Export from Indesign so images display well in KP3?

JeffOYB · 11-05-2018, 04:33 PM

I have a book in Indesign. When I export it as a Reflowable Epub it displays fine in any format in any eReader ... except for KP3 ... which displays all my images tiny.

I am fiddling w the Export options for Objects to see if the result displays better in KP3. Sure enough clicking on various meaningless options is causing the images to display either small or tiny: so they're having effects.

UPDATE: More googling found this article which had the solution! https://forums.adobe.com/thread/1839950

There's a lot more to exporting to epub in Indesign than just exporting to epub! Ha. If pics are a problem in your resulting file then Exporting to Epub within *Object Styles* is also critical! Wow! There are further quirks. But I think I'm good to go for now. Onward!

najgori · 11-07-2018, 08:35 AM

PerfectPrepText: A smart way to style local formatting

not for images. great for styles.

Hitch · 11-07-2018, 12:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeffOYB

I have a book in Indesign. When I export it as a Reflowable Epub it displays fine in any format in any eReader ... except for KP3 ... which displays all my images tiny.

I am fiddling w the Export options for Objects to see if the result displays better in KP3. Sure enough clicking on various meaningless options is causing the images to display either small or tiny: so they're having effects.

UPDATE: More googling found this article which had the solution! https://forums.adobe.com/thread/1839950

There's a lot more to exporting to epub in Indesign than just exporting to epub! Ha. If pics are a problem in your resulting file then Exporting to Epub within *Object Styles* is also critical! Wow! There are further quirks. But I think I'm good to go for now. Onward!

IF all your images are always supposed to be 100% of the width of the device, no matter how big, no matter the screen resolution, that might work.

If exporting files from INDD actually worked--don't you think that everyone would use it???????

Hitch

DNSB · 11-13-2018, 11:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hitch

If exporting files from INDD actually worked--don't you think that everyone would use it???????

Hmmm.... it sounds as if the epub generated by InDesign works when used on an epub reader. More information would be nice. Was the Amazon format ebook was generated using the Kindle Plugin for Adobe InDesign or was it converted from epub external to InDesign? If external, what was the toolpath?

Looking at one acquaintance's epub stylesheet for her latest book created with Vellum, her Amazon conditionals (@media amzn-kf8 and @media amzn-mobi) seem to take up more than half the lines which suggests that trying to make epub, mobi and azw3 look good from the same stylesheet is a total PITA.

Admittedly, now that she has that stylesheet tweaked, she says it beats her old multiple ebooks tactic.

Hitch · 11-14-2018, 09:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DNSB

Hmmm.... it sounds as if the epub generated by InDesign works when used on an epub reader. More information would be nice. Was the Amazon format ebook was generated using the Kindle Plugin for Adobe InDesign or was it converted from epub external to InDesign? If external, what was the toolpath?

Looking at one acquaintance's epub stylesheet for her latest book created with Vellum, her Amazon conditionals (@media amzn-kf8 and @media amzn-mobi) seem to take up more than half the lines which suggests that trying to make epub, mobi and azw3 look good from the same stylesheet is a total PITA.

Admittedly, now that she has that stylesheet tweaked, she says it beats her old multiple ebooks tactic.

The fixed-layout ePUBs work on iPads being read in iBooks. After that...no. And yes, Vellum uses a monstrous list of media queries, a thousand-plus lines long--and that's for text, not images. Making images work correctly in all environs is a whole other kettle of fish.

We use INDD every day. We do NOT export ePUBs from it. That way lies madness, IMHO. I guess it looks fine, if one's background is paper, and s/he doesn't know coding, but...you do not get a viable ePUB, IMHO, from that.

FWIW.

Hitch

najgori · 11-14-2018, 01:41 PM

i've exported 100+ standard "reflowable" books from indesign to epub for the last couple of months.
for sure every epub had to be "straighten up" to work on different epub readers.
however, it is not rocket science - it's a css/html coding... so not even real coding.

Hitch · 11-14-2018, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by najgori

i've exported 100+ standard "reflowable" books from indesign to epub for the last couple of months.
for sure every epub had to be "straighten up" to work on different epub readers.
however, it is not rocket science - it's a css/html coding... so not even real coding.

Are you working from INDD files that you made yourself, or from others?

Hitch

najgori · 11-14-2018, 02:03 PM

i think i've already talked about that.
it's a big publishing house converting their catalogue for their new app, so the answer is no, i did not made all those indesign files.

Hitch · 11-14-2018, 02:39 PM

Well, then you're a braver man than I, Gunga Din. We find that virtually none of the INDD files that we get from our publishers are usable, as-are, when exported. Now, I don't know if you also suffer the slings and arrows of MOBI-fication. In media-queries alone, they wouldn't work. Then you get into images, yadda...IDK, I'm jealous!

I think it's great if your files work for you. I don't find that ours do, whether from experienced print layout houses or the numerous DIYers. And yes, I think that everyone here knows that HTML/CSS isn't "real coding," but thanks for elaborating on that.

Hitch

najgori · 11-14-2018, 03:08 PM

well, as you for sure know it's a big difference between "coding" for one&only custom app and making epub that renders well on every epub reader and also converting it for every kindle engine that change itself, these days, every couple of months.
guess, my job is much easier.

