Save original when converting epub to epub?

fitzhugh · 07-15-2011, 04:39 PM

I converted an epub to epub so I could change some things (justification etc.), and entered a new title, expecting it to make another copy and leave the old, as if I had made a new filename, not just new title. It didn't. This makes sense when I think about it, but we are used to dealing with filenames and being able to rename when saving so as to not lose the original. Would it be possible to add a checkbox for "save original" when converting from a format to the same format?

I know I can save to disk first, this is more about the program working differently than some might expect in a way that can't necessarily be easily undone.

A small issue at most.

Thank you for such a fantastic program!

DoctorOhh · 07-15-2011, 05:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fitzhugh

Would it be possible to add a checkbox for "save original" when converting from a format to the same format?

This is a great idea and Kovid as said at least three times in recent weeks that this is on his ToDo list, but will have have wait while he rewrites the database backend for network/multiple access.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fitzhugh

I know I can save to disk first, this is more about the program working differently than some might expect in a way that can't necessarily be easily undone.

While we wait this is the solution.

Quote:

Originally Posted by fitzhugh

Thank you for such a fantastic program!

Starson17 · 07-16-2011, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwanthny

TWhile we wait this is the solution.

My preference is to duplicate the book record, then do the conversion in the duplicate. If I'm happy, I can delete the original record. If not, I delete the duplicate.

fitzhugh · 07-22-2011, 03:28 PM

Starson17 and Dwanthny, thank you both for the helpful replies. I realized just how much I'm relying on Calibre this morning when I thought about how hard it would be to do without it (got first reader a month ago, installed Calibre first time then). Nice to see there is a helpful community to go with it.

I'm glad to hear he's considering this. Since there are easy workarounds I only feel it matters is because it acts in a way that differs from what seems reasonable to assume, and does so in a "destructive" manner (just mean it deletes original w/ no undo). I didn't lose anything and the inconvenience was less than trivial, but someone might lose something important if they expect the same result as I had. Even a popup window saying something like the following would be fine:

"Converting a file to the same format (e.g., EPUB to EPUB) will overwrite the original file. Would you like to continue?
[] yes [x]no
Note: Make a duplicate copy before running the conversion if you wish to preserve the original version."

Thanks!

speakingtohe · 07-22-2011, 03:56 PM

As long as the warning can be disbled that is fine.

I actually thought there was such a warning and that I had disabled it. I know there is one for bulk convert. (Wish I could disable that one

)

Occasionally if I am feeling cautious and want to test a conversion option I will convert to another format first.

And of course I always keep the original on a seperate device (drive, usb stick etc.) and backup my library every few months as well to a different device.

Warnings are good for many, but they give me a false confidence and I can click yes when I mean no.

Helen

DoctorOhh · 07-22-2011, 07:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fitzhugh

Even a popup window saying something like the following would be fine:

"Converting a file to the same format (e.g., EPUB to EPUB) will overwrite the original file. Would you like to continue?
[] yes [x]no
Note: Make a duplicate copy before running the conversion if you wish to preserve the original version."!

Good Idea.

Kovid did you one better in the current release.

Release: 0.8.11 [22 Jul, 2011]
New Features

When doing a conversion from some format to the same format, save the original file

When calibre does a conversion from the same format to the same format, for example, from EPUB to EPUB, the original file is saved as original_epub, so that in case the conversion is poor, you can change the settings and run it again. The original is automatically used every time you run a conversion with that format as input. If you want to disable this, there is a tweak that prevents calibre from saving the originals in Preferences->Tweaks. You can easily replace the converted version with the original in the Edit metadata dialog by right clicking on the list of formats in the top right corner.

Starson17 · 07-24-2011, 09:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dwanthny

Kovid did you one better in the current release.

Thanks, Kovid.

kovidgoyal · 07-24-2011, 11:24 AM

You're welcome, I got bored of working on the new db backend, so I took a break to fix a few long standing issues

DuskyRose · 07-24-2011, 07:35 PM

I'd like to disable this, but when I go to change the Tweak from "save_original_format = True" to "save_original_format = False" it won't let me save the change. It says...

