Mobipocket Creator

Mobipocket Creator. It was a proprietary e-book authoring application developed by the French company Mobipocket SA, primarily for use on the Microsoft Windows platform. The software enabled authors and publishers to convert existing documents into the proprietary Mobipocket format, which was widely used on early e-readers and mobile devices. Its development and prominence were closely tied to the rise of the Amazon Kindle, which initially used a variant of the Mobipocket format.

Overview

Launched around the year 2000, the software served as the primary production tool for creating content compatible with the Mobipocket Reader application. It provided a graphical user interface for assembling e-books from various source files, integrating features like a built-in HTML editor and support for embedding multimedia. The tool was instrumental for publishers targeting early e-reading platforms, including devices from Palm, Inc., Franklin Electronic Publishers, and later, the first-generation Amazon Kindle. Its workflow allowed for the generation of a single file that could contain the complete text, images, and navigation structure of a book.

Features

Key functionalities included a WYSIWYG editor for editing HTML and CSS directly, which was essential for formatting e-book content. It supported the creation of interactive tables of contents and allowed for the inclusion of JPEG and PNG images within publications. The software also featured a validation tool to check for formatting errors before final compilation. For digital rights management, it integrated with Mobipocket SA's own encryption system, which was a precursor to the DRM used on the Amazon Kindle platform. Additionally, it offered batch processing capabilities for converting multiple documents simultaneously.

File format support

The primary output format was the Mobipocket file, using the extensions .prc or .mobi, which were essentially packaged HTML archives. For input, the software accepted a wide range of document types, including Microsoft Word (.doc), HTML, RTF, and plain text files. It could also import and convert existing ePub files, though with varying degrees of fidelity. The internal structure of the created files was based on the Open eBook Publication Structure, a standard that influenced the later IDPF ePub specification. This compatibility made it a bridge between common office documents and specialized e-reader formats during a transitional period in digital publishing.

Development and history

Mobipocket SA, founded in 2000, developed the Creator application alongside its Mobipocket Reader to establish a complete ecosystem for e-books. The company was an early participant in the Open eBook Forum, contributing to industry standards. In a pivotal move for the e-book market, Amazon.com acquired Mobipocket SA in 2005, gaining control of its technology and patents. Under Amazon, development of Mobipocket Creator continued for a few years, with the final version released in 2008. The software's underlying format technology became the foundation for the proprietary AZW format used on the Amazon Kindle, though Amazon eventually shifted its focus away from the Mobipocket brand and discontinued official support for the Creator tool.

Comparison with other e-book software

Unlike more general document converters, Mobipocket Creator was specifically optimized for the e-reader market of the 2000s, whereas tools like Adobe InDesign were geared toward complex print and digital layout. It was less flexible than the open-source Sigil editor for ePub but offered a more streamlined process for its target format. Compared to Calibre, which emerged later as a comprehensive e-book management suite, Mobipocket Creator was a dedicated authoring tool without library management functions. Its direct commercial competitor was often considered to be Adobe Digital Editions in its role as a production tool for a specific, DRM-protected ecosystem, much like how Apple's iBooks Author later served the iPad platform.

Category:E-book software Category:Windows-only software Category:Discontinued software