Send-to-Kindle fix for Mobi files

[Crca]

Hello there,

I know there have been other posts about this some years ago, but I’m hoping something has changed in the meantime. How can you send a Mobi file to Kindle via email and keep a decent formatting?

1) If you convert an ebook to Mobi via Calibre first, then send it to the Kindle cloud (either via email or Calibre itself), it will lose the justified text, even if you had set the right converting options in Calibre. The file will appear as a personal document in your Kindle, and will preserve the thumbnail. The text however will be poorly displayed.

2) if you convert the ebook to Mobi via Kindle Preview, then send it to Kindle, it will generate a dual Mobi and preserve the right formatting, but won’t display the thumbnail.

3) If you side load the ebook via Calibre in Azw3 format, it will keep both the thumbnail and the justified text, but of course won’t be saved in the Kindle cloud.

Is there finally a way around to send Mobi files to the cloud and preserve thumbnail and settings?

Thank you

[jhowell]

That is a pretty good description of the trade offs involved. Nothing has changed or is likely to in the future. Amazon reserves the best Kindle experience for books obtained from them.

[Josieb1]

That’s how it is. I gave up with mobi files and sideloaded AZW3 instead. I do this mainly so I can bold the font in my sideloaded books.

[johnnyb]

Originally Posted by Crca

2) if you convert the ebook to Mobi via Kindle Preview, then send it to Kindle, it will generate a dual Mobi and preserve the right formatting, but won’t display the thumbnail.

I am also a bit annoyed by this behavior.
I have noticed that books sent as azw3 (I am using the rename epub to txt trick) that lose their covers are nevertheless recognized by calibre as part of the library or can be aligned with items in the library.
I have also noticed that Calibre fixes the ‘missing covers for sideloaded books’ by creating a cover folder where it places fallback covers that are then loaded and displayed.
My question is: Is it possible to send covers to Kindle to add to the books that I have previously uploaded via cloud. It seems to me that the infrastructure is technically there, all that is missing is an option. (Or maybe I am just missing something and it is already possible?)

Any help and comments are appreciated.

[Crca]

Originally Posted by johnnyb

My question is: Is it possible to send covers to Kindle to add to the books that I have previously uploaded via cloud.

I read on another thread that this was only possible with older firmwares:

"it used to be possible to have your cake and eat it too (i.e. Whispersync on AZW3 with book covers) using a python script called ExtractCoverThumbs, which would extract the covers from the AZW3 files after they were downloaded to your kindle and make them visible. Unfortunately this script doens't work on firmware 5.8.5 or above".

Anyway, since you'd still need to connect your Kindle to a PC, I don't really see the value of this solution: probably easier to just sideloads the books.

[johnnyb]

Originally Posted by Crca

I read on another thread that this was only possible with older firmwares:

"it used to be possible to have your cake and eat it too (i.e. Whispersync on AZW3 with book covers) using a python script called ExtractCoverThumbs, which would extract the covers from the AZW3 files after they were downloaded to your kindle and make them visible. Unfortunately this script doens't work on firmware 5.8.5 or above".

Anyway, since you'd still need to connect your Kindle to a PC, I don't really see the value of this solution: probably easier to just sideloads the books.

Hey and thanks for replying. I was aware of this solution, having used it until it stopped working.
The benefit of send-to-Kindle vs sideloading for me is that I can read those books not only on my Kindle but also my iPad or my phone and that notes and highlights are stored and synced on all my devices...

[Crca]

I thought that maybe we could add the mobi-ASIN to the book converted with Kindle Previewer, so that it'd download the right cover when sent via email? While this would only work with ebooks available on Amazon, it would still be a great fix.

So is there a way to edit the metadata of dual-mobi files?

[jhowell]

Originally Posted by Crca

I thought that maybe we could add the mobi-ASIN to the book converted with Kindle Previewer, so that it'd download the right cover when sent via email?

That won't work. When you upload a book to Amazon they pick a new 32-character ASIN for it and replace whatever is already in the metadata of the book. That is what ties it back to your account so that reading position and annotations will sync properly.

