Eh! Calibre starts with most recently added book in Book details

[BetterRed]

Wondering if anyone else has seen this.

When I start calibre 7.5.1 it opens the last library used with the topmost book (based on the current sort sequence) selected… as it always has.

But the Book details panel shows the the most recently added book. After delay of 1-5 seconds the book details panel will align to the selected book. The length of the delay appears to be based on the number of custom columns rather than the number of books - i.e. my Test library which has 80+ custom columns and < 100 books, is a lot slower than my journals library which has 5 custom columns and > 100,000 books.

It happens on a vanilla install of calibre portable 7.5.1 as well as my regular install of 7.5.1, which suggests its not an optional plugin like View Manager. And it doesn't happen on a vanilla install of calibre portable 6.29.

It's disconcerting, with no apparent side-effects.

Here's the startup debug

Spoiler:

ApplicationPaletteChange event ignored
Using calibre Qt style: True
ApplicationPaletteChange event received
calibre Debug log
calibre 7.5.1  embedded-python: True
Windows-10-10.0.19045-SP0 Windows ('64bit', 'WindowsPE')
('Windows', '10', '10.0.19045')
Python 3.11.5
Windows: ('10', '10.0.19045', 'SP0', 'Multiprocessor Free')
Interface language: None
EXE path: C:\Program Files\Calibre2\calibre-debug.exe
Successfully initialized third party plugins: BRMenu Menu (1, 2, 0) && Count Pages (1, 13, 5) && Drop Search Results (1, 0, 14) && Favourites Menu (1, 3, 0) && Job Spy (1, 0, 239) && Modify ePub (1, 8, 2) && Scroll Book Details (1, 0, 2) && View Manager (1, 10, 2)
calibre 7.5.1  embedded-python: True
Windows-10-10.0.19045-SP0 Windows ('64bit', 'WindowsPE')
('Windows', '10', '10.0.19045')
Python 3.11.5
Windows: ('10', '10.0.19045', 'SP0', 'Multiprocessor Free')
Interface language: None
EXE path: C:\Program Files\Calibre2\calibre-debug.exe
Successfully initialized third party plugins: BRMenu Menu (1, 2, 0) && Count Pages (1, 13, 5) && Drop Search Results (1, 0, 14) && Favourites Menu (1, 3, 0) && Job Spy (1, 0, 239) && Modify ePub (1, 8, 2) && Scroll Book Details (1, 0, 2) && View Manager (1, 10, 2)
QPA platform: windows
devicePixelRatio: 1.5
logicalDpi: 96.0 x 96.0
physicalDpi: 104.87741935483871 x 104.50285714285712
[0.00] Starting up...
[0.00] Initializing db...
[0.08] db initialized
[0.08] Constructing main UI...
[0.94] GUI main window shown
Job Spy has begun initialization...
orig_option = prefs.get[option_key]:  True
Tweak Library Name:  Test
'read_file_metadata' global.py file prefs.set  FROM:  True  TO:  True
'read_file_metadata' global prefs[option_key] value changed FROM:  True  TO:  True
author_sort_copy_method >>> default tweaks.py method is:  invert
current  tweaks['title_series_sorting']:  library_order
--->>>apply_title_series_sorting_by_library:   libname is NOT tweaked; default value used for:    Test    is:  library_order
title_series_sorting changed FROM:  library_order  TO:  library_order
Calibre, and hence Job Spy, was gracefully shut down last time?  True
Last time daemon started:  never
Last time daemon failed:  never
Total daemon starts inception_to_date:  0
Total daemon failures inception-to-date:  0
JS: ===>>> change_gui_alternating_row_colors()
Job Spy has finished initialization...
[1.28] main UI initialized...
[1.28] Started up in 1.28 seconds with 90 books

BR

[Comfy.n]

I've tried a few times to reproduce, but the Book Details panel did show the correct topmost title according to the chosen sort column... Just realised I have 34 custom columns

I also use JS+

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by Comfy.n

I've tried a few times to reproduce, but the Book Details panel did show the correct title according to the choosen sort column... Just realised I have 34 custom columns

I also use JS+

What do you have as your primary sort key, IIRC the default is Date descending which puts the most recently added book topmost.

