Firmware Update Kindle Collection Manager for Windows

[sfuller]

Beta .4

Several of my books on the collection side are duplicated. Some have two entries some have over twenty. Only the display is affected. Saving the collection to the Kindle and restarting does not actually produce duplicates. Toggling all the options has no impact--the dups still appear. It's still fulling functional--it's only a display issue.

As the Calibre user the books are physically organized by author and then title, so the indicator for items already in a collection planned for .5 will be a huge plus.

[maxxim88]

thanks for great app

[acolegate]

Originally Posted by sfuller

Beta .4

Several of my books on the collection side are duplicated. Some have two entries some have over twenty. Only the display is affected. Saving the collection to the Kindle and restarting does not actually produce duplicates. Toggling all the options has no impact--the dups still appear. It's still fulling functional--it's only a display issue.

As the Calibre user the books are physically organized by author and then title, so the indicator for items already in a collection planned for .5 will be a huge plus.

Can you send me some screenshots, a copy of your system/collections.json file and and a list of the files on your Kindle. You can do this by running this command form the command prompt...

dir k:\ /b /s >c:\KindleReport.txt

(where k: is the driveletter of your Kindle.)

then send me the KindleReport.txt file from the root of your C: drive

Thanks

[TomF]

I just downloaded and installed v0.4. I uninstalled the old version first and then installed the new version. When trying to run it I get the message "Kindle Collection Manager has stopped working". It never initializes. I'm going to try rebooting in a few minutes and try again.

Vista 32-bit, Kindle 3G.

[apheredia]

Originally Posted by acolegate

Hi everyone,

Firstly I'd like to thank you and the hundreds of other MobileRead.com forum users who signed-up for the beta program. I've had really positive feedback and some great suggestions for the next version. Some of which have been incorporated into this new version.

Changes and enhancements in v0.4

This is the one everyone's been asking about...

The big feature that's occupied most of my time between v0.3 and v0.4 has been adding support for all Kindle-compatible DRM files. To this end, the app now supports PDF, MOBI, AZW, AZW1, PRC and TPZ files (phew!)

There have also been some cosmetic enhancements including a new look button bar, new look dialogues, an "about" box, and an "options" form.

I've also changed the Kindle detection code which previously prevented the app from starting if the Kindle had never had a collection created before ;-) Also, the commit and eject functions have been tweaked and the dialogue boxes simplified.

Become part of the beta team and download the app

I've set up a website for the app so the latest version can be downloaded. I'll be adding features to the site including more detailed instructions, FAQs and screenshots etc.

http://www.Colegate.net/KindleCollectionManager


Feedback

I would value any comments you have about the app including...

• It's look and feel.
• Any problems or errors you see.
• Any changes or enhancements you'd like to see in the app.
• How you're using the app and how you benefit from it.

Forthcoming features in v0.5

• Add an indicator to show if a file is already a member of a collection.
• Show number of files / items in a collection in brackets after the folder / collection name with an option to turn on off item count suffix for folders / collections.
• Multi-select items in trees.
• Add a "Sync" button that synchronises folders and their contents into collections.
• File / folder management
  • Create folder (creates folder on the device)
  • Rename folder (renames folder on the device)
  • Delete folder (deletes the folder and its contents from the device)
  • Drop a file into a folder from outside the app (adds a file to the device)
  • Rename file in a folder (renames file on the device)
• Add support for MP3 files.

Future investigations

• See if the order of items in collections can be set.
• See if the installer can uninstall a previous version automatically.
• Look into how Calibre plugins work and see whether the app could be built as a plugin.

Hi Adrian,
I have two kindle (3 and DX-G). can I keep both synchronized at the same time with this app?
Thanks !!!

[acolegate]

Originally Posted by apheredia

Hi Adrian,
I have two kindle (3 and DX-G). can I keep both synchronized at the same time with this app?
Thanks !!!

It doesn't actually synchronise anything. It just lets you manage what's already there on your Kindle.

So the answer to your question is yes, you can use more than 1 device with this app.

[avlad]

maybe this is a great app, but I don't understand why users are required to register to be able to try it.

do you want to sell it after users have finished testing it for you?

[jangell2]

I'm still waiting on my Kindle 3. Should have it by next week. Would there be any value to installing Collection Manager (I have win7 pro) now? I have purchased quite a few books (mostly free, some not).

