Calibre/PRS-505 Newbie having problems..

ladymaverick · 12-29-2008, 06:08 AM

Hi all,

I'm a newbie to the Reader and to the Forums, and have to say I'm hugely impressed by how friendly and helpful everyone seems.

Having read through the MR Wiki, I decided to download Calibre to allow me to convert books from Project Gutenberg for my Reader.

Download and installation went absolutely fine (Version 0.4.121 on XP Home 32-bit). I spent some time playing with the books already on my Reader (editing Author names so they would be sorted alphabetically by surname) before trying to download some books from PG, saving them as .txt files.

However, when I tryto import them into Calibre to convert them I received the following error message:

attempt to write a readonly database RemoteTraceback (most recent call last): File "calibre\library\sqlite.pyo", line 80, in run OperationalError: attempt to write a readonly database
Detailed traceback:
Traceback (most recent call last):
File "main.py", line 646, in add_books
File "main.py", line 691, in _add_books
File "calibre\gui2\library.pyo", line 167, in add_books
File "calibre\library\database2.pyo", line 1122, in add_books
File "calibre\library\sqlite.pyo", line 107, in run
DatabaseException: attempt to write a readonly database
RemoteTraceback (most recent call last):
File "calibre\library\sqlite.pyo", line 80, in run
OperationalError: attempt to write a readonly database

Looking at the file properties, the file was marked Read-Only (not sure why or how this happened); however, unlocking the Write restriction made no difference, still giving me the same message.

I tried downloading the file again as a .htm, but encountered the exact same problem.

I haven't a clue where to go now, and would really appreciate someone helping me with my problem.

Thanks in advance,

Moira. x

itimpi · 12-29-2008, 06:33 AM

What location did you specify for the Calibre library? XP Home will put write restrictions on certain areas (such as under Program files) unless you are running as an Administrator

ladymaverick · 12-29-2008, 06:48 AM

It was a Program Files location, but this was within an Administrator account.

However, I have just tried saving the downloads to another location, outwith Program Files, but the leads to the same error message when trying to import them into Calibre.

Thanks for the suggestiob though.

Moira. x

itimpi · 12-29-2008, 07:08 AM

Did you check the permissions on the metadata.db file at the base of the calibre library location? I would have thought that was the file the error message was referring to rather than the downloaded file itself.

Note also that when a file is imported into calibre it will make its own internal copies of the file. Calibre therefore needs to have full read/write permissions to the location specified for the calibre library so that it can create its internal working directories and files.

ladymaverick · 12-29-2008, 07:24 AM

Hmm...based on what you're saying, I'm thinking it's a Windows issue, rather than Calibre itself.

The metadata.db file is fine, with no restriction on permissions. However, the parent folder it sits in has been set at Read-Only; I have tried and tried to remove this, with it seeming to go through the process, yet checking the permissions afterwards shows them to have been reset to Read-Only.

Possibly a step towards fixing the issue?

Thanks again.

Moira. x

itimpi · 12-29-2008, 08:06 AM

The parent folder definitely needs full permissions as Calibre needs to create new folders/files at this level.

I would suggest choosing a new location for the Calibre library and switching Calibre to using this new location. If at all possible I would make the new location somewhere other than the C: drive.

ladymaverick · 12-29-2008, 09:25 AM

Thank you itimpi.

The problem now seems to be solved.

I had to fight with Windows to even get it to let me uninstall Calibre, which made me realise that, for some unknown reason, the Windows User Account Control had been switched back on (permission conflicts in the past mean we always keep this switched off).

Switching this off and re-installing in a non-Program Files location seems to have fixed things, and I am now a happy Calibre bunny.

Thank you for your time and assistance.

