What is best practice for adding copyright page, etc?

If your book landscape, portrait or both?

What layout style did you spec for that page?

How can I get the the same format for pages before the TOC?

The "format is set by the template you use. You have to decide if you use the template in its default setting or make changed You can change fosts and colour on the page, but ideally you should really edit the template

and change fonts ,size,colours Styles in order they flow through the book. Decide if your book is all landscape or all portrait mode, if you want both, need to change modes and edit accordingly.

I opened the "Basic" template and tried to replicate your actions, The top four items in the tree - Book Title, Intro Media, Table of Contents, Glosssary; dont allow me to drop anything, so I assumed you mean to drag the page up the tree. Under "Glossary" is a column width separater line, dragging the copyright page up will eventually show a blue line appear inder the separator line. Drop the page.

I do this in every book I create to have the Copyright page show as the first page opened by a reader.

The page content is exactly as it is laid out in the template.

If you wish only landscape mode, open the Inspector, select the book icon on the top left and at the bottom, tick the box for "Disable Portrait Orientation.

Did you change your chosen template in any way?

Did you replicate your actions in another template?

iBooks Author will definitely need a code view feature to users can hack the XML manually and fix these things.

While I don't see that happening 🙂, (a) you can show package contents and go nuts now, if you like and (b). feel free to use iBA's menu to feedback [ http://www.apple.com/feedback/ibooks-author.html ] for any features, changes, etc. you may have in mind for the future and (c) remember, the best defense is a good offense...best way to stay out of jams w/IBA is to not get into them in the first place...practice with different templates to see which may support specific needs.

For use of the appllcation, if you haven't seen it already, try:

Publishing With iBooks Author

http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920025597.do

I think you need to spend more time learning how to use iBooksAuthor. Its the best option available for people who want to create eBooks for iPads ( and later computers).

As you said you are using it for the first time - how many hours??

I have been using it since it came to Australia and even with 18 books uploaded to the bookstore and hours-days and weeks mocking up pages and going though every menu item - reading posts here and whatever other books advice and information... I am still finding that I dont know 50% of its capabilities.

You can pay a small fortune and try Adobe InDesign and there are other options.

As in all projects you first need to identify the use for the end product and where its going to be marketted.

90% the iBA users - like me - are content to have books in the Apple store for iPads and not being published in printed for by the other big online publlishers.

Apple will never create a code view because too few users are so technically minded or want to be.

Stick around - cure your problem and learn the application. It may take time - but there are folk on here who really know the nuts and bolts of iBA and of ePubs made using Pages - and they will help all they can.