Q: Library Maint and Plugboards

phossler · 02-16-2015, 08:48 PM

1. I ran [Library Maintenance - Check Library] (no errors) and then said Yes to Check to see if files match the information.

2. I have a plugboard to re-format the title when I export for my Kindle:

{series}{series_index:0>2s|[|]}{title}

3. The Title in the [Edit Metadata] in the is the usual, but the Check data seems to use the plugboard conversion and then generate a lot of false positive errors (screen shot) about Titles not being in correct format (i.e. after the plugboard translation)

4. It would seem (to me at least) that the Check should only be against the original content and not the post-plugboard re-format.

BetterRed · 02-16-2015, 09:31 PM

@phossler - looks like its checking what's on your kindle ereader or another device - seems a bit odd - un-attach the kindle and any other devices - assuming something's attached.

BR

phossler · 02-17-2015, 06:08 PM

@BR -- no device was attached.

This was part of my on-going effort to learn Calibre better and I was investigating the [Library Maintenance - Check Library] capabilities

kovidgoyal · 02-17-2015, 07:39 PM

Check library has nothing to do with plugboards whatsoever. If it is reporting extra files in your library then you have extra files in your library folder. Try looking at those files using windows explorer.

BetterRed · 02-17-2015, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phossler

@BR -- no device was attached.

This was part of my on-going effort to learn Calibre better and I was investigating the [Library Maintenance - Check Library] capabilities

What section of the error report are those errors appearing in

Might you have copied some files you saved somewhere into the library folder with a file manager - if you specify a library folder when you try to save to disk, you will get this error.

Quote:

calibre, version 2.19.0
ERROR: Not allowed: You are trying to save files into the calibre library. This can cause corruption of your library. Save to disc is meant to export files from your calibre library elsewhere.

Or maybe you copied a metadata db file into a folder where you saved those files in hope it would become a valid library

I suggest you create a Test library, back it up and experiment with it, then you'll be able to recover the library to a known good state when something goes awry.

BR

phossler · 02-18-2015, 09:20 AM

@kovid --

Quote:

Check library has nothing to do with plugboards whatsoever. If it is reporting extra files in your library then you have extra files in your library folder. Try looking at those files using windows explorer

Not extra files, but a epub title that appears to be in the wrong format (see Explorer screen shot -- only 'expected' file)

@BR --

Did not play around with the library or contents outside of Calibre. If it were one or three books, I might have done something, but not every epub

This is the OPF in one of the folders and Title seems OK

Spoiler:

This is the content.opf that is actually in the epub

Spoiler:

In content.opf the <dc:title> seems to be ok, ...

Code:

<dc:title>The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes</dc:title>

... but there is this in <meta name="calibre:user_metadata> which appears to have the 'after plug board' title that Check Library might be using ???

Code:

<meta name="calibre:user_metadata:#series_title" content="{&quot;search_terms&quot;: [&quot;#series_title&quot;], &quot;is_multiple&quot;: null, &quot;table&quot;: &quot;custom_column_3&quot;, &quot;is_category&quot;: false, &quot;is_custom&quot;: true, &quot;kind&quot;: &quot;field&quot;, &quot;link_column&quot;: &quot;value&quot;, &quot;display&quot;: {&quot;composite_template&quot;: &quot;{series}{series_index:0&gt;2s|(|)-}{title}&quot;, &quot;contains_html&quot;: false, &quot;make_category&quot;: false, &quot;composite_sort&quot;: &quot;text&quot;, &quot;use_decorations&quot;: 0}, &quot;is_editable&quot;: true, &quot;name&quot;: &quot;Series+Title&quot;, &quot;datatype&quot;: &quot;composite&quot;, &quot;is_multiple2&quot;: {}, &quot;is_csp&quot;: false, &quot;category_sort&quot;: &quot;value&quot;, &quot;rec_index&quot;: 22, &quot;#value#&quot;: null, &quot;#extra#&quot;: null, &quot;label&quot;: &quot;series_title&quot;, &quot;colnum&quot;: 3, &quot;column&quot;: &quot;value&quot;}"/>

