Q: Export book from iBooks Author to ePub

iBA cannot produce .epub format, the Apple app for that is Pages.

You could try exporting to PDF and then using an online PDF to .epub conversion service.

Otherwise you essentially need to recreate your content in an app which can produce .epub.

The only alternative to "manually" is the one I gave you before, export to pdf and then use a conversion service.

Start with Pages and create the best ePub that you can with that app. Then, import that ePub into iBA and add things like widgets, etc. These can both be sold via the iBookstore. You'll need to differentiate these in your marketing efforts. For example, call the ePub "The New Great Book of Thingamabobs" and call the iBook, "The Enhanced New Great Book of Thingamabobs"

As for Kindle, Amazon will convert ePub but you'll need to take care to make that ePub text and images only (ePub 2.1, not ePub 3). Pages will allow you to include some ePub 3 elements such as video, audio, tables, etc.  These will be lost on Kindle.

What I think Apple should do is add an ePub export to iBooks Author, one that implements as much of the book in ePub 3 as possible. This would be quite interesting to see, especially if this export attempted to replicate some or all of the iBA widget effects using the ePub 3 standard. It could even be viewed as a precursor to some future iteration of iBooks Author that exported only files supported by the open ePub standard.

Many thanks, this reply has helped me set my strategy to publish to both Apple and Amazon

UPDATE Now that iBooks Author can export ePub files, this solution is even simpler. Just use iBooks Author for the entire workflow. Amazon will accept ePub as input and Apple's iBookstore will accept both *.epub and *.ibooks files. Given the differences involved, you may still want to create several versions of each book. Even with *.ibooks files, the difference in screen real estate between an iPad and an iPhone may require different layouts and different templates. With *.epub files, you'll find that the iBooks.app supports more features than other ePub 3 eReaders do. One must still balance the goal of sophistication against the goal of audience reach but that is easier to manage now.

AppsCodeCamp wrote:

 

how should i export from ibooks author to epub?

To do that you need to create your book in one of the two special epub templates provided with the latest version of iBA.  

Thanks Frank - I have also noted that iBooks Author can export to epub. I think you access this by using an epub template.

I have been testing out a few options before I invest a lot of time in the project so that I am less likely to have to change course later. I am converting an anatomy book into an ebook for a doctor friend and I have the original word documents that were sent to the printer for production of the hard copies. The content is largely text with illustrations and photos. My requirements are to publish to Apple and Amazon.

I would prefer to have one product that services both sites and is generic enough that it will probably be Ok for any future e-publishing that I haven't thought of yet. Also I am a mac user. I also want the internal structure of the ePub to be simple and consistent as that is likely to make it layout consistently on devices that I can't test on.    

The conclusion to my tests is that for my purposes I will follow this workflow

1 - Follow the guidance of this paper Creating ePub files with Pages - Apple Support

and load the recommended template into Pages.

2 - Import the word documents into pages

3 - Reformat the text using the styles from the template and reset the pictures

4 - export as an epub from pages

5 - As I am OK with html and css, I will inspect the results by opening the epub using an application called Sigil.

I noticed that when I followed these steps the contents of the epub were nice and simple as I had hoped. If required I can make small adjustments in using sigil.

I also tested importing the word documents into iBooks Author and choosing an ePub template and then exporting to epub, In this case the contents of the epub were much more complex with apple specific elements. My preference for simplicity have caused me to conclude that iBooks Author is not the tool for this job, however others may have different requirements and a different process may well be better suited for them.  

Please comment if you think I am missing something.

AppsCodeCamp wrote:

 

white non template

I don't know what you are talking about there.

One way or another you have to put your content into one of the iBA epub templates.  Would Pages be an option?

I believe that you can streamline this workflow considerably by working exclusively in iBooks Author. Simply use a combination of *.epub and *.ibooks templates in iBA and select/copy/paste the content from the PDF to each template. Adjust each version to take advantage of the format and export. Amazon will accept the ePub version as input to its publishing system.

The simplest ePub scenario will be text and static images only. I'd suggest using the ePub validator before rummaging around with Sigil or BBEdit. Note that this ePub will be version 3 but backwards compatible with version 2 of the ePub standard. Not only will these files convert well into Amazon's proprietary format but they will also be readable in other ePub 3  compliant eReaders such as Radium which requires the Chrome web browser.

Support for the ePub 3 standard varies from eReader to eReader. The Book Industry Study Group (BISG) maintains an on-line support grid that attempts to describe the degree to which eReaders comply with the standard's required and optional capabilities. There is even a test suite of ePub files with which to evaluate eReading systems. Apple's iBook app does quite well with the ePub 3 standard and, of course, with Apple's own proprietary *.ibooks format.

Thus, you may want to create additional versions of the ePub document that will read well in the iBooks app but not so well or at all in other ePub 3 reading systems.

The *.ibooks version of your book is limited only by your imagination and the extensive capabilities of iBooks Author.

Many thanks Frank, I will try the process you describe.