Formating from .pdf TO .pdf? (Explanation below)

Dullahir · 08-11-2011, 06:14 PM

Hey everyone. I recently came across some .PDF's without covers on an old disc I have. The thing is, I'd like to add the respective covers via Calibre, but when I search for Metadata and then add the cover, even when formating to .pdf TO .pdf, it's completely off-center and stuff. Is there a way to put the book cover on a 'stripped' book WITH calibre WITHOUT losing quality? Thanks.

jackie_w · 08-11-2011, 09:54 PM

It's not possible to convert PDF to PDF in Calibre without losing quality because it gets converted to XHTML as an interim stage and Calibre has to do a best guess of how to reconstruct paragraphs (if you've ever tried to do this manually you'll understand the difficulty).

If all you want to do is change the cover then a proper PDF editor would be an easier option and would retain all the formatting. Acrobat Pro is one option but, of course, it's not cheap.

Dullahir · 08-12-2011, 12:39 AM

Damn, that's what I was afraid of. And yes, I do have Acrobat Pro.

But how would I go about finding a book cover that would be big enough to fit a whole page?

alansplace · 08-12-2011, 01:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dullahir

Damn, that's what I was afraid of. And yes, I do have Acrobat Pro.

But how would I go about finding a book cover that would be big enough to fit a whole page?

i use gimp to re-size my graphics.

Manichean · 08-12-2011, 02:12 AM

Moderator Notice
Moved to correct subforum.

itimpi · 08-12-2011, 05:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dullahir

But how would I go about finding a book cover that would be big enough to fit a whole page?

There are always the dedicated books sources that Calibre uses. Having said that I often find that google Images is as good a way as any to find a cover .

jackie_w · 08-12-2011, 08:55 AM

You might like to try out kiwidude's 'Search the Internet' plugin. One of the many options is to Google images for your currently selected book in the Calibre library window. It's very convenient.

Dullahir · 08-12-2011, 03:33 PM

You all are indeed very knowledgeable. =) But you're saying to just use Google Images and then download it somewhere, but not convert it, yes?

Thanks to everyone!

jackie_w · 08-12-2011, 05:57 PM

Yes. Select your book in the Calibre library window and then Edit Metadata. You can drag-drop your new cover over the old one (or the big plain brown one if you don't have an old one). This won't put the cover into the PDF but it will now be your Calibre cover.

If you did a conversion the new cover would be placed inside the converted book, as page 1. But as mentioned above, converting from a PDF will always degrade it.

08-11-2011, 06:14 PM	#1
Dullahir Zealot Posts: 146 Karma: 13316 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Deva, Romania Device: Android	Formating from .pdf TO .pdf? (Explanation below) Hey everyone. I recently came across some .PDF's without covers on an old disc I have. The thing is, I'd like to add the respective covers via Calibre, but when I search for Metadata and then add the cover, even when formating to .pdf TO .pdf, it's completely off-center and stuff. Is there a way to put the book cover on a 'stripped' book WITH calibre WITHOUT losing quality? Thanks.

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08-11-2011, 09:54 PM	#2
jackie_w Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,212 Karma: 16534894 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: UK Device: Kobo: KA1, ClaraHD, Forma, Libra2, Clara2E. PocketBook: TouchHD3	It's not possible to convert PDF to PDF in Calibre without losing quality because it gets converted to XHTML as an interim stage and Calibre has to do a best guess of how to reconstruct paragraphs (if you've ever tried to do this manually you'll understand the difficulty). If all you want to do is change the cover then a proper PDF editor would be an easier option and would retain all the formatting. Acrobat Pro is one option but, of course, it's not cheap.

08-12-2011, 12:39 AM	#3
Dullahir Zealot Posts: 146 Karma: 13316 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Deva, Romania Device: Android	Damn, that's what I was afraid of. And yes, I do have Acrobat Pro. But how would I go about finding a book cover that would be big enough to fit a whole page?

08-12-2011, 02:12 AM	#5
Manichean Wizard Posts: 3,130 Karma: 91256 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Germany Device: Cybook Gen3	Moderator Notice Moved to correct subforum.

08-12-2011, 08:55 AM	#7
jackie_w Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,212 Karma: 16534894 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: UK Device: Kobo: KA1, ClaraHD, Forma, Libra2, Clara2E. PocketBook: TouchHD3	You might like to try out kiwidude's 'Search the Internet' plugin. One of the many options is to Google images for your currently selected book in the Calibre library window. It's very convenient.

08-12-2011, 03:33 PM	#8
Dullahir Zealot Posts: 146 Karma: 13316 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Deva, Romania Device: Android	You all are indeed very knowledgeable. =) But you're saying to just use Google Images and then download it somewhere, but not convert it, yes? Thanks to everyone!

08-12-2011, 05:57 PM	#9
jackie_w Grand Sorcerer Posts: 6,212 Karma: 16534894 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: UK Device: Kobo: KA1, ClaraHD, Forma, Libra2, Clara2E. PocketBook: TouchHD3	Yes. Select your book in the Calibre library window and then Edit Metadata. You can drag-drop your new cover over the old one (or the big plain brown one if you don't have an old one). This won't put the cover into the PDF but it will now be your Calibre cover. If you did a conversion the new cover would be placed inside the converted book, as page 1. But as mentioned above, converting from a PDF will always degrade it.

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