[GUI Plugin] Kindle Collections (old)

[KataiKata]

Originally Posted by meme

This release fixes an issue introduced in the last version with reading the title and author from mobi book contents.

It also tries to handle non-utf-8 characters in pathnames better by at least not crashing.

@KataiKata - can you test this version and let me know if the error is gone. Also, can you tell me if your titles/pathnames are showing up ok in the Edit window and the View report. Testing non-ascii or non-utf-8 characters on a non-utf-8 system is tricky and they've always given me problems.

I have updated the plugin (1.5.7), and it seems to be working now.
Thank you!

[jangell2]

I'm at version 1.5.6 and I decided to go from a text custom column to a comma delimited cc. I delete the existing column and add the new comma delimited column. I import from my kindle.

Now I figure I've got to go through my cc field and change all the commas to something like an underscore or whatever. Typically the commas are there for authorLastname, authorFirstName.

I look at the contents of my custom column and I see that I've got semi colons wherever I expected a comma. On the rare occurrence where I've got a book in two collections, I see them both in the cc, separated by a comma. Meaning I can use the comma to put a book in more than one collection.

I then look in the update history and see Meme has saved me a bunch of work. To make it sweeter, I will still have commas in my collections on the Kindle.

Excuse the expression, but this last update is slicker than snot Way to go Meme.

[Loeffel]

I hadn't tried it with Version 1.5.6, with 1.5.5 everything was fine now with 1.5.7 and Calibre 0.7.57 I get the following error messages:

View report of Kindle collections and books

calibre, version 0.7.57
ERROR: Nicht abgefangener Fehler: <b>UnicodeDecodeError</b>:'utf8' codec can't decode byte 0xe4 in position 51: invalid continuation byte

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.ui", line 148, in view_kindle_collections
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_view_collections", line 40, in run
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_view_collections", line 96, in generate_existing_kindle_collections_report
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_books", line 501, in get_sorted_paths_from_codes
UnicodeDecodeError: 'utf8' codec can't decode byte 0xe4 in position 51: invalid continuation byte

Edit Kindle collections manually...

calibre, version 0.7.57
ERROR: Nicht abgefangener Fehler: <b>UnicodeDecodeError</b>:'utf8' codec can't decode byte 0xe4 in position 29: invalid continuation byte

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.ui", line 152, in edit_kindle_collections
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_edit_collections", line 69, in run
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_edit_collections", line 86, in __init__
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_edit_collections", line 106, in init_sort_order
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_edit_collections", line 299, in get_sorted_paths
  File "calibre_plugins.kindle_collections.kindle_books", line 493, in get_sorted_paths_from_codes
UnicodeDecodeError: 'utf8' codec can't decode byte 0xe4 in position 29: invalid continuation byte

Import Kindle collections into Calibre:

calibre, version 0.7.57
ERROR: Import Kindle Collections: Unable to import Kindle collections into Calibre.<P>Create at least one custom column, using Preferences->Add your own column, from these types:<BR>-- Text, column shown in the tag browser<BR>-- Comma separated text, like tags<BR>-- Long text, like comments<BR>-- Yes/No<P>For example:<BR>-- Lookup name: "importedkindlecollections"<BR>-- Column heading: "Imported Kindle Collections"<BR>-- Column type: "Comma separated text, like tags"

The other functions run without error message. But when I check the Kindle collections e.g. via preview he creates collections that are already existing and kicks out books too!
Preview:

calibre, version 0.7.57
Kindle Collections: <P>Preview report generated 11 collections.<P>


=== Kindle Collections 1.5.6 PREVIEW Report

Preview only - no collections have actually been modified on the Kindle.


