Calibre: Anyone here use this?

[toomuchreading]

For myself, I have never used the Sony software, because, when it first came out (I had one of the earlier Sony reader models to start with) it was so buggy, and everyone was complaining about the issues it caused with their reader and computer. I just started using Calibre right from the get go. The Sony ereaders were great, but the interface software not so. Sony doesn't seem to be really responsive to user needs/issues, whereas Kovid and his team really do fix any issues that come up, sometimes in as little as a couple of hours of an issue being reported! (Yay Calibre!)
I wanted to have as few issues as possible, and have support when I had a problem. I did some research before I bought my reader and came to this solution. I've now had 2 Sony readers and various older PDA's and have used Calibre for my electronic library management software. I'm more than happy with the level of stability and support. Calibre has yet to cause any issues on either my desktop or reader.
My current reader which is a PRS-T1 will probably be my last Sony reader, since as of the PRS-T2, Sony has decided to remove the audio component from their e-reader hardware. Having text to speech on my ereader is a is a requirement for me, for a lot of various reasons, so even though I like the Sony hardware, I'll probably be going somewhere else for my next e-reader.

[andy washere]

Over 10,000 fiction books in Calibre and it handles them well, all ePub but easy to convert to others. More like 15,000 now, merged two libraries. Need a book? You don't wanna see my nonfiction library.

[andy washere]

Originally Posted by toomuchreading

Having text to speech on my ereader is a is a requirement for me, for a lot of various reasons, so even though I like the Sony hardware, I'll probably be going somewhere else for my next e-reader.

I believe that they are pulling out of the market all together because of low market share, which sux.

[tvuongpham]

Another great feature:

Calibre can function as a your wifi library.
"Start Content Server"

Instead of using dropbox... browse to the Calibre library and manage content wirelessly.

[eschwartz]

Originally Posted by tvuongpham

Another great feature:

Calibre can function as a your wifi library.
"Start Content Server"

Instead of using dropbox... browse to the Calibre library and manage content wirelessly.

Kovid has long-term plans to create an editing/adding interface into the content server, but is nowhere near realizing it yet.

At the moment, it can only be used to download, and using calibre2opds + Dropbox is just as good as the Content Server, with the added functionality of working even outside your home network.

Yes, you can get a server to run calibre on, or use a service like freedns.afraid.org to point to your home computer, but this is both complex and requires constantly running the server. Dropbox is always available, and you just need to save the right html file to link to all your books.

[EbookNovice]

So would using Calibre affect the way I use Evernote? What would it change in regard to me uploading highlighted quotes to Evernote?

If it replaced the software on my PRS-T2, I wouldn't be able to upload my quotes to Evernote, right?

[speakingtohe]

Originally Posted by EbookNovice

So would using Calibre affect the way I use Evernote? What would it change in regard to me uploading highlighted quotes to Evernote?

If it replaced the software on my PRS-T2, I wouldn't be able to upload my quotes to Evernote, right?

Calibre doesn't replace the software on your T2

Helen

[carpetmojo]

Just makes using Sony hardware so much more enjoyable

[Bookworm_Girl]

Originally Posted by EbookNovice

So would using Calibre affect the way I use Evernote? What would it change in regard to me uploading highlighted quotes to Evernote?

If it replaced the software on my PRS-T2, I wouldn't be able to upload my quotes to Evernote, right?

It is software on your computer. You use it for library management and to transfer your books from your computer to your T2. It is a substitute for the Sony desktop software. You can still use Evernote with your books on your T2.

[filmo]

For the price of free you should try Calibre and see if it is useful to you. It was developed to handle his collection of books not bought from Sony to load onto his Sony reader. It still is good for books not from your reader's store and much more.

[hansl]

Originally Posted by Bookworm_Girl

It is software on your computer. You use it for library management and to transfer your books from your computer to your T2. It is a substitute for the Sony desktop software. You can still use Evernote with your books on your T2.

But your book notes are not synchronized by Calibre. If you remove a book from your reader hardware and recover it with Calibre your notes in the book are gone.
Your Evernote notes remain untouched because they are not on your reader hardware, as Bookworm_Girl noted. And even if they are on your reader, then as a separate epub which is managed by Calibre.

hansl

[emonti8384]

Originally Posted by speakingtohe

Calibre doesn't replace the Sony software. You can have both.

I agree, for me Calibre is a staple. It organizes everything better, it's simpler, rarely any hiccups, and I can get my "nerdy news" lol, so I tell everyone to install it. Plus I can convert my books over to the format I like. I think it does more and once you get the hang of it it's simpler than Sony's storage. The only reason I go into my Sony account is to buy a book, which is rare since I go to the library and re-read a lot. Plus my TBR pile is pretty large, so unless it's an author I'm following I just plug away at that lol! The Sony bookshelf used to be easier for managing your stuff but although it's less of a hassle bug-wise it's more of a hassle with it's auto-syncing, unable to sort your books how you want them and not as many options as the old. I hate the auto-syncing...

[injapan]

Yes, I love Calibre. It is awesome

[Mencken]

Originally Posted by EbookNovice

Hi all, I just read about Calibre in another thread and it looks interesting.

From what I can tell, it replaces the Sony Reader software on the PC/Mac.

Currently, I'm happy with using Evernote to upload quotes I highlight in the e-books I read and it's great because I can't accidentally edit the quotes. My full solution is outlined here: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=225769

However, issue with the Sony Reader software is that there isn't a 'real' cloud solution other than the Evernote functionality.

What can Calibre do better than the Sony Reader software?

Thank you!

When I first got interested in an ebook, the reading and research I did on them made me think, A-ha, this is a flash drive with a screen.

Somehow somewhere along the way of this reading and research, I stumbled upon this thing called Calibre. Well, I was never interested in purchasing books from any online anything; I had noticed too much out there online that was there simply for the downloading. Calibre, then, interested me.

So I purchased a Sony PRS-300 (I think that's the model number of it) and never even clicked on or installed the Sony bookstore thingy. I think I posted here once asking whether I could or should removed that software since I wasn't going to be using it.

So here I am -- what? -- two years down the road with my PRS-300, using Calibre, and I'm utterly content, not having been through the doors of a B&N or BAM but once or twice since.

If you want to read the latest stuff, I guess, you'd need the Sony bookstore. But for downloading from the Mobileread library or Google books, I don't know of any use for the software.

Also, the conversion features of Calibre are excellent for me. I sometimes use the add-on (can't remember the name of it) that converts wiki pages to epub. There is another add-on that converts Word docx to ebpub that I use frequently. (I've found that conversion to lfr produces for my tastes a book with a better feel.)

In short, if you're not buying books online but simply downloading them, Calibre is excellent.