Could I be using CM now to organize my books into collections or do I have to wait for my Kindle?

[TomF]

Originally Posted by TomF

I just downloaded and installed v0.4. I uninstalled the old version first and then installed the new version. When trying to run it I get the message "Kindle Collection Manager has stopped working". It never initializes. I'm going to try rebooting in a few minutes and try again.

Vista 32-bit, Kindle 3G.

Just rebooted, same message. KCM won't run.

I'm leaving on a 10-day vacation tomorrow morning and I've got a lot to do today, so I'm going to have to leave this for now. If I get some time to look at it on vacation, I'll check back. Aloha!

[jacktanner]

As far as I understand, Calibre can already collect tags (which would map to Kindle collections), and it can add/remove books on the Kindle. The part that Calibre doesn't know how to do is how to write out a collections.json. If you could document what you've learned about the format of that file and/or create a Calibre plugin just for writing it out based on Calibre's collection, that would be a huge boon to Calibre users.

[haroldgh]

Actually, the calibre developer has posted about this before and (as I recall) decided not to do it because you have to cold-restart the kindle to recognize the updated collections.json file. Not sure why he made that decision, exactly.

As to the author's distribution mechanism, it is a little weird, but it's his program and he can do with it as he sees fit. Shrug.

[acolegate]

Originally Posted by avlad

maybe this is a great app, but I don't understand why users are required to register to be able to try it.

do you want to sell it after users have finished testing it for you?

The reason I'm asking people to supply their name and email address is because

• I'd like to track how popular the app is.
• If I have their (valid) email address I can contact everyone I know who has the app if I need to deploy an update.
• I can provide a more personalised service if I know who I'm contacting.

In answer to your question about selling the app back to my beta testers, no, that's not something I plan to do.

[jangell2]

Originally Posted by jangell2

I'm still waiting on my Kindle 3. Should have it by next week. Would there be any value to installing Collection Manager (I have win7 pro) now? I have purchased quite a few books (mostly free, some not).

Could I be using CM now to organize my books into collections or do I have to wait for my Kindle?

Just thought I'd ask again.

[haroldgh]

Sorry, you will need to wait. It won't do anything without a kindle plugged in.

[apheredia]

Originally Posted by acolegate

Hi everyone,

Firstly I'd like to thank you and the hundreds of other MobileRead.com forum users who signed-up for the beta program. I've had really positive feedback and some great suggestions for the next version. Some of which have been incorporated into this new version.

Changes and enhancements in v0.4

This is the one everyone's been asking about...

The big feature that's occupied most of my time between v0.3 and v0.4 has been adding support for all Kindle-compatible DRM files. To this end, the app now supports PDF, MOBI, AZW, AZW1, PRC and TPZ files (phew!)

There have also been some cosmetic enhancements including a new look button bar, new look dialogues, an "about" box, and an "options" form.

I've also changed the Kindle detection code which previously prevented the app from starting if the Kindle had never had a collection created before ;-) Also, the commit and eject functions have been tweaked and the dialogue boxes simplified.

Become part of the beta team and download the app

I've set up a website for the app so the latest version can be downloaded. I'll be adding features to the site including more detailed instructions, FAQs and screenshots etc.

http://www.Colegate.net/KindleCollectionManager


Feedback

I would value any comments you have about the app including...

• It's look and feel.
• Any problems or errors you see.
• Any changes or enhancements you'd like to see in the app.
• How you're using the app and how you benefit from it.

Forthcoming features in v0.5

• Add an indicator to show if a file is already a member of a collection.
• Show number of files / items in a collection in brackets after the folder / collection name with an option to turn on off item count suffix for folders / collections.
• Multi-select items in trees.
• Add a "Sync" button that synchronises folders and their contents into collections.
• File / folder management
  • Create folder (creates folder on the device)
  • Rename folder (renames folder on the device)
  • Delete folder (deletes the folder and its contents from the device)
  • Drop a file into a folder from outside the app (adds a file to the device)
  • Rename file in a folder (renames file on the device)
• Add support for MP3 files.

Future investigations

• See if the order of items in collections can be set.
• See if the installer can uninstall a previous version automatically.
• Look into how Calibre plugins work and see whether the app could be built as a plugin.

Hi Adrian,
we are waiting for v0.5. this is an excellent app.