M A G A Z I N E

32
October | November 2009

Making eBooks
from InDesign,
Part One
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 EBooks: Part 1
The eBook
Revolution
Is Here!
In Part 1 of this 2-part series, you’ll
learn how to create portable
EPUB files that can be read on
a computer, smartphone, or
dedicated eBook reader.
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
By GABRIEL POWELL
It’s been talked about for years: a paperless book
that can be downloaded from a Web site and read
on an electronic reading device. And now that
thousands of eBooks are being downloaded every
day, the eBook revolution is finally upon us.
eBooks aren’t meant to replace traditional paper
books, but they are a convenient alternative. After
ordering an eBook, you can instantly download it
to your computer, smartphone, or dedicated eBook
reader and start reading it. You can search through
the text for a specific word or phrase. You can adjust
the size of the text and choose a different font. You
can add digital bookmarks and non-permanent
annotations. And you can fit an entire library into a
single reading device.
With all these benefits combined with an
increased consumer appetite for eBooks, it’s no
wonder that publishers are making material available
in digital format.
When you think of an eBook, you likely imagine
a PDF file that has been designed and packaged
for commercial delivery via the Internet. The
standard PDF format is certainly widely used. But
more recently, a new XML-based eBook format has
emerged, called EPUB. It’s specifically designed for
reflowable books and other publications.
In this article, I’ll first introduce you to the EPUB
file format. Then I’ll teach you best practices to
follow when setting up an InDesign document that
will be exported as an EPUB file. Finally, I’ll walk you
« previous page
through the basic steps of exporting an EPUB file.
Check CreativePro.com in late January 2010 for my
follow-up article on editing an EPUB file after export.
What’s an EPUB File?
The EPUB (electronic publication) file format is a free,
open eBook standard that was developed by the
International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF). Unlike
PDF, which is a fixed-page format, EPUB was designed
to enable content to adapt to the capabilities of
various reading devices, whether they have wide or
narrow screens, a high or low screen resolution, broad
or limited font support, and so on.
Note: For a list of eBook reading devices that
natively support EPUB content, visit http://www.
adobe.com/products/digitaleditions/devices/.
An EPUB file is really a package that consists of
XML files, XHTML files, and optional CSS style sheets.
It can also contain fonts and images. You can open
an EPUB file with a compatible reader such as Adobe
Digital Editions, the Stanza application for the iPhone,
and the Sony Reader, or you can convert it into a file
format that can be opened on other reading devices,
such as the Amazon Kindle, various smartphones,
and Palm OS devices.
The EPUB file format is fast becoming the preferred
industry standard. Rather than create eBooks in a
variety of formats, it’s more efficient to start with
a single EPUB file that’s then converted into other
formats as necessary.
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 EBooks: Part 1
InDesign allows you to export EPUB files. So after
producing a print version of a publication, you can
convert the same content into an EPUB file (Figure 1).
Creating an EPUB File
Creating an EPUB file is really quite easy—as easy as
choosing File > Export for Digital Editions. However,
the most critical part of the process is to set up your
InDesign document in such a way that it can be easily
Figure 1: This book, Spy Killer by L. Ron Hubbard, was initially laid
out in InDesign (below) and then exported as an EPUB file. Adobe
Digital Editions allows you to read and manage EPUB files and other
digital publications (far right).
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
and accurately translated into an EPUB file. So before
you reach for the File menu, read the rest of this section!
What follows are several best practices and
important things to keep in mind while producing an
InDesign document that you plan on exporting as an
EPUB file.
Page Layout. Perhaps the most important thing to
understand is that the EPUB file you create won’t look
the same as the printed version of your book unless
your original design is quite simple. For example, if
your book contains sidebar notes and images with
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captions, the position of those elements will be
discarded in the EPUB file and all the content will be
displayed in one continuous flow—with the sidebar
notes, images, and captions inline with the main
body text. This can cause havoc for a design-heavy
magazine or textbook. But for a novel, you probably
won’t notice much of a difference between the print
version and the eBook version.
Some eBook readers implement their own
layout system. For example, Adobe Digital Editions
automatically creates a two-column layout if the text
size is decreased past a certain point. Stanza and
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 EBooks: Part 1
eReader allow you to control the size of the page
margins. So you should expect the layout of your
eBook to change depending on the reading device
it’s viewed on.
To control the exact position of all the layout
elements in an EPUB file, set up one text frame per
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
page in your InDesign document, link all the text
frames together so they are part of one continuous
story, and then flow all the content of your book
within that story (Figure 2). If your book contains
sidebar notes, callouts, figures, and so on, you’ll
probably want to format them so they appear
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differently than the main body text. For example, you
might italicize and center a note or a figure caption.
If your book contains graphics, you should anchor
them to their corresponding text so that they travel
with the text as it reflows.
For more complex layouts, I usually create two
InDesign documents, one for the printed version and
another for the EPUB version. And not all content
is a good fit for the EPUB format. If your book has a
complex design, I recommend exporting it as a PDF file
instead since this format gives you complete control
over page layout and presentation.
Master Page Items. Text and graphics that are on a
master page are not included in the exported EPUB
file. So elements such as running headers and footers
won’t show up in the EPUB file you create. This is
logical though, because EPUB files don’t define page
structure and if master items were included in an EPUB
file, they would be arbitrarily positioned throughout
the eBook, which you likely don’t want.
TIP: If for some reason you do want to include a
particular master item in an EPUB file, you can detach
it from the master page (by Command-Shift-clicking
or Ctrl-Shift-clicking on it) before exporting the EPUB
file. Keep in mind that the detached object needs to be
anchored within the main body of text if you want to
control its position within the EPUB file.
Figure 2: All the text, images, and captions in this book flow within
a single story, which is a series of linked text frames. This layout
method gives you the most control over the position of the text and
graphics in the EPUB version of your publication.
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 EBooks: Part 1
Page Breaks. Since the EPUB file format doesn’t define
page structure, all the content of an EPUB file flows
together regardless of how it’s laid out in the InDesign
document. Consequently, all the page breaks are
ignored even if you’ve used page break characters to
define where pages begin and end.
Fortunately, there is a way around this issue. If
you want a specific section of your book to start on
its own page, create a separate InDesign document
for it. So for a typical book, you would create separate
documents for the cover, title page, copyright page,
table of contents, and each chapter. Then you would
combine the documents together into an InDesign
book file (using File > New > Book) from which you
will export the EPUB file.
Page Numbers. Automatic page numbers are also
conveniently ignored in the exported EPUB file. This is
due to the fact that EPUB files are designed to adapt
to various reading devices, which makes it impossible
to predict where pages should begin and end. Some
eBook readers add page numbers for you. They’ll even
recalculate the page numbers after you’ve resized the
text or chosen a different font.
Text Formatting. Don’t get too caught up in your
document’s typography and text formatting. Most
eBook readers let the viewer customize their reading
environment. Some let you modify just a few settings,
such as the font, the font’s size, and the background
color. Others add formatting controls, such as
alignment, line spacing, paragraph spacing, and
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
Figure 3: Use the Find Format and Change Format sections to
quickly apply “real” character styles to text formatted with nested
styles. The Find What and Change To fields should be blank.
indents. The initial formatting you’ve specified in your
InDesign document can change radically, depending
on the reading device your eBook is viewed on.
For example, you may have specified left-aligned
text, but it can appear justified when viewed as
an eBook. Some formatting, such as drop caps
and paragraph rules, is lost altogether. I highly
recommend that you test your EPUB files on different
eBook readers so you know what to expect and
can fix problematic formatting before you start
distributing your eBooks.
Apply Paragraph and Character Styles. It’s vital to
consistently apply paragraph and character styles to all
the text in your document, including single words and before you export your document, you’ll need to apply
phrases that have unique formatting applied to them, actual character styles to all the text that is formatted
such as bold or italic. InDesign uses the styles you’ve with nested styles—if your document contains them.
applied as a basis for creating the CSS style sheets There are a couple ways to speed up this process.
in the exported EPUB file, and the CSS style sheets One method is to use the Find/Change dialog box
determine the formatting of the text in the EPUB file. (Edit > Find/Change). Leave both the Find What and
If you’re using InDesign CS3, local formatting is not Change To fields blank. Instead, use the Find Format
retained in the EPUB file. So if you’ve made a word section (click the More Options button if you don’t see
italic without using a character style, that word will this) to locate all the text to which a nested character
not appear italicized in the EPUB file. InDesign CS4 style is applied. For example, if the nested style applies
includes an option for basing the CSS style sheets on a character style called “Bold Intro” then use the Find
local formatting (we’ll look at that in detail later in this Format section to search for text to which the “Bold
article), but I’ve found the results to be unpredictable, Intro” character style is assigned.
so I still recommend that you apply styles to all the text Then, use the Change Format section to apply
in your document. the “real” character style to the text (Figure 3). Click
Change All to apply the character style. Technically, the
Nested Styles. Unfortunately, any formatting defined text then has both the nested style and the character
with nested styles is not retained in the EPUB file. So style applied to it, but it looks the same, so no harm is
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 EBooks: Part 1

