<h1id="digital-publishing-as-publishing-from-scratch">Digital Publishing as Publishing from Scratch</h1><pclass="meta">October 3, 2018 | Methodology | <spanclass="smallcap"><atarget="_blank"href="https://blog.cliteratu.re/md/entry001.md">MD</a></span> / <spanclass="smallcap"><atarget="_blank"href="https://blog.cliteratu.re/ebooks/entry001.epub">EPUB</a></span> / <spanclass="smallcap"><atarget="_blank"href="https://blog.cliteratu.re/ebooks/entry001.mobi">MOBI</a></span> / <atarget="_blank"href="https://marianaeguaras.com/edicion-digital-como-edicion-desde-cero">spanish version</a></p><p>Thanks to <ahref="http://marianaeguaras.com/">Mariana Eguaras</a> we are going to blog about <b>digital publishing</b>, its <b>characteristics, benefits and challenges</b>. We are also going to talk about <b>its relation with print publishing</b> and how these issues directly affect the proceedings for any kind of publishing.</p><p>We already have planned what we are going to write about in the first entries, but any suggestions are welcome. As much as it is possible the writing won't be technical. We are going to try to be more friendly to the general public or publishers.</p><p>However, you have to consider that some technicalities are necessary for publishing. The typography, printing or design slangs are common knowledge for publishers. In the same way, the jargons from web or software developers are starting to be part of our cultural background.</p><blockquoteclass="addenda"><p>The entries were originally wrote in spanish. Some of them are now kind of old: in some things I have a different opinion or approach. And as it is obvious, english is not my first language. Therefore, you are going to find a lot of grammar mistakes or typos and I will only translate (in a very loose way) the entries that I still consider relevant. So when you find this kind of box, it means that it is an <i>addendum</i> only for this broken english version.</p></blockquote><blockquoteclass="addenda"><p>Do you want to improve this mess? You can always help through <ahref="https://gitlab.com/NikaZhenya/publishing-is-coding">GitLab</a> or <ahref="https://github.com/NikaZhenya/publishing-is-coding">GitHub</a>.</p></blockquote><p>In this first entry we will do a <b>general comparison between some of the most common methods for developing an standarized ebook in <spanclass="smallcap">EPUB</span> format</b>. Some other time we will go deeper in the history of <spanclass="smallcap">EPUB</span>.</p><p>First off we should say that between the different ebook formats available the <spanclass="smallcap">EPUB</span> since the begining was created as a type of file for <i>ebooks</i>. The <spanclass="smallcap">EPUB</span> stands out because of its <b>versatility, lightness and respect of web standards</b>. This ensures code uniformity and <b>complete control over the text edition</b>.</p><p>With these features, the <spanclass="smallcap">EPUB</span> is easily convertible in propertary formats as the ones used by Amazon or Apple. That means that we can save resources and time when we develop a digital publication.</p><p>This flexibility also allows the development of software that intends to facilitate the creation of <spanclass="smallcap">EPUB</span>s. Just with a couple of clicks in a text processor (Writer or Word, e.g.) or desktop publishing (like InDesign) we instantly have an <spanclass="smallcap">EPUB</span>.</p><p>At first glance this is a huge advantage for indie authors or publishers that don't want to invest in “additional efforts.” However there are at least <b>two disvantages</b> in doing things this way:</p><ol><li><p>The code, design and text edition's qualities tend to be lower in comparison of others methods.</p></li><li><p>It is often forgotten that the most important thing about the digital revolution it is not the ebook.</p>
<p>All content is under <atarget="_blank"href="https://github.com/NikaZhenya/publishing-is-coding#license">Licencia Editorial Abierta y Libre (<spanclass="smallcap">LEAL</span>)</a>.</p>