These files have invalid extensions and will be ignored by the Kindle:

    documents/Amazon/German User's Guide.pdr

    documents/Amazon/The Morcyth Saga/Fires of Prophecy The Morcyth Sa-asin_B0019BVFLW-type_EBOK-v_0.sa

    documents/Amazon/The Morcyth Saga/Shades of the Past The Morcyth S-asin_B0016DC166-type_EBOK-v_0.sa

    documents/Amazon/The Morcyth Saga/The Mists of Sorrow The Morcyth-asin_B0012TU4Y0-type_EBOK-v_0.sa

    documents/Amazon/The Morcyth Saga/The Star of Morcyth The Morcyth-asin_B0019BUP6I-type_EBOK-v_0.sa

    documents/Amazon/The Morcyth Saga/Trail of the Gods The Morcyth Sa-asin_B0019BNDIK-type_EBOK-v_0.sa

    documents/Amazon/The Morcyth Saga/Warrior Priest of Dmon Li The Mo-asin_B0019BUW02-type_EBOK-v_0.sa


Collections saved to the Kindle:

    Collection                         Managed By  Books  Change
    ----------                         ----------  -----  ------
    Amazon                             Kindle      5      None (preserve Kindle-only is True)
    BattleTech                         Calibre     1      Replaced (from column "Reihe")
    Dictionaries                       Kindle      5      None (preserve Kindle-only is True)
    Die Abenteuer des Sherlock Holmes  Calibre     5      Replaced (from column "Reihe")
    Dragon Keepers                     Calibre     1      Replaced (from column "Reihe")
    Free Amazon                        Kindle      14     None (preserve Kindle-only is True)
    Games                              Kindle      2      None (preserve Kindle-only is True)
    The Morcyth Saga                   Calibre     4      Created (from column "Reihe")
    Read                               Kindle      56     None (preserve Kindle-only is True)
    Samples                            Kindle      14     None (preserve Kindle-only is True)
    Unspecified                        Kindle      14     None (preserve Kindle-only is True)

No collections selected to delete from the Kindle.



=== Settings:

Reihe
    Action:      Create
    Prefix:      ""
    Suffix:      ""
    Minimum:     1
    Ignore:      ""
    Include:     ""
    Rename from: ""
    Rename to:   ""
    Split on:    ""

Never delete/modify these Kindle collections:      
Action when toolbar icon is clicked:               Show menu (default)
Preserve existing Kindle-only collections:         True
Ignore prefix/suffix when comparing Calibre names: True
Ignore case when pattern matching:                 True
Fast reboot using hacks:                           True
Fast reboot trigger file:                          L:\linkss\reboot
Calibre Personal doc tag:                          [PDOC]
Kindle collections file:                           L:\system\collections.json
Plugin customization file:                         E:\Daten\Users\Loeffel\AppData\Roaming\calibre\plugins\Kindle Collections.json

Run View Report to see collection and book details.

The replaced and the created collections are already existing!

[meme]

The report shows you are running the 1.5.6 version of the plugin not 1.5.7. Are you sure you downloaded and installed 1.5.7?

The import message is normal if you haven't created any custom columns - as it says in the message.

The preview reports seems ok. Its reporting warnings that the file extension .sa is not valid for the Kindle. What extension is that - and can you actually view these on your Kindle?

The utf-8 errors for view/edit should work in 1.5.7. But even 1.5.7 isn't fully handling unicode perfectly yet. I still have some reading and testing to do. Part of the problem is Windows using its own encoding and including characters that don't map directly to utf-8. I'm trying to find the best way to handle them so that collections work, and characters display correctly on screen.

[koland]

Originally Posted by meme

The report shows you are running the 1.5.6 version of the plugin not 1.5.7. Are you sure you downloaded and installed 1.5.7?

I installed 1.5.7 - but it didn't remove the old version. So, I ended up running both. I removed the older one, then removed the toolbar icons, restarted and was up on 1.5.7. Suspect OP has similar problem.

[Loeffel]

@meme
I've updated the plugin via the updater plugin and this shows me I have installed the newest one.
Since installation I have restarted Calibre many times. I will have a look after returning home from work. As it now says the plugin can't be configured because Calibre need to be restarted. After another new start I have to connect my Kindle first.
That problem I had in a similar form before not only with this plugin. after deinstallation and reinstallation everything was fine.

[meme]

The need to uninstall before installing isn't something I've seen. Possibly something with the plugin updater. But I just installed 1.5.6, then used the updater to go to 1.5.7 and it worked perfectly.

