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EPUB 3 has been widely adopted as the format for digital books (ebooks), and this revision continuesto increase the format's capabilities to better support a wider range of publication requirements,including complex layouts, rich media and interactivity, and global typography features. Theexpectation is that publishers will utilize the EPUB 3 format for a broad range of content,including books, magazines, and educational, professional, and scientific publications.
These specifications represent the formal list recognized as belonging to EPUB 3 and that containfunctionality normatively referenced as part of the standard. The development of extensionspecifications periodically adds new functionality to EPUB publications. Features and functionalitydefined outside of core revisions to the standard, while not formally recognized in thisspecification, are nonetheless available for EPUB creators and reading system developers touse.
An EPUB publication is, in its most basic sense, a bundle of resources with instructions on how torender those resources to present the content in a logical order. The types of resources that areallowed in EPUB publication, as well as restrictions on their use, are defined in 3. Publication resources.
A ZIP-based archive with the file extension .epub bundles the EPUB publication'sresources for distribution. As conformant ZIP archives, EPUB publications can be unzipped by manysoftware programs, simplifying both their production and consumption.
The container format not only provides a means of determining that the zipped content represents anEPUB publication (the mimetype file), but also provides a universally named directoryof non-normative resources (/META-INF). Key among these resources is thecontainer.xml file, which directs reading systems to the available package documents. Refer to 4. Open Container Format (OCF) for more information about the container format.
An EPUB publication is typically represented by a single package document. This document includesmetadata used by reading systems to present the content to the user, such as the title andauthor for display in a bookshelf as well as rendering metadata (e.g., whether the content isreflowable or has a fixed layout). It also provides a manifest of resources and includes a spine that lists the default sequence in which to render documents as a user progressesthrough the content. Refer to 5. Package document for the requirements for the packagedocument.
An EPUB publication also includes another key file called the EPUB navigation document. Thisdocument provides critical navigation capabilities, such as the table of contents, that allow usersto navigate the content quickly and easily. The navigation document is a specialized type of XHTML content document which also allows EPUB creators to use it in the content (i.e., avoiding onetable of contents for machine processing and another for user consumption). Refer to 7. EPUB navigation document for more information about this document.
EPUB publications by default are intended to reflow to fit the available screen space. It is alsopossible to create publications that have pixel-precise fixed layouts using images and/or CSSpositioning. The metadata to control layouts are defined in 8. Layout rendering control.
Media overlay documents complement EPUB content documents. They provide declarative markup forsynchronizing the text in EPUB content documents with prerecorded audio. The result is the abilityto create a read-aloud experience where reading systems highlight the text as it is narrated.Refer to 9. Media overlays for the definition of media overlay documents.
While conceptually simple, an EPUB publication is more than just a collection of HTML pages anddependent assets in a ZIP package as presented here. Additional information about the primaryfeatures and functionality that EPUB publications provide to enhance the reading experience isavailable from the referenced specifications, and a more general introduction to the features ofEPUB 3 is provided in the non-normative [epub-overview-33].
Refer to [epub-rs-33] for the processing requirements for reading systems. Although it is notnecessary that EPUB creators read that document to create EPUB publications, an understanding ofhow reading systems present the content can help craft publications for optimal presentation tousers.
The technologies EPUB 3 builds on are constantly evolving. Some, typically referred to as"living" or "evergreen" standards, are subject to change daily and their impact on the validityof EPUB publications is immediate. Others are updated less frequently and the changes may notaffect EPUB publications until EPUB 3 undergoes a new revision.
In all cases, it is possible that previously valid features may become obsolete (e.g., due to alack of support or because of security issues). EPUB creators should therefore be cautiousabout using any feature without broad support and keep their EPUB conformance checkers up todate.
The benefit of this approach for EPUB is that EPUB publications always keep pace with changesto the web without the need for new revisions. EPUB creators, however, must keep track ofthe various changes to HTML and the technologies it references to ensure they keep theirprocesses up to date.
This specification does not reference a specific version of [svg], but instead uses an undatedreference. Whenever there is any ambiguity in this reference, the latest recommendedspecification is the authoritative reference.
This approach ensures that EPUB will always keep pace with changes to the SVG standard. EPUB creators, however, must keep track of changes to the SVG standard to ensure they keep theirprocesses up to date.
This specification refers to the [url] standard for terminology and processing related to URLsexpressed in EPUB publications. It is anticipated that new and revised web formats willadopt this standard, but until then this may put this specification in conflict with theinternal requirements for some formats (e.g., valid relative paths), specifically with respectto the use of internationalized URLs. If a format does not allow internationalized URLs (i.e.,URLs must conform to [rfc3986] or earlier), that requirement takes precedence within thoseresources.
The URL [url] of the root directory representing the OCF abstract container. It is implementation specific, but EPUB creators must assume it has propertiesdefined in 4.2.5 URLs in the OCF abstract container.
The designation "core media type resource" only applies when a resource is used in therendering of EPUB content documents and foreign content documents. A core media typeresource cannot be used in the spine, for example, without a fallbackunless it also has the media type of an EPUB content document.
The creation of an EPUB publication often involves the work of many individuals, and maybe split across multiple organizations (e.g., when a publisher outsources all or part ofthe work). Depending on the process used to produce an EPUB publication,responsibilities may fall on the organization (e.g., the publisher), the individualspreparing the publication (e.g., technical editors), or automatic procedures (e.g., aspart of a publication pipeline). As a result, not every party or process may beresponsible for ensuring every requirement is met, but there is always an EPUB creatorresponsible for the conformance of the final EPUB publication.
A specialization of the XHTML content document that contains human- and machine-readableglobal navigation information. The EPUB navigation document conforms to the constraintsexpressed in 7. EPUB navigation document.
A publication resource with a MIME media type [rfc2046] that does not match any ofthose listed in 3.2 Core media types. Foreign resources are subject to thefallback requirements defined in 3.3 Foreign resources.
Foreign resource and foreign content document are not interchangeable terms. The types ofresources considered foreign when used in the spine is greater than the types ofresources considered foreign when used in EPUB contentdocuments.
A publication resource that describes the rendering of an EPUB publication, asdefined in 5. Package document. The package document carries meta informationabout the EPUB publication, provides a manifest of resources, and defines a default readingorder.
A resource that contains content or instructions that contribute to the logic and renderingof an EPUB publication. In the absence of this resource, reading systems may notrender the EPUB publication as the EPUB creator intends. Examples of publicationresources include the package document, EPUB content documents, CSS Style Sheets,audio, video, images, embedded fonts, and scripts.
EPUB creators must list publication resources in the package document manifest and typically bundle them all in the EPUB container (the exception being theymay locate resources listed in 3.6 Resource locations outside the EPUBcontainer).
The key words MAY, MUST, MUST NOT, OPTIONAL, RECOMMENDED, REQUIRED, SHOULD, and SHOULD NOT in this document are to be interpreted as described in BCP 14 [RFC2119] [RFC8174] when, and only when, they appear in all capitals, as shown here.
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