My Test library primary sort key is author_sort and my Journals library is pubdate. The most recently added book to Test is by yarraboy, and the most recently added book in Journals has a pubdate in August 1997 so they both sort towards the bottom of the list.

BR

[Comfy.n]

My default sort for topmost is Last Action (from Last Modified plugin, you know)

[BetterRed]

Maybe it's because I have multiple physical libraries. Or perhaps it's always happened and I only just noticed it

BR

[kovidgoyal]

DOes it happen with --ignore-plugins

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

DOes it happen with --ignore-plugins

No! Including the portable install which has no optional plugins installed.

The library databases do of course have library specific plugin preference settings - including for plugins I removed years ago!

From metadata_db_prefs_backup.json:

{
Plugins in use
"namespaced:ViewManagerPlugin:settings": {
"namespaced:CountPagesPlugin:settings": {

Plugins removed long ago
"namespaced:FindDuplicatesPlugin:settings": {
"namespaced:ImportListPlugin:settings": {
"namespaced:GetFileNamePlugin:settings": {
"namespaced:ReadingListPlugin:settings": {
"namespaced:GenerateCoverPlugin:settings": {
"namespaced:QualityCheckPlugin:settings": {
}

BR

[BetterRed]

View Manager hasn't been updated since May 31 2023 - but that's where my suspicion now rests.

BR

[kovidgoyal]

Should be relatively simple to disable them one by one to find the oen causing it

[BetterRed]

I progressively removed the optional plugin preferences from a copy of my Test library, the JobSpy plugin has a tool to do it.

Still getting the BD for the 87th book displayed at start up or library open when the 1st book in the list is (appears to be) selected; although the delay to display the BD for the 1st book is a bit shorter - i.e 2-3 secs rather than 4-5 secs.

FWIW I see the same behaviour in versions 7.0 -> 7.51, but not on 6.29. It took a while to notice it because I hadn't been opening my Test library as much.

I now think its related to the nimber of columns, my Test library has a ridiculous number of them. And I have brain cell telling me it saw mention from you and/or chaley of changes as to what gets displayed when. So, I'm thinking the delays have always been there but weren't visible prior to version 7.

BR

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by BetterRed

I progressively removed the optional plugin preferences from a copy of my Test library, the JobSpy plugin has a tool to do it.

Still getting the BD for the 87th book displayed at start up or library open when the 1st book in the list is (appears to be) selected; although the delay to display the BD for the 1st book is a bit shorter - i.e 2-3 secs rather than 4-5 secs.

FWIW I see the same behaviour in versions 7.0 -> 7.51, but not on 6.29. It took a while to notice it because I hadn't been opening my Test library as much.

I now think its related to the nimber of columns, my Test library has a ridiculous number of them. And I have brain cell telling me it saw mention from you and/or chaley of changes as to what gets displayed when. So, I'm thinking the delays have always been there but weren't visible prior to version 7.

BR

However when I Quick switch between the same libraries in version 6.29 there is no discernible delay, including when I switch between my Test library with its 72 custom columns and my 150,000+ book Journals library — as far as I'm concerned the switching is instantaneous.

BR

[BetterRed]

This issue of a delay at start and library switch seems to have been resolved in version 7.6.

I checked to make sure it was still there in 7.5.1 immediately before installing 7.6… and it was.

After installing 7.6 - lo and behold it was gone, very weird

Added: Hopefully it won't come back.

BR

[DNSB]

Same here when I tested with 7.6 from install.

[BetterRed]

Bit late, but it's good to know I wasn't the only user experiencing inexplicable start up and library switch delays in version 7.0 → 7.5.1.

I was thinking I must be Robinson Crusoe.

BR

[Comfy.n]

The only hiccups I have experienced before 7.6 would occur while testing image insertions in custom columns, as discussed in this thread

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=359137

When I removed the inserted images or the custom columns I was testing, library switching / start up duration went back to normal.