05-09-2018, 06:48 AM | #1 | |
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Start mobi on Chapter One page
Hi happy helpers!
I've been trying to have a mobi file open up and start on a specific page "Chapter One" of a book, but when I put in the Text guide code on the epub and convert it, the mobi file opens up in the middle of the copyright page. This is the code I used on the epub. Quote:
The odd thing is that when I open the mobi file on Kindle on my iPhone and my laptop, it starts off on Chapter One, but when I open it up on my physical Kindle, it starts off in the middle of the copyright page. At first, I thought it could be because my kindle is old, but I had two other people try it out on their own physical kindles (Kindle Paperwhite), and it's still the same issue. Does anyone know the reasons and a solution to this? I would really love the help! |
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05-09-2018, 09:29 AM | #2 |
Grand Sorcerer
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I have some comments that apply if you plan to publish this book on Amazon. (If you are not intending to do that then you can disregard the following.)
I strongly suggest that you use Kindle Previewer to convert your book instead of calibre. MOBI files created using calibre are sometimes rejected by Amazon and do not include the information needed to allow the Enhanced Typesetting features of the Kindle platform to be enabled for your book. There isn't much point in worrying about the start position for your book. Amazon will override whatever you set as part of the publishing process anyway. |
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05-09-2018, 10:03 AM | #3 | |
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Quote:
Hey Jhowel! Thanks for replying to this. We do plan on publishing it on Amazon and we're looking into getting it all perfect before we do so. I know that Amazon overrides the formatting when we upload it though. It's sad. I just wish they would stick to epubs. But do you by any chance know the reasons why the Beginning page issue happens on just the physical kindle? I tried converting via Kindle Previewer but it's still the same and it makes the mobi file twice as huge (from 1.2MB (calibri converted mobi) to 6.6MB (Kindle Previewer mobi)) |
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05-09-2018, 11:28 AM | #4 | ||
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Quote:
Quote:
The first is needed when publishing the book so that Amazon can derive KFX format for Enhanced Typesetting and the other two are needed for older and newer Kindle devices respectively. When someone purchases the book only one of these formats will be delivered to them. |
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05-09-2018, 01:31 PM | #5 | |
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Quote:
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05-09-2018, 01:54 PM | #6 |
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There is a 15 cent per MB delivery fee in the US for most books. That is based on the file size delivered to customers, not the total file size that has all of the formats included. During the publishing process Amazon will tell you the delivery file size.
Last edited by jhowell; 05-09-2018 at 01:56 PM. |
05-10-2018, 05:58 AM | #7 |
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Alright. Thanks so much for all the info.
This is for a client and they're insisting on starting off the book on Chapter 1. I've resulted in the consensus that its InDesign that's causing the problems. So I'm trying out Vellum to see if it works. Will keep you updated! |
05-11-2018, 09:11 PM | #8 | |
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Quote:
To fix it, take your ePUB, and unpack it. Reformat it into a source HTML zip for a MOBI. Feed that to KDP, and the SRL will be where it should be, at Ch. 1. OR, for that matter, build your MOBI properly, using an Amazon tool, (KG/KP) and just upload the thing. When the book is on sale, the SRL will be set to Chapter One. The weirdo, middle-of-the-second-screen-of-the-TOC issue will be fixed in the PW (Publishing Workflow). Honestly, I cannot BELIEVE that you'd redo the book in Vellum, of all things (want horror? Put the resulting Drop-cap special on a Paperwhite, and switch the Publisher fonts OFF), just over this. If you're talking about a client, that means you're a professional--so, you should know that Vellum is hardly the answer. Vellum is fine, for a DIY, easy, mindless, drag-drop tool for self-pubs, but it's not a commercial tool. As I said--view the resulting mobi in the PPW, and lose the Publisher fonts, to see what you are getting there. Hitch |
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05-28-2018, 10:12 AM | #9 |
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Ahahahahhahahah! Thanks so much for your honest replies, you guys!
Just a quick update, I explained it to the client that we can only do so much with a mobi file since amazon always does what it does for kindle files. Thanks again for the honest input! I've learned so much already! |
05-29-2018, 10:02 AM | #10 | |
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I didn't know about Enhanced Typesetting issue. Thanks for that! @OP: I no longer use a "text" semantic in my epubs, because if I do nothing, I find that the Look Inside sample usually opens at the beginning of the book, which is the way I intend them to be viewed by the shopper. If I put the "text" at page one, chapter one, I find that that's where the book will usually open. But it will open there anyhow in the purchased book, because that's where Amazon sets the SRL. (I say "usually" because I have never found anything to work 100 percent when it comes to Amazon and the SRL.) |
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05-29-2018, 02:00 PM | #11 |
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06-01-2018, 07:50 AM | #12 | |
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06-02-2018, 11:37 AM | #13 |
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This became an issue when Amazon introduced Kindle Unlimited subscription service. Paying $2 a download quickly turned KU into a major loss center, so Amazon decided to pay by the page, but not for the title page, TOC, copyright page, dedication, epigram or any of that other window dressing that traditionally precedes page one, chapter one. In some books that might add up to as much as a nickel.
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