Convert FB2 to Textile

Why Convert FB2 to Textile?

Converting FB2 ebooks to Textile markup format is useful when you want to publish fiction content on websites, integrate ebook text into content management systems, or create web-friendly versions of your books. Textile's simple syntax makes it easy to edit content while maintaining formatting, and it converts cleanly to HTML for web publishing.

FB2 (FictionBook 2) is an XML-based ebook format extremely popular in Russia and Eastern Europe. It excels at storing fiction with rich metadata including author information, cover images, annotations, and structured chapters. However, FB2's XML structure makes manual editing cumbersome, and the format is primarily designed for reading rather than web content creation.

Textile provides a human-readable alternative that's perfect for web content. Created in 2002 by Dean Allen, Textile was designed to be simple to write and read while producing clean HTML output. The format is widely used in content management systems like Textpattern, project management tools like Redmine, and issue tracking systems like Jira. By converting FB2 to Textile, you gain the ability to easily publish ebook content on websites and edit it in any text editor.

Key Benefits of Converting FB2 to Textile:

• Web Publishing: Easily convert ebook content to web pages
• CMS Integration: Works with Textpattern, Redmine, and other systems
• Simple Syntax: Intuitive markup that's easy to learn
• Clean HTML: Converts to semantic, well-formatted HTML
• Editable Source: Plain text format easy to modify
• Fast Writing: Minimal syntax overhead for quick content creation
• CSS Styling: Supports custom classes and IDs

Practical Examples

Example 1: Book Chapter Conversion

Input FB2 file (book.fb2):

<section>
  <title>Chapter 1: The Beginning</title>
  <p>It was a dark and stormy night.</p>
  <p>The wind howled through the trees.</p>
  <emphasis>Important text</emphasis>
</section>

Output Textile file (book.textile):

h2. Chapter 1: The Beginning

It was a dark and stormy night.

The wind howled through the trees.

_Important text_

Example 2: Text Formatting

Input FB2 with formatting:

<p>This is <strong>bold text</strong> and <emphasis>italic text</emphasis>.</p>
<p>Here is some <code>inline code</code>.</p>

Output Textile:

This is *bold text* and _italic text_.

Here is some @inline code@.

Example 3: Lists and Structure

Input FB2 structure:

<section>
  <title>Features</title>
  <p>Key features include:</p>
  <ul>
    <li>Easy to use</li>
    <li>Fast conversion</li>
    <li>Free service</li>
  </ul>
</section>

Output Textile:

h2. Features

Key features include:

* Easy to use
* Fast conversion
* Free service

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: What is FB2 format?

A: FB2 (FictionBook 2) is an XML-based ebook format created in Russia in 2004. It's designed for storing fiction with rich metadata including author info, genres, cover images, and structured content. FB2 is extremely popular in Eastern Europe and CIS countries, supported by readers like FBReader, Cool Reader, and Calibre.

Q: What is Textile?

A: Textile is a lightweight markup language created by Dean Allen in 2002. It uses simple, intuitive syntax to format text for web publishing. Textile converts to clean HTML and is used in content management systems (Textpattern), project management tools (Redmine), and issue tracking systems (Jira).

Q: Will chapter structure be preserved?

A: Yes! FB2's section and title elements are converted to Textile headings (h1, h2, h3, etc.). The hierarchical structure of your book is maintained, making the output easy to read and further edit.

Q: How do I convert Textile to HTML?

A: Most content management systems that support Textile (like Textpattern and Redmine) automatically convert it to HTML. You can also use standalone tools like Pandoc or dedicated Textile parsers available for various programming languages (PHP, Ruby, Python, JavaScript).

Q: What text formatting is supported?

A: Textile supports bold (*text*), italic (_text_), underline (+text+), strikethrough (-text-), superscript (^text^), subscript (~text~), inline code (@code@), and combinations thereof. All common FB2 formatting converts to appropriate Textile equivalents.

Q: Can I add images to Textile?

A: Yes! Textile supports images with the syntax: !image.jpg! or !image.jpg(alt text)! for images with alt text. You can also add captions and align images left, right, or center. Images from FB2 are extracted and referenced in the Textile output.

Q: Is Textile better than Markdown?

A: Both have strengths. Textile has more features (tables, CSS classes, spans) and cleaner syntax for some elements. Markdown is more widely adopted. For CMS integration and web content, Textile excels. For general documentation, Markdown is more common. Choose based on your platform and needs.

Q: What tools can edit Textile?

A: Any text editor works with Textile files. Popular choices include VS Code, Sublime Text, Atom, Notepad++, or even simple editors like Notepad. Some CMS platforms provide built-in Textile editors with live preview. Online Textile editors are also available for quick testing.