iBooks backup?

[simplyparticular]

I know that iBooks doesn't have a desktop app (yet?) but does iPad/iTunes backup the files anywhere on the syncing desktop?

IPhoto's files live in a .pkg in ~/Pictures and iTunes files are in folders in ~/Music. Just wondering if iBooks dumps encrypted files somewhere, like ~/Books?

Apple doesn't off forever cloud access to your music collection, so I'm wondering how they're handling things with iBooks.

[Trubu]

If you're letting iTunes organize your media, you should have a Books folder in your iTunes folder (along with Music, Mobile Applications, etc). Any files you purchase on the desktop will be stored there, and books purchased on the iPad will be copied there when you sync. I'm not sure if iBooks are treated like apps (you can redownload them whenever you want) or Music/Videos (one download unless you get get special dispensation from Customer Service), but I'd guess it's closer to the latter than the former.

[simplyparticular]

I don't have an iPad so that's why I was wondering how Apple is handling the book files.

Thanks!

[marcopapa]

Originally Posted by Trubu

If you're letting iTunes organize your media, you should have a Books folder in your iTunes folder (along with Music, Mobile Applications, etc). Any files you purchase on the desktop will be stored there, and books purchased on the iPad will be copied there when you sync. I'm not sure if iBooks are treated like apps (you can redownload them whenever you want) or Music/Videos (one download unless you get get special dispensation from Customer Service), but I'd guess it's closer to the latter than the former.

Actually NOTHING of the above is true. All eBooks are stored in iTunes the same as any music song as they are stored under the "iTunes Music" folder with the following folder sequence:

author / Unknown Album / title.epub

[tyche]

If you don't let iTunes manage your music then music, movies, and books are left where you copied from them and only imported into iTunes as a link as it were. This way you can have your own back up strategy and not duplicate files

This can be a problem, as it was for me since I have "original" epubs I made that I liked to keep untouched - most epub apps make changes to the files as they use them. I copied my epubs into iTunes and didn't think of this and now I've got a new file "iTunesMetadata.plist" added to each one.

I've only got the Winnie the Pooh ebook from iBooks and it's stored exactly like Trubu said; iTunes Media / Books / A.A. Milne which makes more sense than putting books in your music folder.

[marcopapa]

Originally Posted by tyche

If you don't let iTunes manage your music then music, movies, and books are left where you copied from them and only imported into iTunes as a link as it were. This way you can have your own back up strategy and not duplicate files

This can be a problem, as it was for me since I have "original" epubs I made that I liked to keep untouched - most epub apps make changes to the files as they use them. I copied my epubs into iTunes and didn't think of this and now I've got a new file "iTunesMetadata.plist" added to each one.

I've only got the Winnie the Pooh ebook from iBooks and it's stored exactly like Trubu said; iTunes Media / Books / A.A. Milne which makes more sense than putting books in your music folder.

On a Mac with OS X, if you let iTunes manage your assets (which covers 99% of users) whenever one purchases books or downloads free ones from the iTunes Bookstore using the iBook app, and then syncs with iTunes, all the books gets stored the same as iTunes Music as I outlined in my previous post. You can go to iTunes -> Library -> Books, right click on a book, and select Show in Finder, and you'll verify this. On a Mac, the Winnie the Pook book is treated differently: it just doesn't exist as far as iTunes is concerned, and is not synced, when iTunes manages your assets. I verified this on 4 different iPad / Mac configurations. Also in this case no iTunesMetadata.plist files are created either, since the folder name sequence maintains the same info, and the files do not get modified.