FAQ

BDReader

(P)FAQ*

What the name BDReader stands for ?
    BD is the acronym for the word comic in french: Bande Dessinée (literally: "drawn strip").

Which formats are supported by BDReader exactly ?
    - Archives: RAR, ZIP, TAR and 7z as well as their comics equivalents: CBR, CBZ, CBT and CB7.
The password protected archives are not yet supported. In order to read it with BDReader you will thus have to uncompress and recompress it...
To be well supported, these archives should contain images (at least one) among other things. Only supported image formats will be displayed: JPEG (.jpeg, .jpg, .jpe, .jp2), TIFF (.tiff, .tif), BMP, PNG, PBM, PPM and PGM.

    - PDF: the PDF support is done using the MuPDF library. Most of PDF files should work. For details about which PDF are exactly supported see www.mupdf.com.

    - Image folders: BDReader can open an image folder through the command menu Open folder (Ctrl-Shift-O). To be accepted as a valid comic the folder should contain at least two images of the following format: JPEG (.jpeg, .jpg, .jpe, .jp2), TIFF (.tiff, .tif), BMP, PNG, PBM, PPM or PGM.

Why the panel/square detection failed on my comics ?
    Well, the detection algorithm is far to be perfect. Several reasons can cause it to fail. First, the comic you are reading is maybe not "designed" to be divided in squares: the goal of the algorithm is not to choose an arbitrary cutting but to find if it exists a proper way to do it. The image below is an example of a page you don't want (or at least I don't want) to be divided in squares. The algorithm is thus more intended to work with Franco-Belgian comics than some American comics which are often less "structured".
    Then, the detection is based on the page image. A poor quality scan of a comic book will thus make the algorithm suffer: the poor quality will prevent to clearly detect the different squares. Try re-scanning your comic with a higher dpi...
    And what about my super clean comic on which the detection failed ? Well, as said, it's not perfect... switch in Strip mode and maybe email me a capture of the failed, it can help me to improve the algorithm.
    An important point is that BDReader algorithm is supposed to notice when its detection failed and thus automatically switch in Strip mode (for the current page). Even this failure detection is not perfect, but should work most of the time.

Why BDReader automatically switch in Strip mode whereas I was in Panel mode ?
    As said previously, the detection algorithm is designed in a way that it detects (or try to detect) when it fails. In that case, instead of offering a poor Panel view, it switches in Strip mode for the current page.

How can I contribute to BDReader ?
    First you can report bugs and unexpected behaviors (use the ticketing system) and report detection failing as well. You can also suggest new features to include or improvements of existing features (use the dedicated forum for that). Anyway, any feedback is appreciated (but more appropriate with some explanations: "BDReader s#@ks because..." is definitely better than "BDReader s#@ks!!"...).
Then if you know some C++ and/or image processing and would like to contribute to the code, just send a quick email.

*(Potentially) Frequently Asked Questions...