Fixed-layout epubs, apps and more!

There's a lot of info here, on complicated epubs like Children's books:

http://ebookarchitects.com/conversions/childrens.php#fixed

"In December 2010, Apple introduced a new format for ePub files in their iBooks app: “fixed-layout” ePubs. Unlike the standard eBook files described and shown above, these eBooks can keep the same layout and designs as their print book counterparts. These eBooks are not PDFs. They are fully-functional ePub files in every way, however, the specific styles and layouts used in these files will only work in iBooks."

There's also a tiny section on Standalone eBook Apps and about outsourcing them.

Oxygen XML editing.

http://www.oxygenxml.com/

This is the recommended software from ACP for editing epubs. I was just using text based programs like text edit. But what's nice about this is that it has validating built in. And it should be easier to edit metadata (the data that stores all the epub information).

epub sales from a report released April 2011

At the risk of quoting a blog, that quotes a study and another news article, the Data Conversion Library (DCL) has this to say about epub sales:

The latest report from the Association of American Publishers shows that February closed with eBooks sales capping out at $90.3M with paperbacks coming in at a mere $81.2M. For the first time, eBooks have become the best-selling medium in the US (a 202.3% increase in February!), and it seems that trend will continue. According to the Guardian, the record sales are likely due to the fantastic sales of eBook reading hardware during the holiday season. With so many more people having access to electronic reading devices, it’s only natural for the sale of digital content to increase accordingly. 

From http://www.dclab.com/blog/2011/04/ebooks-sales-take-center-stage/