[iOS] Two instances of Calibre Companion (CC)

[Inukami]

Would it be possible to download two instances of CC on your iPhone/iPad?

This would be something similar to Marvin and Marvin SS. It would allow the user to have a different library (Book & Comic) on each instance. You can access different libraries (folders) in the Android version but this feature is not available for iOS users. The only way I could have two different libraries, would be if I had two different devices and had different libraries on each.

I did put this request on the iOS Wish List but thought I would ask again as an individual post as thought this would be relatively easy to set up and others may interested as well or can offer any work other work arounds.

Inukami

[chaley]

Does iOS support multiple users like Android does? That would give you multiple libraries, one per user.

Another way would be to use something like virtual libraries. On the Android version, a long-press on an item in the grouping drawer (e.g., a virtual library name) causes CC to display only books with that item (the VL) in the book's metadata. I don't know if iOS CC supports long press, but if not you can probably do the same thing with search.

[Inukami]

Thanks Chaley for your comments.

Originally Posted by Inukami

Would it be possible to download two instances of CC on your iPhone/iPad?

I'm assuming that as you haven't responded to this question, it is not possible or not worth your while?

Originally Posted by chaley

Does iOS support multiple users like Android does? That would give you multiple libraries, one per user.

I'm not sure what you mean. How does Android support multiple users?

Originally Posted by chaley

Another way would be to use something like virtual libraries. On the Android version, a long-press on an item in the grouping drawer (e.g., a virtual library name) causes CC to display only books with that item (the VL) in the book's metadata. I don't know if iOS CC supports long press, but if not you can probably do the same thing with search.

I decided to separate my libraries into one for books and one for comics. But I have heard from others that it is better to have one library with virtual libraries instead.

I will have a fiddle and see if the virtual library works for one library although what is the best solution? And could I do this just with a custom column. I would like to sort by type, i.e Book or Comic

1. Just have a custom column in Calibre with Book or Comic and use that custom column in CC to sort them into those two categories. If I only use a custom column, would this limit my other sorting abilities. I note that CC doesn't let you sort by multiple columns. Whereas Calibre will let you sort by multiple fields/columns/tags right like format > author > tag?
   
2. Or sort by using a virtual library. In your FAQ, How do I see/use my calibre virtual libraries in CC? mentions how I can do this by adding a custom column to the book listing the virtual libraries the book is in. If I set it up this way, would I be able to sort further once I was in the comic virtual library? For example, click on the comic virtual library and then search by language and then fantasy.

In other words what is the difference from using the virtual library in the custom column from just using a custom column only for filtering the two types? Or am I not understanding sorting properly. Hope that makes sense...

Inukami

[chaley]

Originally Posted by Inukami

Thanks Chaley for your comments.



I'm assuming that as you haven't responded to this question, it is not possible or not worth your while?

I am not the developer of iOS CC so I can't answer that sort of question. In fact, I don't own any Apple equipment and I have never used iOS CC, which is why my answers about iOS CC are often oblique. You can get more information about iOS CC development here.

I'm not sure what you mean. How does Android support multiple users?

Android has supported multiple users since Lollipop (Android 5). See this article and this article. For example, I have accounts on my phone for both my wife and me because she often doesn't carry her own phone when we are out together.

My understanding after asking Uncle Google is that iOS does not support multiple users.

I decided to separate my libraries into one for books and one for comics. But I have heard from others that it is better to have one library with virtual libraries instead.

I will have a fiddle and see if the virtual library works for one library although what is the best solution? And could I do this just with a custom column. I would like to sort by type, i.e Book or Comic

1) Just have a custom column in Calibre with Book or Comic and use that custom column in CC to sort them into those two categories. If I only use a custom column, would this limit my other sorting abilities. I note that CC doesn't let you sort by multiple columns. Whereas Calibre will let you sort by multiple fields/columns/tags right like format > author > tag?

Again using Android CC (aCC) as my benchmark, sorting is always multi-level, where "multi-" is "3". If you sort by author then by tag you end up with a list of authors within tags. Once you have sorted 4 times the earliest level is dropped away.

However, I am not talking about sorting but am instead talking about searching. In aCC, if you long-press on an value in the grouping drawer, for example "Comic", aCC will restrict what you see to books with "Comic" in that column. You can subsequently sort the list however you want, group by other values in other columns, etc. This is very close to calibre's virtual library feature. The big difference is that in aCC you cannot search while you have restricted what you see (but you can "group").

2) Or sort by using a virtual library. In your FAQ, How do I see/use my calibre virtual libraries in CC? mentions how I can do this by adding a custom column to the book listing the virtual libraries the book is in. If I set it up this way, would I be able to sort further once I was in the comic virtual library? For example, click on the comic virtual library and then search by language and then fantasy.

