ZuluReader for PC/Laptop (beta)

[Steve]

ZuluReader for PC/Laptop is a program for reading DRM-free ePub eBooks
and runs on any version of Windows. It can be used in one or two page
mode and can be run in full screen mode or in a resizeable window.

The library manager can be used to copy eBooks back and forth between
your PC/Laptop and your device if you have one.

ZuluReader for PC is well behind ZuluReader for devices in terms of
features, something that I will adress over the coming months with
your assistance. I always welcome feature requests and suggestions on
how to improve ZuluReader.

The name will be changing soon to something along the lines of
ZuluReaderWriter (I'm open to alternate suggestions) to reflect the
fact that it is also an ePub editor. It allows you to very quickly add
or change the cover image of your ePub, edit the metadata (Title,
Author, Publisher etc) and add/edit a TOC (table of contents) You can
even use ZuluReader to build a new ePub from scratch.

All of the editing features are very much in the development stage so
if you intend to sue them please make sure you crate a backup copy of
your ePub first.

Zulureader will eventually be a full WYSIWYG ePub editor, but at the
moment actual content file editing is done by invoking your html
editor of choice.

So if you are an early adopter and would like to be a beta tester for
either the reading or editing (or both) aspects of ZuluReader please
let me know.

Cheers,

Steve.

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

I have been analyzing the problem with the cover page. I found an
EPUB that passed the epubcheck test. Here are my results.

The old version running the two-page layout shows the cover on
the LEFT side of the screen, you can't page forward AT ALL. The
text is very jumbled. If you are IN the book, you can't page back
to the cover.

The old version running the one-page layout will show the cover
page on the right side. And the text is jumbled.

The new version runnning the one-page format can NOT page
back to see the cover.

When I switch the new version to the two-page format, I can see
the cover. I page forward, and reach the end of the book. The last
is is repeated so that there is something on the right side of the
screen. When I page forward, I can NOT see the cover.

I am unable to upload the file to this egroup. As moderator, do
you need to "allow" uploads? I will send you the file in a normal
email.

Cheers,

Bonnie

[Steve]

Thanks for that Bonnie, I'll let you know when I have an update ready
that will sort those issues out.

[Steve]

Hi Bonnie,

I have changed the group sttings s othat members can upload files.
Make sure you don't upload any copyrighted material though :)

Cheers,

Steve.

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

I successfully uploaded the two files -- Bonnie_Code and Bonnie_Error.

I found code which will "enlarge" the cover to fill the entire page.
Basically, the height of the cover is set to 100%. I added the code,
and it worked correctly in Sigil. You can see the code in
Bonnie_Code.

I saved the EPUB, and opened it in the OLD version of ZuluReader. The
reader gave me an exception which you can read in Bonnie_Error.

I opened the new EPUB in the NEW version of ZuluReader and did NOT get
an exception. I also couldn't see the cover.

I keep trying to write code that will show the cover :-)

Cheers,

Bonnie

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

I have uploaded two more files -- Enlarge_Cover_2010_04_14 and
Enlarge_Cover_2010_04_14a. The "14" version causes the exception in
the OLD ZuluReader. The "14a" version does not cause an exception. I
copied the code, and pasted it into a TXT file for the upload.

In both cases, I am requesting a cover that fills the screen (top to
bottom), and is centered (left to right).

[Steve Dales]

Thanks for the code snippets Bonnie. I will make sure ZR obeys the formatting in your ePub in the update.

 

Cheers,

 

Steve.

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[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

> Thanks for the code snippets Bonnie. I will make sure ZR obeys the
> formatting in your ePub in the update.

Please remember that I know HTML, but I am just learning CSS. I
may be writing "illegal" code for an EPUB.

PLEASE correct me if I write something stupid :-)

Cheers,

Bonnie

[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

 

No worries mate, lol. I try to make ZR handle any kind of thrown together html, xhtml or xml. But of course you should always try to produce fully compliant ePubs.

 

I have been stuck on some urgent work on ZR for devices, still another couple of days for the update, sorry.

 

Cheers,

 

Steve.

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

You had mentioned someone who was trying to add a TOC in Sigil, and
having problems. Here are my findings on using Sigil to build a TOC.

