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Old 06-05-2013, 02:42 PM   #31
abeonis
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Originally Posted by DiapDealer View Post
Don't worry. After familiarizing yourself with the specs, the only thing you have to worry about is learning which parts of the specs each of the various devices/apps chooses to ignore utterly or interpret differently.
You do not motivate me to start reading this spec but I am still laughing after reading your post. Thanks!

I mentioned in some post that I was not sure to be understood (This world is so cruel with me). At the same time I unzip my ePub to create a new uuid (anecdotic) I use my AHK_L script to:
  • Delete the HTML file that contains the cover image
  • Delete reference to this file if it was included in the TOC Html file
  • Include the meta name="cover" in the OPF Metadata section
  • Check if it exists, if not, I create <item href of my cover image in the OPF manifest
  • delete the reference to the html cover page in the OPF Manifest section
  • delete the reference to the html cover page in the OPF guide section
  • Remove the navpoint related to the html cover page in the NCX navmap
  • As this navmap was playorder 1, the script also renumber the other navmaps starting with 1
  • Optionnaly create a new NCX with only the chapters headings (reduced navmap without nested subchapters)
  • Replace the epub css by 1 mobi.css with Amazon Media Queries
  • Modify all HTML files to make reference to the new css file
  • Run kindlegen OPF
  • Launch Kindle Previewer
So ... some of you prefer to do all these things mannually, it's OK. Others will prefer to use Kindlegen on the original epub and let Kindlegen do the job for the cover, it is great. Others will prefer to upload the original epub directly to KDP, it is wonderful.

I do my way because it makes sense to me and I am lucky to have the means to spend my time playing with all this stuff, no delivery constraints, no other pressure except the one that I impose to myself (I am still business driven).

I think it is crystal clear. No?

And at the same time I have fun, if I have a doubt, I am extremely happy to post a question here. I have never been disappointed. Better, I even start to be enough confident to give my advice. What audacity for a karma'10!
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Old 06-05-2013, 03:00 PM   #32
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This passage from the OPF-2.0.1 spec seems relevant:

Quote:

2.1: Package Identity

The package element is the root element in an OPF Package Document; all other elements are nested within it.

The package element must specify a value for its unique-identifier attribute. The unique-identifier attribute's value specifies which Dublin Core identifier element, described in Section 2.2.10, provides the package's preferred, or primary, identifier. The OPF Package Document's author is responsible for choosing a primary identifier that is unique to one and only one particular package (i.e., the set of files referenced from the package document's manifest).

Notwithstanding the requirement for uniqueness, Reading Systems must not fail catastrophically if they encounter two distinct packages with the same purportedly unique primary identifier.
(emphasis mine).

Albert
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Old 06-05-2013, 03:08 PM   #33
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Quote:
Originally Posted by abeonis View Post
At the same time I unzip my ePub to create a new uuid (anecdotic) I use my AHK_L script to:
  • Delete the HTML file that contains the cover image
  • Delete reference to this file if it was included in the TOC Html file
  • Include the meta name="cover" in the OPF Metadata section
  • Check if it exists, if not, I create <item href of my cover image in the OPF manifest
  • delete the reference to the html cover page in the OPF Manifest section
  • delete the reference to the html cover page in the OPF guide section
  • Remove the navpoint related to the html cover page in the NCX navmap
  • As this navmap was playorder 1, the script also renumber the other navmaps starting with 1
  • Optionnaly create a new NCX with only the chapters headings (reduced navmap without nested subchapters)
  • Replace the epub css by 1 mobi.css with Amazon Media Queries
  • Modify all HTML files to make reference to the new css file
  • Run kindlegen OPF
  • Launch Kindle Previewer
Wow!
Quote:
Include the meta name="cover" in the OPF Metadata section
Why not just have it there in the first place?
Quote:
As this navmap was playorder 1, the script also renumber the other navmaps starting with 1
Not really necessary, but OK.
Quote:
Optionnaly create a new NCX with only the chapters headings (reduced navmap without nested subchapters)
Why? Amazon encourages nested ToCs.
Quote:
Modify all HTML files to make reference to the new css file
Why not just change the name of one css file to match the name already referenced in many html files? Or have one master css file referenced in all html files and then use easily changeable @import statements to pull in the directives for whichever version (epub or kindle) you're currently working with?

The one referenced CSS file in almost 100% of my xhtml files looks like this:
Code:
@import url(../Styles/epub.css);
/* @import url(../Styles/mobi.css) amzn-mobi;
@import url(../Styles/kf8.css) amzn-kf8; */
I just comment out the first line and uncomment the next two come kindle time.