[Quoth]

Better to use USB. We have no idea what Amazon does with the copy. You can't believe anything large corporations claim.

You need to charge anyway. I hardly ever need to use a charger as I'll always use USB, even for books bought from Amazon. Easy to to it first and then get up to date with email, internet etc and the ereader is fully charged again.

I use a phrase near last reading position, instead of Cloud Sync, in search. Faster than Enabling WiFi and sync on two devices and works across platforms. No WiFi extends charge life hugely.

[Crca]

Originally Posted by Quoth

Better to use USB.

That's what I've always been doing. Still, I thought there must be a way to send a dual-mobi via email and have the cover downloaded somehow. Or the other way around - send an old mobi and get the text justified decently, at the very least. Let's hope someone comes up with a trick one day.

[Crca]

I thought I'd update this thread as Amazon is going to allow EPUB files to be sent to Kindle and converted to AZW3.

Can't help but hope this will finally allow users to send ebooks to the cloud AND keep the right formatting and thumbnails. Amazon is discontinuing the MOBI format, which is currently causing the poor conversion issues. If all EPUB files will be converted to AZW3, ideally we'll be able to sync all books across Kindle devices while keeping a decent formatting and the covers.

[johnnyb]

Originally Posted by Crca

Amazon is discontinuing the MOBI format, which is currently causing the poor conversion issues. If all EPUB files will be converted to AZW3, ideally we'll be able to sync all books across Kindle devices while keeping a decent formatting and the covers.

This, unfortunately, is only half true. As far as covers go, mobi’s show them, azw3’s don’t. As far as formatting goes, azw3 is of course better and supports hyphenation if the source files have been manually (e.g. with the help of a Calibre plugin) been hyphenated.

The discontinuation of mobi will actually lead to this: For most users, the books will look pretty much the same, have much better navigation but will be missing cover thumbnails.
For ‘experienced’ users (e.g. those that know their way around Calibre), books won’t be randomly delivered in mobi anymore regardless of the ‘send to Kindle’ procedure and original format used (e.g. email, app). They will look better if hypenated epubs are used as their source. But they will still not have covers.

Regarding the cover issue: I hope it annoys so many people that Amazon will have to come up with a fix. Ideally, of course, they would start delivering personal documents in kfx for devices that support it (make that a toggle to avoid compatibility issues). Here’s hoping...

[Crca]

Originally Posted by johnnyb

Regarding the cover issue: I hope it annoys so many people that Amazon will have to come up with a fix. Ideally, of course, they would start delivering personal documents in kfx for devices that support it (make that a toggle to avoid compatibility issues). Here’s hoping...

I'm assuming the reason they enable EPUB conversion is so that people can finally read on Kindle the ebooks they bought elsewhere (without having to use Calibre and sideload them). Preventing these ebooks from showing their covers would defeat the purpose of it, and be very shortsighted of Amazon.

[conan50]

Originally Posted by Crca

I thought I'd update this thread as Amazon is going to allow EPUB files to be sent to Kindle and converted to AZW3.

Can't help but hope this will finally allow users to send ebooks to the cloud AND keep the right formatting and thumbnails. Amazon is discontinuing the MOBI format, which is currently causing the poor conversion issues. If all EPUB files will be converted to AZW3, ideally we'll be able to sync all books across Kindle devices while keeping a decent formatting and the covers.

Sounds promising, and one less format to deal with. Everyone else uses Epub. Some Amazon books stopped working on e-ink devices after a recent update. I had to reset my Paperwhite due to the issue. Hopefully Epub puts an end to that sort of thing.

[johnnyb]

Originally Posted by Crca

I'm assuming the reason they enable EPUB conversion is so that people can finally read on Kindle the ebooks they bought elsewhere (without having to use Calibre and sideload them). Preventing these ebooks from showing their covers would defeat the purpose of it, and be very shortsighted of Amazon.

I agree. But as it stands, with no software changes coming from Amazon, this will inevitably happen.