Here's screen shot of Windows Explorer with no extra files, and the Error message

I do use caliberdb in a VBS script to copy epub and azw3 files to a flat folder to side load onto my Kindle. It has a file name template ""{authors}-{series}{series_index:0>2s|[|]-}{title}. Don't know that has anything to do with it

Code:

sCommandLine = "export --all --dont-save-cover --dont-write-opf --format epub"
 sCommandLine = sCommandLine & " --single-dir --template ""{authors}-{series}{series_index:0>2s|[|]-}{title}"" --to-dir "
sCommandLine = sCommandLine & """" & sDestination & """"
Call RunProgram ("calibredb", sCommandLine, 1)

Before I did that I did have my own column, but deleted it when I discovered the template language. Could that still be remembered???

kovidgoyal · 02-18-2015, 10:17 AM

Invalid title means exactly that. You have extra files/folders in your library whose filename does not match the file naming conventions used by calibre.

phossler · 02-18-2015, 10:43 AM

Got it.

What was confusing me, was I thought [Check Library] would only look in folders referenced in the 'book' folders in the database. Instead it swept all folders below \Calibre\ and the 'un added' books folder (\Calibre\epub\) was being reported. Those were the files I was seeing, not the 'real' added books in the library DB

This was a leftover part of my testing for the VBS script to use plug boards to change the title and file name for my Kindle and copy to a single flat folder

I'm all sorted out now ... thanks

PeterT · 02-18-2015, 10:59 AM

The simplest idea is to consider the entire directory structure of the calibre library as a black-box; yes you can look in it but never add any additional files / folders to it.

phossler · 02-18-2015, 11:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PeterT

The simplest idea is to consider the entire directory structure of the calibre library as a black-box; yes you can look in it but never add any additional files / folders to it.

Agreed

I already knew not to mess with the book folders, and today I learned to leave my hands off EVERYTHING

BetterRed · 02-18-2015, 02:57 PM

@phossler - darn, I didn't think of a VBS script

I don't hold with the 'it's a black box/crinoline so you shouldn't opening/look-under it' point of view, its your data, on your computer, thus you're responsible for it. There are no warranties to invalidate here.

When the Library Check function throws up an error often the only way to fix the error is to open the library/author/book folder and deal with the file/folder in question (delete it, rename it, add it to the book...). Blithely having calibre delete it (when that's possible) could result is removing something whose loss you later regret.

My position is 'look but be careful what you touch'. Where 'touch' is to add, delete, rename or alter the disposition (attributes, permissions, etc) of any existing folders or files. If Kovid didn't expect you to you look then he wouldn't provide the press 'O' or Click to open features to open a book folder. And he'd super-hide the library folder in some obscure location with an obscure name - a' la Picasa or some such

BR

phossler · 02-18-2015, 09:29 PM

If you look at the screenshot in post #6, the Error Message is 'Invalid Title' and that's what threw me.

I really didn't think that I was messing about where I shouldn't be since I was not in any of the 'book' subfolders

There were .epub files in a folder one level below <userid>\Calibre that were not in the Calibre library data since they had been created outside of Calibre (using calibredb.exe).

The folder was <userid>\Calibre\ePub Books\ and the Check function apparently sweeps from <userid>\Calibre on down

Now if the message had said something like "Found books not in database" I would have know right away instead of bothering everyone about how the plug board title template was mixing up things.

