embed video in Kindle/mobi?

[pete5609]

Having some trouble here. Have a .epub with 2 videos embedded, compiles fine for epub 3.0, works properly in iBooks etc.

Trying to convert to kf8/.mobi for Kindle Fire (using Kindle Previewer 2.921), videos don't appear, despite following Amazon's vague instructions and non-html5 and code.

Feel like I am missing something obvious. Thoughts? I am going to re-encode the videos to non-.mov to see if that helps.

Thanks,
Pete

[Tex2002ans]

Originally Posted by pete5609

Trying to convert to kf8/.mobi for Kindle Fire (using Kindle Previewer 2.921), videos don't appear, despite following Amazon's vague instructions and non-html5 and code.

Feel like I am missing something obvious. Thoughts? I am going to re-encode the videos to non-.mov to see if that helps.

Look at section 6.7 in the Kindle Publishing Guidelines:

http://kindlegen.s3.amazonaws.com/Am...Guidelines.pdf

Only allowable formats are .mp4, .mpg, .mpeg, .ps, .ts.

[pete5609]

Nope. Doesn't like .mp4 vids either. Though I suspect the issue may be with how my client is supplying the videos.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by pete5609

Nope. Doesn't like .mp4 vids either. Though I suspect the issue may be with how my client is supplying the videos.

Pete:

When you say that the "videos don't appear," how is it, exactly, that you are testing for this? And what encoding are your clients supplying?

P.S.: they do know, assuming that they aren't Random House, that they can't sell a MOBI with video on Amazon, right? That if they try to upload a v-mobi at the KDP, the file will be stripped?

Hitch

[pete5609]

Client is a trade publisher but not on the scale of Random House. Testing goes like this: Take fully-functioning .epub with videos embedded (epub 3 verified), run it through Kindle Previewer to convert to mobi. Check in 3 versions of Kindle Fire using the Previewer. Also upload to iPad, check in Kindle App. Videos are just ... gone.

*kind of* got it working when using H264 .mp4 files. Videos at least appear in the Kindle App with play button. Really slow to play though.

Works fine in Calibre's .mobi viewer, in fact looks far better than any Kindle version.

Have also prepared a version that simply links out to youtube... seems a lot easier. Not sure why they are insisting on embedded videos. File sizes are huge.

So what's this about not allowing videos at KDP? That isn't in the KP guidelines.

[DaleDe]

Are you converting the iPad version to an AZK file before uploading? Use Kindlepreviewer to perform the conversion.

Dale

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by pete5609

Client is a trade publisher but not on the scale of Random House. Testing goes like this: Take fully-functioning .epub with videos embedded (epub 3 verified), run it through Kindle Previewer to convert to mobi. Check in 3 versions of Kindle Fire using the Previewer. Also upload to iPad, check in Kindle App. Videos are just ... gone.

*kind of* got it working when using H264 .mp4 files. Videos at least appear in the Kindle App with play button. Really slow to play though.

Works fine in Calibre's .mobi viewer, in fact looks far better than any Kindle version.

Have also prepared a version that simply links out to youtube... seems a lot easier. Not sure why they are insisting on embedded videos. File sizes are huge.

So what's this about not allowing videos at KDP? That isn't in the KP guidelines.

Pete:

Feel free to email KDP and ask, if you think I'm misspeaking. "Trade Pub" and "has real publishing contract with Amazon" aren't the same thing. If the client FTP's their books, instead of uploading via the KDP, they have a trade-pub's contract with Amazon. If they publish via the KDP, they fall into the "self-publisher" category, from Amazon's viewpoint. (This may well be simply because your client hasn't reached out for a contract.) Amazon has indicated (directly to me in email) absolutely zero interest in trying to provide tech support for self-publishers with video-mobis (or audio, for that matter).

The point is: the videos will be stripped and the coding will cause the book to cease working if you upload it via the KDP. Try a mobi with video--uploading there--and then download the preview mobi.

I assume you're using the source spec from the Kindle Guidelines, right? 6.7, on page 52? And embedding the required metadata, and putting the video files in the Navlist--all that good stuff? And their "ideal" spec is H.264 MPEG-2, although they say that .mp4 will work.

And, as I said: if your client is not sending the files directly to Amazon via FTP, this discussion is moot. And, just out of curiosity, what are they going to do about the delivery fees (vis-a-vis filesize) if they do fall into the self-pub category?

Hitch

[pete5609]

None of the above is my problem. I'm just making the ebook... It is being sent to both Amazon and iTunes this week so I am curious to see what happens. I suspect that they will end up using only the version that links to the videos (rather than embedding).

I did get the .mobi to work with embedded videos, somehow it was just a matter of removing a <div> tag that I guess KindleConverter didn't like.

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by pete5609

None of the above is my problem. I'm just making the ebook... It is being sent to both Amazon and iTunes this week so I am curious to see what happens. I suspect that they will end up using only the version that links to the videos (rather than embedding).

I did get the .mobi to work with embedded videos, somehow it was just a matter of removing a <div> tag that I guess KindleConverter didn't like.

Well, you're fortunate in that. I always feel obligated to tell the clients upfront that they won't be able to use the products they are thinking of buying from me, as I certainly wouldn't want anyone coming back on me about it ("you didn't tell me I had to be a publisher with B&N before I could upload a NookKids' book!" kind of thing).

I find my clientele expects me to know all of this, and moreover, make sure that they don't "go wrong" on their path to self-publishing. I don't particularly love the chore--I don't think it should be our jobs to also be unpaid self-publishing consultants--but it seems to save aggravation to tell them upfront, rather than have them coming back later as unhappy clients. You obviously have a more sophisticated client that doesn't need that type of input.

Hitch

[pete5609]

And here is the finished product:

http://www.amazon.com/Getting-India-...+back+on+track

[Hitch]

Originally Posted by pete5609

And here is the finished product:

http://www.amazon.com/Getting-India-...+back+on+track

LOL, the Carnegie Endowment.

Guaranteed that is not a KDP upload; that's a real publisher's account. Good for you! I'm sure it's nicely done.

Hitch