Vanishing images

Paddlin · 12-03-2010, 07:59 PM

I'm on my first e-book, and I'm making one to be available on both iBooks and Amazon. I've made the .EPUB, and things are looking okay. But once I convert to .MOBI and upload it to the Kindle I'm getting some odd things happening with images.

Problem #1: The title page was done as an image, and it simply doesn't appear.

Problem #2: There are small graphics at the end of each chapter, and these appear

I'm sure this is simply a limitation of the Kindle relative to the iPad, but since I'm new to this, I don't know enough about the two file formats to know what to look for in terms of errors. I'm using Calibre to convert the .EPUB to .MOBI.

wallcraft · 12-03-2010, 08:20 PM

The cover page might still be there. An ePub opens on its first page, which is the cover image. A Kindle ebook opens after the cover page, and you need to select "cover" from the navigation menu to see the cover image.

You did not say what was wrong with the images at the end of each chapter. If they are 2x the size you expect, then add width and height attributes in pixels to the images in the ePub before conversion (see Is there a "fix" or work-around for Kindle doubleing size of small graphics? ).

DMSmillie · 12-04-2010, 09:02 AM

When you say the title page image "doesn't appear", what exactly does show up? Do you mean there's nothing there at all, or do you see a "broken/not found image" icon in an empty box?

And as wallcraft says, you don't say what the problem is with the small images... your post just says "these appear"...?

Paddlin · 12-06-2010, 01:24 PM

Sorry for my incomplete post earlier. The problem with the title page is solved, or at the very least averted. The images at the end of each chapter are still giving me trouble. Instead of the image I designed, there's a few little dots, as if the Kindle knows it's there but is having trouble displaying it. I might just cut out those images for the Kindle version and leave them for the iPad version.

The graphics still display in the Kindle preview.

And I hate to keep piling on my problems, but the chapter skip isn't working right either. It just jumps between illustrations, not the beginning of the chapters. The chapter beginnings are tagged h1 and the illustrations are tagged h2, just because it makes the TOC easier to navigate. I'm thinking that might be the cause of the problem, but I have no idea what the fix would be. Again, the chapter skip works fine in preview.

NicWest · 12-06-2010, 01:59 PM

what is the format of the image?

and are the images being defined in <img></img> tags or <svg><image></image></svg>?

The kindle won't do the latter, and some conversion tools utilize it (tis valid afterall, I believe)

also check that all the images are being properly defined in the OPF.

As to your navigation, I believe kindle will take chapter order from spine in the OPF (don't quote me on that), and builds it's table of contents from the Table of contents page defined in the guide in the OPF. So your chapters should probably be in different files. (not just one big long one!)

Also it might be worth checking your epub with epubcheck (or flightcrew), and making sure that your kindlegen isn't producing any errors.

If your still having issues feel free to send us an email at mail@stunjelly.com, and we might be able to help you further!

DMSmillie · 12-06-2010, 05:27 PM

The "chapter skip" feature (i.e. being able to jump to next/previous chapter with a single keypress) will only function in the Kindle if an NCX file is included in the MOBI file - it's the navigation points defined in the NCX file that determine what points the Kindle will jump to. You say that your chapter headings are coded H1 and the illustrations are coded with H2 - I'd say it sounds like Calibre is looking for H2 headings to create the NCX table of contents during conversion, except for what you say about the MOBI file working fine using the Kindle Previewer application - I can't figure out how the same file could work OK using the Kindle Previewer, but then do something different when transferred to your Kindle. I've always found the Kindle Previewer to be a very accurate simulation of how a MOBI file will work on the Kindle itself. Are you sure you're sending the same file to your Kindle that you're viewing with the Kindle Previewer?

Paddlin · 12-06-2010, 05:51 PM

I took a look at the NCX file, and sure enough, only the illustrations are listed. The regular table of contents looks fine, but I'm guessing that's just generated differently. So now that I know it's an NCX problem, how can I tell Calibre to create a TOC correctly on export? Or is this just something I'll have to fix manually? Would I be better off using a different conversion tool?

