thumbnails and sorting

shoelesshunter · 08-14-2016, 12:30 AM

I have a jailbroken KV. I use Calibre to transfer books.

I wish to have my books show up as "books," retain the thumbnail cover and enable sharing of contents.

when I convert my books to azw3, I get this, however when I enable sharing, I loose the cover, and the book only shows up under "all items"

is there a way to have my cake and eat it too? I have root on the device, so I can't believe the task isn't possible.

knc1 · 08-14-2016, 07:37 AM

Firmware version number please.

shoelesshunter · 08-14-2016, 07:49 AM

5.6.5

knc1 · 08-14-2016, 08:04 AM

Is the 'enable sharing' you mention a feature of Calibre or of the Kindle?

You have to help me a bit here, I don't recall an 'enable sharing' in 5.6.5

shoelesshunter · 08-14-2016, 09:34 AM

sorry. yes, when I convert in Calibre, there is an option to enable sharing of contents over social media.

when I convert to azw3 *without* that being ticked, I get books showing up under "books" and I get the thumbnail cover. good.

however, if I convert to azw3 with "sharing" ticked, the covers fail to appear.

thank you, btw, for making this jailbreak possible. I've been waiting months for this and nearly cracked open the case for a serial jailbreak.

knc1 · 08-14-2016, 10:32 AM

You are more likely to get help in the appropriate forum:
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=166

eschwartz · 08-15-2016, 01:48 AM

Technically, this is an issue regarding Amazon's device and its handling of Kindle format ebooks according to cdetype. So it could belong in the Kindle forums as well

even though calibre is the tool most often used to manipulate MOBI/AZW3 cdetypes.

There is a calibre FAQ about this: https://manual.calibre-ebook.com/faq...droid-ipad-etc

shoelesshunter · 08-15-2016, 02:37 AM

The information in the link is incomplete; I have read it many times in my struggle. If this sounds trivial, my sincere OCD has driven me to figure this out through trial and error.

Converting from any format to azw3 will get: books filed under "books" and a thumbnail cover so long as the cover is of a high enough resolution to meet the device requirements (most Calibre generated covers seem to be).

However, enabling the social media sharing during the conversion removes the thumbnail view (oddly this is the inverse of what occurs with a mobi conversion??).

It's a Calibre conversion issue... it's a Kindle issue... I brought up the matter here because having recently jailbroken the device, I wanted to dig deeper into fine tuning the way the Kindle sorts these things. When I download from my COPS server (all azw3), I get mixed results. I have used ExtractCoverTumbs.py in the past to fix this at the desktop level. Could there maybe be a way to trigger the script on the device when for instance, a file is downloaded from a server and no thumbnail is supplied either by USB or the Amazon servers?

shoelesshunter · 08-15-2016, 04:26 AM

One last note, I just discovered this. If you convert to azw3, and don't enable sharing of contents, yet supply a valid ASIN and apply the ASIN fix via the Quality Check Plugin, you actually get the content sharing back, along with thumbnails, and the proper "books" sorting. That's the grail. I'll take this over the the Calibre forums.

knc1 · 08-15-2016, 04:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shoelesshunter

- - - -
Could there maybe be a way to trigger the script on the device when for instance, a file is downloaded from a server and no thumbnail is supplied either by USB or the Amazon servers?

? ? ? ?
Isn't the cover of the book AND its thumbnail a part of the book in azw3 format?

The custom screensaver add-in takes the cover from a book and re-sizes it into a screensaver -
Perhaps you will need a modification of that which takes the cover from a book and re-sizes it into a thumbnail.

Have you examined the actual book(s) that are giving you the trouble to see if the conversion process left the cover in the book?
Yes, there is a tool for that, I forget its name.

shoelesshunter · 08-15-2016, 09:53 PM

this probably all seems so silly. I used a Kobo for years before coming to own this Kindle. and nothing has made sense since. I could take or leave the grid-view covers. I never use nor intend to use the social media functions, and Whispersync has no appeal; the book/doc sorting however is important as I use the device to back up important papers I keep with me. the fixation on all of this stems from not understanding why these hurdles need even be addressed, and feeling that maybe I must be missing something if I can't make it "all work." if the device can do all of these things, why the need for voodoo and incantations to make it happen? I remember why, because simplicity would simply hit Amazon in the wallet. but I digress. no, I don't know why format conversion with one feature enabled kills the functionality of another, unrelated, feature of the device/file, and I have extensively tested the processes with fresh files, clean devices, and every combination of parameters I could cook up.

anyway, I'm happy with the equation that seems to work so far. I just want to read books and play with the tech to what extent I know how. this is a good forum. keep at it.

knc1 · 08-15-2016, 10:07 PM

Could you please fix your keyboard's 'enter' key ?
It isn't inserting any line breaks.