- - - - - - - -

I have been trying to edit EPUBs in Sigil, and view them in ZuluReader
for PC. I am using the latest version - 0.20 Beta 3.

As you know, Sigil has trouble building TOCs. Sometimes all the
chapters were present in the TOC. Other times, certain chapters would
be missing in the TOC. I would mark the chapter heading as <heading
3>, and would see the change in the book view. HOWEVER, the effect
would not be present when I opened the EPUB later.

I think I have FINALLY found the trick to handling this weird bug(s).
There are two different situations. In one situation, Sigil works
perfectly. In the second situation, it will "ignore" you when you mark
a heading.

Case #1 (the perfect world):

You start with a new text file, and build a new EPUB from scratch. All
the text is loaded into one "segment". Then you divide the large
segment into chapters, and mark the start of each chapter. You DO THIS
IN ORDER of the chapters, and you DON'T do any other type of editing.
Then you save the EPUB. In most cases, you should get a "perfect" TOC.

Case #2 (the real world):

You start with a new text file or an existing EPUB. You make some
edits, and divide a few chapters into smaller segments. You manually
add a new chapter heading (like Chapter 1-A), and mark it as <heading
3>. Then you make a few more edits. You do all your work, and save the
EPUB. When you open it again, SOME of the chapters are listed in the
TOC, and others are missing. In addition, the "missing" chapter
headers are "plain text", not <h3> as you requested.

You fix the missing <heading 3>, save the EPUB, and open it again. The
chapter headings are STILL missing. Or, even more confusing, SOME of
the chapter headings were added, and SOME are still missing.

Here is the trick for the "real world" :-) After you mark a new
chapter heading, SAVE the EPUB immediately -- before doing anything
else. So you do the following:

1. Add a new chapter break to divide a segment of text
2. Enter a chapter heading for the new segment of text
3. Mark it with <heading 3>
4. SAVE THE EPUB
5. Then do the next thing you want to do

The "save" operation seems to cause Sigil to "update" the TOC. If you
do other edits, Sigil seems to "forget" about updating the TOC. In
some cases, I have even saved the EPUB, and exited Sigil. Then
restarted Sigil to continue editing.

Cheers,

Bonnie


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[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

 

Tks for that, that sounds so frustrating. But hey, I know all about bugs ;)

 

You should post that info in the Sigil Forum on MR, I'm sure the users there would really appreciate it.

 

Well, it's no wonder my friend was having trouble. She'll be wrapped to have a solution at last.

 

I'll have a ZR update for you this week :)

 

Cheers,

 

Steve.

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

> You should post that info in the Sigil Forum on MR, I'm sure the users
> there
> would really appreciate it.

I am TRYING to make a small testcase that behaves the SAME WAY
every time. That is harder than it sounds :-)

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

I just sent a message to you gmail account. It contains a "test" EPUB.
I am ALWAYS using the 2-page format in my tests.

[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

Sorry I don't have that update ready yet Bonnie. My laptop died
completely the other day, and that was after reloading everything
because I thought i had a virus.

I Live in Vanuatu, a small country in the south pacific. The computer
shops here leave a lot to be desired and are ridiculously expensive so
I'm off to Hong Kong to get a new laptop. I was planning a trip there
next month anyway but have brought it forward. I fly out on sunday,
I'll email you when I'm back in action.

Cheers,

Steve.

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

I have found a very simple technique for adding a blank line between
each paragraph in the EPUB. Normally, a paragraph is contained by <p>
and </p>. I changed all the "end markers" to <br /></p>. This should
work in ALL ereaders (hardware and software). If I need more
separation, I can add <p><br /></p>.

