Why does Calibre convert AZW to AZW3?

epstewart · 09-05-2014, 01:23 PM

I recently started adding my Kindle editions to Calibre. I have installed the latest DeDRM Calibre plugin and set things up to automatically convert added books to EPUB format. When I add a downloaded book with the .azw filename extension, I do get an EPUB conversion, but I also generally wind up with an AZW3 file.

I'd like to know why that happens. It seems to me that, the input format being AZW, without the "3", the result (apart from the separate EPUB conversion) ought to be AZW also.

I am putting these books in my Dropbox on my Mac and accessing them on my iPad that way. But the iPad does not recognize that AZW3 files can be opened in the iPad's Kindle app. It's a minor irritation since I can always get the same books directly via the Kindle app ... but it is an irritation.

So is there any way to get Calibre to use AZW format instead of AZW3 so I can access these books in Kindle for iPad?

Thanks for any help you can offer.

DiapDealer · 09-05-2014, 02:01 PM

It's not a conversion. It's just a file rename. Amazon's AZW file extension doesn't really tell you much about what's under the hood. It could be a standalone KF8 file, could be a plain-jane mobi, could even be topaz book. That particular file extension (AZW) has very little to do with the book's "format."

As for why it's being renamed to AZW3 upon import: that's not calibre doing that. That's your third-party plugin.

If the actual underlying format were a regular old-fashioned mobi, it would import as *.mobi file. If it's a standalone KF8 formatted file, it will import as an AZW3 file (a topaz file would import as an HTMLZ format). It's just an attempt to make the file extension actually MEAN something with regard to the book's underlying format. For all intents and purposes, AZW3 has come to be identified as a stand-alone KF8 formatted ebook.

It may not work for everybody, but it works for the vast majority.

Besides, I don't think you can't really sideload KF8 books into the iOS Kindle app regardless of the file's extension. That's why the whole AZK preview format came into being.

epstewart · 09-05-2014, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Besides, I don't think you can't really sideload KF8 books into the iOS Kindle app regardless of the file's extension. That's why the whole AZK preview format came into being.

Thanks for the info DiapDealer. I am afraid I have no idea what the AZK preview format is. Is is something that will sideload into the iOS Kindle app from a Dropbox file, and if so, how do I take advantage of it?

I note that *.mobi files do in fact sideload into that app, so I guess I could always convert KF8 to MOBI. (I like the Kindle app especially well because I like its swipe-to-highlight ability. iBooks has that, too, but iBooks won't let me shrink its rather exaggerated margins. None of the other e-reader apps I have tried allow swipe-to-highlight.)

DiapDealer · 09-05-2014, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by epstewart

Thanks for the info DiapDealer. I am afraid I have no idea what the AZK preview format is. Is is something that will sideload into the iOS Kindle app from a Dropbox file, and if so, how do I take advantage of it?

It may not be worth the trouble for you. You'd need to either use your converted epub (or the epub produced by KindleUnpack) and then use Amazon's KindlePreviewer to rebuild a Kindlebook out of that epub. If you have iOS set as your default device (in KindlePreviewer) it should produce a sideloadable AZK file.

Unless the books have some really special formatting needs, I'd probably just stick to converting to mobi (or downloading the books from within the Kindle app) for the time being.

epstewart · 09-05-2014, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

It may not be worth the trouble for you. You'd need to either use your converted epub (or the epub produced by KindleUnpack) and then use Amazon's KindlePreviewer to rebuild a Kindlebook out of that epub. If you have iOS set as your default device (in KindlePreviewer) it should produce a sideloadable AZK file.

Unless the books have some really special formatting needs, I'd probably just stick to converting to mobi (or downloading the books from within the Kindle app) for the time being.

DiapDealer,

I need to research what you just said before commenting further. For now, I'd like to know whether the AZW3 files that show up in Calibre thanks to that 3rd-party plugin I'm using are now DRM-free? Or is that a meaningful question? Is it even possible to have a KF8/AZW3 file that is DRM-free?

JSWolf · 09-05-2014, 06:03 PM

If you can view the eBook with Calibre's viewer, it's DRM free.

DiapDealer · 09-05-2014, 06:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by epstewart

For now, I'd like to know whether the AZW3 files that show up in Calibre thanks to that 3rd-party plugin I'm using are now DRM-free?