The end graphics are jpegs. I inserted them using Sigil, so they look something like this:

<p class="centered-body-end"><span class="sgc"><img alt="" class="calibre2" src="../Images/end_graphic.jpg" /></span></p>

Like I said, these are only not displaying on the Kindle. The full-page illustrations I used are tagged the same way, and they are appearing. It's just these little graphics at the end of each chapter that are giving me trouble.

DMSmillie · 12-07-2010, 01:37 PM

Two suggestions for you, Paddlin.

When you're creating the EPUB file using Sigil, do you use the TOC editor to create the NCX table of contents? Once you've got the XHTML, CSS and image files all set up, click on "Tools" in the menu bar, then select "TOC Editor". You should see a dialog appear, listing all the elements you've coded as headings (h1, h2, etc). Deselect all of the illustrations, so that only the chapter headings are selected, then click on OK. That should either ensure that the NCX file only contains navpoints for the chapter headings, or highlight if there's a problem with the HTML coding.

Then, when you load the EPUB into Calibre, and initiate the "Convert Book" dialog, having selected MOBI output, click on "Structure Detection" in the menu on the left. At the top right of the dialog, you should see a text box labelled "Detect chapters at...". Click on the wizard button to the right of that text box, and in the top drop down in the new dialog that appears (labelled "Match HTML tags with tag name"), select "H1". Click on OK. Make any other setting changes that you want to make, then click on OK to initiate the conversion.

Those two things should ensure that the "chapter skips" are set up for the correct points in the book. I hope!

Paddlin · 12-07-2010, 02:20 PM

Thanks DMSmillie. I'm in good shape now.

I looked at the NCX file long enough until it made sense. For whatever reason, on export the navPoint tags were overlapping. So instead of:

Quote:

<navPoint id="navPoint-2" playOrder="2">
<navLabel>
<text>Title Page</text>
</navLabel>
<content src="Text/title.xhtml"/>
</navPoint>
<navPoint id="navPoint-3" playOrder="3">
<navLabel>
<text>Preface</text>
</navLabel>
<content src="Text/Preface.xhtml"/>
</navPoint>

The code looked like

Quote:

<navPoint id="navPoint-2" playOrder="2">
<navLabel>
<text>Title Page</text>
</navLabel>
<content src="Text/title.xhtml"/>
<navPoint id="navPoint-3" playOrder="3">
<navLabel>
<text>Preface</text>
</navLabel>
<content src="Text/Preface.xhtml"/>
</navPoint>
</navPoint>

So each chapter was within the illustration's navPoint, so I was only going to the illustration.

Thanks for the help, everyone.

DMSmillie · 12-07-2010, 02:53 PM

Glad you got it sorted out!

Hitch · 12-10-2010, 02:30 AM

Hi, Paddlin:

Not to rain on your parade, but please be advised that Calibre-generated mobi files do not work properly on the Kindle For PC (or Mac, or iPad) application if sold through Amazon. There is not enough space in the headers for the second layer of encryption added by Amazon to the computer-usable files. You're going to have to find a different way to generate that mobi/prc if you want to sell the file through Amazon. It will look okay in the DTP previewer and it will work fine if you direct-load it...but you cannot have DRM attached and have it work. Sorry, guy--there's an entire thread on this over on the Calibre forums somewhere, about...4 months ago? From me, in fact.

HTH,

Hitch

DMSmillie · 12-10-2010, 05:10 AM

Apologies - I should have remembered that, having read your posts on the issue, Hitch.

Paddlin - you could try using Kindlegen to create the MOBI file.

Hitch · 12-10-2010, 07:14 PM

Donna:

Oh, heck, I don't expect ANYONE to remember that; I only do because I'm the idiot who discovered it (the hard way, with a client that couldn't DL his own book) and had to work through it with Amazon. {shrug}. It's why I run around and post it, because it's not obvious unless/until someone buys the book and can't DL it to K4PC or K4Mac.

Hitch

Paddlin · 12-17-2010, 11:51 AM

Thanks, Hitch. Definitely wouldn't have thought to check that.