Now our only remaining problem is the covers. I found a LIT file which
I converted to an EPUB. The resulting EPUB used SVG code to make a
viewable and SCALABLE version of the cover. If SVG is used, then the
cover would look correct on ANY "device" (ereader, PC, etc) if that
device can handle the SVG code. Can ZuluReader handle SVG code? Here
is a copy of the code that I found.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

<?xml version="1.0"?>
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">

<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en"
xmlns:xml="http://www.w3.org/XML/1998/namespace">
<head>
<meta content="text/html; charset=utf-8" http-equiv="Content-Type" /
>
<meta content="true" name="calibre:cover" />

<title>Cover</title>

<style type="text/css">
@page {padding: 0pt; margin:0pt}
body { text-align: center; padding:0pt; margin: 0pt; }
</style>
</head>

<body>
<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" xmlns:xlink="http://
www.w3.org/1999/xlink" width="100%" version="1.1"
preserveAspectRatio="xMidYMid meet" height="100%" viewBox="0 0 600
800">
<image width="600" height="800" xlink:href="../Images/
490full_size.jpg"></image>
</svg>
</body>
</html>

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Best wishes,

Bonnie

[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

 

That'd do it alright, though you shouldn't need to modify the ebook to get the desired behaviour from ZR (or any other reader). Spacing after paragraphs and/or chapters should be a configureable option of the reader. Your solution will do the job though until I get around to doing mine ;)

 

Yes ZR can handle svg images, if it isn't working at the moment it's only because I've broken it accidentally. Actually I may only have added that to ZR for mobile, but either way it's no biggy as I have already written the code for handling svg images so I can simply cut and paste the relevant bits from ZR4Mobile inot ZR4PC.

 

There are some pretty big things afoot and I'm busier than ever at the moment. I can't say too much yet but I may have some helpers soon which would be nice :)

 

Cheers,

 

Steve.

 

 

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

I originally installed ZuluReader on my laptop (running XP). The
program was installed in C:\Program Files\ZuluReader. A few days
later, you sent me a new executable which fixed a LOT of bugs. I
copied the executable file into the same folder, and "updated" the
program. No problem.

Does this ONE folder contain all the necessary files for the program?
During installation, did you write anything in the Registry, etc? If
all the necessary files are in C:\Program Files\ZuluReader, I could
"migrate" the updated program by copying the entire folder to a new
computer.

I recently purchased a new desktop which is running Windows 7 (64-
bit). No one is permitted to "copy" a file into either of the "Program
Files" folders. You can "install" into that folder, but not "copy"
into that folder. However, I can make a "Programs" folder under my
account. Then I can copy files into that area without any
restrictions. Therefore, the new location of the program would be C:
\Users\Bonnie\Programs\ZuluReader.

I have used this trick on several programs that ORIGINALLY had data
files in the C:\Program Files area -- a definite no-no in Windows 7.

Please let me know how to "migrate" ZuluReader to my new desktop.

The last update for the PC version occurred in April (when you sent my
a new executable file). When will you have the next version ready for
PCs? I have a request. When you generated the April 12th version, you
fixed a lot of bugs. In addition, ZuluReader lost the ability to
"remember" the selected font for the EPUB being read. Every night I
must open the EPUB, select the font (Calibri), and start reading. You
DO remember the current page, but not the "current" font. Perhaps you
could add that ability back into the PC version.

It has been several months, and I STILL can't view the covers in
ZuluReader when the EPUB was built using Sigil. I can see other
pictures in the "pages" of the book. I think that a "page" must have
at least one "printable letter", or the page is blank. A cover does
not HAVE a "printable letter".

Best wishes,

Bonnie

P.S.

Does you new laptop have Windows 7? If so, you are experiencing all
the new restrictions concerning copying files :-)

[Bonnie]

Hello Steve,

I have another question/problem in moving from XP to Windows 7.

XP needs ActiveSync 4.5; Windows 7 uses Windows Mobile Device Center
6.1.

Can I do the following:

1. Install Windows Mobile Device Center 6.1 on my 64-bit Win 7 machine
2. Copy the "program folder" for ZuluReader from my 32-bit XP machine
to a
folder (NOT in "program files") on my 64-bit Win 7 machine

This would let me "move" the updated ZuluReader onto my new machine.

Can I do this?

Best wishes,

Bonnie

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

I use your ZuluReader for PC/Laptop every day, and it is my favorite
epub reader.

I do have two small requests.

1. My beta version does not "remember" the font I selected for an epub.
The original version of the software DID remember the font. Can you
add that ability into the "beta" version (that you make in April 2010).