I am not sure if we are using "sort" and "search" in the same way. To directly answer your question: yes, you can search after sorting, but I don't think this is really what you want. As I noted above, I think you want to restrict what you see in CC to books with a particular value in some column (e.g., a virtual library). in aCC, once you do that by long-pressing on a value (e.g., Comic) you can sort and group, but you cannot search. The reason: the restriction uses the search facility to do its business.

The above notwithstanding, grouping is very close to searching. For example, if you restrict (using long-press) to "Comic" then you can group on a tag or a language, further restricting the displayed books to that language, in effect "searching" for that value.

In other words what is the difference from using the virtual library in the custom column from just using a custom column only for filtering the two types? Or am I not understanding sorting properly. Hope that makes sense...

Inukami

If your virtual libraries are defined by a single value in one custom column then there is no effective difference between the two. The virtual library column will contain the same values as the other custom column. However, if your virtual libraries are more complex then the two aren't the same. For example, you might have virtual libraries for Comics that include some sub-genre, which probably means that the calibre virtual library "search expression" references multiple columns. In this case the virtual library column will contain the results of the search, allowing that result to be used in CC.

[Steve_Haley]

Originally Posted by Inukami

Would it be possible to download two instances of CC on your iPhone/iPad?

Unfortunately no, there's no way to have the same app installed twice. iOS (and Android) apps have an identifier in the app which is unique across all apps on the Appstore or Google Play, and two instances of the same identifier can't be installed.

As for the other question, chaley has given a fairly detailed answer already! Grouping and sorting on iOS works in a very similar manner to Android, so his advice should work. Actually, I think iOS allows to group/filter on multiple categories at once, whereas Android only allows one.

[Inukami]

Originally Posted by Steve_Haley

Unfortunately no, there's no way to have the same app installed twice. iOS (and Android) apps have an identifier in the app which is unique across all apps on the Appstore or Google Play, and two instances of the same identifier can't be installed.

Thanks for that information. I think I meant more if you had two apps each with a unique identifier. Marvin for example must have this for its normal version and the Marvin SS version. They are actually separate apps so would have different identifiers but are basically the same app. You can have a different library potentially in each app. Does that make sense? That is different to what you are suggesting about trying to install the same app twice. Sorry if my subject line didn't explain that well.

Originally Posted by Steve_Haley

As for the other question, chaley has given a fairly detailed answer already! Grouping and sorting on iOS works in a very similar manner to Android, so his advice should work. Actually, I think iOS allows to group/filter on multiple categories at once, whereas Android only allows one.

Yes. You and Chaley are correct. Didn't realise it had that feature until Chaley pointed it out, even though I thought I had read most in your FAQ (I guess it is sort of hidden with other information, so didn't see it as easily). iOS does allow you to group/filter on multiple categories.

Originally Posted by chaley

I am not the developer of iOS CC so I can't answer that sort of question. In fact, I don't own any Apple equipment and I have never used iOS CC, which is why my answers about iOS CC are often oblique. You can get more information about iOS CC development here.
Android has supported multiple users since Lollipop (Android 5). See this article and this article. For example, I have accounts on my phone for both my wife and me because she often doesn't carry her own phone when we are out together.

My understanding after asking Uncle Google is that iOS does not support multiple users.

That is correct. iOS doesn't have this feature. I think if you wanted to get anywhere close, you would have to sign out and sign in with another account which would be time consuming, not to mention annoying, and then not even sure if the app would still be there / allow a different user to use it differently.

Originally Posted by chaley

Again using Android CC (aCC) as my benchmark, sorting is always multi-level, where "multi-" is "3". If you sort by author then by tag you end up with a list of authors within tags. Once you have sorted 4 times the earliest level is dropped away.

However, I am not talking about sorting but am instead talking about searching. In aCC, if you long-press on an value in the grouping drawer, for example "Comic", aCC will restrict what you see to books with "Comic" in that column. You can subsequently sort the list however you want, group by other values in other columns, etc. This is very close to calibre's virtual library feature. The big difference is that in aCC you cannot search while you have restricted what you see (but you can "group").

I am not sure if we are using "sort" and "search" in the same way. To directly answer your question: yes, you can search after sorting, but I don't think this is really what you want. As I noted above, I think you want to restrict what you see in CC to books with a particular value in some column (e.g., a virtual library). in aCC, once you do that by long-pressing on a value (e.g., Comic) you can sort and group, but you cannot search. The reason: the restriction uses the search facility to do its business.

The above notwithstanding, grouping is very close to searching. For example, if you restrict (using long-press) to "Comic" then you can group on a tag or a language, further restricting the displayed books to that language, in effect "searching" for that value.

If your virtual libraries are defined by a single value in one custom column then there is no effective difference between the two. The virtual library column will contain the same values as the other custom column. However, if your virtual libraries are more complex then the two aren't the same. For example, you might have virtual libraries for Comics that include some sub-genre, which probably means that the calibre virtual library "search expression" references multiple columns. In this case the virtual library column will contain the results of the search, allowing that result to be used in CC.