Figure 5: Forced line breaks were inserted at the end of the first
three lines in this InDesign document (left). They are preserved in
the EPUB file, which prevents those lines of text from running all
the way to the edge of the available viewing area in Adobe Digital
Editions (below left). Not good!
done. Perform this procedure for each nested style in
your document. fonts, and when converted to the eBook reader’s font,
You can also convert nested styles to “hard- these special characters may show
formatted” character styles using InDesign’s Map Tags up as different characters or as a
to Styles feature, or with a script, as mentioned in an simple square. If your document
article on InDesignSecrets.com. uses special characters, especially
the extended characters found in
Fonts. InDesign includes an option for embedding some OpenType fonts or ornaments,
fonts into the exported EPUB file. So if your document special fractions, and “expert” font
uses a particular font, such as Myriad Pro, it can be glyphs, test their display on different
copied into the EPUB file so that the text can continue eBook readers.
to be displayed in that font. For a font to be embedded As technology evolves, more
into the EPUB file, the font must be OpenType or eBook readers should start
TrueType. However, some TrueType fonts aren’t supporting embedded fonts and full
supported, so test them to make sure they can be Unicode sets.
embedded before you use them.
Figure 4: Instead of inserting extra paragraph returns between the Replace Extra Returns with
chapter number, chapter title, and body text, I applied Space After Real Formatting. If you’ve typed
to the chapter number and chapter title to create the additional extra paragraph returns between
space around them. The Space After control is in the Control panel
or Paragraph panel when the Type tool is selected.
paragraphs, be aware that they will
Unfortunately, not all eBook readers take be ignored in the exported EPUB
advantage of the embedded fonts. Adobe Digital file. Instead, you should use InDesign’s Space Before
Editions uses the embedded fonts, but in my tests, and/or Space After controls to add space between
other eBook readers ignore the embedded fonts and paragraphs (Figure 4).
use their own default font instead. Happily, even when
the readers use another font, they still maintain the Remove Unnecessary Line Breaks. Unfortunately,
font styles. So a word or phrase formatted with Myriad forced line breaks (also known as soft returns:
Pro Bold, for example, will become Times New Roman what you get when you press Shift-Return/Enter)
Bold on an eBook reader that uses Times New Roman are preserved in the exported EPUB file. So if your
as its default font. document contains them, the text in the EPUB file will
Another important thing to be aware of is that probably look odd when it reflows to fit on different
some special characters are not available in other screen sizes (Figure 5). Therefore it’s important to

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M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
 EBooks: Part 1
remove all unnecessary forced line breaks from your
document before you export it.
To quickly find and delete forced line breaks, use
the Find/Change dialog (Edit > Find/Change). To find
the Forced Line Break character, click the @ symbol to
the right of the Find What field.
Bulleted and Numbered Lists. If your book will
contain bulleted and/or numbered lists, use InDesign’s
Figure 6: Footnotes conveniently become clickable hyperlinks in
the EPUB file, so when you click the reference number (below) you’re
taken to the footnote text (right). If you click on the number of the
footnote text, you’ll jump back to the reference number.
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
Bullets and Numbering feature to create them—
even better, apply paragraph styles formatted with
automatic bullets or numbering. This way you have
more control over how the lists are created and
formatted in the EPUB file.
Hyperlinks and Cross-References. If your
publication contains hyperlinks and/or cross-
references, don’t worry: Most of them are maintained
in the EPUB file. InDesign exports all cross-references.
Hyperlinks that jump to Web pages, email addresses,
files, and text anchors are also exported. However,
hyperlinks that jump to specific pages are discarded
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because your InDesign document pages have no real
meaning in the reader app.
That said, keep in mind that a few eBook readers
ignore hyperlinks and cross-references entirely. And
among those eBook readers that do support them, not
every destination type is supported, so once again,
test your eBooks on different reading devices before
distributing them.
Footnotes. If your publication contains footnotes, they
will be maintained in the EPUB file (Figure 6). However,
they will be converted to endnotes, which are
displayed at the end of the eBook or a section of the
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 EBooks: Part 1

