The advantages and disadvantages of using the EPUB format
Electronic publishing, also known as EPUB, is a thriving XML format that is commonly used to create books for digital publishing. Certainly not the only format of its kind, EPUB is fairly new to the digital publishing scene, but it has garnered a significant amount of attention from major digital publishers. Although the format has been designed to work with e-books, it has a wide variety of other applications and can easily be used to develop other types of documentation. If you’re new to the EPUB format, here’s a look at the pros and cons of the format to help you make an informed decision.
The professionals
Unified Standard: The widespread acceptance of e-books has caused many companies to jump on the digital bandwagon by introducing their own e-book readers. However, this has caused chaos as the offerings of most of these establishments lack a unified standard. On the other hand, the advent of EPUB has been an effort in the right direction since its goal is to establish a standard for digital publishing; the format can be used on a variety of devices.
Open Format – Unlike other popular eBook formats; EPUB is an open standard tool, which means it can be used by almost everyone; from individual authors to major publishers without the risk of being sued or paying high fees. The open format of EPUB is one of the main reasons for its popularity, in addition to the superlative functionality it offers.
Independently governed: One of the biggest benefits of using EPUB is that the format is independently governed; this means there are no corporate houses waiting to profit from the success of the format. In addition, the format is not adapted to specific products of certain companies. Therefore, a file created with EPUB can be used on a large number of devices, making things simple for publishers.
Text Reflow Possible: EPUB also has a unique reflow feature that allows books to fit the size of the screen they’re being viewed on. So whether you’re using a 10.1-inch iPad or a 3.5-inch cell phone screen, you’ll be able to read an eBook that’s been published using EPUB. When using eBooks published in EPUB format, small screen users don’t have to constantly zoom in and out or constantly scroll, while large screen users will be able to read faster since there will be more words on the screen at once. .
Compatibility: EPUB exhibits superior compatibility not seen in any other eBook format today, including the ever-popular PDF. EPUB uses two languages, XHTML and XML; this means that it can be used with a variety of software. Also, platforms that already use XML can easily be ported to EPUB. Another advantage is that EPUB is delivered in a single zip folder in which an archive is created to store the organization and content files of an eBook.
The Cons The requirements for creating an EPUB zip file are extremely stringent. Also, unlike other formats, using EPUB requires a certain amount of prior publishing knowledge; the user will also need to be familiar with XML and XHTML syntax and will also need to know how to create a style sheet to create valid files.
Despite the technical knowledge required to use EPUB to reach its maximum effectiveness, a surprising number of people use EPUB as their primary eBook creation format. EPUB’s impressive functionality, compatibility, and wealth of features have made it a favorite of publishers around the world.