- gutvol-d - lists.pglaf.org

awfully quiet
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 09 Feb '11

09 Feb '11

this list gets _awfully_quiet_ whenever i start dragging out examples that _prove_ my points. -bowerbird

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Re: for those of you who are just "skimming" the posts
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 08 Feb '11

08 Feb '11

ok, new files, to my satisfaction, as far as i know... package of files needed to create the .epub: > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl.zip .epub created by that package: > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl.epub .mobi generated from the .epub: > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl.mobi feedback appreciated to move the process... -bowerbird

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Re: for those of you who are just "skimming" the posts
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 08 Feb '11

08 Feb '11

i said: > i've just now gotten them to my own satisfaction, > and will be uploading 'em soon; ok, they're up. i reworked the underlying .html/x file, reassembling it into a single file, so i can re-split it later by chapters... here it is, in an early version, if you wanna validate it: > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl-xx.html here is a zipped version of the entire file package: > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl.zip here is the .epub which was created by that package: > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl.epub you must note that, even though this .epub passes its "validity" test, it will _not_ run in epub-viewers which are defective and thus cannot handle chunks any bigger than 300k, chief among these being a.d.e. (that's right, the epub-viewer from _adobe_ itself is pure _crap,_ and adobe is the main technical company in the i.d.p.f., which shows you how ludicrous this is... a huge company like adobe, and they can't even make a viewer-program for .epub that can do the job right. so e-book creators have to pay the price for adobe's incompetence by doing extra work to split up a book.) anyway... here is the .mobi which was created from the .epub: > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl.mobi ironically, kindle apps handle the file without blinking. i would appreciate any feedback on this .mobi file now. *** once i've split the .html file into tiny bite-sized chunks, so even the anemic adobe viewer-program can handle it, i'll re-upload these files, but in the meantime, you could look at the .mobi file and give me your feedback on that. as far as i can see at this point, it's looking pretty good, but it needs a fresh set of eyes to go over every bit of it. -bowerbird

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Re: for those of you who are just "skimming" the posts
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 08 Feb '11

08 Feb '11

bastien said: > Where can I download the z.m.l exporter? you can't. because it hasn't been released yet. when it is, you will be able to find it here: > http://jaguarps.com i _was_ going to add that i would not release it until someone on this list labeled it "vaporware", just to -- you know -- recall the good old days, but i'd say technically jim just came close enough. some people never learn. anyway, if you'd like to see it sooner rather than later, you can speed up the process by giving me feedback on the simple example i've been doing. i removed the files that i did have up online, so jim couldn't pull out my own .opf and .ncx files when i asked him to give "examples" of such files, which woulda been the smart thing for him to do. (meaning it probably never even occurred to him.) but it was also the case i wasn't quite happy with the files yet, and wanted to do some fine-tuning. i've just now gotten them to my own satisfaction, and will be uploading 'em soon; if they meet with more general approval from objective observers, then i will proceed to more complicated examples. and once _they_ are satisfactory as well, then i will release the program. but probably not before then. *** jim said: > Really? Show it to us. i've already showed _output_ from the program, you fool; you will see the app itself soon enough. -bowerbird

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Re: Calibre: Open Source Software for Managing eBook Collections
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 08 Feb '11

08 Feb '11

you're the one confused, jim. not me. you're the one who can't get stuff to work. i'm the one giving end-users a program that lets them click a button to generate the format which _they_ want to use, on _their_ machinery, customized to _their_ own particular preferences. you're not just "confused", you're _seriously_ confused. and you have 35 minutes to display some competence... -bowerbird

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for those of you who are just "skimming" the posts
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 08 Feb '11

08 Feb '11

so, from an easy-to-author z.m.l. master-file, you get out: 1. nice-looking .pdf, customized to your preferences... 2. nice-looking .html, customized to your preferences... 3. nice-looking .epub, customized to your preferences... 4. nice-looking .mobi, customized to your preferences... all by setting your preferences, and then clicking a button, and then drag-n-dropping some files... simpler than pie. or, if you are using a mac or windows or linux machine to do all this, you can also just use that z.m.l. file in the app which handles them -- i.e., the same app which is doing all these conversions -- which _also_ renders the e-book according to your preferences, such that you don't even need all those stupid conversions to other, worse, formats. once your hand-held machines support the z.m.l. format, you won't need those other inferior formats _there_ either. and you'll wonder why you ever did... -bowerbird