Figure 8: This eBook uses both types of TOCs: the navigation map in
the panel at the left and a typical TOC at the beginning of the eBook.
Each TOC entry on the page is a hyperlink, which is indicated by the
blue underlined text.

eBook. Footnote numbering styles other than regular
numbers, such as letters or symbols, will be converted
to regular numbers in the EPUB file.
Images and Illustrations. Unless images and
illustrations are anchored within the main body of
text, they’ll be at the end of the section to which they
Figure 7: I anchored this image to a separate, center-aligned
paragraph . I added space below the image by applying Space After
to the paragraph.
belong, or at the very end of the eBook. To create
clearly defined sections within your eBook, you should
create separate InDesign documents for each section
and then combine them together into a book file.
To control where in the text flow an image will
appear, anchor it inside its own paragraph (Figure 7).
This way you can format that paragraph, which will
modify the position of the image. For example, you
may want to center-align the paragraph and use Space
After to add space below it.
For maximum productivity and design consistency,
apply a paragraph style to all the returns that your
images are anchored to. Remember, the paragraph “class” attributes in the XHTML file and the table styles
styles you apply will be used as the basis for creating will become CSS rules that you can further customize.
the CSS style sheets in the exported EPUB file. Cell styles aren’t converted into CSS rules, so you’ll
Note: Your anchored images should use the inline have to add them to the CSS file manually.
position option, which is the default position of an Note: In my testing, I’ve discovered that not
anchored object. If an anchored image uses the Above all eBook readers support formatted tables, so I
Line or Custom position options, it won’t be positioned recommend testing each eBook reader before creating
correctly in the eBook. an eBook for it.

Tables. If your publication contains tables, InDesign
will export them as XHTML tables in the EPUB file—
but all the table formatting will be lost! Hopefully
the next version of InDesign will be able to export
formatted tables. For now you’ll have to format your
tables by editing the XHTML and CSS files that are
created within the EPUB file (see Part 2 of this article
on CreativePro.com in late January 2010).
To expedite that table formatting process, you
should apply table styles and cell styles to all your
tables. The table and cell style names will become
Create a Table of Contents. Every eBook should
contain a table of contents (TOC) so that readers can
quickly and easily jump to specific sections. There are
two types of TOCs you can include in an eBook: the
typical TOC that you see at the beginning of a book,
and a TOC that functions as a navigation map in an
eBook reader (Figure 8).
To set up a TOC that will become a navigation map,
you first need to create a TOC style (Layout > Table of
Contents Styles). When you export the EPUB file, you
simply specify the TOC style you created and InDesign

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M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
 EBooks: Part 1

will generate the navigation map for you (more on that Figure 9: The Description tab of the File Information dialog box
(below). The information you enter can be displayed within most
process later in this article).
eBook readers. In Adobe Digital Editions, choose Item Info from the
If you don’t create a TOC style, InDesign can Reading menu to display information about an eBook (right).
still generate a navigation map, but the InDesign
document titles will be used as the entry names
(probably pretty ugly).
Note: Not all eBook readers display the navigation
map in the same location. Adobe Digital Editions
displays it in a panel, whereas other eBook readers
might display it in the form of a menu.
To set up a typical TOC at the beginning of your
eBook, you might think you could use the same
TOC style that will generate the navigation map.
Unfortunately, if you do, you won’t be able to add
hyperlinks to the TOC. It’s quite frustrating. So if you
want to create a hyperlinked TOC, you’ll have to
manually create the TOC.
If you’re using InDesign CS4, you can insert cross-
references instead of hyperlinks. The advantage ❱❱ Document Title: Enter the title of your book.
of using cross-references is that each TOC entry ❱❱ Author: Enter the author’s name.
is generated from its destination text, so if the ❱❱ Description: Enter a description of your book. For
destination text changes, the TOC entry can be quickly entered the data into the File Information dialog box example, this might be the same information found
updated with that change. And, as I mentioned earlier, (File > File Info). on the back of the book.
cross-references are automatically converted into Note: If you’re exporting an EPUB file from a ❱❱ Keywords: Enter one or more keywords that describe
hyperlinks upon export. book file, make sure you enter the metadata into the your book’s subject category. I suggest that you
document that is specified as the source file (the one select a subject from a controlled vocabulary, such
Add Metadata. Metadata is an integral part of every that has a little icon to the left of it in the book panel), as the list that the Book Industry Study Group (BISG)
eBook file. It can describe such things as the title, otherwise the metadata won’t get exported. provides. The BISG is the U.S. book industry’s leading
author, and publisher of an eBook. Most importantly, The File Information dialog box displays many trade association for research and supply chain
it makes your eBooks searchable. The EPUB file format different properties (Figure 9). Not all of them are standards and policies.
supports several metadata entries. InDesign can exported to the EPUB file, so I recommend filling out ❱❱ Copyright Notice: Enter your book’s copyright
automatically export some of these entries if you’ve the following fields within the Description tab: information, such as “Copyright © 2009 John Doe.”

