[Starson17]

Originally Posted by Merischino

to "correct" the metadata for all of Anne McCaffrey's 105 works (in my database), i perform a number of different procedures, all of which include the steps of selecting the works(s) in a calibre GUI list, hitting "e" to open what I will call the 'metadata editing window" and then depending on whether there are multiple items or a single item selected, making changes to the Author and the Author Sort fields,

This all sounds correct. Nonetheless, what you think you entered into author_sort is not what I've found there. When multiple books are selected, it's a "bulk" metadata edit. When only one, it's single metadata edit. There's an option "Automatically set author sort" on the bulk edit screen - are you selecting that option? Can you perform your steps, then select a single record and pressing "E," check it to see if it sets the way you expect?

Once all that is done, I close out that metadata editing window, I hit "c" to "convert" the file back into the same format it was when I began.

This seems a bit odd - you don't need to do any format conversions when setting metadata?

and expect that my library would now sort according to the new information, irrespective of whether or not I have overwritten the existing files with the new data. E.g., I would expect "Power Lines" on the left under "Title" to be the same, "Power Lines" to the right under author to have changed, and to read "McCaffrey, Anne", and if I removed the search query and sorted the total library on "author" I would expect the book "Power Lines" to appear in the "M" section for McCaffrey, Anne and not in the "A" section, and not to show "Anne McCaffrey" in either the "a" or the "m" section, but to show "McCaffrey, Anne" in the "m" section of that list.

I agree. If it isn't correctly showing author or isn't correctly sorting, what do you see when checking a single book? Is author_sort right or wrong?

Now, I do not know when my changes to the metadata within the GUI get reflected in the Metadata.db.

It happens when you close the metadata edit screen.

Whether that happens instantaneously or only if/unless I convert (or re-convert, since it's going to the same format) or (ugh) "save to disk".

No, you don't have to Save to Disk.

But, only one thing can I say is true:
I have put a lot of time and effort into changing the metadata, by hitting "e" and editing the metadata in that window, to reflect what I have b een posting here as what I believed to be in my database.

Namely, that all my author fields should have the same exact entry as the author-sort field.

But they don't. We need to find out if author_sort ever had the right data.

And, again I thank you for your help and apologize for my frustration, which I know must be coming through. It's not directed at you.

I understand. And when someone here posts something that makes you think we're blaming you, that's not it. We just don't understand what's happening. If you will work through it, we'll track it down. If it's a bug, we'll find it and get it fixed. If not, that's OK, too.