"The tweaks you entered are invalid, try resetting the teaks to default and changing them one by one until you find the invalid setting."

Show Details says....

calibre, version 0.8.11
ERROR: Invalid tweaks: The tweaks you entered are invalid, try resetting the tweaks to default and changing them one by one until you find the invalid setting.

Traceback (most recent call last):
File "site-packages\calibre\gui2\preferences\tweaks.py", line 328, in commit
File "<string>", line 400
Qt = <class 'PyQt4.QtCore.Qt'>
^
SyntaxError: invalid syntax

I'm using version 0.8.11. I've tried reinstalling, and then running a 'repair'.

Do I need to do something different?

theducks · 07-24-2011, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuskyRose

I'd like to disable this, but when I go to change the Tweak from "save_original_format = True" to "save_original_format = False" it won't let me save the change. It says...

"The tweaks you entered are invalid, try resetting the teaks to default and changing them one by one until you find the invalid setting."

Show Details says....

calibre, version 0.8.11
ERROR: Invalid tweaks: The tweaks you entered are invalid, try resetting the tweaks to default and changing them one by one until you find the invalid setting.

Traceback (most recent call last):
File "site-packages\calibre\gui2\preferences\tweaks.py", line 328, in commit
File "<string>", line 400
Qt = <class 'PyQt4.QtCore.Qt'>
^
SyntaxError: invalid syntax

I'm using version 0.8.11. I've tried reinstalling, and then running a 'repair'.

Do I need to do something different?

I just made the line read:

Code:

save_original_format = False

DuskyRose · 07-24-2011, 07:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theducks

I just made the line read:

Code:

save_original_format = False

The only word I'm changing is "True" to "False".

theducks · 07-24-2011, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuskyRose

The only word I'm changing is "True" to "False".

I re-read the error message.
It could be ANY tweak with a non-default setting.

If you don't have a lot of tweaks, you can open the Calibre Config directory with the button on Preferences: Misc .
Quit Calibre
Delete the tweaks.py file.
restart Calibre, the file will be created with default settings.
Now try the tweak

DuskyRose · 07-25-2011, 10:37 AM

Thanks, Theducks.

I don't remember ever playing with anything in the tweaks before, so decided to delete the tweaks.py file. I'll just have to figure out later what I might have changed.

It seemed to accept the change when I hit "apply", and I did the restart as suggested. The whole option seems to be gone from the Tweak list now, but I'll have to play with it for a while to see if it's all doing what it should now.

(ed. Ah, it's there, it's just at the top of the list now instead of the bottom, but it does say "False"!)

Appreciate the help!

theducks · 07-25-2011, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DuskyRose

Thanks, Theducks.

I don't remember ever playing with anything in the tweaks before, so decided to delete the tweaks.py file. I'll just have to figure out later what I might have changed.

It seemed to accept the change when I hit "apply", and I did the restart as suggested. The whole option seems to be gone from the Tweak list now, but I'll have to play with it for a while to see if it's all doing what it should now.

(ed. Ah, it's there, it's just at the top of the list now instead of the bottom, but it does say "False"!)

Appreciate the help!

Once an Option is set, it floats to the top of the list and the title on the left becomes bold

Valentino · 07-26-2011, 01:01 PM

Whoohoo, thanks Kovid.

I just noticed that I cant use use the original_epub as a source in the convert dialog. Is this in the plans?

07-15-2011, 04:39 PM	#1
fitzhugh Member Posts: 13 Karma: 1120 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: nook str	Save original when converting epub to epub? I converted an epub to epub so I could change some things (justification etc.), and entered a new title, expecting it to make another copy and leave the old, as if I had made a new filename, not just new title. It didn't. This makes sense when I think about it, but we are used to dealing with filenames and being able to rename when saving so as to not lose the original. Would it be possible to add a checkbox for "save original" when converting from a format to the same format? I know I can save to disk first, this is more about the program working differently than some might expect in a way that can't necessarily be easily undone. A small issue at most. Thank you for such a fantastic program!