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M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
 EBooks: Part 1
Organize Sections into a Book File. If your
publication is made up of multiple sections or
chapters, it’s important to create separate InDesign
documents for each section and then combine them
into a book file (Figure 10). When you export the EPUB
file, InDesign creates a separate XHTML stream for
each section, which improves the performance of the
eBook reader. Having a single XHTML document that
includes the entire contents of a publication requires
the entire document to be loaded into memory when
Figure 10: This book file contains all the documents that make up a
typical book. I laid out the cover, title page, copyright page, forward,
and each chapter in a separate InDesign document.
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
Figure 11A: The General options in the Digital
Editions Export Options dialog box.
the first page gets rendered. Some eBook
readers won’t even load an eBook if one
of the XHTML documents is really large.
Exporting the EPUB File
Once you’ve laid out your publication,
the next step is to export it as an EPUB
file. Choose File > Export For Digital
Editions, or if you’ve created a book
file, open it and choose Export Book For
Digital Editions from the Book panel
menu. You’ll be presented with a number
of options, which allow you to specify
how the EPUB file should be created
(Figure 11A, 11B, and 11C). Note: If you
are using InDesign CS3, choose File > Cross-media and character styles to the text in your publication,
Export > XHTML / Digital Editions to export a single select Defined Styles; otherwise select Local
document. Formatting. The third option, Style Names Only, tells
Here’s a brief explanation of each option: InDesign to include a CSS file with empty styles.
I wouldn’t select this option unless you want to
❱❱ Include Document Metadata: Select this option if define the CSS rules yourself.
you’ve added metadata to your InDesign document ❱❱ Bullets: If your book contains bulleted lists that were
(you should!) and you want to include it in the EPUB created with InDesign’s Bullets and Numbering
file. If you’re exporting from a book file, make sure feature, choose whether you want to map them to
that the document containing the metadata is set as unordered lists or convert them to text. If you want
the style source before you export the EPUB file. your bulleted lists to be formatted as a hanging
❱❱ Add Publisher Entry: This metadata field isn’t in the indent in the EPUB file (you normally would), choose
File Information dialog box, so if you want to include Map to Unordered Lists. To convert all bullets to
Publisher information, you’ll need to enter it here. actual text characters, choose Convert to Text.
❱❱ Base For CSS Styles: This option lets you determine ❱❱ Numbers: If your book has numbered lists created
which text formatting is included in the CSS file with InDesign’s Bullets and Numbering feature, you
within the EPUB file. If you’ve applied paragraph can map them to ordered lists or static ordered
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 EBooks: Part 1
lists, or you can convert them to text. If your lists
use a numbering system other than normal, Arabic
numerals (and it’s important to keep them in
that style), choose Convert to Text. The difference
between an “ordered list,” and a “static ordered list” is
subtle: An ordered list relies on the eBook reader to
assign numbers; a static ordered list includes values
for each item so they can’t easily be renumbered.
❱❱ Include Embeddable Fonts: Select this option to
include all the fonts in the EPUB file that are allowed
to be embedded. The fonts must be OpenType or
Figure 11B: The Image options in the Digital Editions Export
Options dialog box.
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
TrueType fonts. Postscript fonts won’t be embedded.
As I noted earlier, many eBook readers ignore
embedded fonts, so you might want to keep your file
size smaller and leave them out.
❱❱ View eBook After Exporting: If you have an EPUB
reader installed on your computer (such as Adobe
Digital Editions or Stanza), select this option and the
EPUB file will automatically open after it’s created.
❱❱ Image Options: The Images pane of the Digital
Editions Export Options dialog box allows you to
specify how the images in your book are exported.
Figure 11C: The Contents options in the Digital Editions Export
Options dialog box.
« previous page
I recommend that you choose Optimized from
the Copy Images menu and then choose either
Automatic, GIF, or JPEG from the Image Conversion
pop-up menu. If you choose Automatic, InDesign
will determine which format to use in each instance.
Specify the GIF and JPEG options as necessary for
your publication. Select the Formatted option to
preserve the formatting you’ve applied to your
images, such as rotation or scale, as much as possible.
❱❱ Contents Options: The Contents pane of the Digital
Editions Export Options dialog box lets you specify
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 EBooks: Part 1
which format you want to use for the EPUB content
and how you would like the table of contents to be
generated (if you’d like one to be included).
InDesign CS4 can export the EPUB content in
either the XHTML format or DTBook format. XHTML
is a markup language that functions like HTML,
but also conforms to the XML syntax. The DTBook
format is used for making content available to
physically disabled readers. The XHTML format is
compatible with all eBook readers, but the DTBook
format (which includes an XML file that is DAISY-
compliant—an important format for Braille and
voice readers) is not.
If you want InDesign to create a table of contents
that can be used as a navigation map in an eBook
reader, select Include InDesign TOC Entries and then
specify the TOC style you created. If you’re exporting
an EPUB file from a book file, you’ll definitely want
to turn on the Suppress Automatic Entries For
Documents checkbox; otherwise the InDesign
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
Click here for free InDesign
tips in your in-box
document names will appear in the TOC. Again,
make sure that the document containing the TOC
every week
style is set as the style source in the book file so that
the TOC style is available when you export the book
as an EPUB file.
Gabriel Powell is the author of Instant InDesign: Designing Templates
for Fast and Efficient Page Layout and Learn Adobe Photoshop CS4 by
Video. He is also an Adobe Certified Instructor and CTT+ Certified
Trainer. Gabriel teaches InDesign, InCopy, and other applications to
creative professionals throughout the United States and Western
Europe. He specializes in automated publishing, template building,
and streamlining publishing workflows. He is also the founder of the
Portland InDesign User Group and the founder and chapter leader
of the InDesign User Group in Amsterdam. Check out his video
podcasts at InstantInDesign.com!
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Check for “Making eBooks from InDesign,
Part Two” on CreativePro.com soon!

In the meantime, subscribe to InDesign

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M A G A Z I N E 32
October | November 2009

Making eBooks
from InDesign,
Part Two
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 EBooks: Part 2
Editing eBooks
In Part 2 of this 2-part series,
you’ll learn how to unlock the
full potential of EPUB files
by opening and editing them after
exporting them from InDesign.
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
By GABRIEL POWELL
In part 1 of this series (see CreativePro.com),
you learned how to create a file in InDesign that
successfully exports to a format eBook readers can
display. But after exporting an EPUB file from InDesign,
it’s sometimes necessary to modify it. For instance,
you might want to insert a forced page break, add
metadata to the file, or change table formatting.
In this article, I’ll walk you through the process of
opening an EPUB file, and I’ll explain how the file’s
components work. You’ll learn how to make common
edits, and I’ll direct you to some tools you can use to
validate an EPUB file after you’ve made significant
changes to it.
To edit an EPUB file, you need a basic
understanding of XHTML, XML, and CSS. If you’ve
never been exposed to these technologies, you’ll
want to learn more about them before you try your
hand at EPUB file editing.
Once you have that grounding, follow these two
guidelines when modifying an EPUB file:
1. Since it’s easier to modify an InDesign document
than an EPUB file, first try making the changes
in your original document and re-exporting it.
Then, only if necessary, modify the EPUB file. So,
for example, if you need to add a new section
to your publication, you should create a new
InDesign document, add it to your book file, and
then export a new EPUB file. But if you want to
add more metadata or customize the navigation
map that’s displayed as a menu in most eBook
« previous page
readers, you will likely need to tweak the EPUB file
itself, after exporting it from InDesign.
2. Different eBook readers display the contents of an
eBook in different ways, so after editing an EPUB
file, test it on the eBook readers you’re going to
publish it on.
Opening an EPUB File
An EPUB file is really just a ZIP-compressed package
that contains all the pieces of a digital publication.
There are two ways to open an EPUB file: extract the
contents of the file or use Oxygen XML Editor to open
the file directly without extracting it.
Extracting the Contents of an EPUB File
To extract the contents of an EPUB file, change its file
name extension from .epub to .zip, and then use a ZIP
utility to extract the contents of the ZIP archive. (On
the Mac, you must use a tool such as BetterZip or The
Unarchiver to unzip the files; the operating system’s
built-in ZIP utility won’t unzip these files.)
You can then view and edit the various
components of the EPUB file using a simple text editor,
such as Notepad on the PC or TextEdit on the Mac
(or, better, the free TextWrangler application). You
can also use a dedicated HTML editor such as Adobe
Dreamweaver or even a dedicated XML editor.
After making the necessary edits, archive all the
components as a ZIP file again. If you’re working on a
PC, you can simply copy the modified files back into
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 EBooks: Part 2

