deleting and reinstalling calibre -- my books

[Janette55]

If I am asking this in the wrong area, sorry where would I ask this?

I have decided to delete calibre that I have present on my new computer. It has been switched from old to new, but I want to do some changes in how I set the books up (such as covers, almost half don't have any).

Also, working on the DRM aspect. NOT asking for help there.

So, I figure that if I delete current calibre and download from website I can fix the problems I caused when I downloaded (again, such as the covers, among a couple of others).

I have around 140 books, a couple that I bought, three or four are freebies but are no longer free (I would have to buy to replace them) and the rest from here and other free sites.

So, to make it short, can I save on my computer the books that are on my reader, in calibre, then when I install the new calibre can I add them back making the changes I want in calibre? I am gathering, naturally, that I have to delete them from my reader (Sony 900). Then, when I reinstall the books I can have them looking normal (instead of various sizes, no covers and such)?

[nynaevelan]

I am not sure if I am fully understanding what you are looking for but....

It seems to me you just want to correct the way the books were added to your library? How about instead of deleting books or deleting Calibre, you create a new library and then import the books into the new library that you want to work on?

[theducks]

I think you are in the correct area.


You have 2 computers or is this about a single computer?

Deleting Calibre, Does Not Delete the Library previously created on that computer.

Reloading Calibre will not fix user errors (or over sights ) to an existing Library. Those kind of errors can almost always be fixed with the Metadata editor and the Bulk-Metadata editor.


You can change the Location of where you placed your library, with the little arrow next to the Library icon (on the tool bar)

[Archon]

Rule #1 - Always back up everything on your computer. Then WHEN your hard drive fails (because it WILL fail someday) you already have a backup and can pick up where you left off.

Adding covers is pretty simple and if you re-convert the book even in the same format the cover gets changed without changing anything else.

What else about your books is messed up that you want to fix?

Completely re-installing should always be your last choice for any system.

Happy Tuesday

[theducks]

[QUOTE=Archon;1422607

Completely re-installing should always be your last choice for any system.

[/QUOTE]
AMEN
(even if it IS Windows )

[Janette55]

My old computer was dying and so decided to get a new one before I lost everything. I also bought, with the new computer, a back up hard drive (external), holds 500 gb.

Hubby works with a guy who is over all the computers for the county offices. He did the transfering of data for me. The calibre is on the desktop, but when I read the faq, it states that I will have two libraries.

I was hoping to have just one, so I had wondered if I deleted all the books I could have just the one. Thus fix the simple problems at the same time.

I am the famous computer idiot. So you can laugh all you want. What is simple to you is confusing to me. It doesn't take much to get lost and confused and my son is always fixing problems for me.

He does a lot of stuff for me but he is suffering from some neurological problems and so looking a computer screen is very painful right now.

I am more than willing to read and learn, follow threads, simple steps; it just takes me a lot longer to figure out what to do, steps to take. So, I had thought it would be easier to start from scratch.

Seems not. Okay, more reseach to do here on MR. I love to do research, so I will read a lot, print out a lot and figure it out.

[itimpi]

Not sure why you should have two libraries? When you first start up Calibre it runs the wizard that allows you to specify the library location. If the library already exists at the given location it should just use it.

[theducks]

WARNING:
The Desktop is a TERRIBLE place for the Library.

One press of the Delete Key and it is gone

Calibre can Move it to a safer location (whatever 'My documents' became on W7)

[Archon]

I also bought, with the new computer, a back up hard drive (external), holds 500 gb.

Excellent idea, now make sure you backup regularly.

So, are you saying the Calibre program is on your desktop, or the Calibre library is on the desktop?
Also, is it a shortcut or the actual file?

I was hoping to have just one, so I had wondered if I deleted all the books I could have just the one. Thus fix the simple problems at the same time.

Before you delete anything, make sure it is backed up.

Also, you can verify the location of the Calibre library by clicking the triangle to the right of the books icon at the top of the Calibre main screen. Select the triangle and pull down the menu to "Switch/create library...". Then you will see a dialog screen and at the top it says where your library is currently located.
Then you can copy your library to any location and use this same dialog box to select the new location. Once you are running from the new location and you SURE everything is backed up, THEN you can delete the library from its old location.

Try that and come back.
Happy Humpday

[Janette55]

"If the computer you are transferring to already has a calibre installation, then the Welcome wizard wont run. In that case, click the calibre icon in the tooolbar and point it to the newly copied directory. You will now have two calibre libraries on your computer and you can switch between them by clicking the calibre icon on the toolbar."

