Question-How do I set globally author_sort=authors?

[unboggling]

Is there a simple way to globally set author_sort equal to authors, in all cases of add book, send to disk, send to device, and edit-metadata author?

[chaley]

A precise answer to your question is "no, there is no way, because the fields can be edited independently."

However, what I think you want is to set the tweak "author_sort_copy_method = 'copy'". This makes calibre copy the author's sort value to author_sort whenever it calculates author_sort, such as when adding a book.

Please note that there are 2 author sort values. There is one per book, author_sort, used to sort the book, and there is one per author, used to sort the author (e.g., in the tag browser) and to generate the default author_sort for a book. Be careful not to interchange these in your thoughts. You can see an author's sort value using the tag browser.

You can make a book's author sort different from the author's sort whenever you edit metadata. This is intentional. You can see you have done this by noting the pink display in edit metadata (single).

Setting the tweak doesn't change the values of author_sorts already set. You can do this with manage_authors. First set the tweak. Then right-click on an author, choose manage authors, push 'recalculate author sort', then push OK. Wait until done. All the author's values, and all the books author_sort values, will be recalculated.

[unboggling]

Originally Posted by chaley

set the tweak "author_sort_copy_method = 'copy'"

Chaley, thx, that works great. I hadn't internalized what that tweak meant until you put it in context.

[JMikeD]

How about automatically setting the Author name to FN LN and the Author sort to LN,FN when the book is imported with the format being LN,FN?

[chaley]

Originally Posted by JMikeD

How about automatically setting the Author name to FN LN and the Author sort to LN,FN when the book is imported with the format being LN,FN?

Assuming that this is a question and not a suggestion, select the preference 'swap author firstname and lastname' in preferences -> import/export -> adding books.

[JMikeD]

Originally Posted by chaley

Assuming that this is a question and not a suggestion, select the preference 'swap author firstname and lastname' in preferences -> import/export -> adding books.

Sorry. that was poorly worded, wasn't it?

Yes, it was meant as a question. That leaves the author sort as LN,FN, right?

Edit: Should have seen that, I looked through the Preferences enough. Sometimes I just get a blind spot.

[chaley]

Originally Posted by JMikeD

Sorry. that was poorly worded, wasn't it?

Yes, that is what I meant. That leaves the author sort as LN,FN, right?

Yes, assuming that "author_sort_copy_method = 'invert'", which is its default value.