimum margins than for epubs, but I think they have it on the second setting. I didn't watch all the review, just skipped through it. The reviewer didn't know how to use the Kobo. There were several things he pointed out on the Kindle but didn't point out the similar function on the Kobo device. And, with the margins, it felt like he deliberately setup the Kobo to look bad compared to the Kindle. Of course, it might just be that's the way that person likes the margins. If they are used to the margins on a Kindle, they might have chosen similar settings on the Kobo. |
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02-11-2018, 09:55 PM | #21 | |||
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There is a slider to set the right and left margins greater than the minimum though I seldom move it off zero which is the same for the patched or unpatched Kobo firmware. As for the margins in the video you linked, you did notice the margin slider was set to the middle position for the Aura H2O2? Care to guess what happens when you move the slider to the left? Quote:
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BTW, I've attached screenshots from a KA1 and a Tolino Epos with the font size set as close as I can which is iffy since the Tolino font sizing is a lot coarser. This is without the various patches for Kobo's firmware I normally use. As for the ereaders I've owned? Kobo, Kobo Wifi, Kobo Touch, Kobo Glo, Kobo Aura, Kobo Mini, Kobo Aura HD, Kobo H2O, Kobo Aura One, Sony PRS 350, Kindle keyboard (those two were picked up used) and Tolino Epos. As for your suggestion that disabling CSS is a good feature? Only if the person who created the epub was not doing their job. Otherwise, I like seeing drop caps, right, left, centred, justified text, bold, italic, underlined, etc. and all the other effects that add to the reading experience. Last edited by DNSB; 02-11-2018 at 10:04 PM. |
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02-12-2018, 02:45 AM | #22 | |
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From my point of view, this quote by itself states a decisive reason to avoid Kobo's inbuilt reader. I most definitely want the ability to switch off the inbuilt CSS and set my own styles, select between indented versus block paragraphs etc. I want this because a very common file format in my ebook collection is HTML - I save a lengthy talky webpage, load it onto the ereader and then read it. Often enough, some tinkering is needed for comfortable reading. The tinkering, to keep it simple, involves stripping all CSS written into the page and cleaning the HTML markup so that headings and titles are defined as headings and titles, paragraphs and blockquotes as paragraphs and blockquotes, etc, so that when I apply my own styles in the reading app in the ereader, everything makes visually perfect sense as it should. If the reading app cannot apply my preferred CSS, it's not a reading app worth the name. Same with epubs - some are beautifully formatted with the internal CSS and markup, let these be as they are, but others are atrocious and it's an instant improvement to switch their internal styles off. As to the ability to set margins in Kobo reading app, yes, the settings are there, which is good. But when I first mentioned "outrageously wide margins" I included the footer/statusbar in the concept and I mentioned it too. Those are outrageously wide indeed and configurable/removable only by patching, mentioned in passing by the reviewer, which is near-equivalent to installing another app. By the way, I'm sure you know the reviewer and you cannot blame him for ignorance or bias. You can only blame him for his preferences, but it really is not blameworthy to have preferences. Last edited by mobama; 02-12-2018 at 03:08 AM. |
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02-12-2018, 04:33 AM | #23 | |||||
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Yes, the bottom margin is bigger due to the space left for the page number. Use the full screen reader, and that disappears. Quote:
And I didn't pay attention to who did the review. Now that I see who it is, he claims to be an expert on ereaders, has reviewed these devices many times. He should know all the features of them. |
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02-12-2018, 05:24 AM | #24 | |||
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If you don't like his review, find a better one. Based on my own research, I am confident that you cannot find anything better. You will have to make a better one yourself. |
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02-12-2018, 05:51 AM | #25 | |
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02-12-2018, 06:04 AM | #26 | |
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There are nicer looking built-in fonts. You can get less of a line-height and less of a margin. You don't need to disable the CSS. The thing is, you have to notice the option settings and see that the reviewer botched the review by using poor settings. A Kobo is not a Kindle and you should not try to set the Kobo to emulate the Kindle. You should set the Kobo in it's best light to show that you can get a better looking display then the Kindle. And given when the review was made, there is no reason the font on the Kobo should look so light.Looking at the Kobo setting, where you see Font Face: there is a button labeled Advanced. Tapping that takes you to where you can increase the weight of the fonts and make them look better. The review you cited is worthless because the reviewer does not know how to do a proper review of the Kobo. |
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02-12-2018, 06:59 AM | #27 | |
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In my view, it's a fair plan: Set the fonts visually to the same size and see how much more text the bigger screen can fit - dang! it cannot! This is noteworthy. And in this case the reviewer makes no big deal of it, he passes over it quickly, says there are patches to fix this and moves on. There's no bias there. Of course, I completely agree. Until you need to. If you like things styled for you, good for you. My strong preference happens to be the opposite. I am old enough to already have eyesight issues, so by now I forcefully apply my own styles everywhere in ebooks and all over the web (a text-mode webbrowser in a terminal emulator is best for that), until I run into indigestible markup that displays the way the designer meant it only in Chrome or the like. Or until I encounter an ebook whose inbuilt styles are truly gorgeous - this happens also, and I am actually looking forward to it, so I habitually test ebooks both ways before starting reading. But as far as possible, all fonts and colors and styles everywhere must be possible to be set my way. It's a basic user-friendliness issue that happens to be in good line with accessibility. There is no argument against this. Last edited by mobama; 02-12-2018 at 07:17 AM. |
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02-12-2018, 07:07 AM | #28 |
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You are right. But any reading software that runs roughshod over an e-book's css should carry a very big warning sticker that says what it does.
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02-12-2018, 07:11 AM | #29 |
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02-12-2018, 07:19 AM | #30 | ||||
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As for styled, everything has a style even if you don't have a CSS. The defaults are a style. The idea is to find the style you like best. With a Kobo, you can apply your style. With a Kindle, you have a less control over the style. So if you want less left/right margins, a Kindle is not for you. If you want a smaller line height, a Kindle is not for you. You can change these things with a Kobo. So please don't accept that review as the truth as the Kobo can display that eBook much better than the reviewer has set to display. |
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