These flow of consciousness, mind dump, blobs of letters are very hard to read.

eschwartz · 08-16-2016, 02:01 AM

It really is very simple, just like the calibre FAQ says.

The Kindle prefers to download cover thumbnails from Amazon's servers, rather than extracting them from the books themselves.
Any book with an ASIN and/or cdetype=EBOK is assumed to come from Amazon. Only PDOCs get the cover thumbnail extracted from the book.

"sharing enabled" is a user-friendly way of describing the effects of complicated concepts like "the exth 501 field (cdetype) is set to EBOK and the exth 113 (asin) field is empty". Because most people don't want to know what an "ASIN" is.

zxczxc · 08-16-2016, 06:06 AM

Ah, eschwartz, so that is why the kindle books I de-drmed and put on a new kindle had no covers, until I turned off airplane mode.
That makes sense (although, I don't think it's a good idea!)

NiLuJe · 08-16-2016, 08:27 AM

What @eschwartz said

.

And as for the inconsistencies between what Calibre does by default and the the "no sharing + ASIN fix" combo, they lie in the fact that Calibre uses a "fake" uuid, while you're expected to use a valid ASIN for the fix (i.e., social media sharing *requires* a valid ASIN pointing to the right book).

I seem to recall that Calibre *might* try to use an existing ASIN if it's set properly in the (Calibre) metadata, which may save you a step, but I might very well have been dreaming that one up

.

08-14-2016, 12:30 AM	#1
shoelesshunter copyleft librarian Posts: 58 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2015 Device: KV	thumbnails and sorting I have a jailbroken KV. I use Calibre to transfer books. I wish to have my books show up as "books," retain the thumbnail cover and enable sharing of contents. when I convert my books to azw3, I get this, however when I enable sharing, I loose the cover, and the book only shows up under "all items" is there a way to have my cake and eat it too? I have root on the device, so I can't believe the task isn't possible.

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08-14-2016, 07:37 AM	#2
knc1 Going Viral Posts: 17,212 Karma: 18210809 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Central Texas Device: No K1, PW2, KV, KOA	Firmware version number please.

08-14-2016, 07:49 AM	#3
shoelesshunter copyleft librarian Posts: 58 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2015 Device: KV	5.6.5

08-14-2016, 08:04 AM	#4
knc1 Going Viral Posts: 17,212 Karma: 18210809 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Central Texas Device: No K1, PW2, KV, KOA	Is the 'enable sharing' you mention a feature of Calibre or of the Kindle? You have to help me a bit here, I don't recall an 'enable sharing' in 5.6.5

08-14-2016, 09:34 AM	#5
shoelesshunter copyleft librarian Posts: 58 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2015 Device: KV	sorry. yes, when I convert in Calibre, there is an option to enable sharing of contents over social media. when I convert to azw3 without that being ticked, I get books showing up under "books" and I get the thumbnail cover. good. however, if I convert to azw3 with "sharing" ticked, the covers fail to appear. thank you, btw, for making this jailbreak possible. I've been waiting months for this and nearly cracked open the case for a serial jailbreak.

08-14-2016, 10:32 AM	#6
knc1 Going Viral Posts: 17,212 Karma: 18210809 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Central Texas Device: No K1, PW2, KV, KOA	You are more likely to get help in the appropriate forum: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=166

08-15-2016, 01:48 AM	#7
eschwartz Ex-Helpdesk Junkie Posts: 19,421 Karma: 85397180 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: The Beaten Path, USA, Roundworld, This Side of Infinity Device: Kindle Touch fw5.3.7 (Wifi only)	Technically, this is an issue regarding Amazon's device and its handling of Kindle format ebooks according to cdetype. So it could belong in the Kindle forums as well even though calibre is the tool most often used to manipulate MOBI/AZW3 cdetypes. There is a calibre FAQ about this: https://manual.calibre-ebook.com/faq...droid-ipad-etc

