[8100AV]

Hello all,

We are in the final steps of finishing a book and are looking for the best way to distribute it. We intend the product to be easily accessible to readers. We also want accuracy in the representation of the original work.

After going through a couple of choices, we decided that the PDF format provided the best compromise for what we needed.

Here is where it gets uncertain (and a bit hairy) for us.

Is Acrobat the only program that will let us do indexed, searchable, accurate pdf files? I can export to pdf with Mac OSX but the files (as great as they look) don't have the extras we need (bookmarks, etc..)

How does Acrobat handle the font issue? Would we be limited to a few picked fonts or does it pack the fonts with the file itself?

Also, what is the difference between a standard pdf file and the newer eBook format?

I would be very grateful for any help regarding this. Thank you in advance.

[MikeM32]

I don't know what eBook format is. Is this "book" intended for printing or web viewing? I'm not certain what the restrictions (if any) there are on PDF to web, but I can't imagine they would be much different than PDF for mass printing production.

You should be able to use any fonts you choose with a PDF. The trick is when you create the PDF you want to make sure that all your fonts are embedded. This assures that whoever receives the PDF won't need the same fonts to view it correctly.

Mike

[::maroma::]

Yeah, what Mike said.

Also, Acrobat is the only software that you can use that has all the options you are looking for. (although, there might be some shareware stuff out there...but personally I wouldn't trust for something like this.) If you plan on doing this again, or often, Acrobat is a great investment. Very powerful, and you can use it for many different projects.

I would check Adobe's site for info on Acrobat and the eBook format. The name eBook alone sounds like it's perfect for your project. But even a multi-page PDF with bookmarks, searchable text, embedded fonts, etc. would proabably work fine.

the names they call the settings "ebook" and "print" are settings.

ebook has lower print dpi opposed to print and etc....

i suggest make a .ps file

and in disiller create a new settings that reflect your project...open distiller and Command-J pr use the preferences.

AND EMBED ALL FONTS if you want a reader to be able toedit it in acrobat.

if you choose to embed only fonts that you used, then they won't be able to...(like in order forms for more of your books)

[8100AV]

Hello all,

Thank you very much for your replies. It looks like Acrobat is the way to go. Does anyone know if there is a difference between the retail and education versions?

I remembered the bit about the fonts having to included with the document. But didn't know if this was done automatically or enabled by a setting somewhere.

I went to Adobe's site and looked up eBook. It seems to be the same; it requires another reader which seems to allow additional bells and whistles (like note taking). They also allow for distribution of it -- which surprised me.

Also, just curious, wasn't the Omni Group working on some products for use in this kind of job? Their site doesn't mention these products anymore but product betas can still be found in places like versiontracker.com. I wonder what happened to them.

Thank you again, much appreciated. :-)