Ugh! Frustrating!!

[Dullahir]

Okay, so basically, how do I prevent callibre from renaming files that I've added? Since I plan to open them with mobipocket (Amazon Kindle 4 PC does not display covers, but reconverting and opening the files with mobi does, every time.) Because it's super annoying having to manually rename files that I've already renamed.

Normally, it wouldn't be a problem. But it's a HUGE problem for Series books, since you can't 'Sort by Series' with mobipocket, nor will Callibre locate the series every time.

For example, I'm trying to add:

Garth Nix [Abhorson Book 01] Sabriel
Garth Nix [Abhorson Book 02] Lirael
Garth Nix [Abhorson Book 03] Abhorson

But when I add it to Callibre, it's listed as:

Sabriel
Lirael
Abhorson

Normally, this wouldn't be a problem, but for books like this, I have to re-check the folder to see what order the books go in, because the proper Series is rarely found.

How would I prevent Callibre from doing this? Or how would I be sure that it finds the series EVERY time?

[Adoby]

You use the series and series index fields. That is why they are there.

Sometimes it is possible to get the series information from the filenames, when you add books. There are a lot of threads about that here. Search for "metadata from filename".

If all else fails, you can enter the series information manually.

When you send the books to the device, you can add the series information to the filename using the send to device template, or to the title using a plugboard.

[Dullahir]

Thank you. I'll try that. But to be honest, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed by this at the moment, cause I have files that I'd like to send to friends and files that I'd like to keep, and yet Calibre cuts off part of the title in the Calibre Library Folder. For example:

[Anna Strong Chronicles 01] The Becoming - Jeanne C. Stein

becomes

[Anna Strong Chronicles 01] The Bec - Jeanne C. Stein

See, I wouldn't have a problem with that, because I'm planning to direct the mobi PC reader to find books from a shared network, but these are books I want to send to my love. Do I really need to rename them? Is there a reason that Callibre does this?

Copying is out of the question because the ONLY reason why I'm using calibre with the files is to replace some of the covers for better ones.

Basically, what I want to do is download the cover ONLY without Calibre renaming the file in the output folder, to prevent cutting off some words.

[Adoby]

You should NOT look inside the Calibre library. And you should definitely not copy any books from there.

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=119175

Use the Save to disk feature. Then you decide in the template exactly how the book should be named.

But this only works if the different fields for the books contains correct information. The title should only contain the title, and not any series information. The series information goes in the series fields. If you have some extra information you wish to store, you create a custom field.

If you use Calibre as intended, you will hopefully be less frustrated. But it may take some time before you get the hang of it. I suggest you do some experimenting to understand Calibre better. Try to get metadata from the filenames. Try to set all fields perfectly. Try fetching metadata for the book. Try to save to disk using different templates. Try the plugboard to see what it does.

[Dullahir]

Hmmm. Thanks for the excellent tips! I will indeed experiment over a cuppa and see what I can discover. =) Thank you very much for your assistance!

[Dullahir]

By the way, what did you mean by 'Series and Series Index Fields?' Where exactly would I find those? I tried buggering with the plugboard, but it's still a bit tricky for me at this point, lol.

Also, I've figured out how to format books in the [Author][Series][Title] sequence, however I've found that this method doesn't include the covers or the inability to retrieve them from the items ISBN, since the title isn't the same as recognized by the various websites.

Is there a way to compensate for that?

Edit: Actually, this may not be such a bad thing, as it will prevent dupes from being converted.

Edit: After tweaking various keys, I believe I may have found a template in the Save to Disc section that actually works.

If I wanted to save a file as Kelley Armstrong [Women of the Otherworld 1] Stolen.mobi

I would use:

{author_sort}/{authors} [{Series}{series_index:>3s}] {title}

If I were to substitute '-' for ']', I would get Kelley Armstrong - Women of the Otherworld

What had me stuck was that I wasn't aware that I could change the separating characters into whatever I wanted, something so simple, yet so beyond me.

Now all I need to do is figure out how to get Amazon to detect the series. :P

[Adoby]

A book is typically identified by the title and the author. You have to use the actual title in the title field, and nothing but. Don't try to add anything extra to the title. The correct title can easily be found inside the book. Then calibre may be able to automatically fetch other metadata.

If you right click a book, and select edit metadata, then you can change the series information.

Read the manual for more information, and search for relevant threads here.

I suggest that you try to download some well known classic from here, and then check out the metadata. Most likely all the metadata will be set correctly. Then try save that book to disk. And try other things.

[Dullahir]

Thanks mate!!

I did have one final question: How would I prevent Calibre from renaming files in this sequence:

'Call of Cthulhu, The' ? I'm trying to get it to name it 'The Call of Cthulhu', but I can't find any sort of way to change that?

Oh, and when I said I had trouble with the series info, Some book covers don't have the series number on the covers. Would Search for Metadata Within the File be sufficient?

Regarding the title sort, I know that you can do that with the metadata, but would this be possible to do in the Save to Disc area? I tend to edit metadata by downloading it.

[Adoby]

Series names and indexes are usually a mess. Don't expect to be able to automatically set series information from downloads. I never download series information, since it usually is wrong, or slightly different between books, and even may change over time. I enter it manually.

It is possible to customize how calibre sort/write leading "an", "a" and "the" in titles and series, from how libraries does it to strict alphabetically.

It is a tweak. You change a value in a configuration file. Read more about it here:

http://manual.calibre-ebook.com/customize.html

[Dullahir]

And again you come through! Thank you very much.

How do you personally find series information if the book cover does not explicitly state what series it is from and what book number it is? Like when the cover says something like, 'A Necromancer Chronicles Book', how do you find what book specifically it is? And is it still okay to download the Metadata in bulk to save time THEN add the series name and stuff, making sure that the 'Series' box is unchecked?

[Adoby]

Often a list/bibliography with other books from the same author can be found inside the books. I use the order there, preferably from the latest book in the series.

Otherwise you can most likely search and find a bibliography for the author online. Or perhaps a recommended reading order for a series. It may not be the same as the order in which the books were published.

[Dullahir]

I see, I see.

Okay, so how would I save .pdf books to disk in .mobi format? Or do I need to convert them to .mobi before doing so? If so, how would I retrieve the books if it isn't a good idea to go into the Calibre Library?

Wait.. I'm going to see if I can convert the .pdf files with Hamster, then convert the .mobi to .mobi.

[Sabardeyn]

Besides the book's cover you can look:

• inside the book for a reading order listing of all books in the series
• inside the most recently published book for a reading order listing of books in the series
• Wikipedia
• Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other booksellers
• Author websites, fan websites or wikis

There is no way to know exactly which source is going to have the information you need. Nor is there any means of judging the accuracy or bias of the information presented on any of the sites (for instance, series numbering on such sites could be chronological or publication order).

[Dullahir]

Thanks, walking M&M!!!

[Adoby]

You convert the books in calibre in advance, or when saving to device. Or sending to disk.

I typically convert anything, except PDFs, to ePub. But keep the original format.

I wouldn't even try to convert from PDF to anything else. It requires far too much work and the end result is most likely still not very good. Learn to avoid PDFs, if you can...

Everyone likes PDFs, except those who have tried to convert PDFs to something else. They hate PDFs. With a passion!

My ereader app (Mantano) handles both ePubs and PDFs, so I don't have to convert PDFs to anything else. That is one major reason for why I chose that ereader app. 8)