12-06-2010, 01:24 PM	#4
Paddlin Member Posts: 22 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: iPad, but usually not iBooks	Sorry for my incomplete post earlier. The problem with the title page is solved, or at the very least averted. The images at the end of each chapter are still giving me trouble. Instead of the image I designed, there's a few little dots, as if the Kindle knows it's there but is having trouble displaying it. I might just cut out those images for the Kindle version and leave them for the iPad version. The graphics still display in the Kindle preview. And I hate to keep piling on my problems, but the chapter skip isn't working right either. It just jumps between illustrations, not the beginning of the chapters. The chapter beginnings are tagged h1 and the illustrations are tagged h2, just because it makes the TOC easier to navigate. I'm thinking that might be the cause of the problem, but I have no idea what the fix would be. Again, the chapter skip works fine in preview. Last edited by Paddlin; 12-06-2010 at 01:30 PM.

12-06-2010, 05:51 PM	#7
Paddlin Member Posts: 22 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: iPad, but usually not iBooks	I took a look at the NCX file, and sure enough, only the illustrations are listed. The regular table of contents looks fine, but I'm guessing that's just generated differently. So now that I know it's an NCX problem, how can I tell Calibre to create a TOC correctly on export? Or is this just something I'll have to fix manually? Would I be better off using a different conversion tool? The end graphics are jpegs. I inserted them using Sigil, so they look something like this: <p class="centered-body-end"><span class="sgc"><img alt="" class="calibre2" src="../Images/end_graphic.jpg" /></span></p> Like I said, these are only not displaying on the Kindle. The full-page illustrations I used are tagged the same way, and they are appearing. It's just these little graphics at the end of each chapter that are giving me trouble. Last edited by Paddlin; 12-06-2010 at 05:57 PM.

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12-03-2010, 07:59 PM	#1
Paddlin Member Posts: 22 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: iPad, but usually not iBooks	Vanishing images I'm on my first e-book, and I'm making one to be available on both iBooks and Amazon. I've made the .EPUB, and things are looking okay. But once I convert to .MOBI and upload it to the Kindle I'm getting some odd things happening with images. Problem #1: The title page was done as an image, and it simply doesn't appear. Problem #2: There are small graphics at the end of each chapter, and these appear I'm sure this is simply a limitation of the Kindle relative to the iPad, but since I'm new to this, I don't know enough about the two file formats to know what to look for in terms of errors. I'm using Calibre to convert the .EPUB to .MOBI.

12-03-2010, 08:20 PM	#2
wallcraft reader Posts: 6,975 Karma: 5183568 Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Mississippi, USA Device: Kindle 3, Kobo Glo HD	The cover page might still be there. An ePub opens on its first page, which is the cover image. A Kindle ebook opens after the cover page, and you need to select "cover" from the navigation menu to see the cover image. You did not say what was wrong with the images at the end of each chapter. If they are 2x the size you expect, then add width and height attributes in pixels to the images in the ePub before conversion (see Is there a "fix" or work-around for Kindle doubleing size of small graphics? ).

12-04-2010, 09:02 AM	#3
DMSmillie Enquiring Mind Posts: 562 Karma: 42350 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: London, UK Device: Kindle 3 (WiFi)	When you say the title page image "doesn't appear", what exactly does show up? Do you mean there's nothing there at all, or do you see a "broken/not found image" icon in an empty box? And as wallcraft says, you don't say what the problem is with the small images... your post just says "these appear"...?

12-06-2010, 01:59 PM	#5
NicWest Member Posts: 12 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Kindle	what is the format of the image? and are the images being defined in <img></img> tags or <svg><image></image></svg>? The kindle won't do the latter, and some conversion tools utilize it (tis valid afterall, I believe) also check that all the images are being properly defined in the OPF. As to your navigation, I believe kindle will take chapter order from spine in the OPF (don't quote me on that), and builds it's table of contents from the Table of contents page defined in the guide in the OPF. So your chapters should probably be in different files. (not just one big long one!) Also it might be worth checking your epub with epubcheck (or flightcrew), and making sure that your kindlegen isn't producing any errors. If your still having issues feel free to send us an email at mail@stunjelly.com, and we might be able to help you further!

