Custom e-book covers - would you like them?

Alexander Turcic · 09-15-2008, 05:03 PM

We're always being told that you can't - or shouldn't - judge a book by its cover; nevertheless, sometimes cover art may say a great deal about the content of a book (such as, for instance, it's theme, sub-genre, or mood). Many of the e-books you can download freely from the Net don't come with a cover. Which begs the question: Would you be interested in producing your own covers for your favorite books?

MobileReader Paul "pdurrant" takes the idea one step further, contemplating over a new forum section dedicated to the producing and uploading of custom e-book covers.

What do you think? Could we together manage such an effort?

PS: I thank Paul for his infinite patience in dealing with my forgetfulness.

zelda_pinwheel · 09-15-2008, 05:06 PM

yes please.

kovidgoyal · 09-15-2008, 05:30 PM

You can get covers for (most?) new ebooks from amazon/wikipedia.

pdurrant · 09-15-2008, 05:37 PM

My main machine is a Macintosh. As there isn't a Mobipocket Reader program for Mac, I only ever saw the covers of eBooks briefly when first reading the book on my PDA.

When I got a CyBook, covers became a little bit more important, because thumnails of the covers were displayed in the library view.

Then I wrote a QuickLook* plug-in for Mobipocket eBooks, and eBook covers suddenly became very important. Instead of generic document icons, my eBook archive on my Mac now used the eBook covers for icons and in CoverFlow view.

Flipping through the eBooks with CoverFlow became enjoyable. The new views also helped identify me to identify books correctly, as the covers naturally show both title and author, while plain file names can't do both well.

With some image editing software and the MobiPerl tools, I could add new covers to my books that had poor covers, but then I wanted to find a way to solve two problems:

1) How to share the covers I made with others
2) How to get more artistically inclined people to share their pretty covers with me

A new forum at MobileRead seemed the obvious solution. I'll be very interested to see what others think.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Alexander Turcic

We're always being told that you can't - or shouldn't - judge a book by its cover; nevertheless, sometimes cover art may say a great deal about the content of a book (such as, for instance, it's theme, sub-genre, or mood).

*QuickLook is a Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) method for displaying the contents of files, with new file formats being supported by small plug-ins added to the system.

pdurrant · 09-15-2008, 05:39 PM

And for the commercial eBooks, this is often what I do. Although finding a high-res version that hasn't been horribly compressed can be hard.

I'm really thinking of a covers forum for the many out-of-copyright eBooks that are uploaded to the eBook forums here. Many have no cover or a very plain solid-colour-background-and-text cover.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

You can get covers for (most?) new ebooks from amazon/wikipedia.

TadW · 09-15-2008, 05:45 PM

I don't think this applies to out-of-copyright ebooks, but at least for the new books that you can find on Amazon, there are ways to fetch cover images in better quality. Check here for more:

http://aaugh.com/imageabuse.html

and here:

http://www.majordojo.com/projects/am...mage-hacks.php

nekokami · 09-15-2008, 07:54 PM

I might be able to occasionally contribute some covers to such a forum.

JSWolf · 09-15-2008, 07:59 PM

If I am looking for a decent cover for an eBook I am converting (commercial) that either has a poor cover, no cover, or a small cover, I go to Fictionwise or BooksOnBoard as most covers are 680 pixels lontg which looks fin when stretched to fit full screen on my 505.

Snowman · 09-15-2008, 08:24 PM

What I've been hunting round for is some nicely designed blanks onto which I could superimpose the title and author.

I've actually been using the fictionwise "classic" cover, which I rather like. Although with this image, there is not enough space to add a title and author without spoiling the look of the whole thing.

RWood · 09-15-2008, 11:21 PM

Most of the ebooks that I have uploaded to the MR download section have covers. Some are, regretfully, just text of title and writer(s) on a color background. (The Sony PC software does shows color even when the Reader does not.) Most have a graphic related to either the book or the writer(s). Some were far better. All were branded with the then current MobileRead logo. I have higher quality JPEGs of these covers. Most are 2126 x 2830 pixels. If anyone wants them I will gladly post them.

curtw · 09-16-2008, 12:16 AM

I like these. All my PD faves. They look cool in "coverflow" fashion as well. Look! It's Bobby Sherman as Hamlet!

Over · 09-16-2008, 05:40 AM

Covers are important. But they can be found in many internet sources. But for those titles you can't really find a cover, it's a good idea to make one.

But be careful about copyrights, when using pictures.

Dr. Drib · 09-16-2008, 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Over

Covers are important. But they can be found in many internet sources. But for those titles you can't really find a cover, it's a good idea to make one.

But be careful about copyrights, when using pictures.

I agree entirely with your summary statement.

When I assemble books for the upload section, I take the time to locate covers that I feel are suitable.

The internet has so many choices. Many of my favorite places are bookmarked for the specific purpose of using an old out-of-copyright cover.

Don

Dr. Drib · 09-16-2008, 08:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

You can get covers for (most?) new ebooks from amazon/wikipedia.

Yes, we can get them, but are they appropriate and are they the best choice?

