43 Chapter 1: Getting Started with Pressbooks

Section 1.1: Introduction to Pressbooks

Pressbooks is an open-source platform designed for creating and distributing digital books. It is widely used in education for publishing Open Educational Resources (OER) and provides a simple yet powerful interface for organizing content, adding multimedia, and formatting books for different platforms. Whether you’re publishing an eBook, a PDF, or an online resource, Pressbooks offers flexibility and control over every aspect of your project.

Why Use Pressbooks?

• Easily format books without needing coding knowledge.
• Publish in multiple form, download a copy (PDF, ePub, Webbook).
• Integrate multimedia, tables, and interactive content.

Digital Accessibility Adapted from Person Showing Online Book by indypendez, Canva.com © 2024 by Megan Zara is licensed under CC BY 4.0

Section 1.2: Setting Up Your Book

Creating a new project in Pressbooks is simple. After logging into your account, click on “Create a New Book.” You will need to provide a title, a brief description, and choose a URL for your book. This is also the stage where you can choose a basic theme, although this can be changed later.

• Create a New Book
• Add Book Information (title, description, author details)
• Choose a Theme

Section 1.3: Overview of Features

Before diving into content creation, it’s important to familiarize yourself with the Pressbooks dashboard. The key features you’ll be working with include:

• Text Editor: Allows you to add and format text.
• Media Uploader: For adding images, audio, and video.
• Organize Tab: Lets you structure your book into chapters and sections.
• Export Options: Multiple formats available for download, including PDF and ePub.