PePcon Print+ePublishing Conference: eBook Design Printing, Publishing

Sponsor, Markzware, supports the PePcon: Print + ePublishing Conference for eBook design, printing and publishing. The conference will be held May 24-26, 2017, in Atlanta, Georgia, during the CreativePro Week event:

PePcon: The Print + ePublishing Conference is part of the CreativePro Week event and is held May 24–26, 2017, in Atlanta, Georgia. The one-day, multi-track conference is geared toward users of print, ePublishing, publishing design and development, and more.

Learn expert tips from the world’s top publishing designers and developers! Get the information you need to use Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, and tools to publish eBooks, print documents, interactive documents, and more. Get inspiration from the innovative ideas and solutions to be mentioned at the event. To read about the conference and reasons why you should attend, download the brochure (in PDF format), by clicking here.

Markzware develops products, including publishing software and printing solutions and is helping to sponsor PePcon. Markzware’s PDF2DTP is a desktop publishing (DTP) solution for PDF file conversion that allows users to publish InDesign content.

CreativePro Week includes four conferences and other offerings for printers and publishers. The first day of PePcon is a full day of pre-conference tutorials, followed by the PePcon conference itself, and then, a full day of post-conference tutorials.

Speakers

PePcon was founded by world-renowned InDesign publishing experts David Blatner and Anne-Marie Concepción. The conference provides industrious creative professionals with an exceptional educational experience that helps them to keep up-to-date on the industry’s latest news, practices, tips, and solutions. PePcon gathers 20+ leading experts in publishing tools from Adobe, Apple, Amazon, the open source community, and more, including:
• Anne-Marie Concepción
• Chad Chelius
• Chris Converse
• Chuck Weger
• Daniel Dejan
• David Blatner
• Erica Gamet
• John McWade
• Justin Putney
• Keith Gilbert
• Kevin Callahan
• Kim Converse
• Laura Brady
• Leonard Rosenthal
• Mark Heaps
• Mike Rankin
• Nellie McKesson
• Rick Treitman
• Sean Harrison
To see a full list of CreativePro Week presenters, click here. Speakers and sessions are subject to change. To check for the most up-to-date PePcon speaker list, click here.

Agenda

PePcon 2017 is a three-day conference. On May 24th, you can learn from a set of two pre-conference tutorials. May 25th offers a full day of conference sessions. Then, on May 26th, you can attend must-see post-conference tutorials and events! To download the CreativePro Week schedule, click here. The following lists the agenda schedule (current at the time this article was written):

Wednesday, May 24 (PePcon optional pre-conference tutorials)

9:00 am – 12:00 pm
HTML/CSS for Designers
Chris Converse and Kim Converse
You’re not a coder. You’re a designer. But you still need to understand how the language of the web works to make beautiful, interactive, animated content for a web browser, ebook, or tablet. We’ll walk you through the the basics of HTML and CSS, and how these two technologies go hand-in-hand to style and compose your content. And the best part is, you already know the basics! Think of HTML as “content and structure” (think pages, graphic/text boxes, text), and CSS as “style and layout” (think paragraph, character, and object styles). You’ll walk away with a solid understanding, and the confidence, in how your graphic design skills can be translated from print to digital. We’ll also take a look at how your favorite graphic applications can create, style, and animate various types of web media… that is ready to use in your final publication.
• What is HTML and CSS, exactly?
• Basic HTML tags and how to write them
• Choosing a text editor for HTML and CSS
• Where can I put my CSS rules?
• Exporting HTML content from InDesign
• Working with web fonts
• Web media formats
• Extracting web assets from Photoshop and Illustrator
• Interactivity and animation with CSS
• Get free sample files

1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
A Designer’s Guide to Building Presentations
Mark Heaps

Mark Heaps was the Director of Development at Duarte, an internationally-recognized leader in designing and building presentations. If you ever have to give presentations or produce presentations for others, this is a session you seriously do not want to miss.

Thursday, May 25 (PePcon conference)

9:15 am – 10:00 am
PePcon Keynote
TBA (Please check later for more details, by clicking here.)

10:15 am – 10:45 am
New Horizons for Interactive PDF

Leonard Rosenthol and Rick Treitman
PDF is not just the world’s most important digital document format, it is also is a live and changing format! Join us for this exploration of what’s new in the worlds of Acrobat and PDF, and how this technology can help you create, distribute, communicate, and engage.

