[Metadata Source Plugin] Kobo Metadata

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by GalacticHull

Ah. You're using it with Kobo Utilities. Despite using a Kobo device, I don't run Kobo Utilities. I use calibre as a library system more than for device library management, which I prefer to do manually.

Setting it up as you have, does it change the metadata in the ebook file itself? Or does it simply change the metadata in the textfields and opf? That is, set up as you have it, would it export to a folder directory with the subtitle... and not modify the ebook?

Thank you

The metadata in the ePub file itself is changed by calibre adding it's own entry to the .opf file. <meta name="calibre:user_metadata:#subtitle" etc. However this is not a part of the standard metadata since ePub2 does not support subtitles. ePub3 does however very few ereaders handle a structure such as <meta property="title-type" refines="#subtitle">subtitle</meta>.

What the Kobo driver does is to write the subtitle into the database entry for the ePub. This does require a second connection since the database entry is created as part of the import procedure.

The subtitle field being added to the Kobo Utilities was just to keep it as close as possible to the one used by the Kobo driver.

My template for storing books on my Kobos does not use the subtitle. I try to keep the filenames as short as possible to avoid having them truncated.

Ebooks/{author_sort:sublist(0,1,&)}/{title} - {authors:sublist(0,1,&)}

Ebooks is a directory in the root of my Kobos' exposed storage. Under that directory, directories are created based on the first author in the author-sort list (that is what the sublist(0,1,&) does) with the filename inside the directory based on the title followed by the first author in the authors list.

This was required when I was finding that some books required too many characters for the title and list of authors yet I like having the full list of authors available for searching. calibre uses a maximum path length of 260 characters to keep compatibiliy across the multiple operating systems and file systems it runs with.

[GalacticHull]

Originally Posted by DNSB

The metadata in the ePub file itself is changed by calibre adding it's own entry to the .opf file. <meta name="calibre:user_metadata:#subtitle" etc. However this is not a part of the standard metadata since ePub2 does not support subtitles. ePub3 does however very few ereaders handle a structure such as <meta property="title-type" refines="#subtitle">subtitle</meta>.

What the Kobo driver does is to write the subtitle into the database entry for the ePub. This does require a second connection since the database entry is created as part of the import procedure.

The subtitle field being added to the Kobo Utilities was just to keep it as close as possible to the one used by the Kobo driver.

My template for storing books on my Kobos does not use the subtitle. I try to keep the filenames as short as possible to avoid having them truncated.

Ebooks/{author_sort:sublist(0,1,&)}/{title} - {authors:sublist(0,1,&)}

Ebooks is a directory in the root of my Kobos' exposed storage. Under that directory, directories are created based on the first author in the author-sort list (that is what the sublist(0,1,&) does) with the filename inside the directory based on the title followed by the first author in the authors list.

This was required when I was finding that some books required too many characters for the title and list of authors yet I like having the full list of authors available for searching. calibre uses a maximum path length of 260 characters to keep compatibiliy across the multiple operating systems and file systems it runs with.

Thank you for taking the time to explain all this. I'm grateful

[GalacticHull]

Originally Posted by DNSB

The metadata in the ePub file itself is changed by calibre adding it's own entry to the .opf file. <meta name="calibre:user_metadata:#subtitle" etc. However this is not a part of the standard metadata since ePub2 does not support subtitles. ePub3 does however very few ereaders handle a structure such as <meta property="title-type" refines="#subtitle">subtitle</meta>.

What the Kobo driver does is to write the subtitle into the database entry for the ePub. This does require a second connection since the database entry is created as part of the import procedure.

The subtitle field being added to the Kobo Utilities was just to keep it as close as possible to the one used by the Kobo driver.

My template for storing books on my Kobos does not use the subtitle. I try to keep the filenames as short as possible to avoid having them truncated.

Ebooks/{author_sort:sublist(0,1,&)}/{title} - {authors:sublist(0,1,&)}

Ebooks is a directory in the root of my Kobos' exposed storage. Under that directory, directories are created based on the first author in the author-sort list (that is what the sublist(0,1,&) does) with the filename inside the directory based on the title followed by the first author in the authors list.

This was required when I was finding that some books required too many characters for the title and list of authors yet I like having the full list of authors available for searching. calibre uses a maximum path length of 260 characters to keep compatibiliy across the multiple operating systems and file systems it runs with.

Also, you wouldn't know of a way to pick up the subtitle without having to use kobo utilities or change anything in the ebook, would you? I'm a little neurotic and don't like to change the original unless I'm fixing something specific :/

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by GalacticHull

Also, you wouldn't know of a way to pick up the subtitle without having to use kobo utilities or change anything in the ebook, would you? I'm a little neurotic and don't like to change the original unless I'm fixing something specific :/

You can do what I do. I don't have calibre make changes to the eBooks' metadata. If I wanted to change any of the metadata on my Kobo, I'd edit the metadata for the eBook's entry and use Kobo Utilities to update the metadata on my Kobo.

[GalacticHull]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

You can do what I do. I don't have calibre make changes to the eBooks' metadata. If I wanted to change any of the metadata on my Kobo, I'd edit the metadata for the eBook's entry and use Kobo Utilities to update the metadata on my Kobo.

Forgive my misunderstanding.

You wrote "The metadata in the ePub file itself is changed by calibre adding it's own entry to the .opf file."

Does it change the .opf file in the calibre folder on your computers directory, or does it change the opf file in the epub itself? I'm seeking to avoid any and all changes to the file itself.

I'm not particularly adept with most technology so my vocabulary may be... insufficient to understanding.

[theducks]

Originally Posted by GalacticHull

Forgive my misunderstanding.

You wrote "The metadata in the ePub file itself is changed by calibre adding it's own entry to the .opf file."

Does it change the .opf file in the calibre folder on your computers directory, or does it change the opf file in the epub itself? I'm seeking to avoid any and all changes to the file itself.

I'm not particularly adept with most technology so my vocabulary may be... insufficient to understanding.

Not unless you Polish or Embed. The LIBRARY copy does not change.
OTOH Sending to a device (using Calibre) updates that copy.
BUT Kobo does not read the metadata again. You need to use Kobo Utilities:Update Metadata in Device Library (for selected books)