Is it ok to store my Calibre library in Google docs?

Waylander · 12-09-2013, 12:35 PM

Just wondering, as all the books on Amazon say do not store in a retrieval system etc etc. Obviously, I wouldn't share them through torrents or whatver, but I was wondering whether it was ok. Also, how come Calibre is ok, when the copyright says you can't store ebooks? Or am I a law amateur and am misunderstanding the meaning?
P.S. The purpose of this is to back up my ebooks.

HarryT · 12-09-2013, 12:36 PM

Cloud storage is fine, as long as it's all private to you. Ie no public access of any kind. Copyright law does allow you to make backups of digital content.

AnemicOak · 12-09-2013, 12:46 PM

Some of the other cloud solutions (dropbox, copy, etc) will work okay, but you don't want to use Google Docs with Calibre.

See here...
WARNING - Google Drive Incompatible with Calibre!

PeterT · 12-09-2013, 12:46 PM

Actually Google Drive is NOT RECOMMENDED for calibre due to issues with how Google modifies directory names. Using it will result in a damaged calibre library.

drjenkins · 12-09-2013, 12:49 PM

I presume that you mean Google Drive since Google Docs no longer provides storage.

Be warned that Google Drive is Incompatible with Calibre:

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=205581

edit: Looks like many of us posted the same warning

Waylander · 12-09-2013, 02:01 PM

OK thanks for the warnings guys. Is dropbox the best bet then?

Josieb1 · 12-09-2013, 03:01 PM

I would recommend Dripbox, as well as on an external hard drive.

Blossom · 12-09-2013, 10:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Waylander

OK thanks for the warnings guys. Is dropbox the best bet then?

It's the better option but there is also the new guy Copy.com that gives you more space for free. You get 20GB when you sign up using someone's link. Dropbox is measly 2.5GB and you have to work hard for more free space using their referral system.

eschwartz · 12-10-2013, 12:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blossom

It's the better option but there is also the new guy Copy.com that gives you more space for free. You get 20GB when you sign up using someone's link. Dropbox is measly 2.5GB and you have to work hard for more free space using their referral system.

On the other hand, Dropbox is still, so far as I know, the only option that works well with calibre2opds, not that that is necessarily applicable here.

I haven't looked at it recently, but I seem to remember the Copy.com interface was somewhat confusing, and the dropbox client extracts to a hidden folder, which is nice, and is just so much more polished. Also, the Copy.com website takes forever to load which is not a good sign.

Blossom · 12-10-2013, 01:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschwartz

On the other hand, Dropbox is still, so far as I know, the only option that works well with calibre2opds, not that that is necessarily applicable here.

I haven't looked at it recently, but I seem to remember the Copy.com interface was somewhat confusing, and the dropbox client extracts to a hidden folder, which is nice, and is just so much more polished. Also, the Copy.com website takes forever to load which is not a good sign.

They got a beta going for the site which fixed the loading issue for me. The copy software looks just like an older version of Dropbox unless you're talking about the android app?

I don't know about the Calibre2opds though. I don't use it.

eschwartz · 12-10-2013, 01:45 AM

Nope, I'm talking about the desktop (linux) version.

The beta doesn't seem faster, actually. But I didn't notice a lag on the browse page. I was mainly gaping at their front page which takes way too long to load. Sure, I would avoid it by logging in directly, but it just seems kind of embarrassing for any website to take that long to load.

And I mostly do this stuff through the command line, and they have three (!!!) programs to do what dropbox does in one, plus the optional dropbox.py which is really slick.

But then, they have had longer so maybe copy.com will improve drastically.

I notice in their beta they have gotten rid of the shared with me folder. Maybe because I don't have any?

But it seemed kind of silly to have that folder outside of the main sync, and made it confusing to see where your stuff was.

