Software to do the Conversions:
updated: June 17, 2004
Personal Content Conversion/Publishing Software:
- Create new eBooks formatted for your REB 1100, REB 1200, GEB 1150, GEB 2150 eBook device
- Create eBooks from a variety of common file types:
- RocketBooks .RB files (from thousands available on the web)
- Microsoft Word .RTF and .DOC files (Microsoft Word required)
- HTML files - even those saved from Microsoft Word or from other document converters
- TXT files - such as those downloaded from Project Gutenberg
- NEW! Plug in other external converters to convert from other popular formats!
- Connect and transfer eBooks to your eBook reader!
- Easy to setup REB 1200 / GEB 2150 Ethernet connectivity
- Seamless GEB 1150 USB connectivity
- Transfer eBooks to SmartMedia/CompactFlash card readers with a click of a button!
- Keep your eBooks organized!
- Create unlimited bookshelves to keep your eBooks organized
- SmartTransfer feature sends bookshelf listings tailored to the connected eBook device.
- Serve a directory on your PC as your booklist
- Import and convert Rocket Edition files (*.RB) from Rocket ebooks and REB-1100 devices
- Import and convert text files (*.TXT)
- Import and convert HTML files (*.HTM, *.HTML)
- Import and convert MS-Word files (*.DOC, *.RTF)
- Import and convert OEBFF Containers (*.OEB)
- Import and convert Open ebook Package Files (*.OPF)
- Change the book properties: Authors, Titles and Categories can be changed
- Fully support the GEB1150, GEB2150, GEB2200, REB1200, Softbook 250E.
(You can run both but not at the same time. With GEBLibrarian it can point to the REBLibrarian folders for storage and I use both to create titles depending on what format they are in. GEBLibrarian can also create RB formatted titles that work on my REB1100 so that is the one I use most of the time. However sometimes REBLibrarian does a better job converting some titles. GEBLibrarian can convert multiple HTMLfiles into a single book and an undocumented feature will also create a photo album in IMP format. (to turn it on just drag a jpg file to the program) - Roy Lewis,
Garland, TX)
Kudos for Gemstar on releasing professional content publishing software
for free! It is a content conversion tool that opens .html, .rtf, and
.doc files and saves them into .imp . The learning curve for this is a
little steeper than Softbook Personal Publisher (below), but after
you have learned it, it's much easier and faster, especially for larger
documents.
Tip: Read the User Guide! ( Help | View User Guide ) It's very
helpful.
Tip2: Be sure to select File | Preferences:
Project Settings Tab, Color VGA (for .imp output)
Edition Defaults Tab, unclick Encrypt!
Before the Gemstar released their eBook Publisher, this was the savior
for creating personal contents. It enables Microsoft Word and PowerPoint
to export (convert) .txt, .rtf, .doc, .ppt, and htmls into .imp . Now
that Gemstar eBook Publisher is available, the main use for this is to
convert .txt and .ppt files.
Tip: If your input file is not formatted nicely (such as ones
converted from PDFs), you can try auto-formatting it in Word by selecting
Format | AutoFormat (click Options to have more control over the formatting).
Tip2: Be sure to open up the Settings Dialog and select Save eBook
"As Softbook Edition" and UNclick "Encrypt Softbook Edition"
Includes Technical information on the format of SoftBook .imp files (and source code): http://krausyaoj.tripod.com/reb1200.htm
Local Mirror: Spec, rebpub.zip, source code
Tip: Be sure to see Kat & Gordon's tutorial page if you want to use it.
Turns .imp files into a .RES folder by just dragging an imp file and dropping
it on the unimp.exe icon in Windows. You need to do this before copying an ebook to a REB1200 CF card (unless you have firmware 3.3 which does this conversion for you inside the REB1200)
Or typing: unimp filename.imp
on the command (DOS) prompt (for win9x, you need to put "longer-than-8-character-filenames-in-quotes").
You do not need unimp if you have firmware 3.3. However your REB CF card must have enough room on it for both the .imp and the resulting RES folder for the REB1200 to do the conversion..
Other Conversion Software (for other formats):
For Microsoft Reader .LIT files
clit and lit2sb FREE
Converts from .lit to HTML and .imp . Checkout
this page for more info on how to use this. Recent posts in yahoo
REB1200 group seem to indicate most .lit's can be converted like a charm,
but some .lit's are giving problems... Horrible name, but a great little program; convert lit files to html. Microsoft does NOT want you to have this program.
ConvertLIT.zip FREE
Same basic program as Clit.zip; convert lit files to html. One little addition is a way to add a Registry entry to windows to put a *convert to html* on your right mouse menu.
Windows version of ConvertLIT http://www.hot.ee/dukelupus/ConvertLIT.htm
For Palm documents
PRC2TXT: FREE
Converts .pdb and .prc (Palm ebooks) files into .txt , by typing:
"prc2txt filename.imp" on the command (DOS) prompt. (for win9x, you need
to put "longer-than-8-character-filenames-in-quotes").
Note: This program gave an error message on both my win98 & XP, but you can just ignore the error message.
PorDiBle FREE for Macintosh OSX http://pordible.victoly.com/
PorDiBle is an application to convert between text documents and Palm DOC files. Text files can be dropped onto PorDiBle and will be converted to a compressed .pdb file which can be read by any one of a myriad of Palm ebook readers (SmartDoc, TealDoc, iSilo, etc). Conversely, dropping a DOC .pdb onto PorDiBle will convert back to a text file.
docreader.zip FREE
A very tiny (6k) program that can read many of the Palm pdb files
DocReader2.zip FREE
This also reads Palm pdb files and has worked on almost all of the files I've tested.