Last edited by DiapDealer; 06-05-2013 at 03:21 PM.
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Old 06-05-2013, 03:21 PM   #34
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Quote:
Originally Posted by st_albert View Post
This passage from the OPF-2.0.1 spec seems relevant:

Albert
Cool...I guess each reader/app can define what heir own interpretation of "fail catastrophically" means. As long as the reader doesn't start sparking and melt in your hands it's ok? I guess deleting a previously installed book when a new book with the same UUID is loaded is only catastrophic for the older book...not the device...
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Old 06-05-2013, 07:05 PM   #35
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Originally Posted by Toxaris View Post
It was not directed at you.
Actually, in this particular thread, I'm pretty sure Toxie didn't direct it at anyone in particular, but it is a recurring issue.

As near as I can tell, the ratio of DIY'ers-advanced Ammies (Amateurs) to service providers runs at least 10-1, if not far, far higher in favor of non-professionals or what I would call, "limited professionals" or high-end hobbyists. For example, as far as I know, Jellby is an incredibly talented hobbyist, and his work is second to none, but I don't believe he's paid for it. (If I'm wrong, mea culpa, but I intended that as a compliment). Toxaris is not a professional ebook-maker; he's an incredibly great guy, hobbyist, etc., and has a fabulous set of tools. Diap rocks. Even our resident curmudgeon (even more curmudgeonly than I!), Wolfie, is an amateur. Turtle straddles the borders, with one foot moving ever-precariously-closer to pro. Our Ducky is a professional cat slave, however. User_none can be called a professional programmer, but I don't think he'd enjoy being a professional book_maker. Ditto meme and some of the other maintainers, but I don't pretend to speak for them. (When I say, "amateur" versus "hobbyist" versus "professional," I am speaking solely in terms of payment for services rendered on a regular basis, not skill levels.) Certainly here in the Sigil forum, workshop, etc. The Calibre forum has a boatload of widely different user experiences.

I think you'll find that most pros don't come here, and don't provide unpaid advice to either hobbyists, ammies, DIY'ers, or folks who might be coming up and could end up being competition. That's my observation with regard to those who are here, versus those who are not. Most of the people who own the firms that mine compete with are not here. The same is true at the Kindle forums. When you think about it, forums aimed at amateur and hobbyist bookmakers are not great places to drum up business, so, to "hang out" here, you have to like the people; by definition, conversion houses aren't finding customers here. {shrug} Those guys are off drumming up business on author's forums and the like. It's smart business. Hanging here is strictly for fun, I'm quite sure, for anyone who does this for a living.

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Old 06-05-2013, 07:28 PM   #36
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One thing we do sometimes get here on MR is someone who has been giving the job of making an eBook at work and that person hasn't a clue what to do. So that person comes here asking for help not telling us that he/she is getting paid for this. That information only comes out later. That's just really annoying. I'll stop helping and suggest everyone stops helping as well.

I had the answer to the problem the last person who did that had and I refused to give it. It is just wrong to misrepresent yourself and to try to get us (MR forum users) to do the work.
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Old 06-06-2013, 02:26 AM   #37
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Include the meta name="cover" in the OPF Metadata section
Why not just have it there in the first place?
Heu ... OK. Why not.

As this navmap was playorder 1, the script also renumber the other navmaps starting with 1
Not really necessary, but OK.
?? What is the other alternative? Something a la KDP Guidelines 3.2.3 Cover Image Guideline #3 ? I am curious, please.

Optionnaly create a new NCX with only the chapters headings (reduced navmap without nested subchapters)
Why? Amazon encourages nested ToCs.
Last time I used the app Kindle for PC on one of my mobi, It didn't care about my sexy nested TOC and flattened everything. It was a big eBook with a lot of headings, the toc (in the left of the screen) was unusable.
So I decided to put an option box to check/uncheck in the GUI to modify the INI file.
Another reason is that I took note somewhere that ... "The Kindle does not navigate well with the 5-way controller on multiple-level navPoint entries".
Is it (still) true?

Modify all HTML files to make reference to the new css file
Why not just change the name of one css file to match the name already referenced in many html files? Or have one master css file referenced in all html files and then use easily changeable @import statements to pull in the directives for whichever version (epub or kindle) you're currently working with?

The one referenced CSS file in almost 100% of my xhtml files looks like this:
Code:
@import url(../Styles/epub.css);
/* @import url(../Styles/mobi.css) amzn-mobi;
@import url(../Styles/kf8.css) amzn-kf8; */
I just comment out the first line and uncomment the next two come kindle time.
Yes. I agree that this is not a clean solution. I was thinking about another way to avoid to have to modify all HTML files. I only have 1 css file for mobi/kf8. So If I include in all files the line
Code:
<link href="../Styles/styles.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css"/>
The only thing I have to do is to replace in ../Styles the ePub styles.css by the mobi/kf8 styles.css. This way I don't need to modify any HTML file.
Now, I noticed you use 2 different mobi and KF8 css files. It is ok but, is there a reason I should be aware of? Or is it just your way of organizing your job?

Thanks.
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Old 06-06-2013, 02:49 AM   #38
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Dear all,

My business model doesn't include being a conversion company, it is risky to engage myself in this direction, How long will it take to have the perfect push button tool? 5 years? Also I started to see our indian and chinese friends coming to this market with their low prices and there is no reason why they can't create quality ebooks. So maybe, as a plan B, I could do the pre-sales and sales job in the upcoming spanish and french languages market for a conversion company but not the delivery.