Moira. x

12-29-2008, 06:08 AM	#1
ladymaverick Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Scotland Device: Sony Reader	Calibre/PRS-505 Newbie having problems.. Hi all, I'm a newbie to the Reader and to the Forums, and have to say I'm hugely impressed by how friendly and helpful everyone seems. Having read through the MR Wiki, I decided to download Calibre to allow me to convert books from Project Gutenberg for my Reader. Download and installation went absolutely fine (Version 0.4.121 on XP Home 32-bit). I spent some time playing with the books already on my Reader (editing Author names so they would be sorted alphabetically by surname) before trying to download some books from PG, saving them as .txt files. However, when I tryto import them into Calibre to convert them I received the following error message: attempt to write a readonly database RemoteTraceback (most recent call last): File "calibre\library\sqlite.pyo", line 80, in run OperationalError: attempt to write a readonly database Detailed traceback: Traceback (most recent call last): File "main.py", line 646, in add_books File "main.py", line 691, in _add_books File "calibre\gui2\library.pyo", line 167, in add_books File "calibre\library\database2.pyo", line 1122, in add_books File "calibre\library\sqlite.pyo", line 107, in run DatabaseException: attempt to write a readonly database RemoteTraceback (most recent call last): File "calibre\library\sqlite.pyo", line 80, in run OperationalError: attempt to write a readonly database Looking at the file properties, the file was marked Read-Only (not sure why or how this happened); however, unlocking the Write restriction made no difference, still giving me the same message. I tried downloading the file again as a .htm, but encountered the exact same problem. I haven't a clue where to go now, and would really appreciate someone helping me with my problem. Thanks in advance, Moira. x

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12-29-2008, 06:33 AM	#2
itimpi Wizard Posts: 4,552 Karma: 950151 Join Date: Nov 2008 Device: Sony PRS-950, iphone/ipad (Marvin/iBooks/QuickReader)	What location did you specify for the Calibre library? XP Home will put write restrictions on certain areas (such as under Program files) unless you are running as an Administrator

12-29-2008, 06:48 AM	#3
ladymaverick Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Scotland Device: Sony Reader	It was a Program Files location, but this was within an Administrator account. However, I have just tried saving the downloads to another location, outwith Program Files, but the leads to the same error message when trying to import them into Calibre. Thanks for the suggestiob though. Moira. x

12-29-2008, 07:08 AM	#4
itimpi Wizard Posts: 4,552 Karma: 950151 Join Date: Nov 2008 Device: Sony PRS-950, iphone/ipad (Marvin/iBooks/QuickReader)	Did you check the permissions on the metadata.db file at the base of the calibre library location? I would have thought that was the file the error message was referring to rather than the downloaded file itself. Note also that when a file is imported into calibre it will make its own internal copies of the file. Calibre therefore needs to have full read/write permissions to the location specified for the calibre library so that it can create its internal working directories and files.

12-29-2008, 07:24 AM	#5
ladymaverick Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Scotland Device: Sony Reader	Hmm...based on what you're saying, I'm thinking it's a Windows issue, rather than Calibre itself. The metadata.db file is fine, with no restriction on permissions. However, the parent folder it sits in has been set at Read-Only; I have tried and tried to remove this, with it seeming to go through the process, yet checking the permissions afterwards shows them to have been reset to Read-Only. Possibly a step towards fixing the issue? Thanks again. Moira. x

12-29-2008, 08:06 AM	#6
itimpi Wizard Posts: 4,552 Karma: 950151 Join Date: Nov 2008 Device: Sony PRS-950, iphone/ipad (Marvin/iBooks/QuickReader)	The parent folder definitely needs full permissions as Calibre needs to create new folders/files at this level. I would suggest choosing a new location for the Calibre library and switching Calibre to using this new location. If at all possible I would make the new location somewhere other than the C: drive.

12-29-2008, 09:25 AM	#7
ladymaverick Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Scotland Device: Sony Reader	Thank you itimpi. The problem now seems to be solved. I had to fight with Windows to even get it to let me uninstall Calibre, which made me realise that, for some unknown reason, the Windows User Account Control had been switched back on (permission conflicts in the past mean we always keep this switched off). Switching this off and re-installing in a non-Program Files location seems to have fixed things, and I am now a happy Calibre bunny. Thank you for your time and assistance. Moira. x

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