Optimising files prior to the production of a digital publication is essential to maintain the best quality and achieve a great performing digital publication across all the platforms. Here we cover file requirements, optimal file settings and other acceptable file types for use in the publishing system.
Overview
Click one of the following if you need to jump to a particular section - please note that the basics are covered in this article, however for more specific instructions you can find guides here:
For more on specs, see Further Specifications/Device Requirements
Wherever possible, please provide your publication as a single PDF file with the following settings:
- All pages in a single PDF file, with the pages in order
- Single pages (not double page spreads)
- 300 DPI (or greater)
- Cropped to exact art size (no need for cropmarks/bleed etc, as it is not a traditional print process)
- Embedded fonts (not subset, please avoid CID Type H encoded fonts)
- Flattened Transparencies and Smooth Shade elements
- Try to avoid using excessive use of complicated vector graphics (Consider substituting vector graphics/art with a PNG/JPEG image)
Optimal file settings can be achieved by optimising your artwork to 300dpi as a base which typically provides the best quality. Of course, depending on the amount of information within your PDF file, you may find that the file size is very large, in which case you can begin scaling back to 250dpi or 200dpi depending on your preference.
To check the compatibility of your PDF using Adobe Acrobat, simply navigate to the Preflight option and double click Compatible with Acrobat 3 (more specific guide HERE)
If your files will be made available for Apple devices such as the iPad and iPod, see How To Optimise Your Files For Apple.
Video
For best results in adding video to your publication, we recommend video files be provided in 1280x720 for landscape video or the equivalent in portrait orientation.
Format: MP4 - select "Web optimized"
Video Codec: .MP4/H.264 encoding using baseline codec
Framerate (FPS): Same as source - ensure button for "Variable Framerate" is also selected.
Video: Average Bitrate (kbps): 600 (700 works well also if you feel 600 is too low) - 2-pass encoding.
Audio: Bitrate: 112 (128 or 160 also work well if 112 is a bit low for your liking)
Click the following to visit our guide on how to convert your video to the best format:
Tip
When placing the overlay on your publication, click on the “Use Content Aspect Ratio” checkbox, which will make sure that you don’t skew or stretch your video beyond it’s original resolution
Audio
Audio files are just as easy as video to add to your publication, and should be provided as MP3 files.
The player controls are slightly different from Web/Android/iOS so it is worth previewing your publication once placed.
Note: an alternative method of delivering audio is via a blank MP4 video.
Tip
Click on Auto-Play if you want the audio track to start playing whenever a reader navigates to the page you’re editing
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