So are you suggesting I just use the custom column (#library with Books & Comics) instead to sort my library as a virtual library wouldn't be very complex and because I only want to restrict what I see in CC to books with a particular value (Books or Comics) in some column? For example my first decision when I'm going to read something, is whether I'm going to read a book or comic, so I would need to sort into those two groups (?) first? And then after that I could search or sort further where needed.

I'm assuming if I just used this custom column method only, it would be just as easy to sort or search in Calibre as well? Or would it be easier if I had the comic and book virtual libraries in Calibre as I could change between the two like if I had two separate libraries?

Inukami

[chaley]

Originally Posted by Inukami

So are you suggesting I just use the custom column (#library with Books & Comics) instead to sort my library as a virtual library wouldn't be very complex and because I only want to restrict what I see in CC to books with a particular value (Books or Comics) in some column? For example my first decision when I'm going to read something, is whether I'm going to read a book or comic, so I would need to sort into those two groups (?) first? And then after that I could search or sort further where needed.

I'm assuming if I just used this custom column method only, it would be just as easy to sort or search in Calibre as well? Or would it be easier if I had the comic and book virtual libraries in Calibre as I could change between the two like if I had two separate libraries?

Inukami

What I would do to set things up (and actually did):

1. Create virtual libraries in calibre for each logical library I have. Examples: books on my reading queue and books on my wife's reading queue (these aren't mutually exclusive), and high-level genre. In my case the virtual library search expressions makes reference to more than one column so there is no single column available for CC grouping, which is why the next two steps are required.
   Example calibre virtual library search expression: #queue:"=CBH" and #genre:"=.History"
   1. Create a custom column "text, like tags" called #virtlibs.
   2. Install both "Save virtual libraries to column" plugins. Set them up to update the #virtlibs column. Run the plugin and check that the #virtlibs column contains the information.
   If your virtual library search expressions refer to only one (custom) column then all you need to do is ensure the column exists and contains correct data.
   Example calibre virtual library search expression: #library:"=Comics"
2. Connect CC as a wireless device so it learns about the new column.
3. Add the column (#virtlibs or your custom column) to the grouping drawer.

What I do to use the information in CC:

• If I want to restrict the display to books in my reading queue, long-press on my name in the #virtlibs group. This is (almost) equivalent to selecting a virtual library in calibre.
• If I want to look for a particular genre, tap that genre in the grouping drawer ("group" on genre). This is very similar to using the tag browser in calibre to search. If I have already long-pressed my name (as above) I will see only books in my virtual library.
• I might invert the two above steps, long-pressing on a genre (to open it as a virtual library) then grouping on my virtual library.
• If it helps, sort the book list. Usually I don't need to do this, but sorting can help if the list is long if I am browsing a series.

[Inukami]

Originally Posted by chaley

What I would do to set things up (and actually did):

1. Create virtual libraries in calibre for each logical library I have. Examples: books on my reading queue and books on my wife's reading queue (these aren't mutually exclusive), and high-level genre. In my case the virtual library search expressions makes reference to more than one column so there is no single column available for CC grouping, which is why the next two steps are required.
   Example calibre virtual library search expression: #queue:"=CBH" and #genre:"=.History"
   1. Create a custom column "text, like tags" called #virtlibs.
   2. Install both "Save virtual libraries to column" plugins. Set them up to update the #virtlibs column. Run the plugin and check that the #virtlibs column contains the information.
   If your virtual library search expressions refer to only one (custom) column then all you need to do is ensure the column exists and contains correct data.
   Example calibre virtual library search expression: #library:"=Comics"
2. Connect CC as a wireless device so it learns about the new column.
3. Add the column (#virtlibs or your custom column) to the grouping drawer.

What I do to use the information in CC:

• If I want to restrict the display to books in my reading queue, long-press on my name in the #virtlibs group. This is (almost) equivalent to selecting a virtual library in calibre.
• If I want to look for a particular genre, tap that genre in the grouping drawer ("group" on genre). This is very similar to using the tag browser in calibre to search. If I have already long-pressed my name (as above) I will see only books in my virtual library.
• I might invert the two above steps, long-pressing on a genre (to open it as a virtual library) then grouping on my virtual library.
• If it helps, sort the book list. Usually I don't need to do this, but sorting can help if the list is long if I am browsing a series.

Thank you very much Chaley. I will have a try and see how I go over the weekend.

Inukami

[Inukami]

Hi Chaley,

I did pretty much what you explained above and all working pretty much perfectly. Thank you very much. I can now have all my different libraries in one place and still use CC to display it however I choose. I'm also using the View Manager plugin to display the relevant column for each virtual library. I can now see why this is the better option instead of having separate libraries in the one Calibre instance or having multiple Calibre instances on different computers. I was a bit unsure how to use it but now understand how it works and understand the benefits of using it.

Inukami