11:00 am – 11:45 am
The State of Digital Publishing: 2017

Keith Gilbert
InDesign isn’t just for print. It’s appropriate for designing many types of digital output to be viewed on tablets, phones, E-readers, and Web sites. But how do you know which output type is best for a specific document and intended audience? In this session, we’ll examine 7 different digital publishing options: HTML, Mobile apps, Mobile Web apps, reflowable EPUB, Fixed-Layout EPUB, Publish Online, and PDF.

Fonts and Font Management: New Rules, New Tools
Mike Rankin
You have lots of fonts, but are you using them right?
• Font management utilities: Which one should you be using?
• Adobe Typekit: What’s the big deal?
• Font rights for print, PDF, EPUB, and tablet publishing: What you have to know
• When should you use free fonts?
• When you really have to: The right way to convert-text-to-outlines

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Print vs Digital Showdown!
Daniel Dejan
At a time when it seems the entire world is banging the drum for on-screen publishing, it’s critical that we stop and consider: Is digital the better choice? How are our experiences and reactions different when we read the same content in printed ink on paper versus on our phones or tablets? In a 2009 study using scans to measure how people respond to print vs online communication, it became clear that print leaves a “deeper footprint” in the brain. And in study after study, whether it’s consumer preference, trust, privacy, response, recall, or one of many other measures, print comes out on top. This highly visual and inspiring presentation is chock-full of ideas, strategies and print “eye candy” for attendees who operate on either end of the budget spectrum.
• Communication and the neuroscience of touch
• Brains are built to respond to touch. (More than half the brain is devoted to processing sensory experience, and much of that receptivity focuses on touch);
• What we touch shapes what we feel, influencing perceptions both consciously and subconsciously about people, situations, companies and brands; and,
• Tactile communications like paper cause people to exhibit a sense of ownership of the objects they read about, influencing buying decisions.
• Proven techniques for leveraging technology with print


Creating eBooks with InDesign

Laura Brady
Did you export your clean print file to EPUB and were surprised (not pleasantly) by the results? This session is designed to show you how to properly and efficiently get the best possible eBooks out of InDesign (both reflowable and fixed-layout). No more scary surprises, just great results!
• Workflow best practices, including time-saving tips and tricks
• Scripts that will change your life
• How to use InDesign to create EPUB semantics (and why that’s important)
• Managing how ID exports images
• Planning for reflowable and fixed-layout exports
• Understanding all the ID EPUB export options

Designer/Developer Collaboration for Digital Publishing
Chris Converse and Kim Converse
When your design is done and ready for development, do you hold your breath and hope it resembles what you intended? Have you heard the sentence, “Yeah, it’s not exactly what you gave me, but it works”? You can breathe a bit easier if you collaborate with your developer. You both bring skills to the table, right? Then why not join forces! Setting expectations of how your layout will behave in this multi-device digital world, and knowing where to compromise, can save time and anxiety. And who knows, there may even be an elegant solution trick up your developer’s sleeve. We’ll take you through the process of delivering a design with assets and instructions for your developer. Then we’ll reveal what a developer needs to do to make it all happen. We’ll show, with a little collaboration, how you can both be happy. Win, win!
• How design is translated to HTML and CSS
• Designer and Developer compromises
• Workflow & production strategies
• Getting ‘usable’ HTML from InDesign
• Generating CSS from Photoshop
• Exporting web assets from Photoshop and Illustrator
• Animation and interactive possibilities
• Free sample files!

2:15 pm – 3:00 pm
HTML First: Single-Sourcing to Print, PDF, EPUB, and More
Nellie McKesson
In this session, we’ll explore why publishers seeking new, innovative workflows should look beyond traditional commercial desktop publishing suites and embrace open web technology as the building blocks for next-generation book authoring and production tools. Topics will include:
• HTML5 as a semantic source format
• Print typesetting with CSS Paged Media
• Using HTML5 as a base format from which all other formats can be created

