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Create and format links in iBooks Author

Find out how to create links, add links to other parts of the same book or add links to other books.

Create a link

  1. Select the text or image you want to become a link.

  2. If the Link inspector isn't open, click Inspector in the toolbar and then click the Link Inspector button.

  3. In the Link inspector, click Hyperlink.

  4. Choose "Enable as a hyperlink".

  5. Choose Webpage, then enter your link in the URL field.

You can also add links to images or link to specific chapters, sections or page numbers.

Add links to other parts of the same book in an HTML Widget

Links within the same book in an HTML Widget use a standardised format: ibooks://#link type(content number).

  • ibooks://#: All links within the same book start with ibooks://#

  • link type: The type of content you're linking to (page, chapter or figure type)

  • content number: The number of the content type that you're linking to

Here are some examples:

  • To link to page 10, use ibooks://#page(10)

  • To link to chapter 5, use ibooks://#chapter(5)

  • To link to chapter 5, section 2, use ibooks://#chapter(5.2)

  • To link to Gallery figure 2.2, use ibooks://#gallery(2.2)

  • To link to Review figure 1.3, use ibooks://#review(1.3)

Add links to another book in Apple Books

To link to another book in Apple Books, you'll need to know the book's asset ID. Find a book's asset ID by going to its iTunes Preview web page and checking the number in its URL. For example, in the URL https://itunes.apple.com/au/book/e.-o.-wilsons-life-on-earth/id888107968?mt=13, the asset ID is 888107968. A link to this book would be ibooks://assetid/888107968.

If the other book was created with iBooks Author, you can link to a specific location in it by using the format in the "Add links to other parts of the same book in an HTML Widget" section above. Just include the asset ID in the link. Here are some examples:

  • ibooks://assetid/888107968#page(10)

  • ibooks://assetid/888107968#chapter(2)

Linking to a specific part of a different book is only supported for non-EPUB format books created with iBooks Author. If you use the asset ID of an EPUB and specify a page number, the EPUB will open, but not to the correct page. You can also use links that include the asset ID in other apps, such as Mail, and the links will open in Apple Books.

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