EPUB (short for electronic publication) is a free and open e-book standard by the International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF). Files have the extension .epub. EPUB is designed for reflowable content, meaning that the text display can be optimized for the particular display device used by the reader of the EPUB-formatted book. The format is meant to function as a single format that publishers and conversion houses can use in-house, as well as for distribution and sale.
EPUB features
- Free and open
- Re-flowable (word wrap) and re-sizable text
- Inline raster and vector images
- Embedded metadata
- DRM support
- CSS styling
- Support for alternative renditions in the same file
- Use of out-of-line and inline XML islands to extend the functionality of EPUB
EPUB specifications
The EPUB file format comprises three specifications: Open Container Format (OCF), Open Publication Structure (OPS) and Open Packaging Format (OPF).
OCF is simply a zip-based standard used to encapsulate all of the pieces of a digital publication into a single file.
OPS describes the digital publication’s markup or content (words on the page).
OPF provides the navigation, packaging, metadata, and table of contents (how the pages relate to one another).
EPUB viewers
Currently, there are lots of online or desktop utilities and some mobile apps that allows to you view the EPUB format, such as Adobe Digital Editions (ADE), EPUBReader, eBook Reader, Stanza, Aldiko, Calibre, iBooks and so on.
