"Format" appears Twice in description window

[jcrawfordx]

For several years my copies of Calibre have _always_ listed the "format" selector in the description _TWICE_. (see attached screenshot)

The upper "Formats" selector works fine.

However, if I click on one of the formats in the lower one, Calibre always locks up and then bombs.

This has prevailed through countless upgrades and re-installations of Calibre including several "virgin" ones on new machines and reformatted hard drives. It's always there. Weird!

Is this normal? What can I do about it? It's not a big deal. Normally I just try to ignore the lower Format selector but sometimes I forget and click on it, causing Calibre to freeze up.

Am using Windows 10 Pro.
Thanks

[theducks]

Originally Posted by jcrawfordx

For several years my copies of Calibre have _always_ listed the "format" selector in the description _TWICE_. (see attached screenshot)

The upper "Formats" selector works fine.

However, if I click on one of the formats in the lower one, Calibre always locks up and then bombs.

This has prevailed through countless upgrades and re-installations of Calibre including several "virgin" ones on new machines and reformatted hard drives. It's always there. Weird!

Is this normal? What can I do about it? It's not a big deal. Normally I just try to ignore the lower Format selector but sometimes I forget and click on it, causing Calibre to freeze up.

Am using Windows 10 Pro.
Thanks

By any chance did you make a Custom column that just happens to contain formats?
Preferences: Add your own columns <just to review your list>

BTW After confirming a NO above: I would right click the Library Icon and run Library Maintenance:check Library (both phases), because that is not normal

[jcrawfordx]

Originally Posted by theducks

By any chance did you make a Custom column that just happens to contain formats?
Preferences: Add your own columns <just to review your list>

BTW After confirming a NO above: I would right click the Library Icon and run Library Maintenance:check Library (both phases), because that is not normal

Thanks very much!
I tried these things. They had no effect, The 2nd Format bar is still there.

Other ideas???

[stumped]

Originally Posted by jcrawfordx

Thanks very much!
I tried these things. They had no effect, The 2nd Format bar is still there.

Other ideas???

I can reproduce this

I do have a column called formats; which is built from #format tag
that is set up in preferences -> add your own columns
it also creates a top row of Formats: ( with an s ) in book details panel

Now, if i go into preferences->look and feel -> book details there is an option to tick formats in there also. Applying that will give me that 2nd entry called format ( no s) in the book info panel.
only difference between mine & OPs is that my 2nd row does not crash calibre if I then use it
e.g. I can click on epub in either, if both are present, and they work as expected

[kovidgoyal]

Go to Preferences->Add your own columns and remove the custom formats column you created. Or go to Preferences->Look & feel->Book details and tell calibre to not display the custom formats column.

[jcrawfordx]

Thanks for all of your help, folks.

The problem I mention above is only a very minor nuisance. The ability to see format details in the column listings is far more important.

Perhaps this phantom "Formats" problem is actually a bug that should be looked into someday???

Thanks again

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by jcrawfordx

. . . Perhaps this phantom "Formats" problem is actually a bug that should be looked into someday???

If the template in the 'phantom "Formats"' column is {:'approximate_formats()'}, there is no bug. See ==>> approximate_formats()

returns a comma-separated list of formats that at one point were associated with the book. There is no guarantee that this list is correct, although it probably is.

In my Test library I have a column called #approx_formats/Approx Formats, which uses that template. It shows a single string e.g. "DOCX,EPUB,AZW3" in the book details panel, if I click on it calibre does a search e.g #formats:"=DOCX,EPUB,AZW3" and shows me all the books that have that string in #approx_formats.

Maybe your crash is due to the fact that you have two columns with similar names, the built column formats/Formats and the user defined custom column #formats/Formats. I used a different name for my custom column because having them the same would have confused me .

You might want have a look at the formats_paths() function. However, I am pretty sure this interrogates the file system, which will have a negative impact on performance -- hence the provision of the approximate_formats function.

Added: I am using Win 10 Pro 1809 and calibre 3.47.1.

BR

[stumped]

Originally Posted by BetterRed

..

Maybe your crash is due to the fact that you have two columns with similar names, the built column formats/Formats and the user defined custom column #formats/Formats. I used a different name for my custom column because having them the same would have confused me .

that is worth testing. when I use format and formats for the 2 different entries, both worked and I was unable to crash it

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by stumped

that is worth testing. when I use format and formats for the 2 different entries, both worked and I was unable to crash it

I just added a new custom column by clicking 'Formats' in top line, that created a column with #formats/Formats lookup and column names - it also used a different template to my years old #approx_formats/Approx Formats, viz:



But it works just like my old one when I click on it on Book Details

I wonder what the OP has in the Sort/search column by, Show in Tag browser, and Show as HTML in Book details attributes. I suggest he/she tries setting them to Text, unchecked, unchecked.

BR