ToC help needed: nav.xhtml

Phssthpok · 12-01-2016, 04:24 AM

I am trying to add a ToC to a book, but when I do I get two files: toc.ncx and nav.xhtml, both of which are marked with a ToC icon, and a warning that nav.xhtml isn't referenced. Annoyingly, nav.xhtml shows up as the last page of the book when I look at it in a reader.

The OPF file contains this:

Code:

    ...
    <item href="toc.ncx" id="toc" media-type="application/x-dtbncx+xml"/>
    <item href="nav.xhtml" id="nav" media-type="application/xhtml+xml" properties="nav"/>
  </manifest>
  <spine toc="toc">
    ...

I tried moving the properties="nav" attribute to the entry for toc.ncx, and then I get an error: "missing ToC in navigation document". I've looked at other books and can't see what the problem is... they just have toc.ncx marked as the ToC with properties="nav", and the id referenced as the toc in the <spine> tag.

Can anyone tell me what is going on here, why the nav.xhtml is created, and how I can get rid of it?

kovidgoyal · 12-01-2016, 04:25 AM

nav.xhtml is needed for EPUB 3 books. You dont want it change your book back to EPUB 2.

Phssthpok · 12-01-2016, 04:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

nav.xhtml is needed for EPUB 3 books. You dont want it change your book back to EPUB 2.

Thanks; changing version="3.0" to version="2.0" in the <package> tag fixed it.

Am I the only one who thinks that EPUB 3 is the work of the Devil?

kovidgoyal · 12-01-2016, 04:37 AM

I am certainly no fan of EPUB 3.

JSWolf · 12-01-2016, 06:38 AM

ePub 3 is a mistake. What ePub 3 should have been is ePub 2+ meaning don;t change things that don't need to be changed and make the changes logical. Also, do away with audio and video. They don't need to exist in eBooks.

thiago.eec · 12-02-2016, 09:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phssthpok

Thanks; changing version="3.0" to version="2.0" in the <package> tag fixed it.

Am I the only one who thinks that EPUB 3 is the work of the Devil?

Lol....

The nav.xhtml is a required file for epub3 books, as Kovid Goyal explained. But it was not necessary to change the version on the package, as now your book probably won't pass epubcheck.

If you don't want the nav.xhtml appearing in the book, just leave it out of the spine. Forget about the warning saying it is not referenced. It just calls your attention to the fact that there is an xhtml file being left out of the spine.

Phssthpok · 12-10-2016, 06:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thiago.eec

Lol....

The nav.xhtml is a required file for epub3 books, as Kovid Goyal explained. But it was not necessary to change the version on the package, as now your book probably won't pass epubcheck.

If you don't want the nav.xhtml appearing in the book, just leave it out of the spine. Forget about the warning saying it is not referenced. It just calls your attention to the fact that there is an xhtml file being left out of the spine.

Problem is that it still seems to show up as the last page when I look at the book in a reader, which is really annoying. And why should it not pass epubcheck if it's a valid EPUB 2?

JSWolf · 12-10-2016, 06:50 AM

If you are creating an ePub 2 eBook, you do not need a nav file. You don't even need an HTML ToC. All you need is the NCX.

thiago.eec · 04-09-2017, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Phssthpok

Problem is that it still seems to show up as the last page when I look at the book in a reader, which is really annoying. And why should it not pass epubcheck if it's a valid EPUB 2?

The toc.xhtml shows up even if it is not on the spine? I'm not talking about marking it as "non-linear". I've never seen that happen. What reader do you use?

As for being a valid EPUB2, I was led to believe that you had a EPUB3 file and just changed the version from "3.0" to "2.0". If you just did that, the epub wouldn't be a valid EPUB2, since there are other diferences between the formats.

JSWolf · 04-09-2017, 05:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thiago.eec

The toc.xhtml shows up even if it is not on the spine? I'm not talking about marking it as "non-linear". I've never seen that happen. What reader do you use?

As for being a valid EPUB2, I was led to believe that you had a EPUB3 file and just changed the version from "3.0" to "2.0". If you just did that, the epub wouldn't be a valid EPUB2, since there are other diferences between the formats.

Verify the ePub with Calibre's error checker and fix whatever is said to be wrong. Once that's done, check the ePub with epubcheck and once both say the ePub is OK, then it's structurally OK.

thiago.eec · 04-14-2017, 04:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Verify the ePub with Calibre's error checker and fix whatever is said to be wrong. Once that's done, check the ePub with epubcheck and once both say the ePub is OK, then it's structurally OK.

Well, what you are suggesting is to change it back to the epub2 format. Then, why not just create an epub2, from the beginning?

12-01-2016, 04:24 AM	#1
Phssthpok Age improves with wine. Posts: 558 Karma: 95229 Join Date: Nov 2014 Device: Kindle Oasis, Kobo Libra II	ToC help needed: nav.xhtml I am trying to add a ToC to a book, but when I do I get two files: toc.ncx and nav.xhtml, both of which are marked with a ToC icon, and a warning that nav.xhtml isn't referenced. Annoyingly, nav.xhtml shows up as the last page of the book when I look at it in a reader. The OPF file contains this: Code: ... <item href="toc.ncx" id="toc" media-type="application/x-dtbncx+xml"/> <item href="nav.xhtml" id="nav" media-type="application/xhtml+xml" properties="nav"/> </manifest> <spine toc="toc"> ... I tried moving the properties="nav" attribute to the entry for toc.ncx, and then I get an error: "missing ToC in navigation document". I've looked at other books and can't see what the problem is... they just have toc.ncx marked as the ToC with properties="nav", and the id referenced as the toc in the <spine> tag. Can anyone tell me what is going on here, why the nav.xhtml is created, and how I can get rid of it?

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12-01-2016, 04:25 AM	#2
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 43,860 Karma: 22666666 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	nav.xhtml is needed for EPUB 3 books. You dont want it change your book back to EPUB 2.

12-01-2016, 04:37 AM	#4
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 43,860 Karma: 22666666 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	I am certainly no fan of EPUB 3.

12-01-2016, 06:38 AM	#5
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,998 Karma: 128903378 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	ePub 3 is a mistake. What ePub 3 should have been is ePub 2+ meaning don;t change things that don't need to be changed and make the changes logical. Also, do away with audio and video. They don't need to exist in eBooks.

12-10-2016, 06:50 AM	#8
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,998 Karma: 128903378 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	If you are creating an ePub 2 eBook, you do not need a nav file. You don't even need an HTML ToC. All you need is the NCX.