MobileRead Forums - View Single Post - Transferring metadata from one file to another

MAMEBase · 07-25-2012, 12:56 PM

Thank you, I appreciate your reply.

I've obtained the Modify ePub Plugin, but I'm not certain it's going to do what I need it to do.

Let me explain my process here -

The ePub Files in question are the result of scanned books, and as such contain various formatting difficulties, including, but not limited to odd line breaks, improper/missing chapter markers, misplaced letters due to drop caps, and embedded page numbers.

To correct these problems, I'm extracting the text from the documents (converting to text), and extracting any illustrations (including Cover art).

I then make any needed corrections to the text file with a word processor (Actually, I simply use TextEdit), and reprocess the file into an ePub via Legend Maker.

The one good thing about the original ePub files, is the embedded metadata that appears in Calibre. It's very detailed, and I'd like to retain it in my newly generated ePub files.

My first pass at the collection will likely not be the last. My hope is to eventually share the collection with others who may see fit to refine the corrections further, and to that end, I plan on making both the ePub file(s) as well as the source text files available. As the source text is refined, and new ePubs are generated, I want to be able to transfer the metadata from the existing ePub file(s) to the new one(s).

I've done something similar in the past with MP4 files and iTunes.

I once made up a set of 'Placeholder' files (very small MP4 files that contain a few seconds of instructional text as video) to hold very detailed metadata about the original 'Star Trek' series.

When/If I obtain a better quality video file for an episode, I can then transfer the metadata to the file using Subler, or MetaX.

I'd like to do something similar with Calibre.

I can easily generate a nearly empty ePub file (perhaps containing instructions for use), and use that file to hold the metadata in its proper format, but I need a mechanism to transfer said metadata from one ePub file to another.

Is there a plugin for that?

07-25-2012, 12:56 PM	#3
MAMEBase Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Madison, WI USA Device: iPad 2	Thank you, I appreciate your reply. I've obtained the Modify ePub Plugin, but I'm not certain it's going to do what I need it to do. Let me explain my process here - The ePub Files in question are the result of scanned books, and as such contain various formatting difficulties, including, but not limited to odd line breaks, improper/missing chapter markers, misplaced letters due to drop caps, and embedded page numbers. To correct these problems, I'm extracting the text from the documents (converting to text), and extracting any illustrations (including Cover art). I then make any needed corrections to the text file with a word processor (Actually, I simply use TextEdit), and reprocess the file into an ePub via Legend Maker. The one good thing about the original ePub files, is the embedded metadata that appears in Calibre. It's very detailed, and I'd like to retain it in my newly generated ePub files. My first pass at the collection will likely not be the last. My hope is to eventually share the collection with others who may see fit to refine the corrections further, and to that end, I plan on making both the ePub file(s) as well as the source text files available. As the source text is refined, and new ePubs are generated, I want to be able to transfer the metadata from the existing ePub file(s) to the new one(s). I've done something similar in the past with MP4 files and iTunes. I once made up a set of 'Placeholder' files (very small MP4 files that contain a few seconds of instructional text as video) to hold very detailed metadata about the original 'Star Trek' series. When/If I obtain a better quality video file for an episode, I can then transfer the metadata to the file using Subler, or MetaX. I'd like to do something similar with Calibre. I can easily generate a nearly empty ePub file (perhaps containing instructions for use), and use that file to hold the metadata in its proper format, but I need a mechanism to transfer said metadata from one ePub file to another. Is there a plugin for that?