Create Amazing Experiences in iBooks Author

Erica Gamet
Take a look at the new and improved version of Apple’s iBooks Author! If you’re looking for a ready-made, template-driven digital publishing solution, be sure to consider this easy-to-use app. We’ll look at what it has to offer, how it integrates with your existing workflow, and where it still falls short. This rapid-fire session will discuss the strengths—and weaknesses—of iBooks Author, arming you with info as to its viability as a tool in your digital publishing toolbox.
• What types of projects work best with iBooks Author
• iBooks Author and your InDesign workflow
• Why templates and widgets are cool
• Where iBooks Author fits into your workflow
• Where iBooks Author falls short
• The InDesign to iBooks Author IDML workflow

New Web-based Collaboration Services for Publishing Teams
Anne-Marie Concepción
Despite the hoopla about CMS’s and proprietary publishing systems, most of us in the trenches are still putting publications together the old-fashioned way: Microsoft Word files flowed into InDesign, print or PDF proofs circulated around the players, and updates to content delivered back to production by attachments to email (or written out in the email itself!). It’s prone to errors. It’s so slow. And it’s so aggravating! Join Anne-Marie in this lively session as she runs through a bunch of solutions that she and her cost-conscious publishing clients are putting to use today. Production turnaround times are slashed and users are amazed at how easily many problems can be solved using software already on hand or available at little or no cost.
• Using Dropbox and other file-sharing services instead of a dedicated file server
• The hidden features of Google Docs that can supplement your workflow
• Quick Word file clean-ups to minimize formatting trouble in InDesign
• Amazing InDesign plug-ins that allow concurrent, collaborative workflows
• When Adobe InCopy is a good solution for your company (and when it’s not)

3:30 pm – 4:30 pm
Exporting Layouts to HTML5 Apps and Publications
Justin Putney and Chris Converse
What do web pages, EPUBs, digital magazines, and web applications have in common? Yep, you guessed it: HTML5. Wouldn’t it be great to export your InDesign files directly to HTML5? Well, you can. There are quite a few ways to move your formatted content out of InDesign. What’s more, there are even solutions for converting animations, slideshows, media elements, and layouts from InDesign into fully interactive experiences! Join Justin and Chris as they explore the possibilities of creating, enhancing, animating HTML with InDesign. And once we have our HTML, we’ll discuss delivery options, including delivering your content as a Web App. Which means no app stores! In this session you’ll learn:
• Why HTML?
• How animations work in HTML
• InDesign tools for interactivity (animations, slideshows, interactivity)
• Export options
• When to use PDF
• Using online services for document delivery
• Plug-ins for advanced HTML exporting (in5)
• The difference between (native) Apps and Web Apps
• Converting HTML into native apps (PhoneGap, Baker Framework, LiquidState, etc.)

Setting Up InDesign to Be the Hub of Multi-Channel Publishing
Sean Harrison
Digital book production is usually done separately from print production. This means that every digital format — EPUB, Kindle .mobi, App data package, web content — has to be created separately, and becomes yet another product to maintain. In short, digital is alienated from print. What would it mean if the digital versions of a product could be created automatically from the print version? Peace, harmony, and unity? At least we could cut down on frustration, tedium, and mistakes! In this practical workshop, we will lay out the path to integrate digital book production into the existing print production workflow. There are several milestones that we will examine on this path, including:
• Preparing the InDesign book interior for digital production
• Styles, not overrides
• Bookmarks for document structure
• Dynamic endnotes using cross-references
• Conditions to differentiate digital content from print content
• Articles to organize complex content for digital output
• Image handling
• Curating the book files as a “canonical living source” for both print and digital products
• Preparing digital publications from the book source files

Publishing to Amazon Kindle in 2017
Kevin Callahan
The Amazon Kindle is not just a device, it’s a platform for distributing books, magazines, apps, and digital documents of all sorts. And if you’re not publishing for Kindle, you’re missing out on a huge opportunity to get your documents into people’s hands. Learn the “how-to” essentials from a master of Kindle production!

4:45 pm – 5:30 pm
The Future of Publishing: Seeing with a 2020 Lens

David Blatner and Anne-Marie Concepción
We’re seven years into the second major publishing revolution, but what has changed? And what is about to change? Get a glimpse into the future from our expert panelists, and learn how to manage your documents and workflow to best prepare for 2018… 2019… and 2020!

