Help with EPUB errors

overholt001 · 03-07-2011, 09:50 PM

Hi all, I am new to e-publishing and new to this forum. I hope I can both learn and assist others as well.

As far as the learning goes; I created a book in word, converted it to .prc with MobiCreator, then to EPUB with 2ePub. I then ran a check on threepress and came up with many iterations of the following four messages. Note that I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub is the name of the file I am working with:
1.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): attribute "text" not allowed at this point; ignored
2.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): attribute "link" not allowed at this point; ignored
3.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): attribute "vlink" not allowed at this point; ignored
4.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): bad value for attribute "dir"

Anyone have any suggestions? My Word file has four levels of headings and numerous hyperlinks. Could this be a problem in any way? From what I have read, it should not be.

Thanks a bunch!

ATDrake · 03-07-2011, 10:12 PM

The first three errors about the attributes not being allowed look like they're because the <body> of the generated HTML text has the old deprecated inline attributes for showing link colours and so forth. Just delete them (and if you really and truly want the colours, put them into CSS).

I have no idea what the 4th error is for, but chances are you could delete the "dir" attribute (looks like another one of those deprecated HTML extensions) and your book would still look okay. Maybe try it on a copy.

Hope this helps and welcome to MobileRead!.

DMSmillie · 03-08-2011, 10:42 AM

Hi overholt and welcome to MobileRead.

Not sure how much or how little you know about the insides of an EPUB file, so apologies if the following is stuff you already know.

An EPUB file is basically just a ZIP file with the file extension changed from .zip to .epub. The book content is in one or more HTML files inside the EPUB file (there are a few other files, in XML, that provide information about the book, about the file structure inside the EPUB, and specifying a logical table of contents and navigation structure for the book). As ATDrake says, the first three errors are validation errors in the HTML code in the book content files. The "dir" attribute referred to in the fourth error is an HTML attribute used to specify if the language being used in the content is written from left to right (such as most European languages) or right to left (such as many of the languages used in the Middle East and Asia). There are only two allowed values for this attribute ("ltr" or "rtl") so presumably the error indicates that it appears somewhere in the HTML code with some other value.

These problems aren't anything to do with the numbers of heading levels or hyperlinks in your original Word doc. The problem is the conversion route you're using to get from Word to EPUB. In the first step, you're using MobiPocket Creator to convert the Word doc to MOBI format (the .prc file). Then you're converting the MOBI file to an EPUB file. The problem with this sequence, in terms of producing an EPUB that will pass Epubcheck, is that the MOBI format doesn't support or use the same level of HTML as that required for an EPUB. So you're going from a feature-rich format (Word) to a relatively simple and not HTML standards compliant format (MOBI/prc) then trying to step back up to a feature-rich format which has to be HTML standards compliant in order to pass Epubcheck. The EPUB will probably work OK, so if it's just for personal use, you might decide that you can live with it not passing Epubcheck. However it won't be acceptable for commercial publication (e.g. with Apple in the iBookstore).

Solutions?

Something you could try would be to open the EPUB in Sigil, with the HTML Tidy option switched on (the default setting), then re-save the EPUB. That might be all that's needed to sort out the HTML errors that are currently being flagged.

Longer term, though, I'd strongly recommend changing the process you're using to arrive at an EPUB version - going from Word to MOBI then to EPUB means you'll almost certainly lose some of the formatting and layout that you've created in Word, since MOBI supports a lot less in terms of formatting richness than EPUB does.

An alternative might be to save your finished Word doc as "Web Page, Filtered" to create an HTML version of your doc, then import that into Sigil and use it to create your EPUB version. If you then also want a MOBI version, I'd recommend using Amazon's Kindlegen app to convert the EPUB file to a MOBI file.

Hope that helps a little!

yarndog · 04-04-2011, 12:40 AM

I have a similar, yet different problem. I am trying to use Smashwords, which only accepts doc files. I get through meatgrinder ok. Smashwords converts ok, I am in the Premium Catalog. Then I am told(or I should say I had to figure out) that my smashwords epub file did not get accepted for Apple because it didn't pass the epub validator check,thus not shipped to Apple. According to the Smashwords FAQ I should just fix the errors and resubmit. The problem is I get those attribute errors for images. I can't fix the errors in the epub file and resubmit, because Smashwords only takes doc files. I have to somehow get rid of those attributes the epub validator doesn't like straight out of the doc file. I have not figured out how to do this yet. Any ideas? I have pursued a path of submitting my own epub file directly to Apple, then I can make changes and resubmit, but it would be convenient to be able to only mess with one document via Smashwords. Help!

eping · 04-09-2011, 10:43 PM

AD:
ePub Maker will dismiss all these annoying errors/troubles for you automatically.
You just need write your manuscript in Word.
Free to try. Download: see my signature.

