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• • December 20, 2015 at 9:31 pm #80332
    Clark Kenyon

    Participant

    Is there a way yet to export a fixed layout ePub to the KF8 format and not have it look like a mess? Using the Kindle Previewer I can export a reflowable ePub and the result looks ok. But when I try to do the same thing with a fixed layout ePub the text gets all mashed together.

  • December 20, 2015 at 9:49 pm #80334
    Aaron Troia

    Participant

    I think the only way to do that would be to have a plugin that would export to the Kindle FXL spec, which is different than the EPUB FXL spec. I don’t think there’s really an easy way to go about it other than by hand.

  • December 21, 2015 at 5:45 am #80346
    Ken Jones

    Member

    Please try out the free trial version of CircularFLO from http://www.circularflo.com

    CircularFLO is our commercial software to easily create fixed layout KF8 and EPUB3 from InDesign files or print PDFs. Used by many top publishers and self publishers alike.

    Thanks
    Ken Jones
    Circular Software

  • December 21, 2015 at 9:34 am #80352
    Clark Kenyon

    Participant

    Is that CircularFLO Mac only?

  • December 21, 2015 at 11:07 am #80357
    Gustavo Martinez

    Member

    Kindle has its own Fixed Layout generator from a PDF: https://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html?docId=1002998671. You may want to check it out.

  • December 21, 2015 at 4:02 pm #80365
    Clark Kenyon

    Participant

    The Kindle Textbook Creator looks like it might work for this, just export the text as spreads to PDF then load the PDF into it. Only thing is I can’t preview it until I upload it to KDP. Thanks for the link.
    Clark

  • December 30, 2015 at 12:10 pm #80488
    Richard Hurley

    Participant

    Thanks guy and Clarkkenyon for the suggestion above. Sounds like Kindle Textbook Creator is exactly what I need for a project I am working on. Before I experiment with it, though, I’d like to get some advice on the Kindle platform generally. Here’s the deal:

    I have written an iPad textbook and laid it out in InDesign. The book’s dimensions are 8.5″ x 11″ (for output to PDF and subsequent printing at CreateSpace).

    For my own edification, I recently spent some time with AMC’s and DB’s EPUB courses at Lynda.com. As an experiment, I built another version of my book in InDesign for output to fixed-layout EPUB 3.0. The aspect ratio and resolution were selected for the iPad, and it displays beautifully in iBooks.

    I’d like to now generate a fixed-layout KF8 version for sale on Amazon, but I am not familiar with the current crop of Kindle devices. (My own Kindle is a black-and-white antique.) I would like to use the Kindle’s screen real estate as effectively as possible and understand that I will have to lay out my book again to do so. I am getting mixed messages, however, as to what the best aspect ratio and pixel resolution might be. Can anyone help me out here?

    Related question: I assume above that the best workflow to generate a fixed-layout KF8 would be to shift the document spec.s of a copy of one of my two existing books in InDesign, massage the material for the new aspect ratio, export to PDF, and then use Kindle Textbook Creator to output to a KF8-legal file. If there is a better way to go about this, I’d love to hear it now, before I launch.

    I’m mainly an AfterEffects kind of guy, but I’m coming to love InDesign and am very excited about its potential in e-publishing. I have to admit, however, that this Kindle conversion is about to make my head explode. Any advice gratefully appreciated!

    Richard Hurley
    Grass Valley Multimedia

  • January 3, 2016 at 9:07 am #80506
    Anne-Marie Concepcion

    Member

    You will want to watch Kevin Callahan’s new course on lynda.com, Creating Fixed Layout Ebooks for Kindle: https://www.lynda.com/InDesign-tutorials/Creating-Fixed-Layout-eBooks-Kindle/433941-2.html. Kevin is a frequent speaker at our conferences (on ebook dev) and is the editor for epubsecrets.com, our sister site.

    Yes, CircularFLO is Mac-only. (But works GREAT.)

    AM

    • January 7, 2016 at 5:02 pm #80620
      Richard Hurley

      Participant

      Thanks, Anne-Marie. I’ll watch Kevin’s course. And thanks for yours and David’s courses at Lynda.com. I’ve taught multimedia programming, 3D design, Mac OS, whatever, for 15 years off and on, and I know good courses when I see ’em. You two know the material and know how to teach. It’s a pleasure to get baptized into InDesign at your hands.

      Richard Hurley

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