Specifying EPUB Options

If you are sending output to EPUB, you can access EPUB options in the Target Editor. These options let you provide metadata, select a cover image, validate output, generate MOBI output, enable MathML to PNG conversion, and enable dynamic content.

How to Specify EPUB Options

1. Open a target that is using the EPUB format. If necessary, you can change the output type for a target. See Changing the Output Type for a Target.
2. Select the EPUB Options tab.

3. Complete the options as necessary. If you want to insert a variable in a field, you can click . The variable will appear as syntax in the field, but in the output the variable definition will be shown.

   Metadata

   Select the MetaData tab and complete any of the following. The information becomes embedded in the final output.

   • Title The document title you provide is usually displayed at the top of the EPUB reader. If you do not provide a title, the target name is automatically used instead.
   • Author
   • Publisher(s)
   • Tag This is a custom field that you can use for your own purposes.
   • Rights
   • Description
   • ISBN
   • Publish Date
   • Identifier

   For more information about EPUB metadata and the fields supported in Flare (except "Tag"), open this link:

   Copy

   http://idpf.org/epub/20/spec/OPF_2.0.1_draft.htm#Section2.2

   Cover Image

   Select the Cover Page tab and click to find and select an image file. This is used as the cover for your ebook.

   

   Validate EPUB3 Output

   Use these fields to validate EPUB output so that it will be acceptable to most online stores, such as amazon.com.

   1. Select Enable Epub 3 validation.
   2. Click the Download EpubCheck link. A website opens.

   3. Click the link you want to download. Newer versions are typically at the top. Select the most recent link for binaries and follow the steps online to download it to your computer.

      

   4. The file that you downloaded is a ZIP file, so you need to extract its contents.
   5. Return to the EPUB Options tab in Flare.
   6. Next to the EpubCheck field, click .
   7. Navigate to the extracted folder on your computer.

   8. In the Open dialog, double-click the file with the .jar extension (e.g., epubcheck-3.0.jar).

      

   9. Click to save your work.

   When you are finished setting all EPUB options, you can generate the EPUB target. If validation fails, you should see related errors during the compilation process. You can then fix the issues and try to build again.

   Generate MOBI Output

   MOBI is the standard format used for the Amazon Kindle. You can use these fields settings to generate EPUB output that uses MOBI content.

   1. Select Generate MOBI file.
   2. Click the Download KindleGen link. A website opens.
   3. Click the link you want and follow the steps online to download it to your computer.
   4. The file that you downloaded is a ZIP file, so you need to extract its contents.
   5. Return to the EPUB Options tab in Flare.
   6. Next to the KindleGen Path field, click .
   7. Navigate to the extracted folder on your computer.

   8. In the Open dialog, double-click the file with the kindlegen.exe file.

      

   9. Click to save your work.

   When you are finished setting all EPUB options, you can generate the EPUB target. If you open the output folder, you will see that Flare has created a MOBI file in addition to an EPUB file. The MOBI file is all you need to view the ebook on a Kindle. The EPUB file can be used to view the ebook on other readers.

   

   Enable MathMLto PNG Conversion

   If you use the Equation Editor to insert equations, you are in essence creating MathML markup (see Equations). This type of content is supported for EPUB output.

   If you need to produce output that can be displayed on older readers, you can select this option. All of your MathML content will be converted to PNG image files.

   Embed Fonts

   Flare includes all of your used fonts in the final EPUB output file. Therefore, if someone has a reader that does not have your fonts installed, that person will still be able to see your content as you designed it.

   Embedding fonts may not be supported by all e-readers. Additionally, you may choose not to embed fonts if you have a very large project, because this option can slow down your compile time.

   Enable Dynamic Content

   If you use dynamic content—togglers, popups, drop-downs, expanding text, slideshows, or help controls—in your output, you may want to enable dynamic content for your EPUB target so your users can take advantage of these features.

   Dynamic content makes your content look more interesting, but it is not supported on all e-readers. You may want to create one version of your EPUB content with dynamic content enabled, and another version with dynamic content disabled to accommodate users with different e-readers.

   Example You have an EPUB output that uses a lot of dynamic content. You decide to create two versions of the content so readers can view it no matter what kind of e-reader they are using.

   After you create your content, you build one version of the EPUB output with the dynamic content disabled. This version is for users who have older e-readers or are using e-readers that do not support all dynamic content. Because they have older e-readers, they might not be able to see all of your content, like slide shows. Other content might be displayed as footnotes or as expanded text.

   To create this output, you open the Target Editor, select the EPUB Options tab, and make sure the Enable Dynamic Content check box is deselected. Then you build the output.

   

   When you view the output, it looks like this:

   

   Next, you create a version of the EPUB content with the dynamic content enabled. This version is for users with newer e-readers that fully support EPUB 3, so they can take advantage of all of the features of the output, like drop-downs and slideshows.

   To create this output, you open the Target Editor, select the EPUB Options tab, and make sure the Enable Dynamic Content check box is selected. Then you build the output.

   

   When you view the output, it looks like this:

   

   You can now provide both outputs to your users, and they can pick the best one for their needs.

4. Click to save your work.