The client download comes with both 32-bit and 64-bit folders, which is a waste of bandwidth and makes me have to manually set this stuff up. With dropbox I run their installer command which downloads the latest release, extracts to the home directory, and is all ready to use with dropbox.py

Basically, dropbox seems a lot more polished. Exactly like, well, like they had a lot more time to streamline every last bit of the interface, website, and general end-to-end experience.

Blossom · 12-10-2013, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschwartz

Nope, I'm talking about the desktop (linux) version.

The beta doesn't seem faster, actually. But I didn't notice a lag on the browse page. I was mainly gaping at their front page which takes way too long to load. Sure, I would avoid it by logging in directly, but it just seems kind of embarrassing for any website to take that long to load.

And I mostly do this stuff through the command line, and they have three (!!!) programs to do what dropbox does in one, plus the optional dropbox.py which is really slick.

But then, they have had longer so maybe copy.com will improve drastically.

I notice in their beta they have gotten rid of the shared with me folder. Maybe because I don't have any?

But it seemed kind of silly to have that folder outside of the main sync, and made it confusing to see where your stuff was.

The client download comes with both 32-bit and 64-bit folders, which is a waste of bandwidth and makes me have to manually set this stuff up. With dropbox I run their installer command which downloads the latest release, extracts to the home directory, and is all ready to use with dropbox.py

Basically, dropbox seems a lot more polished. Exactly like, well, like they had a lot more time to streamline every last bit of the interface, website, and general end-to-end experience.

Ah I see you are on Linux. I have no clue what the Linux versions looks like. I am Windows gal myself.

The Windows version looks to me like the Dropbox interface but an older version before DB got too fancy. You can actually place a folder shortcut in the Copy's folder and it upload the folder. This is a pretty cool feature. I don't recommended doing it to your actually Live Calibre library folder but I have backup of it in my Dropbox folder and I just copy its shortcut to Copy's folder and it uploads it and keeps it sync.

I keep my live version of Calibre library on my external.

eschwartz · 12-10-2013, 07:45 PM

I do the same with a symlink, for dropbox.

Are you saying that copy will notice a shortcut.ink and upload what it points to, or are you using a symlink too?

Because I have always been pretty sure the big problem with shortcuts is that no programs can tell they are actually supposed to represent a different file/folder. IIRC Dropbox can't, and confuses a lot of people like that.

Blossom · 12-10-2013, 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by eschwartz

I do the same with a symlink, for dropbox.

Are you saying that copy will notice a shortcut.ink and upload what it points to, or are you using a symlink too?

Because I have always been pretty sure the big problem with shortcuts is that no programs can tell they are actually supposed to represent a different file/folder. IIRC Dropbox can't, and confuses a lot of people like that.

You just create a normal shortcut to any folder and put it in Copy's folder and it will upload that folder and all it's contents.

So you could mirror your Dropbox without actually needing any extra program.
I do my Calibre Library backup folder this way.

eschwartz · 12-10-2013, 08:34 PM

Very interesting. I may have to explore that when I get home from school and try out my family's Windows machine.

12-09-2013, 12:35 PM	#1
Waylander Guru Posts: 662 Karma: 2905052 Join Date: Oct 2013 Device: Kindle Paperwhite 5 16GB, Kindle Paperwhite 6, Kobo Clara,	Is it ok to store my Calibre library in Google docs? Just wondering, as all the books on Amazon say do not store in a retrieval system etc etc. Obviously, I wouldn't share them through torrents or whatver, but I was wondering whether it was ok. Also, how come Calibre is ok, when the copyright says you can't store ebooks? Or am I a law amateur and am misunderstanding the meaning? P.S. The purpose of this is to back up my ebooks.

12-09-2013, 12:36 PM	#2
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,544 Karma: 93383099 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	Cloud storage is fine, as long as it's all private to you. Ie no public access of any kind. Copyright law does allow you to make backups of digital content. Last edited by HarryT; 12-09-2013 at 12:39 PM.