Friday, May 26 (PePcon optional post-conference tutorials)

9:00 am – 12:00 pm
InDesign to Mobile: Twixl, AEM Mobile, and more
Keith Gilbert
Adobe InDesign and Adobe DPS (now called Adobe Experience Manager Mobile) is just one way to publish “content rich” interactive apps such as digital magazines to mobile devices. But DPS is definitely not the only game in town—and it’s not the best fit for everyone! In this session we will examine several market-leading InDesign-based app publishing solutions: Aquafadas, In5, Mag+, PugPig, Paperlit, and Twixl Publisher. You will see these products in operation, and learn:
• How the same sample project would be built with each product
• How to include interactivity in your InDesign files for these products
• How the products are similar and how they differ in operation, features, limitations, and price
• What type of project is the “sweet spot” for each product
• Which marketplaces and devices each product supports
• Case studies about actual apps that have been created with each product

ePUB Beyond the Basics
Laura Brady
You already know how to export an EPUB from InDesign. So what comes next? This workshop will be a deep dive into some of the more complex issues in reflowable and fixed-layout EPUB – a full set of 2017 best practices for creating accessible EPUBs with rich navigation and a next-level reading experience. Partly in InDesign and partly in the code, this will be a hands-on look at next-level EPUBs, including topics like semantic markup, accessibility, images, CSS, media queries, navigation, and troubleshooting. Come prepared to get your hands dirty in messy code – and to figure out how to tame it!
• EPUB3: Where are we now? Is there any reason to export as EPUB2?
• What is semantic markup? Tips for exporting the best HTML from ID, and improving it post-export
• Scripts, code editors, and other tools
• Building one file to rule them all
• Tools for troubleshooting
• Future-proofing markup into your development process

9:00 am – 4:30 pm
Design Deep Dive Tutorial: Before & After
John McWade
John McWade is an internationally-renowned industry legend who has taught a generation of designers and publishers, since founding Before & After magazine in 1990. Now, you can join John McWade for a rare full-day live seminar, at CreativePro Week 2017, where he’ll teach his principles of simple beauty, clarity of instruction, and an emphasis on design, not as decoration but an essential form of communication.
• Design tips for both beginning and experienced designers!
• Building presentations
• Creating a logo
• How to set perfect text
• Techniques every designer should know

Creative Developers Summit
Chuck Weger, et al

1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
Creating Interactive PDF
David Blatner
Did you know you could super charge that plain old PDF right within InDesign? From adding simple links and other interactivity, to adding working forms, you can easily make that PDF a more interactive experience for your users. In this session, you’ll explore the different tools and methods both InDesign and Acrobat have for adding interactive elements to your PDF. You’ll also see the best ways to add some amazing functionality to that plain old PDF, like the following:
• Understand the interactive features you can add to a PDF in InDesign and Acrobat
• Best practices for optimizing PDF
• Work with scripts in InDesign to make creating PDF faster (and easier)
• Add a working form in InDesign
• Show and hide content and other tricks
• Make the PDF more interactive with video and sound
• Continue in Acrobat and get an idea for what’s possible beyond InDesign

Building a Photo Essay: Walk, Shoot, and Publish
Mike Rankin
Join us for a fun and educational tutorial, starting with an empty camera and ending with a book ready for publishing to print, EPUB, and interactive digital document.

Register to Attend

Space is limited, so register today!
• Discount: Get $100 off by using the following discount code, during the registration process:
CPWMARK
• Location: Westin Buckhead hotel
Address: 3391 Peachtree Road NE, Atlanta, GA, 30326
Hotel Reservations: 866-716-8108 / 404-365-0065
Your registration includes:
• Over a dozen “how-to” sessions about digital and print publishing taught by world-class experts
• Video access for the conference sessions on the days that you attend the event (Video access does not include half- or full-day tutorials)
• Full breakfast, networking lunches, and evening reception
• Over 100 pages of helpful session material and resources
• Access to the online community forums for conference attendees
More information:
To download the CreativePro Week brochure, click here.
To download the CreativePro Week schedule, click here.
If you have questions about registration, click here, to see contact information.

Support PePcon, Print and ePublishing
Support the print and ePublishing industry, by purchasing Markzware DTP products, such as PDF2DTP conversion software, and by attending PePcon! You can also:
Tweet about @pepcon with Markzware on Twitter.
Like and Share PePcon information with Markzware on Facebook.
Discuss PePcon with the Markzware User Group on LinkedIn.
Post about PePcon with Markzware on Google+.

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PePcon Print+ePublishing Conference: eBook Design Printing, Publishing