Forma Dropbox on Forma not all it’s cracked up to be

[NiLuJe]

Oh, then it's no longer plugged at all to *any* Kobo device driver, I think, which explains why it's sent as it's stored: as a .kepub.

(i.e., "Connect To Folder" doesn't do any device-specific work, after all, it's just a folder ).

[ratinox]

Originally Posted by MGlitch

This then causes an on device column to appear and pops up the device options in the toolbar among other areas.

You need to configure this "device" to use the Extended driver plugin the same way you would configure an actual Kobo device.

[MGlitch]

Originally Posted by NiLuJe

Oh, then it's no longer plugged at all to *any* Kobo device driver, I think, which explains why it's sent as it's stored: as a .kepub.

Are you saying if I had a kobo plugged in, it'd possibly behave differently?

Though AFAIK Calibre doesn't support multiple devices being connected at the same time.

[NiLuJe]

I'm not familiar with "Connect To Folder" workflows, for precisely this reason: I've always assumed it wasn't possible to make them behave like a real device driver (be it Kobo or Kindle, in my case), which effectively renders them utterly useless *to me* .

I may be wrong (entirely, or to some extent), so, take that with a grain of salt.

[MGlitch]

Originally Posted by NiLuJe

I'm not familiar with "Connect To Folder" workflows., for precisely this reason: I've always assumed it wasn't possible to make them behave like a real device driver (be it Kobo or Kindle, in my case), which effectively renders them utterly useless *to me* .

I may be wrong (entirely, or to some extent), so, take that with a grain of salt.

At a surface level at least it appears you're correct, though I get a 'configure device' option, it's limited to format supported and order, reading metadata, using sub-directories, and setting a save template which appears to only be the name prior to the extension. No additional options are available. Certainly none of the ones that are when I try and configure a Kobo device.

I think perhaps this is just a feature that isn't going to be worth it for me in particular. Unless some method for automating the saving as .kepub.epub has simply escaped me to this point, the level of extra work involved doesn't seem fully worthwhile. Though it may be nice when I'm away from my computer and want to snag a ebook from say Tor's monthly free book program.

[ratinox]

Originally Posted by ratinox

You need to configure this "device" to use the Extended driver plugin the same way you would configure an actual Kobo device.

Looks like this is not possible with Calibre 4 at this time. Setting the first supported type to kepub in the device settings does not trigger the Extended driver's conversion. Looks like for the short term if you want to get kepub files onto your Kobo via Dropbox then you'll have to run kepubify on them first.

[JSWolf]

Try the following...

Save all the ePub you want to copy to Dropbox to a directory on your hard drive. Save them as ePub. Then use geek1011's kepubify to convert to KePub.

https://pgaskin.net/kepubify/

You can specify to convert all the ePub in that directory.

[MGlitch]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Try the following...

Save all the ePub you want to copy to Dropbox to a directory on your hard drive. Save them as ePub. Then use geek1011's kepubify to convert to KePub.

https://pgaskin.net/kepubify/

You can specify to convert all the ePub in that directory.

I’ll try this though I suspect it’s the extension itself that causes issues. The files are on Dropbox either way as .kepub or .epub it’s just the kobo end that has issues.

[jackie_w]

It's a long time since I used the official KoboTouchExtended plugin, but I remember that it used to have an option to save the on-the-fly kepubs to a directory of your choice rather than a Kobo device. It was on the 'Extended' tab of the KTE driver config page. Is it still there?

I never needed it myself. Does this still work?

[MGlitch]

Originally Posted by jackie_w

It's a long time since I used the official KoboTouchExtended plugin, but I remember that it used to have an option to save the on-the-fly kepubs to a directory of your choice rather than a Kobo device. It was on the 'Extended' tab of the KTE driver config page. Is it still there?

I never needed it myself. Does this still work?

This is still there, however it does not seem to work. I set the filepath, then tried just doing a kepub conversion, which yielded nothing in the dropbox directory. Then I plugged my H20 in thinking I could just use that as a always connected device since I don't use it anyway, and sent to that doing an automatic conversion.

