Ereader that lets you read book synopsis/info (like a back cover)?

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

If you're sideloading these books anyway (assuming you are due to what you said in the parts I stupidly cut from the quote), can't you just long press on a book or something similar to see the synopsis?

My Kobos and Nooks both do this, with no need to be connected to the internet.

I'm assuming you can, which makes me wonder what benefit is gained by adding the blurb at the beginning of the book.

Unfortunately for Kindles, book info comes from Amazon's servers or nothing. I seem to recall my Sony PRS-350 couldn't read book description either.

I create an AZW3 catalog on Calibre for offline browsing on the Kindle. Usually though, I just use the experimental browser with Calibre server.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

Unfortunately for Kindles, book info comes from Amazon's servers or nothing. I seem to recall my Sony PRS-350 couldn't read book description either.

Even for sideloaded books? That seems so weird. Both my Kobo and my Nook show synopsis for sideloaded books and I always have WiFi turned off.

Here's a pic I took of my Nook Glowlight Plus and Kobo Aura showing what I see when I click View Details. This is for the same book, sideloaded using Calibre onto each device. (Okay. Mobileread won't let me add an attachment right now. Point is, it works for sideloaded books with or without WiFi on both Nooks and Kobos.)

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Even for sideloaded books? That seems so weird. Both my Kobo and my Nook show synopsis for sideloaded books and I always have WiFi turned off.

Here's a pic I took of my Nook Glowlight Plus and Kobo Aura showing what I see when I click View Details. This is for the same book, sideloaded using Calibre onto each device. (Okay. Mobileread won't let me add an attachment right now. Point is, it works for sideloaded books with or without WiFi on both Nooks and Kobos.)

I don't think Kindles read any metadata apart from Title and Author from ebooks (sideloaded or not).

Even covers, Kindles try to download from server unless the file is a MOBI PDOC. The only reason why ebooks sideloaded with Calibre have cover thumbnails is because Calibre writes those directly into a hidden system folder (<kindle usb>/system/thumbnails).

[Timboli]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

... can't you just long press on a book or something similar to see the synopsis?

My Kobos and Nooks both do this, with no need to be connected to the internet.

I'm assuming you can, which makes me wonder what benefit is gained by adding the blurb at the beginning of the book.

The only books I side-load to my Kindles, are non Amazon sourced and are relatively few, so I cannot speak for the situation with them. But for the last few years it seems, I have found that many Kindle books present an option to view the Synopsis when you first open them, and my Kindles are never connected to the web when I successfully do that (I only connect to download).

That doesn't occur for most of my older Kindle collection though, from what I have seen, so it may be relatively new and down to the publisher, whether that feature is available.

When a Synopsis is available, I have to click an expand button to see it all. I would rather see the synopsis as being first page after the cover ... a bit like the inside flap of a hardcover book. That said, many books are set to open at the first page to start reading, skipping cover and index etc ... so that would be an issue for them ... hence why I like my ebook of summaries (synopses) approach ... less clicks and much faster and easier overall ... unless it is just the one book (or small number) you are wanting to know about.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

I don't think Kindles read any metadata apart from Title and Author from ebooks (sideloaded or not).

Even covers, Kindles try to download from server unless the file is a MOBI PDOC. The only reason why ebooks sideloaded with Calibre have cover thumbnails is because Calibre writes those directly into a hidden system folder (<kindle usb>/system/thumbnails).

This makes me less likely to ever try a Kindle (and I was tempted with the cheap Voyages and the Paperwhite 4 sale). Getting synopsis info before opening a book seems like such a basic function.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by Timboli

The only books I side-load to my Kindles, are non Amazon sourced and are relatively few, so I cannot speak for the situation with them. But for the last few years it seems, I have found that many Kindle books present an option to view the Synopsis when you first open them, and my Kindles are never connected to the web when I successfully do that (I only connect to download)...

I would rather see the synopsis as being first page after the cover ... a bit like the inside flap of a hardcover book.

The problem is if you are aren't sure what you want to read next, having to open a bunch of books to read the synopsis seems like more trouble than it's worth. And on a Kobo at least, all of those books would no longer be marked as unread.

I concede that this is very much a first world problem. But then when talking about ereaders, aren't they all?

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by Timboli

The only books I side-load to my Kindles, are non Amazon sourced and are relatively few, so I cannot speak for the situation with them. But for the last few years it seems, I have found that many Kindle books present an option to view the Synopsis when you first open them, and my Kindles are never connected to the web when I successfully do that (I only connect to download).

That doesn't occur for most of my older Kindle collection though, from what I have seen, so it may be relatively new and down to the publisher, whether that feature is available.

When a Synopsis is available, I have to click an expand button to see it all. I would rather see the synopsis as being first page after the cover ... a bit like the inside flap of a hardcover book. That said, many books are set to open at the first page to start reading, skipping cover and index etc ... so that would be an issue for them ... hence why I like my ebook of summaries (synopses) approach ... less clicks and much faster and easier overall ... unless it is just the one book (or small number) you are wanting to know about.

Interesting. My guess, your ebooks have valid ASIN and it's downloading the description/metadata while connected to the internet (doesn't really take long).

Wonder where the description gets stored though. I don't think I've seen any summaries in /var/local/cc.db. Indeed, on fw5.10.1.3, I don't even get a Book Description context menu item anymore. There's just View in Store or View in Goodreads for EBOKs and absolutely nothing for PDOCs.

I have a bunch of fics with bogus ASIN and properly embedded summaries and tags (tested working on import to a new Calibre Portable install/library), and the summaries have never shown up via Kindles' Book Description.

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by Timboli

The only books I side-load to my Kindles, are non Amazon sourced and are relatively few, so I cannot speak for the situation with them. But for the last few years it seems, I have found that many Kindle books present an option to view the Synopsis when you first open them, and my Kindles are never connected to the web when I successfully do that (I only connect to download).

