Advice for ebook formatting/conversion

[JSWolf]

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Thread split from Is this the right place for this type of upload?

If you are using Word for your eBook, use styles. That's the best way to get as clean code from Word as possible. Do not highlight and then select everything you want done to that text. Select a style or if an appropriate style does not exist, create one.

Also, before you upload an ePub eBook, go through the code and remove any rubbish and clean up what can be cleaned up. You want to follow the rule of KISS. So keep your code as simple as possible. Do you know HTML/CSS?

[angharad09]

Right now I am just looking for the right platform(s), but yes I am planning to format it as cleanly as possible, and I'm sure I'll have more questions about that before I'm done. Thanks!

[BookCat]

I noticed that your book is non fiction; does it contain any pictures or illustrations? If so, there may be better software than Calibre for the final formatting.

Others on this thread are more knowledgeable in this field than me, but I believe that Sigil might be better.
Does anyone agree? Or am I just confusing things?

[angharad09]

Last time I did this I used a combination of Calibre and Sigil. It's been awhile, but hopefully I can get back on the bike ... the illustrations are my biggest worry, actually, so thanks for bringing that up. Some questions --

(1) Is there an ideal/maximum size for an epub/mobi? Not in terms of publishers' requirements (I can look those up), but what is convenient for readers who don't have the latest high-end gadgets?

(2) In terms of the individual graphics (cover, large inside, small inside) -- is there an ideal size/resolution that will work for everything from a print-quality PDF to an epub viewable on a smartphone? Or do I need to generate multiple copies of each graphic? (I can happily do that, but don't want to unnecessarily complicate things.)

(3) Is there anything in Calibre, Sigil, or similar programs that will automatically downsize graphics (or the document as a whole) for you?

I've lost my access to Adobe products (currently cobbling things together with Preview, Photos, and Affinity) and I'm trying not to make assumptions about what can/can't be done with other software.

Thanks again, everyone!

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by BookCat

I noticed that your book is non fiction; does it contain any pictures or illustrations? If so, there may be better software than Calibre for the final formatting.

Others on this thread are more knowledgeable in this field than me, but I believe that Sigil might be better.
Does anyone agree? Or am I just confusing things?

I don't think Sigil is better then Calibre for images. I think they are comparable.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by angharad09

Last time I did this I used a combination of Calibre and Sigil. It's been awhile, but hopefully I can get back on the bike ... the illustrations are my biggest worry, actually, so thanks for bringing that up. Some questions --

(1) Is there an ideal/maximum size for an epub/mobi? Not in terms of publishers' requirements (I can look those up), but what is convenient for readers who don't have the latest high-end gadgets?

(2) In terms of the individual graphics (cover, large inside, small inside) -- is there an ideal size/resolution that will work for everything from a print-quality PDF to an epub viewable on a smartphone? Or do I need to generate multiple copies of each graphic? (I can happily do that, but don't want to unnecessarily complicate things.)

(3) Is there anything in Calibre, Sigil, or similar programs that will automatically downsize graphics (or the document as a whole) for you?

I've lost my access to Adobe products (currently cobbling things together with Preview, Photos, and Affinity) and I'm trying not to make assumptions about what can/can't be done with other software.

Thanks again, everyone![/QUOTE]

1. You should have hi-res graphics because if not, the images may not look good enough on a hi-res Eink Reader.

2. I use a maximum cover size of 1600 lines. If a cover is larger, I reduce it to 1600 lines. I do keep it aspect ratio correct both for the image and on screen.

3. Calibre has the ability to reduce the graphcs sizes and to losslessy compress for an even smaller file size.

How did you lose access to Adobe Digital Editions?

[angharad09]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

How did you lose access to Adobe Digital Editions?

Not Digital Editions -- Creative Suite (can't afford Creative Cloud subscription, older software doesn't work in MacOS Catalina, time to move on, etc.). I used to rely heavily on those programs for editing/downsizing/optimizing, now I have to actually figure out what I need and how to make it happen.

Thanks for the tips!

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by angharad09

Not Digital Editions -- Creative Suite (can't afford Creative Cloud subscription, older software doesn't work in MacOS Catalina, time to move on, etc.). I used to rely heavily on those programs for editing/downsizing/optimizing, now I have to actually figure out what I need and how to make it happen.

Thanks for the tips!

Here's one thing you can do. If you have something you want to do but are having trouble doing it, come over to the the ePub forum and post about it in as much detail as possible. That way you can get help. There are a lot of good people here on MR who are willing to help. If the eBook is one you ar going to make for sale, please say so. I've seen some really good help on MR. So give it a go and see how you get on.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I don't think Sigil is better then Calibre for images. I think they are comparable.

IMHO Calibre-editor beats Sigil in that it offers a couple of basic Image tools (shows when you show just the image) without resorting to a 3rd party app.

You can resize, rotate and apply some simple filters

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by theducks

IMHO Calibre-editor beats Sigil in that it offers a couple of basic Image tools (shows when you show just the image) without resorting to a 3rd party app.

You can resize, rotate and apply some simple filters

True that. And you can losslessly compress the images to make them smaller without doing any recompressing.