I can't really answer that question. Probably? But if you can view an ebook with calibre's viewer, then it has to be DRM-Free.

Quote:

Is it even possible to have a KF8/AZW3 file that is DRM-free?

Certainly.

epstewart · 09-05-2014, 06:36 PM

OK, JSWolf and DiapDealer,

The AZW3 files that I'm getting when I add an AZW Kindle book to Calibre can in fact be read in Calibre's internal reader, so that must mean they're DRM-free. Seemingly, the DeDRM Calibre plugin I'm using produces an AZW3 or a MOBI or an HTMLZ file (in addition to the EPUB I'm requesting) depending on what the internal format of the original file is.

I'm now going to research KindleUnpack and KindlePreviewer just to find out what they are all about. Most of this stuff is new to me, as I haven't really kept up for the last few years. Some years ago, when I first starting using e-books, I seem to recall that there was no way to de-DRM Kindle books. I'm glad to see that that's changed.

09-05-2014, 01:23 PM	#1
epstewart Connoisseur Posts: 54 Karma: 558 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: iPhone 3G 16GB, B&N nook	Why does Calibre convert AZW to AZW3? I recently started adding my Kindle editions to Calibre. I have installed the latest DeDRM Calibre plugin and set things up to automatically convert added books to EPUB format. When I add a downloaded book with the .azw filename extension, I do get an EPUB conversion, but I also generally wind up with an AZW3 file. I'd like to know why that happens. It seems to me that, the input format being AZW, without the "3", the result (apart from the separate EPUB conversion) ought to be AZW also. I am putting these books in my Dropbox on my Mac and accessing them on my iPad that way. But the iPad does not recognize that AZW3 files can be opened in the iPad's Kindle app. It's a minor irritation since I can always get the same books directly via the Kindle app ... but it is an irritation. So is there any way to get Calibre to use AZW format instead of AZW3 so I can access these books in Kindle for iPad? Thanks for any help you can offer.

09-05-2014, 02:01 PM	#2
DiapDealer Grand Sorcerer Posts: 27,546 Karma: 193191846 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: Nexus 7, Kindle Fire HD	It's not a conversion. It's just a file rename. Amazon's AZW file extension doesn't really tell you much about what's under the hood. It could be a standalone KF8 file, could be a plain-jane mobi, could even be topaz book. That particular file extension (AZW) has very little to do with the book's "format." As for why it's being renamed to AZW3 upon import: that's not calibre doing that. That's your third-party plugin. If the actual underlying format were a regular old-fashioned mobi, it would import as .mobi file. If it's a standalone KF8 formatted file, it will import as an AZW3 file (a topaz file would import as an HTMLZ format). It's just an attempt to make the file extension actually MEAN something with regard to the book's underlying format. For all intents and purposes, AZW3 has come to be identified as a stand-alone KF8 formatted ebook. It may not work for everybody, but it works for the vast majority. Besides, I don't think you can't really sideload KF8 books into the iOS Kindle app regardless* of the file's extension. That's why the whole AZK preview format came into being. Last edited by DiapDealer; 09-05-2014 at 02:11 PM.

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09-05-2014, 06:03 PM	#6
JSWolf Resident Curmudgeon Posts: 73,894 Karma: 128597114 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Roslindale, Massachusetts Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kobo Aura H2O, PRS-650, PRS-T1, nook STR, PW3	If you can view the eBook with Calibre's viewer, it's DRM free.

09-05-2014, 06:36 PM	#8
epstewart Connoisseur Posts: 54 Karma: 558 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: iPhone 3G 16GB, B&N nook	OK, JSWolf and DiapDealer, The AZW3 files that I'm getting when I add an AZW Kindle book to Calibre can in fact be read in Calibre's internal reader, so that must mean they're DRM-free. Seemingly, the DeDRM Calibre plugin I'm using produces an AZW3 or a MOBI or an HTMLZ file (in addition to the EPUB I'm requesting) depending on what the internal format of the original file is. I'm now going to research KindleUnpack and KindlePreviewer just to find out what they are all about. Most of this stuff is new to me, as I haven't really kept up for the last few years. Some years ago, when I first starting using e-books, I seem to recall that there was no way to de-DRM Kindle books. I'm glad to see that that's changed.

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