OK, Stupid Question Time.........

dickon25 · 10-20-2009, 02:54 PM

I'm starting to think about getting a Mac. Never used one before so I'm just starting to research it - I'm not particularly computer literate, but usually manage with a bit of trial and error! I know Calibre is Mac compatible but what about the changeover? If I backup my Calibre library will it port from Windows to Mac without issues? At the moment I buy a lot of books in .lit format and crunch them in Calibre but if I use a Mac will I be able to download them? I usually use Firefox browser but have to open IE to download .lit; (how) can I still do this on a Mac???

Sorry....ignorance is no excuse, I know!!

Thanks.

kovidgoyal · 10-20-2009, 02:56 PM

porting should go fine. just zip up your library folder and transfer it to your mac, thenpoint calibre to it via Preferences. After porting you should go to Preferences_>Advanced and run the database integrity check to make sure everything transferred ok

dickon25 · 10-20-2009, 03:01 PM

Sounds like even I could manage that!

Thanks, Kovid.

kjk · 10-20-2009, 03:34 PM

I have calibre on my Macbook at home, and on my XP computer at work. The library is in Dropbox, and is synced between the two. No problems on either end!

dickon25 · 10-20-2009, 04:59 PM

The library is in Dropbox, and is synced between the two.

So the two versions of Calibre talk to each other? Now that's cool!

How about .lit files on a Mac? Do you have to run IE? (Horrors!!

)

user_none · 10-20-2009, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dickon25

How about .lit files on a Mac? Do you have to run IE? (Horrors!!

)

IE? Internet Explorer? Converting and or viewing LIT files with calibre does not require or use IE.

dickon25 · 10-20-2009, 05:19 PM

No, but you need it to download .lit files. I normally use Mozilla Firefox but have to close it and run Internet Explorer when I want to download. I wondered how I would do this if I had a Mac?

user_none · 10-20-2009, 06:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dickon25

No, but you need it to download .lit files. I normally use Mozilla Firefox but have to close it and run Internet Explorer when I want to download. I wondered how I would do this if I had a Mac?

That would really depend on where you are getting your LIT files from and why / how they are blocking other browsers. I know that Fictionwise sells LIT books and they can be downloaded with non-IE browsers just fine.

The first thing to try is the User Agent Switcher extension. If that doesn't work and say they are using an Active X download manager (only works on IE) then there are a few other things you can try. You could try running IE in either WINE or CrossOver Mac. One other option is to run Windows and thus IE in a virtual machine. Parallels and VMWare Fusion are two popular pay solutions and VirutalBox is a great free one. I know Parallels and VMWare Fusion allow you to run Windows applications seamlessly, meaning they show up as a window on just like any other OS X app but I'm not sure if VirtualBox supports this.

kjk · 10-20-2009, 10:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dickon25

The library is in Dropbox, and is synced between the two.

So the two versions of Calibre talk to each other? Now that's cool!

How about .lit files on a Mac? Do you have to run IE? (Horrors!!

)

Well, I have access to Windows both at work (on the XP machine) and at home (thru Bootcamp/Vista on the Mac), so I don't really have any compatibility issues. That said, I don't see a lot of .LIT files these days.

And yes, using Dropbox as the intermediary between home and work is pretty awesome (as of course, is Calibre's/Sigil's incredible cross-platform support).

dickon25 · 10-21-2009, 11:51 AM

User_none and KjK thanks very much for the tips! Now that ePub is growing so rapidly I probably won't feel the need to use lit files much in the future - the main reason I go for it now is so I can control all my library through Calibre, rather than having to switch between ADE and Sony's library. But I needed to know that it would still be possible.

I feel a purchase coming on......

rcuadro · 10-21-2009, 04:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dickon25

So the two versions of Calibre talk to each other? Now that's cool!

They dont talk to each other... they just access and manipulate the eBook database the same way and is compatible with both

10-20-2009, 02:54 PM	#1
dickon25 Groupie Posts: 199 Karma: 818 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: UK Device: Sony PRS-505. Pocketbook Inkpad 840	OK, Stupid Question Time......... I'm starting to think about getting a Mac. Never used one before so I'm just starting to research it - I'm not particularly computer literate, but usually manage with a bit of trial and error! I know Calibre is Mac compatible but what about the changeover? If I backup my Calibre library will it port from Windows to Mac without issues? At the moment I buy a lot of books in .lit format and crunch them in Calibre but if I use a Mac will I be able to download them? I usually use Firefox browser but have to open IE to download .lit; (how) can I still do this on a Mac??? Sorry....ignorance is no excuse, I know!! Thanks.

10-20-2009, 04:59 PM	#5
dickon25 Groupie Posts: 199 Karma: 818 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: UK Device: Sony PRS-505. Pocketbook Inkpad 840	The library is in Dropbox, and is synced between the two. So the two versions of Calibre talk to each other? Now that's cool! How about .lit files on a Mac? Do you have to run IE? (Horrors!!) Last edited by dickon25; 10-20-2009 at 05:05 PM.

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10-20-2009, 02:56 PM	#2
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 43,843 Karma: 22666666 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	porting should go fine. just zip up your library folder and transfer it to your mac, thenpoint calibre to it via Preferences. After porting you should go to Preferences_>Advanced and run the database integrity check to make sure everything transferred ok

10-20-2009, 03:01 PM	#3
dickon25 Groupie Posts: 199 Karma: 818 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: UK Device: Sony PRS-505. Pocketbook Inkpad 840	Sounds like even I could manage that! Thanks, Kovid.

10-20-2009, 03:34 PM	#4
kjk . Posts: 3,408 Karma: 5647231 Join Date: Oct 2008 Device: never enough	I have calibre on my Macbook at home, and on my XP computer at work. The library is in Dropbox, and is synced between the two. No problems on either end!

10-20-2009, 05:19 PM	#7
dickon25 Groupie Posts: 199 Karma: 818 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: UK Device: Sony PRS-505. Pocketbook Inkpad 840	No, but you need it to download .lit files. I normally use Mozilla Firefox but have to close it and run Internet Explorer when I want to download. I wondered how I would do this if I had a Mac?

10-21-2009, 11:51 AM	#10
dickon25 Groupie Posts: 199 Karma: 818 Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: UK Device: Sony PRS-505. Pocketbook Inkpad 840	User_none and KjK thanks very much for the tips! Now that ePub is growing so rapidly I probably won't feel the need to use lit files much in the future - the main reason I go for it now is so I can control all my library through Calibre, rather than having to switch between ADE and Sony's library. But I needed to know that it would still be possible. I feel a purchase coming on......

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