Creating a MOBI suitable for Kindle use

[lindsayw]

I posted in the Calibre forum a couple of weeks ago, having trouble preparing content for my Kindle, but have now nailed down the procedures necessary. In case others are having similar problems, here is a summary of the method I now use:

Creating a MOBI ebook file suitable for Kindle use, with abbreviated NavPoints along the Progress Bar, and using an inline TOC, formatted like the rest of the book, and including details other than just chapter names (I like to include story dates and locations for each Chapter). You can also use embedded graphics and generally “pretty up” the presentation.

This all assumes some knowledge of html coding, since html is by far the best source format for ebook content, perfectly suited to the essential re-flowable display needed for ebook Readers. PDF is really not suited to re-flowable content. How you go about converting your book text content into html to start the editing process is up to you – I prefer to just grab whole chapters as plain text, paste them into an html editor, and start there, because I have had lots of practice making web-site pages. I am also assuming that you will create an “ebook” folder to hold all your book content.

1. Separate all content into 3 separate folders below the “ebook” folder: Images, Styles, Text. Make sure that all content is edited so that all pages display perfectly in a browser window, using all xhtml tags... don’t use any tags that have been deprecated from standard html. Make sure that your style.css file (in the Styles folder, of course!) includes no deprecated html functions, either... if you get this wrong, the various auto-generation procedures further down the line will make nonsense of your content! That means no <font> tags (use <span> with css font controls instead), no un-closed tags, strict nesting, no &#xxxx; numbered characters (use xhtml inserts like &bull; / &ndash; / &eacute; instead), no <a name=“....” /> – the <a> tag is still valid, but its “name” element has been deprecated – use <a id=“....” /> instead. Get the whole book paging back & forth in a browser window perfectly, with the inline TOC as the first “half” of the first Chapter file with an <a id=“start” /> tag or similar, and the actual text start with an <a id=“chap1” /> tag or similar. You use these id-points for the “Previous – Index – Next” links at top and bottom of each chapter file if you choose to include them... certainly you will need to use them in your inline TOC.

2. All ebook compilers rely on you using html <h1>, <h2>, or <h3> tags to define Headings. I have always personally preferred not to use them and have instead used css commands to specify font presentations for headings... but that’s just me being ultra-picky and a habit picked up from years of preparing content for web-pages, where re-flowable content is nowhere near as important. It’s time to swallow my pride and revert to plain, simple headings for ebooks. I now use <h2> for chapter headings and could use <h3> for sub-headings, leading to auto-generated TOCs having 2-level listings. But I prefer to avoid auto-generated TOCs anyway... Remember, though, that if you use an <h1> or <h2> in more than one place in any chapter file, the ebook compiler will detect it as more than one chapter.

3. One last point on the chapter file editing – I found that using a css page-break-AFTER: command at the END of a chapter just caused problems. It seems that all the ebook compilers “look for” page-break-BEFORE: commands instead. So embed a “page-break-before:always;” style command into your chapter headings. This prevents chapters running into each other on the same screen display. And do NOT use html Tables! Tables are the arch-enemies of re-flowable content and ebook Readers tend to make nonsense of them if they span a page divide, as they surely will at some stage.

4. I use Anthemion eCub to compile all these files into an ePub file, although there are many other similar programs. Anthemion will make a folder named “build”, which can be deleted after all other steps have been completed. Also created will be a Contents.opf file (the “manifest” for the ebook), a toc.ncx file (this determines the “tick points” on the Progress Bar in the Kindle), an auto-generated TableOfContents.html file, and a Cover.html file to display the cover picture. During preparation, Anthemion “chooses” the picture to be used as the cover image by looking in the Images folder, and sometimes picks the wrong one. Double-check that the correct image is being displayed for this stage and change it if necessary. All auto-generated files except the Cover one will be incorrect, purely based on the number of times <h1>, <h2>, or <h3> tags are used in your html content, and I never want to use an auto-generated TableOfContents anyway (it’s ugly), but it isn’t possible to change them at this point. Compile the ePub file, exit Anthemion.

5. Open the ePub file using Sigil and check that all pages (chapters) display perfectly... sometimes the Anthemion ePub file will have incorrect chapter break headings or misconstrued layout, so use the code view to correct those, chapter by chapter, checking your work in the display view. Next, use Tools / TOC Editor to display the content of the toc.ncx file... this will show EVERY chapter because it was created automatically. If you have 30 or 40 chapters your Progress Bar will look like a rail track to infinity; and you really don’t want more than half a dozen or so “NavPoints”. Un-tick all but the chapters you want to show as “tick points” in the Kindle Progress Bar – that will mostly be important “break points” in the story. This causes the toc.ncx file to be modified. Save the modified ePub file and exit Sigil.

6. Import the ePub file into Calibre and select “Tweak EPUB”, then “open” (expand) the zipped-up ePub file and double-click on the auto-generated Contents.opf file. Down at the bottom you will find, under the <guide> section, the entry for the TableOfContents.html file, pointing the Reader to this file to display the TOC. Edit that to read the name of your chapter file with the inline TOC. This will cause the Reader to look at your file instead of the auto-generated one. Next, page up and delete all other references to the TableOfContents.html file, and Save the Contents.opf file. Then delete the TableOfContents.html file itself from the expanded ePub file. “Close” (zip up) the EPUB file again. Now your modified ePub has a truncated ncx file, no auto-generated TOC file, and will know where your inline TOC is located.

7. Lastly, use the Calibre “convert” process to change the ePub file into a MOBI one... this will use all the modified files and the book will finally display correctly. All the Kindle Goto... options will be populated.



...works for me.

[Timoleon]

"Arthemion"? Are you talking about "Jutoh", by "Anthemion Software"?

[lindsayw]

Sorry, my mistake, I didn't look closely enough. It's eCub 1.11 by Anthemion. I have Arthurian stuff on the brain! It builds ePub files quite easily.