Figure 1: The Oxygen XML Editor interface provides many tools for
working with the contents of an EPUB file.

the original ZIP archive. Double-click the archive to

view its contents and then drag the modified files into
the same location within the archive to copy them over.
The last step is to change the .zip file extension back to
.epub so that it can be recognized as an EPUB file.
On the Mac, you’ll have to use the command line
in Terminal to create the archive. Terminal is in the
Utilities folder, which is in the Applications folder.
After launching Terminal, copy and paste each of the
following commands in consecutive order into the
Terminal window. Do not copy and paste the phrase
[Press Enter or Return]:
1. cd ~/desktop/"Folder Name"
[Press Enter or Return]
Note: This assumes your EPUB folder of files is on
your Desktop. Replace "Folder Name" with the actual
name of your folder. If your folder’s name contains
spaces, enclose the name within quotation marks;
otherwise they are not necessary. Another option is to
type “cd” and then drag the folder enclosing the files
into the Terminal window; when you let go, the folder
path is inserted for you.
2. zip file.epub -X0D mimetype
[Press Enter or Return]
3. zip file.epub -X9rD OEBPS/
[Press Enter or Return] doesn’t require any additional software, it is a bit of XML standards and technologies (Figure 1). This
4. zip file.epub -X9rD META-INF/ cumbersome. If you plan to work with a lot of EPUB cross-platform application makes it easy to work with
[Press Enter or Return] files, I recommend using Oxygen XML Editor instead. EPUB files. I’ve tested a number of XML editors, but
Once you’ve entered the last command, the EPUB Oxygen is the only one I’ve discovered that can work
file can be found within the original folder. It will be Opening an EPUB File with Oxygen XML Editor. with EPUB files. (Oxygen is also particularly well-suited
named “file.epub,” so you’ll want to change its name. Oxygen XML Editor is a professional XML development for editing IDML files—see “IDML: InFinite Possibilities”
While this method of opening and editing EPUB files platform that allows you to work with a wide range on page 43 for more about IDML.) It costs from $64 to

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M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
 EBooks: Part 2

$1,347, but it’s well worth it if you’ll be publishing a lot
of eBooks. (The developers of Oxygen XML Editor also
sell Oxygen XML Author, which is a simplified editor
that can also edit EPUB files and that costs less for
some license types.) To download Oxygen, visit www.
oxygenxml.com.
Using Oxygen to open an EPUB file directly is the
most straightforward method since you don’t have to
Figure 3: Viewing the contents of an EPUB file with Oxygen
XML Editor.
What’s Inside an EPUB File?
As I noted earlier, the EPUB file format is basically a
ZIP file that contains all the files necessary to create
an eBook, including a table of contents, the text, a
CSS file, and so on (Figure 4). Technically, the EPUB
mimetype

extract the contents of the file before you can make

edits. To open an EPUB file, click the Open Archive META-INF
button at the top of Oxygen’s Archive Browser panel container.xml
(Figure 2).
encryption.xml
After opening an EPUB file, its contents are
displayed in the Archive Browser, where you can
OEBPS
navigate through the package and double-click a
file to open it for editing (Figure 3). The first time you type. Click Yes and then click OK to the next dialog content.opf
open an EPUB file, a dialog may appear asking if you that appears. toc.ncx
want to map the .epub extension to a known archive After opening an EPUB file and making edits to
template.css
the various files within it, you can save the files and
Figure 2: By default, the Archive Browser panel is located at the top then open the EPUB file into Adobe Digital Editions Cover.xhtml
left side of the Oxygen interface. If you don’t see the panel, you can to view the results of your changes. Each time you Chapter1.xhtml
open it by choosing Perspective > Show View > Archive Browser.
make a change in Oxygen, you need to reopen the Chapter2.xhtml
EPUB file in Adobe Digital Editions to view the new
Chapter3.xhtml
changes. If you’re using Oxygen on a PC, you must
close the EPUB file if you have it open in Adobe
Digital Editions before you can save changes to one Images

of the files in the package. Image1.gif

When it comes time to validate your EPUB file
Image2.jpeg
(which I’ll discuss later in this article), you may run
Figure 4: These are
into a mimetype error. If you do, you may need to
Fonts the components and
extract all the files from the archive and recompress file structure of an
them. I’ve provided more details on my Web site. EPUB file.

