Book contents

Typically, a book will contain the front matter, main body, and possibly also back matter.

Front Matter

RMIT open publications will include:

• a title page (automatically generated in Pressbooks from book metadata)
• an Acknowledgement of Country
• a Right of Reply
• a cultural warning notice
• accessibility details (e.g. accessibility statement and features, other file formats available where required)
• a versioning history (recording versions and changes)
• a preface (e.g. about this book, suggested reference, cover design details, published by)
• contributor details, including authors, editors, reviewers, and other acknowledgements
• an introduction.

Other material found in a printed book front matter typically includes a table of contents – this is automatically generated in Pressbooks.

Main Body

The main body is composed of parts and chapters that contain the core content of the book – that is, text, figures, tables, and references. Parts act as groupings that bring related chapters together, with each part typically consisting of several chapters. Chapters can be further divided into sections using built-in headings in Word.

Back Matter

Typical back matter includes:

• appendices
• epilogue/afterward
• glossary (you can provide the Open Education Team with a glossary in place of vocabulary or abbreviation lists).

Metadata

Rich metadata in your Pressbooks publication enhances its discoverability in search engines and indexes, while ensuring all relevant publication details are captured.

Metadata will be added to your Pressbook by a member of the Open Education Team and will appear on the homepage of your Pressbook. See the Pressbooks User Guide for full details.

There are some issues to be aware of regarding metadata, outlined below.

URL (web address)

Before your book can be created, you will need to choose a URL (web address) using the book title, e.g. https://rmit.pressbooks.pub/[book title]

Book information

While the URL is permanent, the book title can be changed later, if necessary. Pay particular attention to the wording of your title, subtitle and book description as this will maximise the discoverability of your work by search engines and indexed collections. Your description should be like an article abstract. Keep it brief and succinct (about 250 words) and consider how to describe your work as an elevator pitch.

Keywords will also need to be included in the metadata (approx. 3-5). Choose words that represent the principal themes or subjects in your work and think of what an individual might put into a search engine.

Identifiers

Traditionally, published books are assigned a unique identifier that distinguishes them from all other publications, including subsequent revisions or editions. These unique identifiers can assist in the shareability and discoverability of your work and allow tracking of alternative metrics more readily. This may be particularly important for authors wanting to document their impact.

In Pressbooks, unique identifier options are:

• ebook ISBN (International Standard eBook Number)
• print ISBN (International Standard Book Number)
• DOI (Digital Object Identifier).

Authors should carefully consider whether a unique identifier should be assigned to their book.

Contact the Open Education Team to discuss if you want to consider a unique identifier for your work.

Contributors

Book contributors can include authors, editors, translators, reviewers, illustrators, and others.

In Pressbooks, book-level contributors can be included in one or more roles. These details will appear on the homepage of your book. Chapter-level contributors can also be assigned, if necessary.