DNSB · 11-14-2018, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hitch

The fixed-layout ePUBs work on iPads being read in iBooks. After that...no. And yes, Vellum uses a monstrous list of media queries, a thousand-plus lines long--and that's for text, not images. Making images work correctly in all environs is a whole other kettle of fish.

We use INDD every day. We do NOT export ePUBs from it. That way lies madness, IMHO. I guess it looks fine, if one's background is paper, and s/he doesn't know coding, but...you do not get a viable ePUB, IMHO, from that.

FWIW.

Hitch

The OP mentioned reflowable. And yes, Vellum came with a mass of conditionals and she added quite a few more for graphics handling to allow her books to look much the same on Kobo, Nook and Kindle devices. iBooks is a whole 'nother kettle of fish. "Why can't they just work the same?" in a plaintive voice.

Turtle91 · 11-14-2018, 06:43 PM

Why can't all ice-cream be vanilla?

Hitch · 11-14-2018, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DNSB

The OP mentioned reflowable.

I know. I was, I believe, saying that exporting an ePUB from INDD, in reflowable, and expecting to use it directly on pretty much any platform is...optimistic.

Quote:

And yes, Vellum came with a mass of conditionals and she added quite a few more for graphics handling to allow her books to look much the same on Kobo, Nook and Kindle devices. iBooks is a whole 'nother kettle of fish. "Why can't they just work the same?" in a plaintive voice.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Turtle91

Why can't all ice-cream be vanilla?

You can hear me say something along those lines near-daily. The endless issues around MOBI/KF8/KF7 with the vagaries of ET and all that joy? Oy.

I admire the folks at Vellum, for their dedication to specific formatting. It's a hell of a long-ass CSS sheet!

Hitch

DNSB · 11-14-2018, 11:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hitch

I admire the folks at Vellum, for their dedication to specific formatting. It's a hell of a long-ass CSS sheet!

Now if Vellum would fix the CSS they use for <hr> tags used for section breaks with svg background graphics so that on epub2 readers, you didn't lose lines and get wide blanks spaces.

Hitch · 11-15-2018, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DNSB

Now if Vellum would fix the CSS they use for <hr> tags used for section breaks with svg background graphics so that on epub2 readers, you didn't lose lines and get wide blanks spaces.

Well, hell, if that's the only thing, you could regex that right in, no?

Hitch

11-05-2018, 04:33 PM	#1
JeffOYB Member Posts: 21 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2018 Device: none	Export from Indesign so images display well in KP3? I have a book in Indesign. When I export it as a Reflowable Epub it displays fine in any format in any eReader ... except for KP3 ... which displays all my images tiny. I am fiddling w the Export options for Objects to see if the result displays better in KP3. Sure enough clicking on various meaningless options is causing the images to display either small or tiny: so they're having effects. UPDATE: More googling found this article which had the solution! https://forums.adobe.com/thread/1839950 There's a lot more to exporting to epub in Indesign than just exporting to epub! Ha. If pics are a problem in your resulting file then Exporting to Epub within Object Styles is also critical! Wow! There are further quirks. But I think I'm good to go for now. Onward! Last edited by JeffOYB; 11-05-2018 at 07:33 PM.

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11-07-2018, 08:35 AM	#2
najgori Klak Posts: 174 Karma: 150374 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Belgrade, Serbia Device: many	PerfectPrepText: A smart way to style local formatting not for images. great for styles.

11-14-2018, 01:41 PM	#6
najgori Klak Posts: 174 Karma: 150374 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Belgrade, Serbia Device: many	i've exported 100+ standard "reflowable" books from indesign to epub for the last couple of months. for sure every epub had to be "straighten up" to work on different epub readers. however, it is not rocket science - it's a css/html coding... so not even real coding.

11-14-2018, 02:03 PM	#8
najgori Klak Posts: 174 Karma: 150374 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Belgrade, Serbia Device: many	i think i've already talked about that. it's a big publishing house converting their catalogue for their new app, so the answer is no, i did not made all those indesign files.

11-14-2018, 02:39 PM	#9
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	Well, then you're a braver man than I, Gunga Din. We find that virtually none of the INDD files that we get from our publishers are usable, as-are, when exported. Now, I don't know if you also suffer the slings and arrows of MOBI-fication. In media-queries alone, they wouldn't work. Then you get into images, yadda...IDK, I'm jealous! I think it's great if your files work for you. I don't find that ours do, whether from experienced print layout houses or the numerous DIYers. And yes, I think that everyone here knows that HTML/CSS isn't "real coding," but thanks for elaborating on that. Hitch

11-14-2018, 03:08 PM	#10
najgori Klak Posts: 174 Karma: 150374 Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Belgrade, Serbia Device: many	well, as you for sure know it's a big difference between "coding" for one&only custom app and making epub that renders well on every epub reader and also converting it for every kindle engine that change itself, these days, every couple of months. guess, my job is much easier.

11-14-2018, 06:43 PM	#12
Turtle91 A Hairy Wizard Posts: 3,094 Karma: 18727053 Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Charleston, SC today Device: iPhone 11/X/6/iPad 1,2,Air & Air Pro/Surface Pro/Kindle PW & Fire	Why can't all ice-cream be vanilla?