I want an ereader that's more like calibre

kangxi · 11-24-2024, 12:25 PM

The more familiar I get with what Calibre has to offer the more I realise that my Kindle Paperwhite can't cope with what I think are essential attributes of a reader. I want to be able to list books I'm in the middle of reading. I want to get rid of all the sales displays and attempts to sell me stuff on Amazon. I want to be able to link books in a sequence and be able to see their reading order. I want to be able to display a list of authors. I want to be able to edit metadata of books held in the Kindle and sync the edits to the master files in the Kindle library on my PC (maybe I can already do that from Calibre but I don't know how). I'd like to be able to switch the graphics off and on - all those front covers take up too much screen room when all I want often is a text list. I'd like more options when choosing selection criteria for a search. I want to know how far I've read and how much is left. I want to read the summary description of a book before I open it.

I like the Kindle's screen, readability and battery life.

Is there another ebook out there which has a management system more like Calibre than Kindle's, and is as readable as the Kindle is?

Sirtel · 11-24-2024, 02:32 PM

A Kobo ereader can do most of what you list here:

- list the books you're reading, with the percentage of how much has been read (and you can sync this data to Calibre, if you want)
- no advertisements; with a patch you can also get rid of book recommendations on the home page
- display series and series order
- you can edit the metadata of your master files in your calibre library and sync the changes to the files on your Kobo (not vice versa)
- the synopsis (book summary) is in the book details on your Kobo, taken from Calibre

Plus, automatic collection creating and management (you set this up in Calibre, based on tags or any custom column you want, and when you connect your Kobo to Calibre, collections will be created or deleted automatically on your device)

What you cannot do with your Kobo is switch the covers completely off. Thumbnails will always be there in your book lists.

kangxi · 11-24-2024, 03:40 PM

Many thanks! I think I'll treat myself to one for Christmas. I had a quick look at the models and the basic b/w Clara seems fine (I don't want to make notes and colour is not important). And the screen is slightly larger than the paperwhite, which I'm comfortable with. I don't mind thumbnails - it's just that Amazon's tend to take over far too much of the screen. I can see I'd better head over to the Kobo forum to get a flavour of the beast and to see what folks think about the various models before I finally make up my mind. Again: thanks for that.

11-24-2024, 12:25 PM	#1
kangxi Member Posts: 18 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2024 Location: Kendal, Cumbria Device: Kindle Paperwhite	I want an ereader that's more like calibre The more familiar I get with what Calibre has to offer the more I realise that my Kindle Paperwhite can't cope with what I think are essential attributes of a reader. I want to be able to list books I'm in the middle of reading. I want to get rid of all the sales displays and attempts to sell me stuff on Amazon. I want to be able to link books in a sequence and be able to see their reading order. I want to be able to display a list of authors. I want to be able to edit metadata of books held in the Kindle and sync the edits to the master files in the Kindle library on my PC (maybe I can already do that from Calibre but I don't know how). I'd like to be able to switch the graphics off and on - all those front covers take up too much screen room when all I want often is a text list. I'd like more options when choosing selection criteria for a search. I want to know how far I've read and how much is left. I want to read the summary description of a book before I open it. I like the Kindle's screen, readability and battery life. Is there another ebook out there which has a management system more like Calibre than Kindle's, and is as readable as the Kindle is?

11-24-2024, 02:32 PM	#2
Sirtel Grand Sorcerer Posts: 13,484 Karma: 239219543 Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Estonia Device: Kobo Sage & Libra 2	A Kobo ereader can do most of what you list here: - list the books you're reading, with the percentage of how much has been read (and you can sync this data to Calibre, if you want) - no advertisements; with a patch you can also get rid of book recommendations on the home page - display series and series order - you can edit the metadata of your master files in your calibre library and sync the changes to the files on your Kobo (not vice versa) - the synopsis (book summary) is in the book details on your Kobo, taken from Calibre Plus, automatic collection creating and management (you set this up in Calibre, based on tags or any custom column you want, and when you connect your Kobo to Calibre, collections will be created or deleted automatically on your device) What you cannot do with your Kobo is switch the covers completely off. Thumbnails will always be there in your book lists. Last edited by Sirtel; 11-24-2024 at 02:40 PM.

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11-24-2024, 03:40 PM	#3
kangxi Member Posts: 18 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jun 2024 Location: Kendal, Cumbria Device: Kindle Paperwhite	Many thanks! I think I'll treat myself to one for Christmas. I had a quick look at the models and the basic b/w Clara seems fine (I don't want to make notes and colour is not important). And the screen is slightly larger than the paperwhite, which I'm comfortable with. I don't mind thumbnails - it's just that Amazon's tend to take over far too much of the screen. I can see I'd better head over to the Kobo forum to get a flavour of the beast and to see what folks think about the various models before I finally make up my mind. Again: thanks for that.

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