You may only connect to download a book, but more than the book downloads.

The book is in the file BookName.amazon_extension_of_the_week and the other stuff is mostly put in a directory named BookName.sdr

Among the stuff in the .sdr directory are things for the kindle to do the first time a book is opened and things to do when end of the book is reached. If a page number file exists, and absent an amazon SNAFU, the page number file is downloaded. If an x-ray file exists, and absent an amazon SNAFU, the x-ray file is downloaded.

Sometime during the connection, absent a bit of good luck, the collection of thumbnail cover images for every book you've bought from amazon is updated with thumbnail covers for books bought since the previous time the thumbnail covers got updated.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

The problem is if you are aren't sure what you want to read next, having to open a bunch of books to read the synopsis seems like more trouble than it's worth. And on a Kobo at least, all of those books would no longer be marked as unread.

Yep, I find opening books to see the blurb a hassle, too. Granted, until recently, the Kindle didn't have read/unread.

That said, I don't much enjoy having to tap on each book to view the blurb either. I devised my own solution to get around the limited library management on ereaders. I can access the server directly from the Kindle or if I want something fast, via smartphone or tablet.

[Timboli]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

The problem is if you are aren't sure what you want to read next, having to open a bunch of books to read the synopsis seems like more trouble than it's worth.

True, and that's why I would be adapting my program to create a single ebook, with the summaries for many ebooks in it. So a scroll-able list of summaries or synopses ... obviously you can page next as well ... and no doubt an Index of links at the start, and all will be organized alphabetically by author name.

I expect I will do a genre option as well, to reduce the list, so maybe more than one ebook (i.e. Mystery.mobi, Fantasy.mobi, etc). Perhaps a Titles ebook as well.

Not the prefect solution, but beats having to open up every ebook.

[ilovejedd]

Originally Posted by Timboli

True, and that's why I would be adapting my program to create a single ebook, with the summaries for many ebooks in it. So a scroll-able list of summaries or synopses ... obviously you can page next as well ... and no doubt an Index of links at the start, and all will be organized alphabetically by author name.

I expect I will do a genre option as well, to reduce the list, so maybe more than one ebook (i.e. Mystery.mobi, Fantasy.mobi, etc). Perhaps a Titles ebook as well.

You do realize Calibre has a Create Catalog option that does this already, right?

[Timboli]

Originally Posted by j.p.s

You may only connect to download a book, but more than the book downloads.

Yep, I don't doubt that.
I was just showing you did not need to be connected when you opened an ebook, to see some of the synopses already. They either came with the ebook download or were added at a later date, when downloading new ones.

Perhaps every time I connect to download a new purchase, it also updates and adds synopses to older books on my devices. I have a lot, so it would take a while, because I am only connected for a very short period each time.

Or like I said earlier, maybe only some publishers are pushing it.

Thanks for the rest of the info.

[Timboli]

Originally Posted by ilovejedd

You do realize Calibre has a Create Catalog option that does this already, right?

I am aware of it, and even checked it out ages ago, but I don't recall being all that impressed by it, so don't remember much about it. I have to admit, I don't use calibre for much more than the basics, so not tried most of the options available, and the ones I have tried have often turned out to be too clunky ... hence causing me to make several of my own programs to compliment.

Does it just use the metadata or does it require a web connection to get the synopsis from elsewhere? Just the metadata from what I have now tested.

Many ebooks I have bought from Amazon at least, have nothing in the Description section of the metadata.opf file. So you would need to grab the description from the ebook's web page or some other site etc.

Personally, my full-time install of calibre is on an older PC not connected to the web. The version of calibre on my web connected PC only temporarily contains ebooks, after I first buy them, correct the metadata and then convert, fixing cover issues in the process.

My program would use the metadata in the first instance, but you could also manually update using synopses from the web. My program would contain web page links to help with that, and aside from using calibre to create the final ebook (MOBI or EPUB), it would be independent of calibre, once metadata has been extracted from the OPF files in its library folders.

EDIT
Interesting. For the sake of completeness, I just found the Create Catalog option under Convert Ebooks right-click menu in calibre - Convert books -> Create a catalog of all the ebooks in your calibre library.
Complex looking, but I gave it a whorl (64 ebooks) and I can see why I gave it a miss. Lots of control in some areas, but not in others ... which means unwanted stuff.
Still, at a pinch it could be useful to some. Especially if you have been diligent with the description in the metadata. Batch like that is quick and fast too.
But gawd, do I hate TAG abuse, which makes the Genre option useless.

P.S. I got it to produce a MOBI file, and viewed it in calibre, but not yet checked it out on an ereader. I just went with defaults, but I can see I would need to cull some of the options, especially for TAGS.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by Timboli

True, and that's why I would be adapting my program to create a single ebook, with the summaries for many ebooks in it. So a scroll-able list of summaries or synopses ... obviously you can page next as well ... and no doubt an Index of links at the start, and all will be organized alphabetically by author name.

I expect I will do a genre option as well, to reduce the list, so maybe more than one ebook (i.e. Mystery.mobi, Fantasy.mobi, etc). Perhaps a Titles ebook as well.

Not the prefect solution, but beats having to open up every ebook.

Dude, you should just buy a Kobo. You can do all of that with the built-in software and Calibre. No patching or anything special required.

Granted you can't view multiple synopsis at the same time. But you can easily view the synopsis without opening the book and create collections based on tags (Mystery, Fantasy, etc).

[DaleDe]

In ePub the synopsis is contained in the OPF which also contains the title, author and other stuff. It is in a tag called <dc:description>. It gets extracted during the download of the book. Of course someone has to put the description in the file itself, and it is not a required element.

Dale