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M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
 EBooks: Part 2
format is based on three open standards: Open
Publication Structure (OPS), Open Packaging Format
(OPF) and Open Container Format (OCF). OPS is based
on XML and describes the content of the eBook. The
OPF standard defines how the eBook components
are related. OCF is a zip-based standard that defines
how all the components of an eBook should be
encapsulated into a single file.
Here’s a detailed look at the various components
of an EPUB file and how they’re organized:
mimetype File: This plain text file, which must be
in the archive’s top level, identifies the content type
within an EPUB file.
container.xml File: This file is within the META-INF
folder. It simply points to the content.opf file, which,
in turn, references all the files that make up the
content of the EPUB file, among other things.
encryption.xml File: This file is also within the META-
INF folder and is used to encrypt the contents of an
EPUB file on an individual file level. It’s an optional
file that isn’t required by the OCF v1.0 specification,
but it’s included in EPUB files exported from InDesign
and, in this case, is only used to encrypt the fonts
used in a publication. If you don’t include the
embeddable fonts when you export an EPUB file, the
encryption.xml file won’t be created.
content.opf File: This XML-based file is the root file
of the EPUB package. It contains the publication’s
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
Figure 5: An example OPF file as it is viewed in the Oxygen XML
Editor. The text is color coded to make it easier to distinguish
between the markup and the data.
metadata, identifies all of its components, describes
the reading order for the contents of the eBook, and
provides the fallback information for files that are not
core content types. The file’s structure and content is
based on the OPF standard.
You’ll find three required elements in the
content.opf file: <metadata>, <manifest>, and
<spine> (Figure 5):
❱❱ The <metadata> element is used to provide
information about the publication as a whole. If
you choose to include the document metadata
when you export an EPUB file from InDesign, most
of the information in the <metadata> element
will be filled out already. However, InDesign
doesn’t fill out all the available elements within
the <metadata> element, so you might want to fill
them out yourself after exporting the initial EPUB
file. See “Adding Additional Metadata” later in this
article for instructions.
❱❱ The <manifest> element references the files that
are part of the publication, including the NCX file,
all of the XHTML content files, the CSS style sheet,
and any embedded image files. The actual order
of the <item> elements in the <manifest> is not
significant.
❱❱ The <spine> element is used to determine the
linear reading order of the publication. The order
of the <itemref> elements within the <spine>
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<?xml version="1.0"?>
<package xmlns="http://www.idpf.org/2007/opf" xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
unique-identifier="bookid" version="2.0">
<metadata>
<meta name="generator" content="Adobe InDesign"/>
<dc:title>Spy Killer</dc:title>
<dc:creator>L. Ron Hubbard</dc:creator>
<dc:subject>Fiction</dc:subject>
<dc:subject>Thrillers</dc:subject>
<dc:description>This classic 1936 Hubbard tale takes listeners to pre-Communist China where
a man named Kurt Reid has fled murder charges only to find himself thrust into the
exotic world of foreign espionage.</dc:description>
<dc:publisher>Galaxy Press, LLC</dc:publisher>
<dc:date/>
<dc:source/>
<dc:relation/>
<dc:coverage/>
<dc:rights>© 2008 Galaxy Press LLC. All Rights Reserved.</dc:rights>
<dc:identifier id="bookid">urn:uuid:31bd0356-5605-1ce4-1acc-48b33799c145</dc:identifier>
<dc:language>en</dc:language>
</metadata>
<manifest>
<item id="ncx" href="toc.ncx" media-type="application/x-dtbncx+xml"/>
<item id="css" href="template.css" media-type="text/css"/>
<item id="cover" href="Cover.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="titlepage" href="TitlePage.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="copyright" href="Copyright.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="toc" href="TOC.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="foreword" href="Foreword.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="chapter01" href="Chapter01.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="chapter02" href="Chapter02.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="chapter03" href="Chapter03.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="chapter04" href="Chapter04.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="chapter05" href="Chapter05.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="backmatter" href="BackMatter.xhtml" media-type="application/xhtml+xml"/>
<item id="f001-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f001_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f003-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f003_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f006-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f006_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0100-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0100_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0101-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0101_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0103-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0103_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0104-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0104_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0105-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0105_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0106-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0106_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0109-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0109_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="f0110-01-fmt-jpeg" href="images/f0110_01_fmt.jpeg" media-type="image/jpeg"/>
<item id="spybook-800px-fmt-jpeg" href="images/SpyBook_800px_fmt.jpeg"
media-type="image/jpeg"/>
</manifest>
<spine toc="ncx">
<itemref idref="cover"/>
<itemref idref="titlepage"/>
<itemref idref="copyright"/>
<itemref idref="toc"/>
<itemref idref="foreword"/>
<itemref idref="chapter01"/>
<itemref idref="chapter02"/>
<itemref idref="chapter03"/>
<itemref idref="chapter04"/>
<itemref idref="chapter05"/>
<itemref idref="backmatter"/>
</spine>
</package>
element determines that reading order. When you
export an EPUB file from an InDesign book file, the
order of the documents in the book file determines
the reading order of the EPUB file.
toc.ncx File: This XML-based file gives eBook readers
detailed navigation information. The file’s structure
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 EBooks: Part 2

and content is based on the OPF standard. Don’t eBook. In Adobe Digital Editions, the navigation map
Additional EPUB Documentation
confuse its purpose with the purpose of the <spine> is displayed in the panel at the left of the application While the EPUB format is relatively simple on the
element in the OPF file. Where the <spine> element window (Figure 6). Other eBook readers display the surface, it has a huge number of permutations. These
determines the reading order of the eBook, the navigation map in a different location. links will help you find your way as you start creating
NCX file serves as a navigation map that is generally When you export an EPUB file from InDesign, and editing EPUB files (and the files within them):
displayed as a menu in an eBook reader, enabling you the NCX file is generated in one of two ways. If you
• International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF)
to jump directly to any of the major sections in the specify a TOC style when you export the file, the NCX homepage: www.idpf.org
• Open Publication Structure: www.idpf.org/2007/
ops/OPS_2.0_final_spec.html
Figure 6: A typical navigation map as seen in Adobe Digital Editions (below left). The NCX file
(below right) determines the order and names of the items in the navigation map. It also provides
• Open Packaging Format: www.idpf.org/2007/opf/
links to the XHTML documents that are listed (not all records are visible in this example). OPF_2.0_final_spec.html
• Open Container Format: www.idpf.org/ocf/ocf1.0/
download/ocf10.htm
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<!DOCTYPE ncx PUBLIC "-//NISO//DTD ncx 2005-1//EN" "http://www.daisy.org/z3986/2005/
ncx-2005-1.dtd">
• EPUB Best Practices Guide (Requires Adobe
<ncx xmlns="http://www.daisy.org/z3986/2005/ncx/" version="2005-1">
<head> Digital Editions): www.adobe.com/devnet/
<meta name="dtb:uid" content="31bd0356-5605-1ce4-1acc-48b33799c145"/>
<meta name="dtb:depth" content="4"/> digitalpublishing/epubs/EPUBBestPractices-1_0_3.
<meta name="dtb:totalPageCount" content="0"/>
<meta name="dtb:maxPageNumber" content="0"/>
</head>
epub
<docTitle>
<text>Spy Killer</text>
• EPUB Data Sheet: www.adobe.com/devnet/
</docTitle>
<navMap> digitalpublishing/pdfs/EPUB_datasheet.pdf
<navPoint id="navpoint" playOrder="1">
<navLabel> • Adobe Digital Publishing Technology Center: www.
<text>Contents</text>
</navLabel>
<content src="TOC.xhtml#toc-anchor"/>
adobe.com/devnet/digitalpublishing/
</navPoint>
<navPoint id="navpoint-1" playOrder="2">
• Adobe Digital Editions Product Information: www.
<navLabel>
<text>Foreword</text> adobe.com/products/digitaleditions/
</navLabel>
<content src="Foreword.xhtml#toc-anchor"/> • Adobe Digital Editions Blog: http://blogs.adobe.
</navPoint>
<navPoint id="navpoint-2" playOrder="3">
<navLabel>
com/digitaleditions/
<text>Spy Killer</text>
</navLabel>
<content src="StoryTitle.xhtml#toc-anchor"/>
<navPoint id="navpoint-3" playOrder="4">
<navLabel>
<text>Chapter One</text>
</navLabel> file is based on the parameters of the TOC style. If
<content src="Chapter01.xhtml#toc-anchor"/>
</navPoint>
<navPoint id="navpoint-4" playOrder="5">
you don’t specify a TOC style, the NCX file is based on
<navLabel>
<text>Chapter Two </text>
</navLabel>
the document titles and the order of the documents
<content src="Chapter02.xhtml#toc-anchor"/>
</navPoint> in the InDesign book file, if you’re exporting from
<navPoint id="navpoint-5" playOrder="6">
<navLabel>
<text>Chapter Three</text>
one. After exporting an EPUB file, you might want to
</navLabel>
<content src="Chapter03.xhtml#toc-anchor"/>
</navPoint>
customize the names that appear in the navigation
...
map. See “Customizing the Navigation Map” later in
</navMap>
</ncx> this article for how to do this.