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Multile eReader Brands at Stores
by Michael S. Hart 07 Feb '11

07 Feb '11

In addition to the others recently mentioned, I noticed Wal-Mart now has multiple eReaders, inlucding a nice sign saying "Barnes & Noble" and showing of the nook. The world is changing, literally overnight!!! It's The Year of the eBook!!! mh

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Re: 14.8 million ipads sold (in 9 months) during 2010
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 07 Feb '11

07 Feb '11

let's recap the thread, ok? so here goes... when pressed for specifics, jim had none. -bowerbird

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Re: 14.8 million ipads sold (in 9 months) during 2010
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 07 Feb '11

07 Feb '11

your time's up, jim... *** here's that information on the auxiliary files required to create an .epub or a .mobi file... first, get yourself the appropriate tool to zip an .epub... windows tool to zip a folder up into an .epub: > http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=84675 mac tool to zip a folder up into an .epub: > http://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=55681 next, get yourself the kindle previewer, which gives you the ability to convert .epub into .mobi via drag-n-drop... > http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1000234621 now download this .zip file, which contains the folder of files needed for the "jungle" example we've been using... all of these files (except obviously the cover-image) were generated automatically from the z.m.l. "master-format". > http://z-m-l.com/go/jjngl/jjngl.zip unzip the file. inside the folder, you will find the auxiliary files i've been talking about, specifically an .opf file and an .ncx file. you can use these files as "templates" for other books as well... i do not understand every wrinkle in these files, but they work. the .epub "validates", and the generated .mobi file is complete. the requirements for these files are extremely obtuse and crazy, but these examples work, so i believe in them like superstition. (anyone who enlightens me, or improves them, will be thanked. and, obviously, i have not done this process on the p.c. myself.) so drop the folder of files on your .epub-zipper, and you will get an .epub file out. (on the p.c. side, you might have to run the zipper program.) then run the kindle previewer and drop the .epub file inside it, and it will auto-generate a .mobi file... now you know how to make e-books. congratulations. believe me, there are a _lot_ of humans out there _right_now,_ struggling with the problem of doing this, banging their heads against the wall, because nobody made it easy for them to do... -bowerbird

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Re: Calibre: Open Source Software for Managing eBook Collections
by Bowerbird＠aol.com 07 Feb '11

07 Feb '11

the post i just made about calibre was quite objective, which means that it was a bit difficult for me to write, because i think the kid who does calibre is an asshole, at least as _i_ experienced him, over on mobileread... so it's even more difficult for me to come to his "defense"... but my guess is that, if you get bad .epub output out of calibre, it's because it appears to me that he's decided that he's not gonna chase down all the inconsistencies that present themselves due to different viewer-apps... for instance, one machine only accepts such-and-such a subset of c.s.s., and another machines only accepts _another_completely_different_ subset, and on and on. nope, he's gonna give you _one_ .epub file, probably geared to be usable to the greatest number of people, and everyone else will just have to suffer through it... which is probably a wise decision, for his own sanity... heck, just figuring out all the wrinkles in the various versions of a.d.e. (adobe digital editions) would give a person gray hair. and when you throw in the ipad, with all of its extensions to the format, forgetaboutit. and we don't even need to talk about all of the _other_ crappy implementations of .epub viewer-programs... of course, when the dingleberries who gave us .epub neglected to provide any _reference_implementations_, that's the legacy they bequeathed to us, unfortunately, one that is marked by the same kinds of viewer-tool inconsistencies that were such a nightmare during the "browser wars" that are only just now finishing up... (they _are_ finishing up, aren't they? what's that, you say, something about audio and video codecs? really?) even liz castro, who was the only person who seemed motivated to track down all of the inconsistencies -- and only then because she was writing a book on them -- has apparently given up on that despicable task and decided to focus exclusively on the ipad these days... -bowerbird

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