I think what I'm reading in this thread is about covers that can be produced; it would be a kind of catalogue that we could draw from.

Now, having said that, I wonder at the viability of such an endeavor. How would this work, for example?

How would this Forum be indexed for quick access?

Personally, what I would like to see is a VERY simple program to position text onto a cover of my choosing.....a very simple program. After that, I would use "Insert" from BookDesigner.

Don

gnawingonfoot · 09-19-2008, 11:54 AM

I appreciate a good cover. I look over the covers of books to help me transition into more of a reading-oriented mood and to reflect on and recall what I read last time I picked up the book. It'd be nice to see some device-specific covers too, as I can seldom even make out the titles on the covers of books in my tiny 160x160 pixel 256-color z22 screen. I'd love to take a shot at pixeling some smaller stuff out.

09-15-2008, 05:03 PM	#1
Alexander Turcic Fully Converged Posts: 18,163 Karma: 14021202 Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: Switzerland Device: Too many to count here.	Custom e-book covers - would you like them? We're always being told that you can't - or shouldn't - judge a book by its cover; nevertheless, sometimes cover art may say a great deal about the content of a book (such as, for instance, it's theme, sub-genre, or mood). Many of the e-books you can download freely from the Net don't come with a cover. Which begs the question: Would you be interested in producing your own covers for your favorite books? MobileReader Paul "pdurrant" takes the idea one step further, contemplating over a new forum section dedicated to the producing and uploading of custom e-book covers. What do you think? Could we together manage such an effort? PS: I thank Paul for his infinite patience in dealing with my forgetfulness.

09-16-2008, 12:16 AM	#11
curtw Outside of a dog Posts: 863 Karma: 4457646 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Houston, TX Device: Kindle Voyage	I like these. All my PD faves. They look cool in "coverflow" fashion as well. Look! It's Bobby Sherman as Hamlet! Last edited by curtw; 09-16-2008 at 12:19 AM.

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09-15-2008, 05:06 PM	#2
zelda_pinwheel zeldinha zippy zeldissima Posts: 27,827 Karma: 921169 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Paris, France Device: eb1150 & is that a nook in her pocket, or she just happy to see you?	yes please.

09-15-2008, 05:30 PM	#3
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 43,858 Karma: 22666666 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	You can get covers for (most?) new ebooks from amazon/wikipedia.

09-15-2008, 05:45 PM	#6
TadW Uebermensch Posts: 2,583 Karma: 1094606 Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Italy Device: Kindle	I don't think this applies to out-of-copyright ebooks, but at least for the new books that you can find on Amazon, there are ways to fetch cover images in better quality. Check here for more: http://aaugh.com/imageabuse.html and here: http://www.majordojo.com/projects/am...mage-hacks.php

09-15-2008, 07:54 PM	#7
nekokami fruminous edugeek Posts: 6,745 Karma: 551260 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Northeast US Device: iPad, eBw 1150	I might be able to occasionally contribute some covers to such a forum.

09-15-2008, 07:59 PM	#8
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,976 Karma: 128903378 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	If I am looking for a decent cover for an eBook I am converting (commercial) that either has a poor cover, no cover, or a small cover, I go to Fictionwise or BooksOnBoard as most covers are 680 pixels lontg which looks fin when stretched to fit full screen on my 505.

09-15-2008, 08:24 PM	#9
Snowman Zealot Posts: 106 Karma: 3566 Join Date: Aug 2008 Location: London UK Device: iPhone 5, Kindle K3, Kindle Voyage	What I've been hunting round for is some nicely designed blanks onto which I could superimpose the title and author. I've actually been using the fictionwise "classic" cover, which I rather like. Although with this image, there is not enough space to add a title and author without spoiling the look of the whole thing.

09-15-2008, 11:21 PM	#10
RWood Technogeezer Posts: 7,233 Karma: 1601464 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Virginia, USA Device: Sony PRS-500	Most of the ebooks that I have uploaded to the MR download section have covers. Some are, regretfully, just text of title and writer(s) on a color background. (The Sony PC software does shows color even when the Reader does not.) Most have a graphic related to either the book or the writer(s). Some were far better. All were branded with the then current MobileRead logo. I have higher quality JPEGs of these covers. Most are 2126 x 2830 pixels. If anyone wants them I will gladly post them.

09-16-2008, 05:40 AM	#12
Over Wizard Posts: 1,462 Karma: 6061516 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Cascais, Portugal Device: Kindle PW, Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2", OnePlus 6	Covers are important. But they can be found in many internet sources. But for those titles you can't really find a cover, it's a good idea to make one. But be careful about copyrights, when using pictures.

09-19-2008, 11:54 AM	#15
gnawingonfoot worthless joat Posts: 14 Karma: 10 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Bloomington, IN Device: eBookwise-1150, Handspring Visor Neo	I appreciate a good cover. I look over the covers of books to help me transition into more of a reading-oriented mood and to reflect on and recall what I read last time I picked up the book. It'd be nice to see some device-specific covers too, as I can seldom even make out the titles on the covers of books in my tiny 160x160 pixel 256-color z22 screen. I'd love to take a shot at pixeling some smaller stuff out.

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