1. 9700bold's Avatar
    I am formatting a book for Blackberry (smartphone) reading. At first I set the font size at 18 (to avoid having to magnify). However, I am also looking at a 24 font size. I wear glasses and 18 seems OK, but perhaps 24 is better?? I need some feedback.

    Please take a look and let me know what you think. The first chapter can be found at: CPdefault


    This is a 15 minute read. You will notice areas where I increase the font size to 24. Then it returns to 18.

    Please let me know what you think. As soon as I finish re-formatting all chapters, the complete book will be available to read. No charge, as in 100% free. Thank you.
    02-18-10 03:38 PM
  2. ttfmaep's Avatar
    It seems to me that you shouldn't have to do all that formatting. There must be a way to let the reader choose the font size, using their default browser setting. You need an HTML expert to help you with that.

    But to answer your question, 18 and 24 are way too big. 10 on my BB is about equivalent to typical hardcover font size. I would guess that "Large Print" is about 16.

    Also there are free ereader applications that accept content submissions. I know of Wattpad; I'm sure there are others. That may be a way for your book to get more exposure.
    02-18-10 06:01 PM
  3. sdmcwilliams's Avatar
    Are you legally blind? Maybe you need a stronger prescription. Not trying to be mean but 18 is way too big. Stick with a nice standard 12 point font.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    02-18-10 08:27 PM
  4. diegonei's Avatar
    Why don't you have different versions?

    Try the 10 and 12 they already suggested and a 14 on me.

    Maybe this is your solution, a gateway page where the user can choose between 18 and something smaller.
    02-18-10 08:46 PM
  5. 9700bold's Avatar
    Dear ttfmaep, Thanks for your input. I will certainly look into Wattpad. Have just this hour been playing around with my 9700bold font size options. I see that my BB came factory set at 8. OK, I don't have the eyesight I once enjoyed. However, after "looking" at different options, I think it's best to leave that "8" default setting as-is. I am also going to pair this with an 18 font size. This is set by the user (me) in FrontPage 2003. As far as the hassle of formatting my book, actually I have been pleasantly surprised at how easy it is to do.

    You say the 18 is way too big. Is this because you have your BB default set higher than 8? As I said, 8 & 18 looks OK to me. But an 11 & 18 might be too big, what to speak of a 13/18 or 14/18.

    I have just now reset the first chapter as I had it (BB8 with FP18). Perhaps others will take a peak, read a little bit and tell me if it reads and looks OK to them. This would be appreciated. These are the setting I would like to use, but of course this is not set in stone. Thank you.
    02-18-10 08:51 PM
  6. 9700bold's Avatar
    Are you legally blind? Maybe you need a stronger prescription. Not trying to be mean but 18 is way too big. Stick with a nice standard 12 point font.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

    OK, damn I'm getting old. Actually in my 30s my eyes tested better than perfect. But that was 30+ years ago. So sad. OK, tomorrow I will set all of Chapter One with the 12 point font and let people take a look at that. Two of you are saying 18 is too big - so be it. Your feedback here is exactly what I was looking for. Thanks so much.
    02-18-10 08:57 PM
  7. 9700bold's Avatar
    Why don't you have different versions?

    Try the 10 and 12 they already suggested and a 14 on me.

    Maybe this is your solution, a gateway page where the user can choose between 18 and something smaller.
    Tomorrow I will set all of Ch. 1 at 12-size and see how this looks. There are actually two versions. This smartphone version I am working on now, plus a version for reading on a laptop/computer. Either version is 100% free. Thanks.
    02-18-10 09:03 PM
  8. sdmcwilliams's Avatar
    My default browser font size is 9. I am almost 40 with decent but not perfect eyesight (no glasses) and I could read the 18 font from 6 feet away.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    02-18-10 09:19 PM
  9. 9700bold's Avatar
    My default browser font size is 9. I am almost 40 with decent but not perfect eyesight (no glasses) and I could read the 18 font from 6 feet away.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

    This morning I set the font size to 12. Honestly, using my 9700 Bold's default font size of 8, this is too small for me. Perhaps this is a 9700 thing because it is a smaller phone. Furthermore, for me to offer the book in more than one font size is not a big deal. "diegonei" actaully suggested this in his response. I don't want people to have to go into their phones and tinker with their font sizes to read the book. I am also going to visit some phone stores and take a look, myself, at some different phones and how things look. Again, thanks for the comments. More comments are welcome.

    Again, the URL is CPdefault
    02-19-10 04:53 AM
  10. sdmcwilliams's Avatar
    The smaller font looks perfect on my Bold 9000. Offering it in 2 sizes is a great idea.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    02-19-10 06:14 AM
  11. Xopher's Avatar
    I would think that using apps like MobiPocket Creator, you wouldn't have to worry about font sizes to begin with. You can format your pages by specifying which text needs to start on a new page (like a new chapter) as well as setting up a table to contents, and other links within the ebook.

    Then, when viewing the ebook on your BB, you can adjust the font within MobiPocket Reader to suit your needs. Images and everything else will follow formatting as set in the page.
    02-19-10 06:36 AM
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