Best to have several libraries or one?

[BobKat]

A couple of friends have given me their libraries [MOD: of US Public Domain books] they made in calibre.
Not sure how many , if any, duplicates there are. One told me to copy the library to the calibre folder and use the switch library folder to point calibre to that folder.
I aked them the same question and they had no clue. They said they just add books as they go and add their own notes.
So if I have two or more already done libraries, am I better off making seperate folders and seperate libraries? or is is ok to highlight that folder with the add books function from calibre and add one library to the other?

I hope I am making sense. I am still trying to figure out how things are put together here.

If there is a library, I take it there is a data file of some sort that has all the book organization such as author, series, genre, etc... information on it? or does it just read that info from the metadata?
Guess I am trying to figure out if I use someones library and use the add books function, would I lose the info that that person has set up? or would it matter?

[theducks]

Originally Posted by BobKat

A couple of friends have given me their libraries they made in calibre.
Not sure how many , if any, duplicates there are. One told me to copy the library to the calibre folder and use the switch library folder to point calibre to that folder.

So if I have two or more already done libraries, am I better off making seperate folders and seperate libraries? or is is ok to highlight that folder with the add books function from calibre and add one library to the other?

I hope I am making sense. I am still trying to figure out how things are put together here.

If there is a library, I take it there is a data file of some sort that has all the book organization such as author, series, genre, etc... information on it?
Guess I am trying to figure out if I use someones library and use the add books function, would I lose the info that that person has set up? or would it matter?

Each Calibre Library (fbase folder) is SEPERATE. Never insert files into the Library folder Except by using Calibre (GUI or CLI). The base folder is the one that contains metadata.db and authors folders. They are Logically Intertwined

Structure (custom columns) differences is a good reason to consider seperate libraries.

You can start out with Seperates, then switch (use the Library Icon arrow) Select books: Right click: Copy to Library (with a Delete is optional) to best organize into a single Library.

Calibre can easily handle many thousand books in a single library

[BobKat]

Thank you.

Ok then to merge two libraries I use copy to library from one library to another.

If there are duplicate titles and in different formats, is it best to copy all, and if I do is there an easy way to find them?

Edit to add: From a search here I found there is a plug in for calibre that handles duplicates, I will have to look for that.

[LuvReadin]

Calibre will tell you as it's adding whether there are duplicates, and give you the choice to add them or not.

[BobKat]

Another question:

Is it better to make a new library for my books and then sort out the download of covers and metadata if any exist .. and then add to my existing library?

[theducks]

I prefer to update the covers in the live Library. I can see/keep the current cover or choose frome those found.
It is your choice.

[BobKat]

Thanks again for all the support and help to those that gave it.