I suspect I may be doing something wrong though since it's leaving a kepub in my calibre library (which I thought it wouldn't do?).

I did have the use extended checked in the configuration of the H2O. So as far as I know it should be going through the proper methond, kobo touch extended which uses kepub output plugin to generate kepubs.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by MGlitch

I’ll try this though I suspect it’s the extension itself that causes issues. The files are on Dropbox either way as .kepub or .epub it’s just the kobo end that has issues.

The kobo end requires .kepub.epub as the end of the filename to trigger use of the ACCESS renderer. .kepub is only used as the file extension in calibre to allow having the original epub and the kepubified epub versions of an ebook without both showing as epubs. That is, Gerald Durrell - The Corfu Trilogy.epub would be opened with RMSDK while Gerald Durrell - The Corfu Trilogy.kepub.epub would be opened with ACCESS. A Kobo ereader has no idea of what to do with Gerald Durrell - The Corfu Trilogy.kepub since it does not use .kepub as the filename extension.

Books synced directly from Kobo don't bother with a filename extension, the filename looks like a GUID—i.e. 6ec1549e-6c6e-4432-a5ef-f56f5711674e—though the files are stored in a directory called kepub.

Edit: I just tested jackie-w suggestion about using the save to directory on the KTE drivers extended tab and it does work but you need to send the books to a Kobo ereader with the KTE driver to get those files left in the directory. I'm really not sure how you got .kepub files in your calibre library since the only way I got .kepub files left in the calibre library was using the Kepub Output plugin and converting to kepub.

[MGlitch]

Originally Posted by DNSB

The kobo end requires .kepub.epub as the end of the filename to trigger use of the ACCESS renderer. .kepub is only used as the file extension in calibre to allow having differentiate between the original epub and the kepubified epub versions of an ebook. That is, Gerald Durrell - The Corfu Trilogy.epub would be opened with RMSDK while Gerald Durrell - The Corfu Trilogy.kepub.epub would be opened with ACCESS. A Kobo ereader has no idea of what to do with Gerald Durrell - The Corfu Trilogy.kepub since it does not use .kepub as the filename extension.

Books synced directly from Kobo don't bother with a filename extension, the filename looks like a GUID—i.e. 6ec1549e-6c6e-4432-a5ef-f56f5711674e—though the files are stored in a directory called kepub.

erm, yes, as I said it's the Kobo end that has the issue, Dropbox is happy to have and send the file.

I appreciate that Calibre has to append .kepub. That's all well and good.

The issue now is that apparently everyone elses Calibre outputs .kepub.epub while mine is outputting just .kepub

And for the life of me I can not figure out why since, AFAIK, I am using the same tools they are.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by MGlitch

erm, yes, as I said it's the Kobo end that has the issue, Dropbox is happy to have and send the file.

I appreciate that Calibre has to append .kepub. That's all well and good.

The issue now is that apparently everyone elses Calibre outputs .kepub.epub while mine is outputting just .kepub

And for the life of me I can not figure out why since, AFAIK, I am using the same tools they are.

Are you using the KoboTouchExtended driver and/or the Kepub Output plugin? KTE converts .epub to .kepub.epub (or simply adds the .epub if you have .kepub files in your calibre directories) on the fly when sending to a Kobo ereader. It does not leave a .kepub file in the calibre library directories. The Kepub Output plugin does a conversion and leaves the original .epub and a new .kepub in your calibre library.

[MGlitch]

I must be using the kepub output plugin then. Since the behavior I’m seeing matches what you’re saying it does.

What’s odd is I’m following the instructions from KTEs github

So I guess the question is how do I make it use KTE since it seems I did it wrong

[NiLuJe]

For reference on my own examples from the page before: I'm *not* using KTE, I'm indeed storing converted KePubs in my Calibre library .

(Old habits die hard: I was used to do it for KF8 conversions for my Kindles, so that seemed a logical approach to follow for the Kobos, too ;p. Plus, that makes for free filtering: if it has a kepub, it ought to be on a Kobo .).