EBook Production QA

Checklist

You can't get away with not scrolling through the whole thing. - [ | @Noteon]

Front Matter

1. Correct cover
2. If back cover included, check that barcode and print ISBN removed
3. quotes, other books page, and other fm elements moved to back of ePub if desired
4. ePub ISBN added to copyright page
5. Printer’s key deleted from copyright page
6. TOC linked correctly
7. (optional for Non-Kindles): Have you removed TOC html page?
8. TOC hierarchical view correct, fonts correct (check for space between ligatures)
9. Unicode displaying properly
10. Link author name to about author section?

Chapters

1. Part titles correct and aligned properly
2. Long Titles bleed onto next line smoothly
3. Chapter titles correct and aligned properly
4. Hyphens do not appear on titles
5. Epigraphs aligned properly; soft line returns removed; poetic indents accurate
6. Heads present and correct
7. Cross reference links in text active and accurate
8. Notes in text linked to Notes section and accurate
9. URL links in text active and accurate
10. Make sure dingbats/line spaces are applied consistently in text, always a dingbat or always just a line space

Back Matter

1. Notes linked properly
2. Bibliography formatted properly with hanging indents. Any links to URLs live
3. Index linked properly. Layout appropriate
4. About the Author has live links to author site; author image appears appropriately

Images and Cover Art

1. Captions -- if they appear -- are properly aligned and appear on the same page as the image
2. Images should look ok on both e-ink sized devices and tablet devices.

Fonts and User Defaults

1. Color scheme is viewed in greyscale device and full color device.
2. User option to increase/decrease font size does not ruin basic page design.
3. (Optional)Front matter gives short note about preferred settings for viewing the ebook in a reader/device. (Especially applicable to Nook publisher defaults).

Metadata

The following elements should be included in the metadata of all ePUB files.

<dc:title> </dc:title>
<dc:title id="Subtitle"> </dc:title>
<dc:language> </dc:language>
<dc:identifier id="PrimaryID" opf:scheme="ISBN"></dc:identifier>
<dc:creator opf:role="aut" opf:file-as="Lastname, Firstname"></dc:creator>
<dc:creator opf:role="edt" opf:file-as="Lastname, Firstname "></dc:creator>
<dc:creator opf:role="ill" opf:file-as="Lastname, Firstname "></dc:creator>
<dc:description></dc:description>
<dc:subject>BISAC Code 1</dc:subject>
<dc:subject>BISAC Code 2</dc:subject>
<dc:subject>BISAC Code 3</dc:subject>
<dc:subject>BISAC Description 1</dc:subject>
<dc:subject>BISAC Description 2</dc:subject>
<dc:subject>BISAC Description 3</dc:subject>
<dc:publisher>Publisher Name</dc:publisher>
<dc:date opf:event="publication">2011-04-15</dc:date>
<dc:source>urn:isbn:978XXXXXXXXXX</dc:source>
<dc:rights>Copyright © 2011 by Author</dc:rights>
<meta name="keyword" content="keyword1"/>
<meta name="keyword" content="keyword2"/>
<meta name="keyword" content="keyword3"/>
<meta name="price" content="USD 12.95"/>
<meta name="cover" content="my_cover_image"/>

• the complete list of roles is here

Validation

1. Go to http://threepress.org/document/epub-validate/ to validate ePUB file.

Readers

1. Review all ePUBs on the following devices/readers
   • iBooks
   • Adobe Digital Editions (ADE)
   • Sony Reader
   • Nook
     • Do numbered lists >10 display correctly?
     • Does the .ncx-based TOC show all elements?
     • Does the book pages render ok when Publisher's Defaults are turned off/on?
   • IBIS Reader (http://ibisreader.com/)
2. KINDLE: Review on Kindle or Kindle Previewer
3. NOOK: Find all long paragraphs that the NOOK chops up oddly. Fix if you can figure out how.

A Good Start

1. Run ePUB through validator.
   • Fix all known problems.
2. Open OPX.
   • Complete metadata.
   • Nest appropriately.
3. Open file in ADE.
   • Take a general look at layout.
   • Fix CSS for obvious design issues (spacing between heads, sizing, etc.)

Resources

• Publishing Innovation Awards
• eBook Architects
• @Indiamos
• @MatthewDiener