02-16-2015, 08:48 PM	#1
phossler Wizard Posts: 1,087 Karma: 447222 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Valley Forge, PA, USA Device: Kindle Paperwhite	Q: Library Maint and Plugboards 1. I ran [Library Maintenance - Check Library] (no errors) and then said Yes to Check to see if files match the information. 2. I have a plugboard to re-format the title when I export for my Kindle: {series}{series_index:0>2s\|[\|]}{title} 3. The Title in the [Edit Metadata] in the is the usual, but the Check data seems to use the plugboard conversion and then generate a lot of false positive errors (screen shot) about Titles not being in correct format (i.e. after the plugboard translation) 4. It would seem (to me at least) that the Check should only be against the original content and not the post-plugboard re-format. Attached Thumbnails

02-17-2015, 06:08 PM	#3
phossler Wizard Posts: 1,087 Karma: 447222 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Valley Forge, PA, USA Device: Kindle Paperwhite	@BR -- no device was attached. This was part of my on-going effort to learn Calibre better and I was investigating the [Library Maintenance - Check Library] capabilities Attached Thumbnails Last edited by phossler; 02-17-2015 at 06:12 PM.

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02-16-2015, 09:31 PM	#2
BetterRed null operator (he/him) Posts: 21,660 Karma: 29711016 Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Sydney Australia Device: none	@phossler - looks like its checking what's on your kindle ereader or another device - seems a bit odd - un-attach the kindle and any other devices - assuming something's attached. BR

02-17-2015, 07:39 PM	#4
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 45,251 Karma: 27110894 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	Check library has nothing to do with plugboards whatsoever. If it is reporting extra files in your library then you have extra files in your library folder. Try looking at those files using windows explorer.

02-18-2015, 10:17 AM	#7
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 45,251 Karma: 27110894 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	Invalid title means exactly that. You have extra files/folders in your library whose filename does not match the file naming conventions used by calibre.

02-18-2015, 10:43 AM	#8
phossler Wizard Posts: 1,087 Karma: 447222 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Valley Forge, PA, USA Device: Kindle Paperwhite	Got it. What was confusing me, was I thought [Check Library] would only look in folders referenced in the 'book' folders in the database. Instead it swept all folders below \Calibre\ and the 'un added' books folder (\Calibre\epub\) was being reported. Those were the files I was seeing, not the 'real' added books in the library DB This was a leftover part of my testing for the VBS script to use plug boards to change the title and file name for my Kindle and copy to a single flat folder I'm all sorted out now ... thanks

02-18-2015, 10:59 AM	#9
PeterT Grand Sorcerer Posts: 13,374 Karma: 78877538 Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Toronto Device: Libra H2O, Libra Colour	The simplest idea is to consider the entire directory structure of the calibre library as a black-box; yes you can look in it but never add any additional files / folders to it.

02-18-2015, 02:57 PM	#11
BetterRed null operator (he/him) Posts: 21,660 Karma: 29711016 Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Sydney Australia Device: none	@phossler - darn, I didn't think of a VBS script I don't hold with the 'it's a black box/crinoline so you shouldn't opening/look-under it' point of view, its your data, on your computer, thus you're responsible for it. There are no warranties to invalidate here. When the Library Check function throws up an error often the only way to fix the error is to open the library/author/book folder and deal with the file/folder in question (delete it, rename it, add it to the book...). Blithely having calibre delete it (when that's possible) could result is removing something whose loss you later regret. My position is 'look but be careful what you touch'. Where 'touch' is to add, delete, rename or alter the disposition (attributes, permissions, etc) of any existing folders or files. If Kovid didn't expect you to you look then he wouldn't provide the press 'O' or Click to open features to open a book folder. And he'd super-hide the library folder in some obscure location with an obscure name - a' la Picasa or some such BR

02-18-2015, 09:29 PM	#12
phossler Wizard Posts: 1,087 Karma: 447222 Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Valley Forge, PA, USA Device: Kindle Paperwhite	If you look at the screenshot in post #6, the Error Message is 'Invalid Title' and that's what threw me. I really didn't think that I was messing about where I shouldn't be since I was not in any of the 'book' subfolders There were .epub files in a folder one level below <userid>\Calibre that were not in the Calibre library data since they had been created outside of Calibre (using calibredb.exe). The folder was <userid>\Calibre\ePub Books\ and the Check function apparently sweeps from <userid>\Calibre on down Now if the message had said something like "Found books not in database" I would have know right away instead of bothering everyone about how the plug board title template was mixing up things.

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