Working with Subfolders

[Geobop]

Is there a way to group .xhtml files and images in subfolders in InDesign?

I'm working on a book that will probably anywhere from 500-1000 pages and will feature hundreds of images. One of the main sections is titled "states" and will include chapters on each of the 50 states, each chapter probably an average of about 10 pages. So I'd like to arrange my files something like this:

states/alaska/1.xhtml

states/alaska/2.xhtml

states/arizona/1.xhtml

states/arizona/2.xhtml

Images would probably similarly go into state folders inside a folder named "states."

Is there a way to do this with InDesign?

What about an epub that's been created with another program, like Sigil? Is there a way to import it into InDesign and rearrange the text files and images into subfolders?

Thanks.

[BobLevine]

No to everything.

Why would you need/want to?

[Geobop]

Why? Organization. It's much easier working with images organized into folders than a string of 600 images, especially if I have to do some work in HTML mode, outside InDesign.

[BobLevine]

Unless you want to hand code your epub, there is no way that I can think of that will allow you to accomplish this.

And as I told you in an earlier thread, it's entirely possible, under most circumstances, to create an epub in InDesign without needing to crack open it open anyway.

Perhaps if you shared actual examples of why think you'll need to do this we can offer some advice to help you avoid it.

[Derek Cross]

Before you commit yourself producing to a 1000 page documen, I suggest you create a shorter ePub for testing purposes. If you hope to sell the ePub via the commercial platforms you may find there are issues with the size of your ePub with "hundreds" of images".

[Geobop]

Derek Cross wrote, "If you hope to sell the ePub via the commercial platforms you may find there are issues with the size of your ePub with 'hundreds of images.'"

Can you elaborate? Are you referring to the fact that epubs with big file sizes take longer to download, or are there other issues as well? If so, are there any ballpark figures regarding the maximum number of images, maximum file size, etc.

I'm working on a reference book that will probably be anywhere from 500-1,000 pages long. One section will include a chapter for each of the 50 states, and each state account will probably feature an average of half a dozen images minimum. Another section will feature a couple hundred images. Plus, I'll probably have a series of 50 pictures of state flags in the appendix, along with another 50 pictures of state seals, etc.

In perusing the forums, it looks like epubs cater far more to novels than references and aren't terribly friendly to publishers who have lots of images.

If this file size is going to be an issue, then I may need to find a work around. One possibility is to make images really small and perhaps link them to bigger images on my website. The obvious problem is that people without an internet connection won't be able to view them (until they get online, at least).

Another possibility might be to put really tiny pictures of a cardinal on pages representing states that call it their state bird, linking it to a bigger picture in the appendix.

Regarding folders, I'm just finding it very hard to work with InDesign by itself. I have to have access to the HTML. I've been trying to figure out a system where I can go back and forth between InDesign and Sigil, which is much easier to work with. The irony is that Sigil doesn't support folders. I can't understand how any epub software program can not support both HTML and folders.

But it looks like there's no way around it, so I'm going to have to either accept a complex project without folders or hand code it.

Thanks for the tips.

[Derek Cross]

Creating ePubs is not always intuitive. I strongly recommend you have a look at a couple of the online video tutorials that are on Lynda.com (you can get a 10-day free free trial):

https://www.lynda.com/InDesign-tutorials/InDesign-CC-2015-EPUB-Fundamentals/374187-2.html

https://www.lynda.com/InDesign-tutorials/Creating-Fixed-Layout-EPUBs-InDesign-CC/169624-2.html?srcht...

[Geobop]

I've already worked through two separate InDesign series on Lynda.com.

[BobLevine]

Why are you using epub for this project? It sounds like a PDF would be a far better choice.

[Derek Cross]

Yeah, I was thinking a PDF would be good, it depends on how the OP wants to distribute / sell the publication though.

[Geobop]

Just to make sure understand - are you saying that PDF's are generally a better choice for image-heavy projects?

I want to create a professional-looking "book" that I can sell via Amazon and iBooks. In fact, I'm updating a classic reference that's in the public domain (a little over 500 pages; about 150 images), after which I'm going to publish my own book, which will probably be twice as big.

Thanks.

[Derek Cross]

You can't sell PDFs via Amazon, and you need to convert the ePub format to the Mobi format for the Kindle.

[Geobop]

That's what I thought. So what's the problem with images again - just increased download time? I do remember reading somewhere that Amazon will also charge you extra for items that take longer to download. So maybe I should just use really tiny images linked to bigger images on my websites...