Best way to make an anthology from Wikipedia?

ficbot · 06-05-2012, 02:37 PM

I have a few anthologies I am considering making based on various topics, using entries from Wikipedia. I tried using their create a book tool and got a very messy Open Office file, which I didn't like, and then a very nice PDF, which was beautiful until I tried to convert it with Calibre. When I opened up the epub in Sigil, it was a mess!

I think my best bet will be direct cut and pasting into a fresh Sigil file, one paragraph at a time. My issue is with images. I would like to wrap the text around them but can't figure out how. I read some help files which suggested I need CSS sheets for this. I tried creating a CSS sheet and pasting in some code I found in an on-line tutorial, but then I could not figure out how to apply it to my chapter with the image in it. I guess I need to link them somehow but I couldn't figure it out.

Any suggestions for best way to proceed? It feels like this should be a simple thing to do once I figure out the basics...

davidfor · 06-05-2012, 11:12 PM

A non-Sigil way is to try the Firefox add-on GrabMyBooks. That will generate an ePub from selected web-pages. I tried it a while ago and it worked, but I didn't do enough with it to see how well it worked.

huebi · 06-06-2012, 04:40 AM

Well, i would ask in a forum which is dealing with that, not in a forum about a tool. And to be honest: i'm really sick of reading questions here which have nothing to do with sigil but are plain html/css questions. And the moderator is basking in answering those question instead of moving them.
Farewell and thanks for the fish.

ficbot · 06-06-2012, 11:08 AM

Huebi, why the hostility? I am asking about a tool, in a forum dedicated to that tool--- I tried to wrap the text in Sigil, it disn't work, and I am asking for help with what I did wrong, or whether there is a better way to do it. Why do you feel that is not on topic? Where do you feel the topic of how to do a certain thing in Sigil would better go if not in the forum dedicated to Sigil?

DiapDealer · 06-06-2012, 11:16 AM

I wouldn't sweat it. Huebi's said farewell several times now.

meme · 06-06-2012, 12:24 PM

@ficbot - what you're looking to do is link the stylesheet you created to your HTML files.

In Sigil soon there will be a Link Stylesheets option for the stylesheets ( <-- note: Sigil related

) , but until then you have to manually edit your HTML code.

Add a link line to your head section like this (assuming your stylesheet is called styles.css but it could be anything.css):

Code:

<head>
  <title>Introduction</title>
  <link href="../Styles/styles.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" />
</head>

Then save and reload your book just in case the information got cached and needs to be refreshed.

cybmole · 06-07-2012, 12:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

I wouldn't sweat it. Huebi's said farewell several times now.

& there was I thinking he meant it & had actually gone :-)

Hitch · 06-07-2012, 10:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by huebi

Well, i would ask in a forum which is dealing with that, not in a forum about a tool. And to be honest: i'm really sick of reading questions here which have nothing to do with sigil but are plain html/css questions. And the moderator is basking in answering those question instead of moving them.
Farewell and thanks for the fish.

Huebi:

42.

Hitch

JJ Joseph · 06-08-2012, 01:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ficbot

I tried creating a CSS sheet and pasting in some code I found in an on-line tutorial, but then I could not figure out how to apply it to my chapter with the image in it. I guess I need to link them somehow but I couldn't figure it out.

Any suggestions for best way to proceed? It feels like this should be a simple thing to do once I figure out the basics...

Meme gave a simple instruction on how to link a style sheet to your html page, but CSS is not so easy. Fortunately, CSS is simplified quite a bit for epub books, but you'll still need to do some study. Go to www.w3schools.com/css/default.asp and do the online lessons. Then try using Notepad to create a CSS file linked to an HTML file and viewing the result in Firefox. It's quick and easy. That way you'll learn the basics before getting Sigil into a knot.

ficbot · 06-08-2012, 04:01 PM

Thanks!

06-05-2012, 02:37 PM	#1
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	Best way to make an anthology from Wikipedia? I have a few anthologies I am considering making based on various topics, using entries from Wikipedia. I tried using their create a book tool and got a very messy Open Office file, which I didn't like, and then a very nice PDF, which was beautiful until I tried to convert it with Calibre. When I opened up the epub in Sigil, it was a mess! I think my best bet will be direct cut and pasting into a fresh Sigil file, one paragraph at a time. My issue is with images. I would like to wrap the text around them but can't figure out how. I read some help files which suggested I need CSS sheets for this. I tried creating a CSS sheet and pasting in some code I found in an on-line tutorial, but then I could not figure out how to apply it to my chapter with the image in it. I guess I need to link them somehow but I couldn't figure it out. Any suggestions for best way to proceed? It feels like this should be a simple thing to do once I figure out the basics...

06-06-2012, 12:24 PM	#6
meme Sigil developer Posts: 1,274 Karma: 1101600 Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: UK Device: Kindle PW, K4 NT, K3, Kobo Touch	@ficbot - what you're looking to do is link the stylesheet you created to your HTML files. In Sigil soon there will be a Link Stylesheets option for the stylesheets ( <-- note: Sigil related ) , but until then you have to manually edit your HTML code. Add a link line to your head section like this (assuming your stylesheet is called styles.css but it could be anything.css): Code: <head> <title>Introduction</title> <link href="../Styles/styles.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" /> </head> Then save and reload your book just in case the information got cached and needs to be refreshed.

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06-05-2012, 11:12 PM	#2
davidfor Grand Sorcerer Posts: 24,905 Karma: 47303824 Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Sydney, Australia Device: Kobo:Touch,Glo, AuraH2O, GloHD,AuraONE, ClaraHD, Libra H2O; tolinoepos	A non-Sigil way is to try the Firefox add-on GrabMyBooks. That will generate an ePub from selected web-pages. I tried it a while ago and it worked, but I didn't do enough with it to see how well it worked.

06-06-2012, 04:40 AM	#3
huebi Zealot Posts: 121 Karma: 5070 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: none	Well, i would ask in a forum which is dealing with that, not in a forum about a tool. And to be honest: i'm really sick of reading questions here which have nothing to do with sigil but are plain html/css questions. And the moderator is basking in answering those question instead of moving them. Farewell and thanks for the fish.

06-06-2012, 11:08 AM	#4
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	Huebi, why the hostility? I am asking about a tool, in a forum dedicated to that tool--- I tried to wrap the text in Sigil, it disn't work, and I am asking for help with what I did wrong, or whether there is a better way to do it. Why do you feel that is not on topic? Where do you feel the topic of how to do a certain thing in Sigil would better go if not in the forum dedicated to Sigil?

06-06-2012, 11:16 AM	#5
DiapDealer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 28,561 Karma: 204127028 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD	I wouldn't sweat it. Huebi's said farewell several times now.

06-08-2012, 04:01 PM	#10
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	Thanks!

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