03-07-2011, 09:50 PM	#1
overholt001 Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: kindle, nook, iPad	Help with EPUB errors Hi all, I am new to e-publishing and new to this forum. I hope I can both learn and assist others as well. As far as the learning goes; I created a book in word, converted it to .prc with MobiCreator, then to EPUB with 2ePub. I then ran a check on threepress and came up with many iterations of the following four messages. Note that I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub is the name of the file I am working with: 1.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): attribute "text" not allowed at this point; ignored 2.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): attribute "link" not allowed at this point; ignored 3.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): attribute "vlink" not allowed at this point; ignored 4.ERROR: I2 3-7-11 Smashwords.epub/tmp0_split_000.html(16): bad value for attribute "dir" Anyone have any suggestions? My Word file has four levels of headings and numerous hyperlinks. Could this be a problem in any way? From what I have read, it should not be. Thanks a bunch!

04-04-2011, 12:40 AM	#4
yarndog Member Posts: 16 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2011 Device: Kindle	I have a similar, yet different problem. I am trying to use Smashwords, which only accepts doc files. I get through meatgrinder ok. Smashwords converts ok, I am in the Premium Catalog. Then I am told(or I should say I had to figure out) that my smashwords epub file did not get accepted for Apple because it didn't pass the epub validator check,thus not shipped to Apple. According to the Smashwords FAQ I should just fix the errors and resubmit. The problem is I get those attribute errors for images. I can't fix the errors in the epub file and resubmit, because Smashwords only takes doc files. I have to somehow get rid of those attributes the epub validator doesn't like straight out of the doc file. I have not figured out how to do this yet. Any ideas? I have pursued a path of submitting my own epub file directly to Apple, then I can make changes and resubmit, but it would be convenient to be able to only mess with one document via Smashwords. Help! Last edited by yarndog; 04-04-2011 at 12:42 AM.

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03-07-2011, 10:12 PM	#2
ATDrake Wizzard Posts: 11,517 Karma: 33048258 Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Roundworld Device: Kindle 2 International, Sony PRS-T1, BlackBerry PlayBook, Acer Iconia	The first three errors about the attributes not being allowed look like they're because the <body> of the generated HTML text has the old deprecated inline attributes for showing link colours and so forth. Just delete them (and if you really and truly want the colours, put them into CSS). I have no idea what the 4th error is for, but chances are you could delete the "dir" attribute (looks like another one of those deprecated HTML extensions) and your book would still look okay. Maybe try it on a copy. Hope this helps and welcome to MobileRead!.

03-08-2011, 10:42 AM	#3
DMSmillie Enquiring Mind Posts: 562 Karma: 42350 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: London, UK Device: Kindle 3 (WiFi)	Hi overholt and welcome to MobileRead. Not sure how much or how little you know about the insides of an EPUB file, so apologies if the following is stuff you already know. An EPUB file is basically just a ZIP file with the file extension changed from .zip to .epub. The book content is in one or more HTML files inside the EPUB file (there are a few other files, in XML, that provide information about the book, about the file structure inside the EPUB, and specifying a logical table of contents and navigation structure for the book). As ATDrake says, the first three errors are validation errors in the HTML code in the book content files. The "dir" attribute referred to in the fourth error is an HTML attribute used to specify if the language being used in the content is written from left to right (such as most European languages) or right to left (such as many of the languages used in the Middle East and Asia). There are only two allowed values for this attribute ("ltr" or "rtl") so presumably the error indicates that it appears somewhere in the HTML code with some other value. These problems aren't anything to do with the numbers of heading levels or hyperlinks in your original Word doc. The problem is the conversion route you're using to get from Word to EPUB. In the first step, you're using MobiPocket Creator to convert the Word doc to MOBI format (the .prc file). Then you're converting the MOBI file to an EPUB file. The problem with this sequence, in terms of producing an EPUB that will pass Epubcheck, is that the MOBI format doesn't support or use the same level of HTML as that required for an EPUB. So you're going from a feature-rich format (Word) to a relatively simple and not HTML standards compliant format (MOBI/prc) then trying to step back up to a feature-rich format which has to be HTML standards compliant in order to pass Epubcheck. The EPUB will probably work OK, so if it's just for personal use, you might decide that you can live with it not passing Epubcheck. However it won't be acceptable for commercial publication (e.g. with Apple in the iBookstore). Solutions? Something you could try would be to open the EPUB in Sigil, with the HTML Tidy option switched on (the default setting), then re-save the EPUB. That might be all that's needed to sort out the HTML errors that are currently being flagged. Longer term, though, I'd strongly recommend changing the process you're using to arrive at an EPUB version - going from Word to MOBI then to EPUB means you'll almost certainly lose some of the formatting and layout that you've created in Word, since MOBI supports a lot less in terms of formatting richness than EPUB does. An alternative might be to save your finished Word doc as "Web Page, Filtered" to create an HTML version of your doc, then import that into Sigil and use it to create your EPUB version. If you then also want a MOBI version, I'd recommend using Amazon's Kindlegen app to convert the EPUB file to a MOBI file. Hope that helps a little!

04-09-2011, 10:43 PM	#5
eping ePub Maker Posts: 120 Karma: 16 Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Mordor Device: iPad,Kindle 3, Nook 2	AD: ePub Maker will dismiss all these annoying errors/troubles for you automatically. You just need write your manuscript in Word. Free to try. Download: see my signature.

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