This is from the FAQ about transfering from old computer to new. To me that seems to say I will have two libraries, I am hoping to find a way to have only one library.

There is an icon on my desktop (its a shortcut), which I click to open calibre and download books on, then send them to my reader. On it, in the area to find location of library it states:

C\Users\Administration\Documents\calibre library

There are three selections:

use existing
create empty library
move to new location

the first one, existing, is marked.


When I had downloaded the books, my son made a folder and we transfered copies of the books there, I think they are in my documents, I wil check to find out. Not all of them were saved, I plan to do so what I have presently and new ones onto on the external hardrive if I can, as a backup.


Will do as suggested and get back later if I have more questions.

Thanks for the help everyone.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by Janette55

"If the computer you are transferring to already has a calibre installation, then the Welcome wizard wont run. In that case, click the calibre icon in the tooolbar and point it to the newly copied directory. You will now have two calibre libraries on your computer and you can switch between them by clicking the calibre icon on the toolbar."

This is from the FAQ about transfering from old computer to new. To me that seems to say I will have two libraries, I am hoping to find a way to have only one library.

There is an icon on my desktop (its a shortcut), which I click to open calibre and download books on, then send them to my reader. On it, in the area to find location of library it states:

C\Users\Administration\Documents\calibre library

There are three selections:

use existing
create empty library
move to new location

the first one, existing, is marked.


When I had downloaded the books, my son made a folder and we transfered copies of the books there, I think they are in my documents, I wil check to find out. Not all of them were saved, I plan to do so what I have presently and new ones onto on the external hardrive if I can, as a backup.


Will do as suggested and get back later if I have more questions.

Thanks for the help everyone.

From the sounds of it: You may not have an existing Library, only a folder full of books that will need to be imported.
WAIT! Do the Check below before screaming

IF your son copied the entire Library (like you should for a good backup)
you will see (attachment) typical folder structure. ("My ebooks" is the Library folder)

Note that book titles have index numbers in the paren
the other clue is there is a file in the top level metadata.DB in "My ebooks"
if you have both, you probably have an intact library

[Janette55]

Did some looking in my computer.

looked in documents, it has a list of folders and one says Calibre Library.
Clicked on it and it has a list of folders with books in them such as Dcken's name, click to open and it shows the different books of his I have on my reader (and supposed to be in the library).

However, when I click on a book, it shows a folder with the title and cover then a file that states metadata.pdf
When I click on that it shows up this window:

Can't open file

To open Windows you need to know from what program to use. Can go online to look it up or you can manually select from a list of programs installed in the computer.

What do you want to do?

Two choices

use web services
select program from list of installed programs

the first one is marked

So, now what?

[theducks]

Originally Posted by Janette55

Did some looking in my computer.

looked in documents, it has a list of folders and one says Calibre Library.
Clicked on it and it has a list of folders with books in them such as Dcken's name, click to open and it shows the different books of his I have on my reader (and supposed to be in the library).

However, when I click on a book, it shows a folder with the title and cover then a file that states metadata.pdf
When I click on that it shows up this window:

Can't open file

To open Windows you need to know from what program to use. Can go online to look it up or you can manually select from a list of programs installed in the computer.

What do you want to do?

Two choices

use web services
select program from list of installed programs

the first one is marked

So, now what?

metadata.OPF

That is a VALID library (meta-data recovery/redundancy) file (and it sounds like you have a valid Library )

Start Calibre and use the Library icon arrow to Switch/Create
point to that "Calibre Library" folder and click OK.

Within a few, you should see a book list

As an additional check-up use that little arrow again and "Library Maintenance" Check Library (Note: you may have inherited some of the errors shown from the original )

[Janette55]

Thanks for the help.

And the inherited errors are my just deserts for not learning what to do before I tried to do it, LOL.

So, I will learn how to fix covers; how to fix sizes of covers in my reader so I know what the book is; how to get the books in a correct order (such as the Paradise Lost and Regained, they are in wrong order, as many others that are part of a series), along with another one or two that I can't remember what they are.

Thanks again for the help.

[Starson17]

Originally Posted by Janette55

And the inherited errors are my just deserts for not learning what to do before I tried to do it, LOL.

The "errors" you listed won't show up in the scan for library errors that was recommended to you. As far as Calibre is concerned, missing covers or wrong order for series aren't really errors. You might want them in that order and might not have a cover you like. The library error scan will find things like missing books that your database thinks you have or books you have that your database doesn't list.

We've all had to work on our library to fix covers and the like, so don't feel bad that your library isn't yet perfect. I hate to tell you, but it will probably never be perfect.