@koland - I don't know how you were running 'both'. There would only be one icon and 1.5.6 and 1.5.7 have the same name. Now if you were running a really old version ('Create Kindle Collections', then you would have had to uninstall/re-install (although even that might not be necessary with the latest version of the plugin updater).

After restarting, check under Preferences->Plugins then User Interface plugins - and look for Kindle Collections. The version number is listed there (hmmm, I think I'll consider adding an About menu item to make this easier to check).

[bpalesch]

OK, so when I upload my books from Calibre to my K3 will this plugin cause them to be put into the correct collection on my K3 or will I still have to assign them manually to the correct category once they're on the K3?

[meme]

After you have sent your books from Calibre to your K3 you will need to run the plugin to create the collections on the Kindle. (Collections are not created automatically by the Kindle from the book information like a Sony for example).

To create the collections 'automatically' on the Kindle from your information in Calibre, you need to use the plugin's Customize menu to pick a column that contains the collection names you want to use. E.g. pick Author_Sort to have collections names after each author in the form "Lastname, Firstname". Or pick a different column and include/ignore specific entries, etc. Then run Preview to see what will happen, and Create when you are ready to update your Kindle's collections.

[koland]

Originally Posted by meme

@koland - I don't know how you were running 'both'. There would only be one icon and 1.5.6 and 1.5.7 have the same name. Now if you were running a really old version ('Create Kindle Collections', then you would have had to uninstall/re-install (although even that might not be necessary with the latest version of the plugin updater).

I had a version a bit before 1.5.6 (it had two icons). So, although when I checked the version, it said 1.5.7 was running, it was actually mostly running the older version (no icon for 1.5.7, for example), but with errors (and none of the newer features.

I removed the older version manually (under plugins), then removed the second icon on the toolbar (which wasn't automatically removed), restarted Calibre and then 1.5.7's icon started showing up.

Is there a way to get into preferences (if not, there should be), without the Kindle plugged in? I was wanting to check the version and update preferences before plugging in my Kindle, but don't see a method to do that.

Also, I don't yet have all my books from the Kindle in Calibre. Right now, I have two collections, one managed by Kindle and the other by Calibre. I want to combine them into a single collection. Since I can't see the books that are Kindle only to do anything to them, I was going to try this:

1. On the Kindle, move the books that are in the Calibre maintained collection to the Kindle collection.
2. Delete the Calibre collection
3. Rename the Kindle maintained collection (same as old Calibre name)
4. Import Collections into Calibre.

My question is: if I do this, when I update collections from Calibre, will it leave the (over a hundred) books that are Kindle only in that collection, or just create a collection of a handful of books that are in Calibre?

[meme]

Originally Posted by koland

I had a version a bit before 1.5.6 (it had two icons). So, although when I checked the version, it said 1.5.7 was running, it was actually mostly running the older version (no icon for 1.5.7, for example), but with errors (and none of the newer features.

I removed the older version manually (under plugins), then removed the second icon on the toolbar (which wasn't automatically removed), restarted Calibre and then 1.5.7's icon started showing up.

All very mysterious - especially as the icon hasn't changed for a while. Maybe if someone has this situation we can try to debug what's going on. In any case - glad its up and running for you.

Is there a way to get into preferences (if not, there should be), without the Kindle plugged in?

No - the preferences are tied to the Kindle and the Library you are using since the plugin supports multiple Kindles with different settings. If I let you customize before you connected, then the defaults that apply to the newly connected Kindle would overwrite what you just set. (Ok, I could get fancy and remember the Kindles that were attached, etc. - but so far there hasn't been any driver to do that - and it would add confusion for the majority just using one).

I was wanting to check the version and update preferences before plugging in my Kindle, but don't see a method to do that.

I'll be adding an About button to the menu to show the version. Maybe that will mean I won't update it for a while after

Also, I don't yet have all my books from the Kindle in Calibre. Right now, I have two collections, one managed by Kindle and the other by Calibre. I want to combine them into a single collection. Since I can't see the books that are Kindle only to do anything to them, I was going to try this:

1. On the Kindle, move the books that are in the Calibre maintained collection to the Kindle collection.
2. Delete the Calibre collection
3. Rename the Kindle maintained collection (same as old Calibre name)
4. Import Collections into Calibre.