12-10-2013, 01:45 AM	#11
eschwartz Ex-Helpdesk Junkie Posts: 19,421 Karma: 85400180 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: The Beaten Path, USA, Roundworld, This Side of Infinity Device: Kindle Touch fw5.3.7 (Wifi only)	Nope, I'm talking about the desktop (linux) version. The beta doesn't seem faster, actually. But I didn't notice a lag on the browse page. I was mainly gaping at their front page which takes way too long to load. Sure, I would avoid it by logging in directly, but it just seems kind of embarrassing for any website to take that long to load. And I mostly do this stuff through the command line, and they have three (!!!) programs to do what dropbox does in one, plus the optional dropbox.py which is really slick. But then, they have had longer so maybe copy.com will improve drastically. I notice in their beta they have gotten rid of the shared with me folder. Maybe because I don't have any? But it seemed kind of silly to have that folder outside of the main sync, and made it confusing to see where your stuff was. The client download comes with both 32-bit and 64-bit folders, which is a waste of bandwidth and makes me have to manually set this stuff up. With dropbox I run their installer command which downloads the latest release, extracts to the home directory, and is all ready to use with dropbox.py Basically, dropbox seems a lot more polished. Exactly like, well, like they had a lot more time to streamline every last bit of the interface, website, and general end-to-end experience. Last edited by eschwartz; 12-10-2013 at 01:54 AM.

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12-09-2013, 12:46 PM	#3
AnemicOak Bookaholic Posts: 14,391 Karma: 54969924 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Minnesota Device: iPad Mini 4, AuraHD, iPhone XR +	Some of the other cloud solutions (dropbox, copy, etc) will work okay, but you don't want to use Google Docs with Calibre. See here... WARNING - Google Drive Incompatible with Calibre!

12-09-2013, 12:46 PM	#4
PeterT Grand Sorcerer Posts: 13,296 Karma: 78876004 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Toronto Device: Libra H2O, Libra Colour	Actually Google Drive is NOT RECOMMENDED for calibre due to issues with how Google modifies directory names. Using it will result in a damaged calibre library.

12-09-2013, 12:49 PM	#5
drjenkins Addict Posts: 250 Karma: 1702156 Join Date: Nov 2010 Device: Kindle Voyage	I presume that you mean Google Drive since Google Docs no longer provides storage. Be warned that Google Drive is Incompatible with Calibre: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=205581 edit: Looks like many of us posted the same warning

12-09-2013, 02:01 PM	#6
Waylander Guru Posts: 662 Karma: 2905052 Join Date: Oct 2013 Device: Kindle Paperwhite 5 16GB, Kindle Paperwhite 6, Kobo Clara,	OK thanks for the warnings guys. Is dropbox the best bet then?

12-09-2013, 03:01 PM	#7
Josieb1 Grand Sorcerer Posts: 5,082 Karma: 18051062 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: UK Device: Kindle Scribe, Coloursoft, PW SE, Kindle 6, Kobo Libra Colour, Libra 2	I would recommend Dripbox, as well as on an external hard drive.

12-10-2013, 07:45 PM	#13
eschwartz Ex-Helpdesk Junkie Posts: 19,421 Karma: 85400180 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: The Beaten Path, USA, Roundworld, This Side of Infinity Device: Kindle Touch fw5.3.7 (Wifi only)	I do the same with a symlink, for dropbox. Are you saying that copy will notice a shortcut.ink and upload what it points to, or are you using a symlink too? Because I have always been pretty sure the big problem with shortcuts is that no programs can tell they are actually supposed to represent a different file/folder. IIRC Dropbox can't, and confuses a lot of people like that.

12-10-2013, 08:34 PM	#15
eschwartz Ex-Helpdesk Junkie Posts: 19,421 Karma: 85400180 Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: The Beaten Path, USA, Roundworld, This Side of Infinity Device: Kindle Touch fw5.3.7 (Wifi only)	Very interesting. I may have to explore that when I get home from school and try out my family's Windows machine.

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