Add Guide Items to Link Table of Contents and Go to Begining

This Task comes mid-way in the process of building our Kindle Format File with Mobipocket Creator.

We must first let Mobipocket build our new HTML file. (We did that in the step titled "Using Mobipocket Creator".)

Then we add the Guide items to this new HTML file that Mobipocket just built for us.

NOTE: We are now working with a *new* HTML file... the file that Mobipocket just built, not the file that we imported into Mobipocket.

Mobipocket will put this new file in a different location, so it's easy to tell the difference between them.

This fact... that we now have two HTML versions of the same file, causes a lot of confusion and wasted time for those who don't notice the difference. I may annoy you with repeating the same thing over and over, but I do that because it is so easy to miss this vital fact.

At this point, it doesn't matter whether you started with MS Word 2003 and a Word file, or an HTML editor and an HTML file, we care only about the HTML file that Mobipocket built.

Ok, let's go:

In this Task, we will add Guide items to link to the "Table of Contents" and the "Beginning of File".

This completes the action needed to link the anchors that enable the Kindle to jump to "Table of Contents" or "Go to Beginning", when the Kindle user selects those items from the Menu.

For this to work, we must have already inserted "toc" and "start" anchors into our original file.

MS Word 2003 users inserted anchors "toc" and "start" into their file in an earlier step, described at "Insert Anchors for MS Word Table of Contents".

Those working with a different HTML editor must have already inserted anchors into their original HTML file. Joshua Tallent describes how in his book "Kindle Formatting".

When you import your file into Mobipocket, Mobipocket will build an HTML file and save it at your default location. If you have not changed it, your default will be My Documents\My Publications.

If you check your default location after you have imported your book, you will see a new folder with the same name as the file you just imported. (we will call it YourKindleBook) If you open the YourKindleBook folder, you will see a new file named YourKindleBook.html.

After you have let Mobipocket create your file, look at the top left of corner of your screen for a red book. Beside that red book, on a dark blue ribbon, is "Base Folder" and the file location and file that Mobipocket just created.

Look at the left of your screen, under the red book, for a light blue panel with a list of items under the title "View".

If no list is visible, click the little down-arrow after the word "View" to make it appear.

[Guide] is the last item on the list.

Click [Guide]

A new panel appears in the center of your screen, with the title: Guide Properties. It contains a button named [New Guide Item]

Click [New Guide Item]

The display changes to show empty boxes named Title, Type, Filename, and onclick.

At first you may think you are being asked to enter a Title into the first box... but no, it's easier than that... just click the little down arrow on the second box.

A list will appear with names of a large number of Guide Items. Since Mobipocket creates files for a lot of different eBook readers, it provides a lot of choices here.

We are interested in only two... "toc" for Table of Contents, and "start" for "Beginning of File".

When you choose "toc", the Title box is automatically filled in with "Table of Contents".

Next, you want your new HTML file to show in the Filename box. Click the [Browse] to your default location... or to the location shown at the top of your screen... and get the new HTML version of your file that Mobipocket just built.

What we want to do now, is to type "#toc" smack up against the end of our file name. We don't want any space or other character between them.

With your cursor in the Filename box, go to the end your filename.

An easy way to do that is, with your cursor in the Filename box containing your filename, press the END key on your keyboard. That sends your cursor to the very end of your filename.

Then, without a space or any other keystroke, type "#toc".

Like this:

YourKindleBook.html#toc

To add your"start" item, click [Add New Item] again, and this time, choose "start".

The Title box is automatically filled with "Start of File". That's what Kindle calls "Beginning of File".

Browse to find your filename again, and add "#start" to the end of your filename.

Like this:

YourKindleBook.html#start

Click the [Update] button when finished.

Now you are ready to complete your Mobipocket Creator Build process, described in "Using Mobipocket Creator to Build the Kindle File".

If you should make changes to your file and build it again with Mobipocket Creator, you will always have to come back here to add your Guide Items just as you did this time.