DB Shredder FREE pdbshred.zip (53KB)
Command line (DOS/Windows) utility to unprotect both Secure Mobipocket Format and
PeanutPress (PalmOS eBooks). Supports PalmReader 1.1.2
and Mobipocket 4.4 versions. Includes source code and technical documentation.
More info
For Rocket Ebooks
Gemstar RB2Project (RB2Project.zip): FREE
Converts .rb files into .imp
RBmake home page (look for rbmake-bin and download: w32-rbmake-x.x.zip)
RBMake is a great little Windows command line program that has a ton of options for converting html to rb files for Rocketbook and REB1100. However, it is a bit of a challenge for those not schooled in the arcane art of DOS syntax.
For Microsoft Help documents .CHM
eTextWizard's ChmDecompiler: FREE
Converts .chm into .html, Checkout eTextWizard's
help page for more info on how to use this.
For HTML Web Pages
wuget
A command line tool that can do recursive downloads of web pages, and rewrite the links so that they refer to the local file. This is useful to get an ebook that consists of multiple webpages onto ypur PC for editing and conversion to another ebook format. http://www.gnu.org/software/wget/wget.html
Software to Merge HTML:
Many times in order to view ebooks easier in web browsers, sites divide the ebooks into seperate chapters or sections. In order to not end up with dozens of of these chapters in the REB1200 as individual ebooks, we need to merge these separate htmls together.
SoftSnow Merger FREE
SoftSnow Merger does a nice job doing this, and it's free! However, I could not get my XP machine to install, only my Win98 machine can install it. Anyone tried installing it on XP?
VHtmlMerger.zip FREE
Another great tool. Ever saved a great website or book that was split into many different html pages? VHtmlMerger will tie them all together into one html file.
Software to do Acrobat Reader PDF to text/HTML conversions:
I have researched and tested many of the cheap (free to under $40) pdf
to text software. Below are my findings.
pdftohtml.zip
This is a pdf to html program that really works. If you like it, register it legally with the kind folks that wrote it. It works well and I have successfully tested it on a 500 page book.
Fastest: just copy and paste (or "Save As Text" in version
6.x):
Price: $0 (Adobe Acrobat Reader)
How:
In version 5.x, just do "Edit | Select All", then copy, paste in MS-Word to export.
In version 6.x, just do "File | Save As | Text", then open it MS-Word to export.
Good: Simple, fast, and cost nothing
Bad: You lose some of the formatting in the pdf. Every end-of-line is replaced by hard-returns, and no images can be paste into MS-Word unless you manually crop and copy them over.
http://www.verypdf.com/pdf2htm
(* if only MS-Word can read it or Gemstar eBook Publisher can convert it correctly)
Price: $39.95, 100 free trial runs
How: Just select the pdf(s) you want to convert and hit the convert button.
Good: Retains format nicely. The only conversion software that
does math symbols nicely. Also has batch conversion.
Bad: Could not get MS-Word to open any of the htmls it converted. Gemstar eBook Publisher can read its html outputs, but the converted .imp is just a blank page. Anyone know a fix for this? If not, we should start emailing verpdf about it! (maybe it will work if we can disable framed html outputs?)
Best (for now): PDF2HTMLgui (based on xpdf)
FREE
(yes, it's very confusing when everyone name thier software the same, especially when both are v1.3!! Let's refer this in Yahoo Groups as "pdf2htmlGui" & the other one as "verypdf2html", shall we?)
Install: follow the instructions in the download
page to download the 3 programs.
PDFtoHTML: click it, then click "windows binary" download, then click highlighted zip file.
GhostScript: click it, then click "ghostscript" download, then select gs800w32.exe .
Then click the Gui download.
Install them in order.
The Gui SW will ask where PDFtoHTML is located at, point to it & it'll be set.
How: Just select the pdf(s) you want to convert and the destination & click convert.
Tip: I think selecting "no frames" (from "More Options") works better.
Good: Retains format nicely. Pretty fast (a 600pgs+ pdf was converted in minutes).
Bad: Does not do math symbols. No batch conversion. Requires 3 SW installations.
Other PDF conversion tools
Free, email them links to the pdf or the pdf itself and they will email you back a text or html output file, but results are pretty much same as just copy and paste. Best solution for if you have slow connection and don't want to download the large pdf file onto your computer.
A big disappointment for a software that costs $250-$450. Since many pdfs out there are still in TEX, LATEX, etc. format, one would have thought that such an expensive product from Adobe itself can convert them; of course I was wrong.
$38 while output is worst than just copy and paste
What a piece of crap! Trail version can't save output. The preview of the output had hundreds of blank lines between every paragraph
Output is an html of images. What it does is it scans your pdf into images and produces an html that points to these images. The bad thing about this is that since most pdf's are full page size, when you convert it into ebook on REB1200, the image gets shrank down so much that nothing is readable.
Notes on PDF:
Note that all of the above are assuming that your pdf are the nicely texted-PDF's (with nice and sharp text, not the ones that looks like it's scanned). The ones that looks like it's scanned are encoded with some sort of LATEX or other text formats and can not be converted into text or htmls easily. And of course, the ones that are really just scanned images can only be converted into text with OCR programs like OmniPage |