MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - understanding pdf formatting for kindle paperwhite

BetterRed · 09-22-2016, 05:50 AM

@sindus - A PDF file implements a "Fixed Layout" model, in essence it emulates sheets of paper, your Kindle is designed to display "Flowable Layout" - like a web page. Converting PDF files to something more suited to your Kindle can be done.

But rather than converting the PDF direct to a Kindle format I would convert to EPUB, and get that 'right' using various tools and one of the EPUB editors. And then I would convert the EPUB into whichever Amazon format best suits your particular Kindle.

Have you read this ==>> Read this before Posting PDF Questions

Looking at your sample pages I would think your PDFs will be relatively easy to convert to EPUB. I convert up to a dozen PDF's a day, but I have neither the time nor the inclination to seek an optimal solution for each PDF. I've found the following process suits me best...

I drop PDF's into MobiCreator, if the resultant PRC is in good shape I convert it to EPUB and fix with an EPUB editor (Sigil or calibre's book editor), if the PRC is in poor shape I convert it to RTF and bash that into shape in Word, using the eBook Tools Add-in for Word (thread in Workshop forum) and my 20+ years-worth of macros. I save as DOCX and convert that to EPUB. Either way I end up with an adequate EPUB.

An adequate EPUB is, amongst other things, one that can be readily converted into Kindle formats - MOBI, AZW3 etc.

BR

09-22-2016, 05:50 AM	#5
BetterRed null operator (he/him) Posts: 21,750 Karma: 30237526 Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Sydney Australia Device: none	@sindus - A PDF file implements a "Fixed Layout" model, in essence it emulates sheets of paper, your Kindle is designed to display "Flowable Layout" - like a web page. Converting PDF files to something more suited to your Kindle can be done. But rather than converting the PDF direct to a Kindle format I would convert to EPUB, and get that 'right' using various tools and one of the EPUB editors. And then I would convert the EPUB into whichever Amazon format best suits your particular Kindle. Have you read this ==>> Read this before Posting PDF Questions Looking at your sample pages I would think your PDFs will be relatively easy to convert to EPUB. I convert up to a dozen PDF's a day, but I have neither the time nor the inclination to seek an optimal solution for each PDF. I've found the following process suits me best... I drop PDF's into MobiCreator, if the resultant PRC is in good shape I convert it to EPUB and fix with an EPUB editor (Sigil or calibre's book editor), if the PRC is in poor shape I convert it to RTF and bash that into shape in Word, using the eBook Tools Add-in for Word (thread in Workshop forum) and my 20+ years-worth of macros. I save as DOCX and convert that to EPUB. Either way I end up with an adequate EPUB. An adequate EPUB is, amongst other things, one that can be readily converted into Kindle formats - MOBI, AZW3 etc. BR Last edited by BetterRed; 09-22-2016 at 05:52 AM.