My question is: if I do this, when I update collections from Calibre, will it leave the (over a hundred) books that are Kindle only in that collection, or just create a collection of a handful of books that are in Calibre?

First - you can definitely see all the books on your Kindle and what collections they are in - and whether or not they are in Calibre - use Edit Collections.

Second, I think I'm confused

If you really only have 2 collections and you gradually want to move to one collection that is Calibre managed, then you may want to:

1. Import Collections into Calibre into a custom column (e.g. "Kindle Collections") (only books that are in calibre will get the collection name put into the column)
2. Setup the plugin's Customize to Create collections based on your custom column
3. Run Preview (to test/check) then Create - only the names in the custom column will be updated.
4. Now when you import a book into Calibre you can add your collection name into the "Kindle Collections" column and run Create, and manually delete (using Edit Collections if you want) the entry in the Kindle-only collection.

When using Create Collections, it will only update the names it finds in the columns you setup in Customize, and leave your Kindle-only collection names alone. To be extra safe, you can put the Kindle-only collection name in the "Never delete" text box on the Customize screen and it will never be modified (and will be ignored when checking for changes which will be helpful if you really do want to mix automatic and manual creation).

[bpalesch]

My question is NOT how do I create categories. The plugin is doing that correctly. My question is, when I upload a book from Calibre to my K3, does this plugin provide a way to put the book into the correct category on the K3? Or does it ONLY/JUST create categories on the Kindle? What's happening now is that when I upload books and re-run the plugin I get the correct collections, but the books are NOT being put into them; they're being listed after my collections. I have sort by collections selected.

[meme]

Originally Posted by bpalesch

My question is NOT how do I create categories. The plugin is doing that correctly. My question is, when I upload a book from Calibre to my K3, does this plugin provide a way to put the book into the correct category on the K3? Or does it ONLY/JUST create categories on the Kindle?

The plugin's raison d'être is to put books into collections (along with creating collections in the first place)

The plugin does provide a way to put your book into the correct category. You tell it what categories to create in Customize - and then the plugin uses that information to get books that are in that category. For example, if you told it to create one collection for every Author, then obviously as soon as you create a book it has an Author so the plugin will put the book in the collection for that Author. If however you create a custom column with various collection names, then its up to you to enter the collection name you want for the book in the custom column before running create.

Of course, this may not be what you're asking either - so feel free to ask again and maybe someone else might grok what you are trying to do better than me.

[kiwidude]

I wonder if perhaps bpalesch is just wanting to know the workflow - in which case I would say to them that you must run the Kindle Collections plugin every time you add or remove books from your Kindle. Otherwise your collection (category) is out of date.

@meme - I am as confused as you about kolands situation. It just isn't possible to have 1.5.6 and 1.5.7 of a plugin installed at the same time, having two icons on the toolbar etc. Not without the plugin having different names.

[bpalesch]

Originally Posted by meme

The plugin's raison d'être is to put books into collections (along with creating collections in the first place)

The plugin does provide a way to put your book into the correct category. You tell it what categories to create in Customize - and then the plugin uses that information to get books that are in that category. For example, if you told it to create one collection for every Author, then obviously as soon as you create a book it has an Author so the plugin will put the book in the collection for that Author. If however you create a custom column with various collection names, then its up to you to enter the collection name you want for the book in the custom column before running create.

Of course, this may not be what you're asking either - so feel free to ask again and maybe someone else might grok what you are trying to do better than me.

OK, thanks - that answers the basic question; the plugin should be putting the books into the correct category on the Kindle. But it's not. Here's what I'm doing - maybe you can spot where I'm going wrong:

I have a custom metadata field called Collection, which is the field I'm using to define my collections via the plugin.

In the plugin customize window I have Create selected for the Calibre Source "Collection"



My actions are:
1. Connect K to Calibre.
2. Upload books to Kindle.
3. Run plugin.
4. Eject Kindle.
5. Do a restart on the Kindle.
6. When it finally comes back up, the collections are correct but all of the books are listed after the collections.