An EPUB table of contents involves more than the page a reader can see. Keep chapter headings, default reading order, EPUB 3 navigation, and legacy NCX information conceptually separate. A short mapping from label to destination prevents an omitted input from hiding behind a plausible-looking contents page.
Map four chapters before export
Write one row for each chapter: displayed heading, source file, whether it belongs in navigation, and its position in the book. If a preface should not appear in navigation, record “excluded” rather than leaving the field blank. A blank cannot distinguish intention from oversight.
Under the EPUB 3.3 Recommendation, the EPUB Navigation Document provides global navigation while the spine establishes default reading order. NCX is encountered as a compatibility resource for older reading systems. These related files should not be described as one interchangeable table of contents.
Set order and inclusion independently
After selecting manuscript files in Rune Studio's EPUB wizard, use Chapter Order to drag the chapters into reading sequence and choose which headings appear in navigation. A page can belong in the reading order without needing a menu entry, so a cleared navigation choice should not silently remove content.
On Review and Export, read the title-page and navigation-page positions, chapter sequence, and included entries. After generation, inspect each nav label and target. Check NCX item count and destinations separately instead of assuming that one file proves the other.
In a three-chapter output used for structural inspection, nav contained three chapter links and NCX contained three navigation points. The six-item spine ran through title, nav, three chapters, and colophon. Publication metadata was present and the local package check returned valid. A four-chapter production book still needs comparison with its own four-row source map.
Matching counts can still conceal a broken book
Three labels that all open chapter one produce a correct count and an unusable menu. Chapters two and three can also be swapped while every required file exists. A renamed heading may leave a stale label. Review label, destination, and sequence together for each row.
Whether the absence of NCX is a defect depends on the target and compatibility requirement. The bounded Rune Studio behavior discussed here generates nav.xhtml and a legacy-compatible NCX. It should not be expanded into a guarantee for every old device.
Finish with a real navigation action
Static inspection catches missing or mismatched destinations. A target reading app tells you whether the menu actually opens the intended chapter in the reader's interface. Begin with the four-chapter mapping, reproduce it in Rune Studio's Chapter Order page, and then perform both checks. The application's current EPUB feature scope supplies the product-specific boundary.
