Handling split chapters

[BraveDude8]

chapter attribute called "splitChapter"
if this is present on a chapter the reader attempts to fall back to the whole numbered chapter if present, or treats the combined split chapters like 1 chapter, not sure how that would work

example: 1, 1.1 (split), 1.2 (split), 1.5

valid reading order would be 1 -> 1.5 or 1.1 -> 1.2 -> 1.5

i see potential issues when split chapters are partially uploaded but for scanlation groups we have rules and for officials they're highly unlikely to to stop releasing something mid chapter, so it shouldn't be an issue

the idea is numbering shouldn't matter because you can tag a chapter as "partial" or not so there's no need to assume based on chapter number x.5 doesn't mean it has to be a bonus chapter, it can also be a partial if the tag is there

block partial chapter tag from being applied to whole chapter numbers, no valid usecase for this that i can see

have checkbox in frontend when uploading/editing chapter to set this tag.

some series are released as splits in one place and whole chapters in another place, and some official sources have splits that raws don't
or vice versa
MangaUp is a good example

 

[BraveDude8]

if there's a series with numbering x, x.1, x.2 and these are three partial chapters, this edge case would break my system

solution - add a "combinedChapter" attribute, and rely on the presence of multiple splitChapter chapters + 1 combinedChapter chapter (all starting with chapter number x) to know whether to handle the split chapters properly?

 

[RonBWL]

Here's my idea on how to handle split chapter mixed with omake
==Chapter 1== (Header, clickable)
---1.1--- (split parts, clickable)
---1.2--- (split parts, clickable)
==Chapter 1.5==
==Vol 1 Omake== (Chapter 1.6, tagged "Extra")

Clicking on Chapter 1 will show 1.1. Next chapter skip to C2
Clicking on Chapter 1.1 will show 1.1. Next chapter skip to C1.2

So .1 .2 .5 .6 will be hidden from reader, the checkbox "Split chapter" and "Extra chapter" will be used to toggle that flag, similar to "Oneshot chapter"

 

[CiceroCiceronis]

Just to be clear at the outset, who exactly is producing these split chapters? I realise that there are certain groups (unofficially) splitting chapters, but beyond that? And what exactly is the benefit to not simply treating 1.1, 1.2 etc. as regular standalone chapters (just with funky naming because the publisher wanted to be nonconformist)?

 

[BraveDude8]

Just to be clear at the outset, who exactly is producing these split chapters? I realise that there are certain groups (unofficially) splitting chapters, but beyond that? And what exactly is the benefit to not simply treating 1.1, 1.2 etc. as regular standalone chapters (just with funky naming because the publisher wanted to be nonconformist)?

Some official EN platforms have split chapters (MangaUp being the worst offender) and without some way of handling that, a theoretical MangaUp bot would ruin the user experience for hundreds of manga.

Also you get non-EN groups translating off split EN releases and not realising it shouldn't be split, which causes more issues - a way to cleanly handle this on MD would be nice.

Treating split chapters as normal doesn't work when there's also a non-split chapter covering the same material, and both are valid releases from official publishers. cursed data

 

[CiceroCiceronis]

The current proposal here seems reasonable. Strong agree with RonBWL's proposal that split chapters are kept in some kind of lower tier heading under the same chapter index. But is this going to be something only for official bots to use? Making it appear as an option to users is likely to cause people to behave badly simply because it's present as an affordance in the interface.

 

[curiousCheck]

My two cents

if the issue, is ordering, don't worry abt what numbers grps/official follow
Implement an internal Sort Number
Inspired by Komga and the absurdity that is Comic Book Reading Orders
https://komga.org/guides/edit-metadata.html#sort-titles

Alternatively,
Manga (Magazine) and Manga (Volume) when

 

[BraveDude8]

Here's my idea on how to handle split chapter mixed with omake
==Chapter 1== (Header, clickable)
---1.1--- (split parts, clickable)
---1.2--- (split parts, clickable)
==Chapter 1.5==
==Vol 1 Omake== (Chapter 1.6, tagged "Extra")

Clicking on Chapter 1 will show 1.1. Next chapter skip to C2
Clicking on Chapter 1.1 will show 1.1. Next chapter skip to C1.2

So .1 .2 .5 .6 will be hidden from reader, the checkbox "Split chapter" and "Extra chapter" will be used to toggle that flag, similar to "Oneshot chapter"

1.5/1.6 wouldn't be hidden with this proposal, they're distinct chapters. You'd bundle together 1.1 and 1.2 to match 1, so the reading order would be 1.1 -> 1.2 -> 1.5 -> 1.6 or 1 -> 1.5 -> 1.6. This isn't about trying to mark chapters as extraneous when they're unique, it's about not reading the same chapter twice.

The current proposal here seems reasonable. Strong agree with RonBWL's proposal that split chapters are kept in some kind of lower tier heading under the same chapter index. But is this going to be something only for official bots to use? Making it appear as an option to users is likely to cause people to behave badly simply because it's present as an affordance in the interface.

Bare minimum usable for official release bots + staff. I get that adding a visible option for this would make people think uploading split chapters is encouraged rather than reluctantly tolerated.

My two cents

if the issue, is ordering, don't worry abt what numbers grps/official follow
Implement an internal Sort Number
Inspired by Komga and the absurdity that is Comic Book Reading Orders
https://komga.org/guides/edit-metadata.html#sort-titles

Alternatively,
Manga (Magazine) and Manga (Volume) when

Internal sort number doesn't solve this issue, neither does mag/vol. Adding completely separate publication orders doesn't help when the goal is to create a single cohesive reading order regardless of original publication.

 

[Quarnozian]

This is off topic though, so I'll open a new post with my idea to solve this in the appropriate subforum.

@BraveDude8 I see you already have a post for this issue... and the idea you presented is similar to mine.

I was thinking three radio buttons in the Chapter Number field.

Part will be chosen by default, and all existing chapters in the database will be assigned to this setting, as this will cause them to behave exactly the same as before this was implemented.

When selecting "Full" on the Chapter Number, it won't allow decimals to be entered. (Bonus will though, because sometimes there are multiple short bonus chapters.)

Full chapters should be sorted alongside part 1 chapters. When reaching the end of a chapter, full chapters should skip remaining partial chapters with the same chapter number, but not skip bonus chapters.

---

Side benefit from having a separate way to sort out bonus chapters, is that you can have Chapters 12.1 and Bonus 12.1, and they'll be grouped separately.

Unfortunately all the existing .5 bonus chapters will be treated like "Part 5" until users report it to be updated to a Bonus chapter.