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M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
 EBooks: Part 2

@font-face { Figure 7: A typical CSS file

font-family: Times;
font-style: normal; generated by InDesign.
font-weight: normal;
src:url(Fonts/Times.dfont);
}
template.css: This file contains the CSS style sheets, @font-face {
font-family: Times;
Common EPUB Edits
which are used to format the content of the EPUB file font-style: normal;
font-weight: bold; There are several reasons to edit an EPUB file. Most
src:url(Fonts/Times.dfont);
(Figure 7). Since it’s an external style sheet, when you }
@font-face {
commonly, you’ll edit an EPUB file to add metadata
change it, the formatting for the entire publication font-family: Times;
font-style: italic; to it, customize the navigation map, or insert forced
font-weight: normal;
updates. As I noted in Part 1 of this article series, src:url(Fonts/Times.dfont);
} page breaks.
@font-face {
InDesign bases the CSS style sheet names on the font-family: Times;
font-style: italic;
paragraph and character styles in your document. font-weight: bold;
src:url(Fonts/Times.dfont); Adding Additional Metadata. Metadata is used to
}
The OPS specification defines a style language p.section-title {
font-family: "Times";
describe such things as the title, author, and publisher
line-height: 1.20em;
based on CSS 2, but not all CSS 2 properties are font-size: 1.33em;
margin-bottom: 1.88em;
of an eBook. Most importantly, it makes your eBooks
included. In fact, a few properties and values have margin-top: 0.75em;
text-indent: 0.00em; searchable, so the more metadata your eBooks
margin-right: 0.00em;
been added to support page layout, headers, and margin-left: 0.00em;
text-align: center;
contain, the better. InDesign can export most of the
footers. Together, these differences make up the OPS font-weight: bold;
font-style: normal; metadata for you, but not all of the possible metadata
color: rgb(0,0,0);
CSS 2.0 required subset. A comprehensive list of all }
p.body { elements are available in InDesign’s File Info dialog
font-family: "Times";
the supported CSS properties goes beyond the scope line-height: 1.20em;
font-size: 1.00em;
box, so you might want to open your EPUB file and fill
of this article. For a detailed list, see Section 3.0 of the margin-bottom: 0.00em;
margin-top: 0.00em; out the rest of the metadata.
text-indent: 1.00em;
OPS specification on the IDPF Web site. margin-right: 0.00em;
margin-left: 0.00em;
To add metadata to an EPUB file, open it and then
text-align: justify;
font-weight: normal;
font-style: normal;
open the content.opf file in a text editor or (preferably)
XHTML Files: These files contain the actual content }
color: rgb(0,0,0);
Oxygen XML editor. The 13 elements of metadata
span.bold {
of your EPUB file. If you export a single InDesign font-family: "Times";
font-weight: bold;
you can edit are at the top of the file within the
document as an EPUB file, only one XHTML file is }
font-style: normal;
<metadata> element (Figure 8).
span.italic {
generated. When you export an InDesign book file, font-family: "Times";
font-weight: normal;
font-style: italic;
an XHTML file is generated for each document in the }
Figure 8: The <metadata> element at the top of the content.opf file.
book file. When you export an EPUB file using the
DTBook format option, XML files are generated instead original images when you export the EPUB file). If your <metadata>
<meta name="generator" content="Adobe InDesign"/>
of XHTML files. publication doesn’t contain images, the Images folder <dc:title>Spy Killer</dc:title>
<dc:creator>L. Ron Hubbard</dc:creator>
<dc:subject>Fiction</dc:subject>
won’t be created in the EPUB package. <dc:subject>Thrillers</dc:subject>
<dc:description>This classic 1936 Hubbard tale takes listeners to pre-Communist China where
Images Folder: If your publication contains images, a man named Kurt Reid has fled murder charges only to find himself thrust into the
exotic world of foreign espionage.</dc:description>
<dc:publisher>Galaxy Press, LLC</dc:publisher>
they’re copied to this folder according to the image Fonts Folder: This folder is created in the EPUB <dc:date/>
<dc:source/>
<dc:relation/>
options you specify when you export the EPUB file. package if you choose to include the embeddable <dc:coverage/>
<dc:rights>© 2008 Galaxy Press LLC. All Rights Reserved.</dc:rights>
The OPS specification supports the GIF, JPEG, PNG, fonts when you export the EPUB file. All of the <dc:identifier id="bookid">urn:uuid:31bd0356-5605-1ce4-1acc-48b33799c145</dc:identifier>
<dc:language>en</dc:language>
</metadata>
and SVG file types; however, InDesign exports only supported OpenType and TrueType fonts will be
GIF or JPEG files (unless you choose to copy the copied into the folder.

