How to read a flipbook with no internet

The document you need is always the one you cannot open: the manual on a shop floor with no signal, the menu in a dining room with a dead spot, the itinerary on a plane. A link is only as good as the connection behind it.

FlipbookIQ gives readers two ways to take a flipbook offline.

Save offline

Every flipbook has a Save offline button in its menu. When a reader taps it, the flipbook's page and every page image are kept on that reader's own device, in their browser. After that, opening the same link works with no signal.

A few things worth knowing:

• It only happens when the reader asks. Nothing is saved in the background.
• It stays current when there is signal. If you have published a newer version, the button changes to Update offline copy, and the reader sees the new one when they are back online.
• It needs no account and no app. It works in the browser they already use.
• Nothing is sent anywhere. The saved copy lives on the reader's device.

Where the browser supports it, a reader can also add the flipbook to their home screen, so it opens like an app.

Download a saved copy

If a reader wants something they can keep or send on, there is Download .fiq. It gives them a single file with every page inside it. They open it in any browser, with no internet. It is saved as an ordinary web page, so a double-click opens it on any computer or phone.

A saved copy is labelled as one, with its date, so nobody mistakes it for the live flipbook. It does not include things that need a connection, such as the question box and audio.

And the PDF

Every flipbook also offers a searchable PDF, for printing and for people who simply want a PDF. The text in it can be searched and copied.

Which should a reader use?

• Save offline is best for "I will need this later, on this device." It is one tap and stays up to date.
• Download .fiq is best for "I want a file I can keep or pass on."
• The PDF is best for printing, or for anyone who wants a PDF.

For the owner

You can switch downloads off for a flipbook in the Access panel if you would rather readers stayed on the page. A flipbook that is for sale, or in a public library, does not offer downloads.

Offline reading is on every plan. Open the Studio and try it on your own phone: tap Save offline, switch on airplane mode, and reload.