12-06-2010, 05:27 PM	#6
DMSmillie Enquiring Mind Posts: 562 Karma: 42350 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: London, UK Device: Kindle 3 (WiFi)	The "chapter skip" feature (i.e. being able to jump to next/previous chapter with a single keypress) will only function in the Kindle if an NCX file is included in the MOBI file - it's the navigation points defined in the NCX file that determine what points the Kindle will jump to. You say that your chapter headings are coded H1 and the illustrations are coded with H2 - I'd say it sounds like Calibre is looking for H2 headings to create the NCX table of contents during conversion, except for what you say about the MOBI file working fine using the Kindle Previewer application - I can't figure out how the same file could work OK using the Kindle Previewer, but then do something different when transferred to your Kindle. I've always found the Kindle Previewer to be a very accurate simulation of how a MOBI file will work on the Kindle itself. Are you sure you're sending the same file to your Kindle that you're viewing with the Kindle Previewer?

12-07-2010, 01:37 PM	#8
DMSmillie Enquiring Mind Posts: 562 Karma: 42350 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: London, UK Device: Kindle 3 (WiFi)	Two suggestions for you, Paddlin. When you're creating the EPUB file using Sigil, do you use the TOC editor to create the NCX table of contents? Once you've got the XHTML, CSS and image files all set up, click on "Tools" in the menu bar, then select "TOC Editor". You should see a dialog appear, listing all the elements you've coded as headings (h1, h2, etc). Deselect all of the illustrations, so that only the chapter headings are selected, then click on OK. That should either ensure that the NCX file only contains navpoints for the chapter headings, or highlight if there's a problem with the HTML coding. Then, when you load the EPUB into Calibre, and initiate the "Convert Book" dialog, having selected MOBI output, click on "Structure Detection" in the menu on the left. At the top right of the dialog, you should see a text box labelled "Detect chapters at...". Click on the wizard button to the right of that text box, and in the top drop down in the new dialog that appears (labelled "Match HTML tags with tag name"), select "H1". Click on OK. Make any other setting changes that you want to make, then click on OK to initiate the conversion. Those two things should ensure that the "chapter skips" are set up for the correct points in the book. I hope!

12-07-2010, 02:53 PM	#10
DMSmillie Enquiring Mind Posts: 562 Karma: 42350 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: London, UK Device: Kindle 3 (WiFi)	Glad you got it sorted out!

12-10-2010, 02:30 AM	#11
Hitch Bookmaker & Cat Slave Posts: 11,462 Karma: 158448243 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Phoenix, AZ Device: K2, iPad, KFire, PPW, Voyage, NookColor. 2 Droid, Oasis, Boox Note2	Hi, Paddlin: Not to rain on your parade, but please be advised that Calibre-generated mobi files do not work properly on the Kindle For PC (or Mac, or iPad) application if sold through Amazon. There is not enough space in the headers for the second layer of encryption added by Amazon to the computer-usable files. You're going to have to find a different way to generate that mobi/prc if you want to sell the file through Amazon. It will look okay in the DTP previewer and it will work fine if you direct-load it...but you cannot have DRM attached and have it work. Sorry, guy--there's an entire thread on this over on the Calibre forums somewhere, about...4 months ago? From me, in fact. HTH, Hitch

12-10-2010, 05:10 AM	#12
DMSmillie Enquiring Mind Posts: 562 Karma: 42350 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: London, UK Device: Kindle 3 (WiFi)	Apologies - I should have remembered that, having read your posts on the issue, Hitch. Paddlin - you could try using Kindlegen to create the MOBI file.

12-10-2010, 07:14 PM	#13
Hitch Bookmaker & Cat Slave Posts: 11,462 Karma: 158448243 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Phoenix, AZ Device: K2, iPad, KFire, PPW, Voyage, NookColor. 2 Droid, Oasis, Boox Note2	Donna: Oh, heck, I don't expect ANYONE to remember that; I only do because I'm the idiot who discovered it (the hard way, with a client that couldn't DL his own book) and had to work through it with Amazon. {shrug}. It's why I run around and post it, because it's not obvious unless/until someone buys the book and can't DL it to K4PC or K4Mac. Hitch

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12-17-2010, 11:51 AM	#14
Paddlin Member Posts: 22 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: iPad, but usually not iBooks	Thanks, Hitch. Definitely wouldn't have thought to check that.