ePubs not playing nice with Fastr Pro

[iamagloworm]

Hi,

I've started using Fastr Pro (a RSVP reader). This is the only iOS app I could find that allows you to read books. Problem is that a lot of my books are converted to ePub from other ebook formats using calibre.

The result is a TOC that seems good in Calibre, but fastr pro doesn't work properly, ending in the annoying behaviour of losing my place half way through a book and not being able to get back there via the TOC.

It may be the fault of Fastr Pro, but I thought I'd ask here for advice on fixing the TOC. I tried to rebuild it with options in the Calibre conversion process, but it didn't make a difference.

Thanks!

[Doitsu]

Originally Posted by iamagloworm

I've started using Fastr Pro (a RSVP reader). This is the only iOS app I could find that allows you to read books.

It's one of the few speed readings apps for iOS. However, there are lots of other free apps that work fine from iBooks for ePub3 books to Bluefire Reader for ePub2 books and apps based on it.
Try side-loading your book into one of these apps. If they still have the same TOC problems, describe the exact problems that you have.

[iamagloworm]

thanks for the reply.

I see now that my message wasn't crystal clear.

I am after a RSVP (rapid serial visual presentation) reader for iOS that handles ebooks.

From my research, all RSVP apps except Fastr Pro can only be used for reading articles online.

I can't download Bluefire at the moment. I am on a shared 256kbs satellite connection. I will have marginally faster internet (512) in a few days time.

I did load one of the epubs that didn't work in Fastr Pro, into iBooks, and the TOC works normally.

If I load an epub that was originally produced in that format, it works fine. I am able to tap on TOC links and it takes me to that location in the book. If I load an ePub that has been converted from mobi for example, tapping on the TOC does nothing.

[dgatwood]

There are several different TOC formats that have been grafted onto the EPUB format over the years, and it is possible that Fastr Pro supports only some of them. See if there's an HTML toc, an NCX TOC, a spine, and a guide. Create any of those pieces if they are missing.

(Look around on the forum if you need tools for uncompressing and recompressing EPUB files; they're basically just ZIP files, with some rules about the order of the files, and a requirement that they not include a bunch of optional data like file permissions.)

[iamagloworm]

I ran ePubCheck on a sample and the error I got is below. Can you give some guidance on how to fix the toc.ncx?

ERROR: /Users/noir/Calibre Library/Robertson, Rachael/Leading on the Edge_ Extraordinary Stories and Leadership Insights from The World's Most Extrem (788)/Leading on the Edge_ Extraordinary Stories - Robertson, Rachael.epub/toc.ncx(26,72): assertion failed: different playOrder values for navPoint/navTarget/pageTarget that refer to same target
ERROR: /Users/noir/Calibre Library/Robertson, Rachael/Leading on the Edge_ Extraordinary Stories and Leadership Insights from The World's Most Extrem (788)/Leading on the Edge_ Extraordinary Stories - Robertson, Rachael.epub/toc.ncx(31,74): assertion failed: different playOrder values for navPoint/navTarget/pageTarget that refer to same target

Check finished with warnings or errors

[DiapDealer]

You have two different items (with different Play Orders) pointing to the exact same target. Get rid of one of them.

[Doitsu]

@iamagloworm: In case you're wondering how to fix the play order:

1. Download Sigil and open the .epub file with it.
2. Press CTRL+T, click OK and save the file.

Note: If pressing CTRL+T, generates an empty TOC, you'll need to manually delete or update one of the page targets in the .ncx file in Sigil.

[iamagloworm]

Hi,

thanks for the help! Sigil is unable to generate any useful TOC, but I was able to simply remove a couple of navpoints from the beginning that had the same playorder (intro, preface, etc.). In that case the fix was relatively easy, but some other conversions have not responded so well.

I like calibre, but I am thinking it does not handle conversions so well. Is there an alternative?

Thanks!

[DiapDealer]

Actually, calibre usually does a fine job of conversion (once you master the necessary options/settings). Many don't like some of the coding/naming conventions employed, but that's mostly a question of aesthetics. It will create perfectly valid epubs. It's usually the devices/apps that don't handle things quite the way they should.

[iamagloworm]

yeah i figured. i have written to the developer.

i have also asked developers of other iOS RSVP apps to include support for ePubs.

it does seem like it is something calibre should be able to fix, but I guess I have high expectations.

I think I have fiddled with all the TOC related options, but which options are you referring to, in case I have missed it.

Cheers!

[HarryT]

Can you explain why you need to use this "RSVP" thing (which I have to confess I've never heard of) rather than a normal book reader?

[iamagloworm]

The RSVP system displays a single word, or a few small words for less than a second before moving onto the next. So you don't move your eyes, the word just appear in front of them.

[HarryT]

That sounds like an exceedingly odd way to read a book!

[mrmikel]

It is for speed reading. They say it will double or triple your speed. I don't know for how long. I think that personally it would give me a headache in a few minutes.

[Doitsu]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Actually, calibre usually does a fine job of conversion (once you master the necessary options/settings).

However, if you do a round-trip epub-mobi-epub conversion*, all heading tags will be replaced by paragraphs with Calibre styles, which makes it impossible to automatically generate a TOC with Sigil.

* I'd never do this, but apparently some KDP authors managed to upload Calibre generated .mobi books to KDP.