Manga Reader App Tutorial

Introduction

In this tutorial we’ll walk through building a simple web‑based manga reader. The reader will allow users to view manga pages, navigate between chapters, and enjoy a clean, responsive UI.

Project Overview

The application is split into three main pages:

• Home (index.html) – Overview and navigation.
• Reader (reader.html) – Displays manga pages and navigation controls.
• Chapter (chapter.html) – Lists chapters and their images.

Technology Stack

We use only vanilla web technologies for maximum compatibility:

• HTML5 for structure.
• CSS3 for styling and responsiveness.
• JavaScript for interactivity.

Project Setup

Create the following folder structure:

project/
├─ index.html
├─ reader.html
├─ chapter.html
├─ assets/
│  ├─ css/
│  │  └─ style.css
│  └─ images/
│     └─ placeholder.jpg

Copy the CSS from the style block into assets/css/style.css and link it in each HTML file.

Core Features

1. Responsive layout that adapts to mobile devices.
2. Navigation buttons to move left/right through pages.
3. Automatic page loading via JavaScript.
4. Keyboard shortcuts (←/→) for page navigation.

File Structure on Reader Page

The reader.html page contains:

• <img> element to display the current page.
• Previous/Next buttons.
• A progress bar showing the current page number.

Sample Code

HTML (reader.html)

<main>
  <section>
    <h2>Manga Reader</h2>
    <div id="reader-container">
      <button id="prevBtn" aria-label="Previous page">←</button>
      <img id="mangaPage" src="" alt="Manga page" />
      <button id="nextBtn" aria-label="Next page">→</button>
    </div>
    <p id="pageInfo">Page 1 of 0</p>
  </section>
</main>

JavaScript (inline or external)

const pages = [
  'https://via.placeholder.com/600x800?text=Page+1',
  'https://via.placeholder.com/600x800?text=Page+2',
  'https://via.placeholder.com/600x800?text=Page+3'
];
let currentPage = 0;

function renderPage() {
  const img = document.getElementById('mangaPage');
  const info = document.getElementById('pageInfo');
  img.src = pages[currentPage];
  info.textContent = `Page ${currentPage + 1} of ${pages.length}`;
}

document.getElementById('prevBtn').addEventListener('click', () => {
  if (currentPage > 0) { currentPage--; renderPage(); }
});
document.getElementById('nextBtn').addEventListener('click', () => {
  if (currentPage < pages.length - 1) { currentPage++; renderPage(); }
});

document.addEventListener('keydown', (e) => {
  if (e.key === 'ArrowLeft') { document.getElementById('prevBtn').click(); }
  if (e.key === 'ArrowRight') { document.getElementById('nextBtn').click(); }
});

window.addEventListener('load', renderPage);

CSS (part of the global style)

#reader-container {
  display: flex;
  align-items: center;
  justify-content: center;
  gap: 1rem;
}
#prevBtn, #nextBtn {
  background: #222;
  color: #fff;
  border: none;
  font-size: 1.5rem;
  padding: 0.5rem;
  cursor: pointer;
}
#prevBtn:hover, #nextBtn:hover {
  background: #ffca00;
}

Running the App

Open reader.html in your browser. You should see the placeholder images and navigation controls working. Replace the placeholder URLs with real manga pages hosted on your server or CDN.

Extending the App

• Add a chapter selector to load different sets of images.
• Persist the current page using localStorage.
• Implement a full‑screen mode for immersive reading.
• Use a JSON manifest file to list chapters and page URLs.

Conclusion

With a minimal set of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript, you now have a fully functional web‑based manga reader. Expand it to suit your needs, and you’ve built a solid foundation for a manga web app.