Fixed Layouts
Fixed layout eBooks are a popular format for children's eBooks and nonfiction books like cookbooks and textbooks. Unlike standard eBook files, these can keep the same layout and designs as their print book counterparts, and can sometimes contain enhancements that make them more interesting and interactive. These eBooks are not PDF's. They are fully functional HTML based eBook files, the specific styles and layouts used in these files are not re-flowable like standard eBook files.
The production process for creating Fixed Layout eBooks is more complex than creating a standard EPUB eBook, though. The process is more akin to typesetting a page on the device screen and involves manipulating the fixed format layout publication file to precisely control the page layout, position images, embed fonts, and create single image page spreads best displayed in landscape view.
Fixed Layout format eBooks are ideally suited for titles in which any of the following composition elements are critical to the reader experience:
Multicolumn text pages Vertical Text & Text Shadow Page design and design elements Illustrations or artistic photography Aspect ratios that cannot change Original art that must be faithfully represented Color and graphics that support reader comprehension and/or enjoyment. Layouts built around pedagogical methodology in textbooks