Can't find book folder - Kobo App on Android tablet

[cootcraig]

This is my first attempt at reading books on an Android Tablet. Sadly it is an underpowered nextbook (it was cheap though). Software in use:

Android 5 Lollipop on tablet.
Ftp Server Pro on tablet.
Kobo Android app Version 8.5.1.24241 on tablet.
My workstation OS is Debian Linux
Calibre 2.5 on workstation

Using Ftp Server Pro I have access from my workstation to the root partition on the tablet.

I am hoping to manage the book folder used by the Kobo Android app and copy books from the Calibre book folder on my workstation to the tablet.

I have loaded one free book from the Kobo book store and hoped to find a book folder on the tablet, but it has eluded me so far.

Help please.

[cootcraig]

Originally Posted by cootcraig

This is my first attempt at reading books on an Android Tablet.
I have loaded one free book from the Kobo book store and hoped to find a book folder on the tablet, but it has eluded me so far.

I may have found it finally. I was not actually browsing the tablet root. When I went one folder up I found:

/storage/sdcard0/Android/data/com.kobobooks.android/files/e08a238f2e14e78f67c629f25b32a5e6/epubs/

ftp://ipaddress:port/storage/sdcard0...b32a5e6/epubs/

Now to copy a book from calibre on the workstation and see if it shows up in the kobo app on the tablet.

[cootcraig]

Originally Posted by cootcraig

I am hoping to manage the book folder used by the Kobo Android app and copy books from the Calibre book folder on my workstation to the tablet

Of course, what I'm trying to accomplish is transfering books between Calibre on the workstation and Kobo app on the tablet.

My first attempt was to connect the tablet with a USB cable, but could not get this to work and gave up.

Is there a better approach?

[davidfor]

Having a quick look at this one my phone, the contents of that folder is unpacked books. Each book is a folder rather than a zipped file. It might work to unpack the books into a folder for each one in the same way. But, it is likely they will be ignored. It is likely there is a database of some sort somewhere with details of each book, including the reading status. To add a book, you probably need to add it to that database.

The app does have an import function. You put the books on the device than use this to add them to the app. I haven't tried it, but the instructions are at: https://www.kobo.com/help/en-US/arti...pp-for-android.

The other choice is to use Calibre Companion. That will interface with calibre on your PC to copy books and their details over. You can then launch the reading app of your choice. I don't know if it can talk to the Kobo app.

[cootcraig]

Originally Posted by davidfor

The app does have an import function. You put the books on the device than use this to add them to the app. I haven't tried it, but the instructions are at: https://www.kobo.com/help/en-US/arti...pp-for-android.

Thank you so much for the link. I will need to figure out how to build proper zip files (I assume) from Calibre.

Originally Posted by davidfor

The other choice is to use Calibre Companion. That will interface with calibre on your PC to copy books and their details over. You can then launch the reading app of your choice. I don't know if it can talk to the Kobo app.

I will look into Calibre Companion, but I expect I will have to find a way for the tablet and my Linux workstation to connect other than an Ftp server on the tablet.

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by cootcraig

Thank you so much for the link. I will need to figure out how to build proper zip files (I assume) from Calibre.

An epub is a zip file with defined contents. Just send them to the device from calibre and then use the import in the app.

I will look into Calibre Companion, but I expect I will have to find a way for the tablet and my Linux workstation to connect other than an Ftp server on the tablet.

Calibre Companion talks over HTTP or HTTPS to calibre. If you can browse to the calibre server from the tablet, you should be able to use Calibre Companion.

And I should say at this point, I don't use Calibre Companion. Everything I've said is based on what I have seen on this forum.

[cootcraig]

Originally Posted by davidfor

Calibre Companion talks over HTTP or HTTPS to calibre. If you can browse to the calibre server from the tablet, you should be able to use Calibre Companion.

And I should say at this point, I don't use Calibre Companion. Everything I've said is based on what I have seen on this forum.

This an exciting find. I will give Calibre Companion a try. I see there is a forum here:

MobileRead Forums > E-Book Software > Calibre Companion

[cootcraig]

Originally Posted by cootcraig

This an exciting find. I will give Calibre Companion a try.

Hot diggity dog, I have now used Calibre Companion to get a book from Calibre on my Linux workstation.

On the workstation: Calibre app -> [Connect/Share] Start Content Server
On the tablet Calibre Companion App -> Connect to Content Server. Select book to download.
On the tablet: Kobo App -> Import

[milady133]

Originally Posted by cootcraig

On the tablet: Kobo App -> Import

I just wanted to point out that maybe (I haven't installed the Kobo App so it might don't work with this app) inside Calibre Companion, if you enter in the book's details, you have a read button that let you choose the app to read the book with, kobo should be listed between the available apps.
I'll add that Calibre Companion app main purpose is to help handle a large library in your device. Usually reading apps don't handle all the metadata that is available in Calibre, and searching for a particular book in the reading app can be difficult. If it's useful to you, you can explore more features in the app you can find useful.

[cootcraig]

Originally Posted by milady133

I just wanted to point out that maybe (I haven't installed the Kobo App so it might don't work with this app) inside Calibre Companion, if you enter in the book's details, you have a read button that let you choose the app to read the book with, kobo should be listed between the available apps.

Here is what I found.

In Calibre Companion I was able to connect from the Android tablet to the Calibre content server on my Linux Workstation and download a book epub.
In Android Kobo reader app I was able to import the book epub saved by Calibre Companion.
Then in Calibre Companion I deleted it's copy of the book epub.
I now see the epub book in Android Kobo reader.
I can read the book.

Originally Posted by milady133

I'll add that Calibre Companion app main purpose is to help handle a large library in your device. Usually reading apps don't handle all the metadata that is available in Calibre, and searching for a particular book in the reading app can be difficult. If it's useful to you, you can explore more features in the app you can find useful.

I am quite new to ebooks and have much to learn. My approach for now is to use Calibre for ebook management and learn how to get ebooks from Calibre transferred to whatever ebook readers I end up with.

[stumped]

i used to read sideloaded epub books on a Kobo Arc tablet, which had the kobo reader app built in. That was my first ever tablet.
i just copied the .epub files to the tablet then let the reader app import them into wherever it wanted to hide them. I suspect they go into some hidden.db file but I never really cared. I think I may have tracked it down one time in order to delete it when it got corrupted, actually, & I think it was something with a .db extension, but |I may be confusing the Arc tablet with the Aura HD e-reader that I bought later.

it has been a while since I had that tablet but I think i used calibre companion or some other similar app to get the books to the device wirelessly.
also, for a while after buying another android tablet , I continued to use a sideloaded version of the kobo reader app as I quite liked the interface ( until Kobo " improved" it with changes to how it did line spacing, that made it worse for me ). I struggled on with a old not-upgraded version of the kobo reader app for a while, then switched to bookari (Mantano as it was called then) and Moon + reader instead.

so probably for all that time my books were stored twice, once as single .epub files and also somewhere in a hidden app database, but that never bothered me. I was not trying to squeeze thousands of books onto the device. And having to do the "import" thing, once per book, was no big deal either.