[davidfor]

Originally Posted by Grant Jacobs

davidfor, Thanks.

Is there a way to test if the database is corrupted? (Not fix it, just test first.) The only advice I've seen online (so far) to just re-build it, but that seems to involve thrashing all the books on the device then reloading them. I can't see an option to "test database consistency" or equivalent in the software either.

As @DNSN, my Kobo Utilities plugin for calibre has a database test function. Just letting calibre connect will show some problems. The plugin does a more complete test. Otherwise it is an SQLite database. And SQLite database manager will have a way to check it.

For rebuilding the database, you should sign-out of the Kobo account on the device. It will reimport the sideloaded books as part of that, but you will lose the reading status. And my Kobo Utilities plugin has as solution to that.

Seems to me that to delete side-loaded files I'd be best to simply remove the books via Finder and let the Kobo software catch up with the change.

If you are removing a lot of books, or do it while adding books, that's probably the simplest.

I have Calibre and could try it again, but I have to admit I found the messages about firmware, etc., off-putting.

That message is really just a warning in case Kobo does change things. But, if you keep calibre up-to-date, you won't see it as much.

As for reseting things, what I don't want to happen at this point is for Kobo's software to try install some books I've purchased but haven't yet loaded. Now that it's reporting very little free memory, I'm a bit leery of connecting the book reader online as from memory Kobo's update software tries kick in automatically.

For a firmware updated to happen, there has to be somewhere between 100 and 200MB of storage available. And at about 100MB free, it will start using the SD card to store purchased books.

4691mls, thanks - I read that actually. What I'm seeing is contrary to,

"For sideloaded books, "Remove" only has the one option and removes the book and nearly all evidence of it from the database."

These PDF files are side-loaded. I would have expected one option doing what this says—not just because of davidfor's explanation but from my own reasoning too—but I'm being presented with two options. In case it's not clear my reference to two options earlier isn't repeating from help notes, but is what I'm seeing.

What you see when you remove a book depends one where you are and what type of book. For a sideloaded book in the main library list or an authors list, there are no options, just a warning that you will need to reimport it. In a collection, there will be an option to remove it from the collection or from the device. On the home screen, the options will be to remove it from the home screen or the device. For purchased books, the remove from device is different (removes the book but leaves details) and there will be an extra option to put it in the archive.

If the book is on the SD card, everything should be the same. But, I don't remember if the options mention that the book is on the card.