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M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
 EBooks: Part 2
If an element contains data, it will have both a start
tag and an end tag; otherwise it will show up as an
empty closed element, such as <dc:date/>. To fill out
an empty element, simply remove the slash from the
tag, insert your data after the start tag, and then insert
the appropriate end tag to complete the element.
Tip: Don’t change the value of the <dc:identifer>
element. It contains the unique document ID, which is
needed for the embedded fonts to function properly.
Note that the first time you open the content.opf
file into Oxygen, you will be asked to associate the file
with a known file type. Choose XML Document and
make sure to select the Associate File Type With Editor
option before clicking OK.
Customizing the Navigation Map. With some
publications, you might want to customize the
navigation map that’s displayed as a menu in many
eBook readers. For instance, if you’ve used a TOC
style in InDesign to generate the navigation map,
the main section headings in your publication will be
the same names that appear in the navigation map.
Let’s say that one section heading is “The Stories from
the Golden Age,” but you want it to appear as “List of
Stories” in the navigation map. You’ll have to edit the
name in the EPUB file to fix it.
To customize the navigation map, open the EPUB
file and then open the toc.ncx file. Each item in the
navigation map is contained within a <navPoint>
element (Figure 9). Each <navPoint> element contains
a <navLabel> and a <content> element. Within the
<navLabel> element is a <text> element, which
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
Figure 9: A <navPoint> element within the toc.ncx file.
<navPoint id="navpoint-14" playOrder="15">
<navLabel>
<text>The Stories from the Golden Age</text>
</navLabel>
<content src="BackMatter.xhtml#toc-anchor"/>
</navPoint>
contains the text that is displayed in the navigation
map. Simply modify this text to edit the name.
Note that the first time you open the toc.ncx file
into Oxygen, you will be asked to associate the file
with a known file type. Choose XML Document and
make sure to select the Associate File Type With Editor
option before clicking OK.
Inserting Page Breaks. The EPUB file format was
designed to let content adapt to the characteristics
of various reading devices. Consequently, it doesn’t
define page structure: All the content of an EPUB file
flows together regardless of how it’s laid out in your
InDesign document. As I’ve said before, if you want
a section of your publication to start on a new page,
the best practice is to put it in a separate InDesign
document and then combine it in an InDesign book
file, from which you export the EPUB file.
But there is another way to force page breaks:
use the CSS page-break-before or page-break-after
property. For example, to insert a page break before
each instance of a heading that has the paragraph
style “heading” applied to it, open the template.css file
inside the EPUB file. Then locate the “heading” selector
and add the page-break-before property to it. The
value of the property should be “always” (Figure 10).
« previous page
Figure 10: I added the page-break-before property to the heading
selector and set its value to “always” so a page break will occur
before each heading in the publication.
p.heading {
page-break-before: always;
font-family: "Times";
line-height: 1.20em;
font-size: 1.50em;
margin-bottom: 0.00em;
margin-top: 0.00em;
text-indent: 0.00em;
margin-right: 0.00em;
margin-left: 0.00em;
text-align: left;
font-weight: normal;
font-style: normal;
color: rgb(0,0,0);
}
Alternatively, if you had a paragraph style that
you didn’t want to show up at the top of a page (for
example, the first paragraph after a heading), you
could use the page-break-before property and use the
value “avoid” instead.
While these work in Adobe Digital Editions, there
are many other eBook readers that disregard page
breaks defined by the CSS file. Test your EPUB file on a
particular reading device before you publish to it to be
sure that the page breaks are supported.
Tools for Validating EPUB Files
After making significant changes to an EPUB file, it’s
a good idea to validate it to make sure it’s error free
and fully compliant with IDPF specifications. There are
several validation tools that are currently available.
❱❱ EpubCheck is a Java-based tool that checks
the OCF container structure, OPF and OPS mark-up,
and internal reference consistency. It can detect
many types of errors. To download this tool, visit
http://code.google.com/p/epubcheck/.
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 EBooks: Part 2
❱❱ The problem with EpubCheck is that you have to
run it from a command line (if you don’t know what
that means, it’s not for you). Fortunately, the folks
at threepress.org (associated with O’Reilly) have
bundled EpubCheck into a free Web site tool at www.
threepress.org/document/epub-validate/. Once you
upload your EPUB file, the site checks the file and
provides you feedback.
Note: If you chose to include the embeddable
fonts when you export your EPUB file from InDesign,
EpubCheck won’t validate it. After checking the
document, a number of errors concerning the
“encryption.xml” file are displayed. These errors are
due to the fact that InDesign is using a non-standard
approach to encryption in order to protect the fonts.
eBook readers that natively support the EPUB format
often ignore these errors, but if you want to be 100%
sure that your eBook can be properly read on all
reading devices, don’t include the embeddable fonts
when you export the EPUB file.
❱❱ EpubPreflight is a companion to EpubCheck
that checks for empty content files, content
files that are over 300KB, empty image files, and
image files that are over 10MB. To download this
command-line tool, visit http://blogs.adobe.com/
digitaleditions/2008/11/epubpreflight_version_010_
was_1.html.
EPUB and Digital Rights Management
For commercial publishers, retailers, and distributors
that wish to digitally protect EPUB eBooks for Adobe
Digital Editions software and supported mobile
M A G A Z I N E 32 EXCERPT from October | November 2009
Click here for free InDesign
tips in your in-box
devices, including the Sony Reader Digital Book (but
not the Kindle), Adobe offers Content Server 4. For
every week
more information, visit the product page www.adobe.
com/products/contentserver/.
Its Time Has Come
Many designers love the tactile feel that can only
come with works printed on paper. But eBooks are
a burgeoning market segment that savvy designers
will add to their skill lists.
With this two-part article under your belt and the
help of the additional resources I’ve mentioned, you
too can add “e” to your book-design portfolio.
Gabriel Powell is the author of Instant InDesign: Designing Templates
for Fast and Efficient Page Layout and Learn Adobe Photoshop CS4 by
Video. He is also an Adobe Certified Instructor and CTT+ Certified
Trainer. Gabriel teaches InDesign, InCopy, and other applications to
creative professionals throughout the United States and Western
Europe. He specializes in automated publishing, template building,
and streamlining publishing workflows. He is also the founder of the
Portland InDesign User Group and the founder and chapter leader
of the InDesign User Group in Amsterdam. Check out his video
podcasts at InstantInDesign.com!
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Did you miss Part One of “Making
eBooks from InDesign”? It’s at www.
creativepro.com/article/making-eb-
ooks-indesign-part-1

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