Kindle Formatting: The Complete Guide by Joshua Tallent is available DRM-free on the Kindle and also as a paperback and a DRMed MOBI. From its web page:
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This book details the process of formatting a Kindle eBook from beginning to end. It includes tips on getting the contents of your file into HTML, explanations of HTML and CSS coding practices, a complete description of all of the HTML and CSS that is supported on the Kindle, examples of common formatting situations, and detailed information on creating a Mobipocket file from your final source that will give your book some additional features and give you additional sales opportunities.
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I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to know the details of the Kindle's AZW format. Even if you just want an overview, this may still be the book for you because it is very readable and could be skimmed and dipped into as needed. As a tutorial on how to edit ebooks it may (or may not) be over emphasizing direct editing of the HTML, but that is what makes it useful for reference. A lot of the information is also applicable to MOBI ebooks in general, although there is no discussion of any device specific issues except for the Kindles (not even Kindle ebooks on the iPhone).
Things I found out from this ebook:
- The PRE tag and CSS font-family: monospace do not work, use CODE (or TT or SAMP or KBD) tags instead.
- Maximum in-lined image sizes are different on the K1 and K2.
- Blockquotes indent by 1/2" on the K1 but 1/4" on the K2. This makes nested blockquotes useless on the K1.
- How to include navigational waypoints on the K2.
I actually read the ebook on my PC using Desktop MobiPocket Reader. I never do this for fiction, but a larger screen does help for technical books. It is readable on my K1 though, and would be better still on a K2.