2. The library manager in ZuluReader contains code which is specific
to the XP ActiveSync 4.5). Windows 7 uses Windows Mobile Device
Center 6.1. Could you REMOVE/DISABLE the library manager function
so that I can use ZuluReader on XP, Vista, and Win7. I don't HAVE
a mobile device :-)

Thank you very much for making these two changes. There are
MANY people who don't have a mobile device. They use their
laptops instead.

Thank you,

Bonnie

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

 

Thanks for your email, glad to hear you are still using ZR. I am busy with another project at the moment but I will dig out the code and get something to you next week.

 

Cheers,

 

Steve.

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

> Thanks for your email, glad to hear you are still using ZR. I
> am busy with another project at the moment but I will dig
> out the code and get something to you next week.

That would be great :-) I only want to READ epubs in the 1-page
or 2-page format on XP, Vista, and Win7. I like to pick the
Calibre font for reading.

I don't need the library function, or the editing function. You
can disable those functions, or just rip them out.

Thank you VERY MUCH in advance :-)

Bonnie

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

> Thanks for your email, glad to hear you are still using ZR. I am busy
> with another project at the moment but I will dig out the code and
> get something to you next week.

Have you been able to update the ZR for PC?

Thank you in advance,

Bonnie

[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

Here's a new version for you to try, just delete the '1' from the end
of the attached file's name and extract the new exe.

Cheers,

Steve.

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

> Here's a new version for you to try, just delete the '1' from the end
of the attached file's name and extract the new exe.

Thank you :-) I extracted the new exe, and placed it in the same folder
on my XP machine. The new version DOES appear to remember the
requested font.

On the XP machine, these files are in C:\Program Files\ZuluReader,
with the addition of a zuluwriter folder.

I packed all the files in the folders, and moved them to a 64-bit Win7
machine. The program will not run. I tried placing the files in the
same location C:\Program Files -- even though they SHOULD be in
C:\Program Files (x86).

I assume that the new version does NOT look for the existence of
ActiveSync 4.5. Am I correct in my assumption?

On the XP machine, the installation script made some folders in
C:\Documents and Settings\Bonnie\My Documents\ZuluReader.

On the Win7 machine, the same location would be called
C:\Users\Bonnie\My Documents\ZuluReader. I can manually make
those folders, but the pathname won't be the same.

I have some other programs that I moved from the XP to the Win7 machine.
In C:\Users\Bonnie\My Documents, I made a folder called My Progs.
Then I placed ALL THE FILES AND FOLDERS required for the program to run
in a single place. This trick has worked for several old programs. IF they
search the "current folder" FIRST, this trick will work.

Please tell me the correct procedure to get this program to work in
Vista and Win7.

Thank you VERY MUCH for making me this new version. I use your
program EVERY SINGLE night :-)

Best wishes,

Bonnie

[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

You can't simply copy the program to another PC, you need to install
ZR on the new machine then replace the exe with the new version.

Cheers,

Steve.

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

> You can't simply copy the program to another PC, you need to install
> ZR on the new machine then replace the exe with the new version.

That doesn't work either. The original version attempts an install,
and I get an error message (see attachment). I replaced the executable,
and tried to run the program. Nothing ran.

The program was installed in C:\Program Files (x86)\ZuluReader.

Help :-)

Bonnie

[Steve Dales]

Hi Bonnie,

Here is a new install for ZR that has all reference to the comms
libraries for devices. This should install and run fine on any win
ver. It is the latest exe so you won't need to update the exe after
installing.

Cheers,

Steve.

[Bonnie Lee Hill]

Hello Steve,

I tried to install this in Win7, and got errors (1) on opening the program,
(2) on opening an ebook, and (3) on exiting the program. I believe the
program is trying to write into a zuluwriter folder, and it doesn't have
permission. In Win7, I believe all "local" data must be written into the
user's area.

For me, that would be C:\Users\Bonnie\AppData\Roaming\ZuluWriter

I noticed that a ZuluReader folder was built in C:\Program Files (x86).
I think that was built during some install. LATER (during execution),
the program will NOT have permission to built a zuluwriter folder on
the fly.

Help :-)

Bonnie

[The Philps]

Can you please remove me from your group email.
I seem to be getting your privtae email
Thanks

> <Exiting Program Error.jpg><Opening Error.jpg><Selecting ebook error.jpg>

The Philps
phi...@eim.ae