My income stream is not based on eBook sales, even if I would love. Assuming a margin of $5 per ebook (which is already a good achievement), I will need to sell 20K ebooks per year to achieve $100k. Is it really easily achievable to sell 20K ebooks / year?

However ebooks are the foundation of my new business.

Last edited by abeonis; 06-06-2013 at 03:58 AM. Reason: L’exactitude est la politesse des rois.
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Old 06-06-2013, 03:11 AM   #39
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Quote:
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Also I started to see our indian and chinese friends coming to this market with their low prices and there is no reason why they can't create quality ebooks.
But the issue is that they don't do quality eBooks. The formatting is a mess and backlist eBooks that need to be scanned/OCRed can be fraught with errors. It's like they just make the eBooks and don't even bother to look at them. They seems to have an automated process that they think is actually good but it's not.

How would you feel if you bought a novel in paper and found that there were no indents, large spaces between the paragraphs, a tiny font size, lots of very noticeable errors, huge space for even chapter header, images too small to see well, fonts that are too light to read well, and other cock-ups they do when making eBooks? Yes, these are the sorts of things these cut-rate conversion houses do. They do it fast, they do it poor, and they don't care about the quality of heir work.
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Old 06-06-2013, 03:56 AM   #40
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But the issue is that they don't do quality eBooks. The formatting is a mess and backlist eBooks that need to be scanned/OCRed can be fraught with errors. It's like they just make the eBooks and don't even bother to look at them. They seems to have an automated process that they think is actually good but it's not.

How would you feel if you bought a novel in paper and found that there were no indents, large spaces between the paragraphs, a tiny font size, lots of very noticeable errors, huge space for even chapter header, images too small to see well, fonts that are too light to read well, and other cock-ups they do when making eBooks? Yes, these are the sorts of things these cut-rate conversion houses do. They do it fast, they do it poor, and they don't care about the quality of heir work.
Sun Tzu, my favourite Business Coach, said "Never understimate your ennemy"

As any average business owner the chinese one probably know that 1st sale is difficult, the 2nd is easier. If they want to repeat business they must provide quality eBooks and let social media do the rest. So, maybe you are right, and your description of the current situation is OK. In this case, sshhhht, don't awake them. Maybe I should. Killing joke at Turtle91 attention.
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Old 06-06-2013, 04:15 AM   #41
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Originally Posted by st_albert View Post
This passage from the OPF-2.0.1 spec seems relevant:
(emphasis mine).
Albert
Thank you st_albert, you seem so comfortable with all the spec and references stuff that I will ask you for help when needed. Too late for you.
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Old 06-06-2013, 04:19 AM   #42
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Sun Tzu, my favourite Business Coach, said "Never understimate your ennemy"

As any average business owner the chinese one probably know that 1st sale is difficult, the 2nd is easier. If they want to repeat business they must provide quality eBooks and let social media do the rest. So, maybe you are right, and your description of the current situation is OK. In this case, sshhhht, don't awake them. Maybe I should. Killing joke at Turtle91 attention.
My description is correct. That's the problem.
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Old 06-06-2013, 04:25 AM   #43
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Originally Posted by Hitch View Post
I think you'll find that most pros don't come here, and don't provide unpaid advice to either hobbyists, ammies, DIY'ers, or folks who might be coming up and could end up being competition. That's my observation with regard to those who are here, versus those who are not. Most of the people who own the firms that mine compete with are not here. The same is true at the Kindle forums. When you think about it, forums aimed at amateur and hobbyist bookmakers are not great places to drum up business, so, to "hang out" here, you have to like the people; by definition, conversion houses aren't finding customers here. {shrug} Those guys are off drumming up business on author's forums and the like. It's smart business. Hanging here is strictly for fun, I'm quite sure, for anyone who does this for a living.
Free, open source tools and support are part of my values besides a vision of business based on ethics and solidarity. Mom, if I look at some DIY definitions, I am a punk.

Last edited by abeonis; 06-06-2013 at 05:49 AM.
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Old 06-06-2013, 04:28 AM   #44
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My workflow uses WinRAR, Firefox, Sigil, ADE, and Notepad++. I don't always use all of them for a given eBook, but those are the tools I use and the only one that's not totally free is WinRAR.
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Old 06-06-2013, 05:01 AM   #45
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Originally Posted by JSWolf View Post
My workflow uses WinRAR, Firefox, Sigil, ADE, and Notepad++. I don't always use all of them for a given eBook, but those are the tools I use and the only one that's not totally free is WinRAR.
Well, I use the following free tools (I love the command line):

If it was not for the MS-Word legacy, I'd be using LibreOffice, and my dream: a Linux based system. But I know me, I have to be careful, too much fun may be prejudicial.

Last edited by abeonis; 06-06-2013 at 05:10 AM.
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