08-15-2016, 02:37 AM	#8
shoelesshunter copyleft librarian Posts: 58 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2015 Device: KV	The information in the link is incomplete; I have read it many times in my struggle. If this sounds trivial, my sincere OCD has driven me to figure this out through trial and error. Converting from any format to azw3 will get: books filed under "books" and a thumbnail cover so long as the cover is of a high enough resolution to meet the device requirements (most Calibre generated covers seem to be). However, enabling the social media sharing during the conversion removes the thumbnail view (oddly this is the inverse of what occurs with a mobi conversion??). It's a Calibre conversion issue... it's a Kindle issue... I brought up the matter here because having recently jailbroken the device, I wanted to dig deeper into fine tuning the way the Kindle sorts these things. When I download from my COPS server (all azw3), I get mixed results. I have used ExtractCoverTumbs.py in the past to fix this at the desktop level. Could there maybe be a way to trigger the script on the device when for instance, a file is downloaded from a server and no thumbnail is supplied either by USB or the Amazon servers?

08-15-2016, 04:26 AM	#9
shoelesshunter copyleft librarian Posts: 58 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2015 Device: KV	One last note, I just discovered this. If you convert to azw3, and don't enable sharing of contents, yet supply a valid ASIN and apply the ASIN fix via the Quality Check Plugin, you actually get the content sharing back, along with thumbnails, and the proper "books" sorting. That's the grail. I'll take this over the the Calibre forums.

08-15-2016, 09:53 PM	#11
shoelesshunter copyleft librarian Posts: 58 Karma: 10 Join Date: Nov 2015 Device: KV	this probably all seems so silly. I used a Kobo for years before coming to own this Kindle. and nothing has made sense since. I could take or leave the grid-view covers. I never use nor intend to use the social media functions, and Whispersync has no appeal; the book/doc sorting however is important as I use the device to back up important papers I keep with me. the fixation on all of this stems from not understanding why these hurdles need even be addressed, and feeling that maybe I must be missing something if I can't make it "all work." if the device can do all of these things, why the need for voodoo and incantations to make it happen? I remember why, because simplicity would simply hit Amazon in the wallet. but I digress. no, I don't know why format conversion with one feature enabled kills the functionality of another, unrelated, feature of the device/file, and I have extensively tested the processes with fresh files, clean devices, and every combination of parameters I could cook up. anyway, I'm happy with the equation that seems to work so far. I just want to read books and play with the tech to what extent I know how. this is a good forum. keep at it.

08-15-2016, 10:07 PM	#12
knc1 Going Viral Posts: 17,212 Karma: 18210809 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Central Texas Device: No K1, PW2, KV, KOA	Could you please fix your keyboard's 'enter' key ? It isn't inserting any line breaks. These flow of consciousness, mind dump, blobs of letters are very hard to read.

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08-16-2016, 02:01 AM	#13
eschwartz Ex-Helpdesk Junkie Posts: 19,421 Karma: 85397180 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: The Beaten Path, USA, Roundworld, This Side of Infinity Device: Kindle Touch fw5.3.7 (Wifi only)	It really is very simple, just like the calibre FAQ says. The Kindle prefers to download cover thumbnails from Amazon's servers, rather than extracting them from the books themselves. Any book with an ASIN and/or cdetype=EBOK is assumed to come from Amazon. Only PDOCs get the cover thumbnail extracted from the book. "sharing enabled" is a user-friendly way of describing the effects of complicated concepts like "the exth 501 field (cdetype) is set to EBOK and the exth 113 (asin) field is empty". Because most people don't want to know what an "ASIN" is.

08-16-2016, 06:06 AM	#14
zxczxc Addict Posts: 229 Karma: 136002 Join Date: Apr 2013 Device: PW	Ah, eschwartz, so that is why the kindle books I de-drmed and put on a new kindle had no covers, until I turned off airplane mode. That makes sense (although, I don't think it's a good idea!)

08-16-2016, 08:27 AM	#15
NiLuJe BLAM! Posts: 13,478 Karma: 26012494 Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Paris, France Device: Kindle 2i, 3g, 4, 5w, PW, PW2, PW5; Kobo H2O, Forma, Elipsa, Sage, C2E	What @eschwartz said . And as for the inconsistencies between what Calibre does by default and the the "no sharing + ASIN fix" combo, they lie in the fact that Calibre uses a "fake" uuid, while you're expected to use a valid ASIN for the fix (i.e., social media sharing requires a valid ASIN pointing to the right book). I seem to recall that Calibre might try to use an existing ASIN if it's set properly in the (Calibre) metadata, which may save you a step, but I might very well have been dreaming that one up .