Generating a Table of Contents

[ebookn00b]

I am creating ebooks from scratch. I have figured out how to set the cover image, create a NCX and have even added a Linked HTML TOC at the beginning of my book. The problem I am running in to is that when I am viewing my book in the Kindle Previewer and I select the Table of Contents button I get the error "Missing Table of Contents, Your book is currently missing a TOC, which allows easy navigation in Kindle books......" Same goes for the Kindle Fire, when I select the TOC button there is no TOC. Does anyone have any insight on how to do this? Maybe a guide. I am not sure if I am suppose to add a TOC to the .opf or where exactly. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[DiapDealer]

It sounds like you're doing everything except indentifying your Linked HTML TOC in the guide section of the opf file.

<guide>
    <reference href="Text/your_html_file.html#anchor_name" title="Table of Contents" type="toc" />
    .
    .
    .
</guide>

If the Linked HTML TOC is self-contained in its own HTML file, you won't need the url fragment (#anchor_name). Something like:

<reference href="Text/your_html_TOC.html" title="Table of Contents" type="toc" />

[Oldpilot]

<div id="toc" />

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by Oldpilot

<div id="toc" />

I'm not familiar with that. What exactly does it achieve? Do certain mobi-creation programs automatically look for that without needing to have a reference item in the guide section of the OPF?

[AThirstyMind]

As far as I know, if you have a built-in TOC in your html file, you have to link it within MobiPocket in the Guide feature. Be sure and bookmark your Table of Contents header name=TOC. Then the line in the Guide will read 'MyBook.html#TOC' This is a pretty elemental way of doing it, so I apologize to all the expert html guys out there, but its worked for me for more than 100 books.

[renez64]

I converted a gnu software manual to mobi format. I generate a toc.html and and a toc.ncx. There isn't much difference between them as to contents. The format and the layout is quite different!
If I use the kindle previewer and press the ncx button I get to see a tree structure with collapsible items.

However on the kindle 3 it is just the html TOC. How do I get to the ncx data on the kindle 3

[renez64]

I got it using the 5-way button left and right moves you through the ncx points!

How ever i have for a "node" for the GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE and it has 4 "points"
1) Preamble, 2)TERMS AND CONDITION, 3)END OF TERMS AND CONDITIOND, 4) How to apply .....

using the right cusor key I get to the "node" GNU GENERAL PUBLIC LICENSE. the next right cursor key get me to 1. The Concepts of Bison.

I would have expected that it gets me to Preamble.

I do have depth set to 3 in the ncx file. Does the kindle 3 only use level 1?

Rene

[DiapDealer]

I do have depth set to 3 in the ncx file. Does the kindle 3 only use level 1?

Not just the Kindle 3, but in fact ALL Kindles (strictly speaking of the mobi format, I believe KF8 is different). The previewer will recognize a multilevel ncx, but only the highest level will be available for navigating with the five-way.

[renez64]

Well, it is used. once you are in the chapter e.g. your on 3.1 then right arrow will take you to 3.2, 3.3 etc and left arrow will take you back

[DiapDealer]

Originally Posted by renez64

Well, it is used. once you are in the chapter e.g. your on 3.1 then right arrow will take you to 3.2, 3.3 etc and left arrow will take you back

Right. I remember hearing about that functionality. But I believe only the highest level will appear as "markers" on the progress bar (for those device that still utilize it).

[renez64]

I just checked it. The markers are level one. Once you are at level two left and right stays on level two. You get out of level two by a next/previous page. Well handy to know. I adjust my script to generate 2 levels in the ncx file.

Now I wonder how my toc.html gets nicely indented
I expected something like
1 Makefiles

1.1 Rules

1.2 Recursive

but I get

1 Makefiles
1.1 Rules
1.2 Recursive

Do i need special markup I did

<div> <a href="#l1">Makefiles</a>
      <div> <a href="#l1-1">Rules</a></div>
      <div> <a href="#l1-2">Recursive</a></div>
</div>

Or is the toc always flat?

[ebookn00b]

My TOC is at the start of my epubs HTML file. Here is the code for it.

<div class="toc">
<p class="No-Paragraph-Style"><span class="story">Table of Contents</span></p>
<p class="What-is-Leadership-"><a href="#toc_marker-1">What is Leadership?</a></p>
<p class="The-Be--Know--Do-Leadership-Philosophy"><a href="#toc_marker-2">The Be, Know, Do Leadership Philosophy</a></p>
<p class="Levels-of-Army-Leadership"><a href="#toc_marker-3">Levels of Army Leadership</a></p>
<p class="Leadership-Versus-Management"><a href="#toc_marker-4">Leadership Versus Management</a></p>
<p class="The-Cadet-Command-Leadership-Development-Program"><a href="#toc_marker-5">The Cadet Command Leadership Development Program</a></p>
</div>

I tried to enter the following code into the OPF to get the TOC button in the KindleFire menu to actually show the TOC but I had no luck. Any suggestions?

<guide>
<reference href="Text/Leadership_SEC_1.html" title="Table of Contents" type="toc" />
</guide>

[ebookn00b]

Nevermind. I got it the Kindle UI Table of Contents button to jump to the TOC by adding the following code to my OPF.

<guide>
<reference type="toc" title="Table of Contents" href="Leadership_SEC_1.html"/>
</guide>

[DaleDe]

Originally Posted by ebookn00b

Nevermind. I got it the Kindle UI Table of Contents button to jump to the TOC by adding the following code to my OPF.

<guide>
<reference type="toc" title="Table of Contents" href="Leadership_SEC_1.html"/>
</guide>

good catch. It is also a good idea to assign an id="toc" to the top entry in your example.

[renez64]

I didn't had a problem generating a toc. I had difficulty in indenting the toc at level 2.
But there is someone on the internet who explains that with a littlebit
The solution was to add a style file and 2 definitions toc1 toc2 and it worked!