07-22-2011, 03:28 PM	#4
fitzhugh Member Posts: 13 Karma: 1120 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: nook str	Thanks! Starson17 and Dwanthny, thank you both for the helpful replies. I realized just how much I'm relying on Calibre this morning when I thought about how hard it would be to do without it (got first reader a month ago, installed Calibre first time then). Nice to see there is a helpful community to go with it. I'm glad to hear he's considering this. Since there are easy workarounds I only feel it matters is because it acts in a way that differs from what seems reasonable to assume, and does so in a "destructive" manner (just mean it deletes original w/ no undo). I didn't lose anything and the inconvenience was less than trivial, but someone might lose something important if they expect the same result as I had. Even a popup window saying something like the following would be fine: "Converting a file to the same format (e.g., EPUB to EPUB) will overwrite the original file. Would you like to continue? [] yes [x]no Note: Make a duplicate copy before running the conversion if you wish to preserve the original version." Thanks!

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07-22-2011, 03:56 PM	#5
speakingtohe Wizard Posts: 4,812 Karma: 26912940 Join Date: Apr 2010 Device: sony PRS-T1 and T3, Kobo Mini and Aura HD, Tablet	As long as the warning can be disbled that is fine. I actually thought there was such a warning and that I had disabled it. I know there is one for bulk convert. (Wish I could disable that one ) Occasionally if I am feeling cautious and want to test a conversion option I will convert to another format first. And of course I always keep the original on a seperate device (drive, usb stick etc.) and backup my library every few months as well to a different device. Warnings are good for many, but they give me a false confidence and I can click yes when I mean no. Helen

07-24-2011, 11:24 AM	#8
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 45,604 Karma: 28548974 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	You're welcome, I got bored of working on the new db backend, so I took a break to fix a few long standing issues

07-24-2011, 07:35 PM	#9
DuskyRose Guru Posts: 756 Karma: 9209502 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Virginia Device: Boox Note Air3, Palma, K-Scribe, Eclipsa 2e, & Libra 2, Ipads	I'd like to disable this, but when I go to change the Tweak from "save_original_format = True" to "save_original_format = False" it won't let me save the change. It says... "The tweaks you entered are invalid, try resetting the teaks to default and changing them one by one until you find the invalid setting." Show Details says.... calibre, version 0.8.11 ERROR: Invalid tweaks: The tweaks you entered are invalid, try resetting the tweaks to default and changing them one by one until you find the invalid setting. Traceback (most recent call last): File "site-packages\calibre\gui2\preferences\tweaks.py", line 328, in commit File "<string>", line 400 Qt = <class 'PyQt4.QtCore.Qt'> ^ SyntaxError: invalid syntax I'm using version 0.8.11. I've tried reinstalling, and then running a 'repair'. Do I need to do something different?

07-25-2011, 10:37 AM	#13
DuskyRose Guru Posts: 756 Karma: 9209502 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Virginia Device: Boox Note Air3, Palma, K-Scribe, Eclipsa 2e, & Libra 2, Ipads	Thanks, Theducks. I don't remember ever playing with anything in the tweaks before, so decided to delete the tweaks.py file. I'll just have to figure out later what I might have changed. It seemed to accept the change when I hit "apply", and I did the restart as suggested. The whole option seems to be gone from the Tweak list now, but I'll have to play with it for a while to see if it's all doing what it should now. (ed. Ah, it's there, it's just at the top of the list now instead of the bottom, but it does say "False"!) Appreciate the help!

07-26-2011, 01:01 PM	#15
Valentino Connoisseur Posts: 86 Karma: 999999 Join Date: Dec 2010 Device: some.	Whoohoo, thanks Kovid. I just noticed that I cant use use the original_epub as a source in the convert dialog. Is this in the plans?