14 DAY TRIAL // Comix is an application that lets users read comic books that can even be archived. It's been around for many years and it's one of the best so far, despite its age and simplistic approach.
The American culture always held comic books in high regard and this trend is now spreading across the world. It's true that not everyone is really a fan of this kind of storytelling and that there is still a long way to go until more people from other continents appreciate them. In any case, if you want to read comic books on a Linux platform, it's rather easy to do so, especially since there are quite a few options out there.
Surprisingly, not all comic books cost money. When people hear comic books, they usually picture something like Marvel and DC Comics, but the truth is that there are a ton of other publications, some of them free and others not so much. For the purpose of this review we got a few free ones, which can be found on an assortment of websites. All you need to do is to search online for free comic books and you'll find numerous websites that index old publications or newer, more obscure ones.
Installation
I tested Comix 4.0.4 on Ubuntu 14.10 and it installed without any issues. As usual, there are two ways you can get this application: either by downloading it from the official repositories or to make it work from the source code. Given the fact that the app hasn't been upgraded in quite some time, all the repos must already have the latest iteration.
If you do decide to install Comix by yourself, please keep in mind that it has just a few dependencies that need to be met, which are Python external link 2.4, PyGTK external link 2.12, and PIL external link (Python Imaging Library) 1.1.5. It's also advisable to install the "unrar" package from the official repos in order to make sure that you have access to all type of formats, including CBR.
Usage
Usually, comic books are provided in two forms, either as images (JPGs mostly), or in archives that contain the same type of files. It doesn't really matter which format they arrive in because Comix should be able to read them all. In any case, you just hit load and select that archive. The contents should be displayed on the left side and each page on the ride side.
By default, the application only shows one page at a time, but it can be customized in a number of ways. My preferred view mode is the double one that allows me to see two pages at once, just like a real book would. It's also possible to set the application to run on full screen mode, which is pretty obvious, and in Manga mode, which lets users read a comic from right to left.
A very cool feature is called "Enhance Image" and it works just like a photo editing app would. It's possible that some of the comics are too dark or the colors are wrong. With this option, you can modify some parameters to make it more readable. It's also possible to force the rotations of a certain page, if that's really necessary. The settings for this function are available with the right click.
