Drag 'n' Drop

[Perkin]

Can you make the drag 'n' drop facility optional from preferences.

I usually select a lot of books etc with mouse only, but can no longer do that, if I try a select several items, it now tries dragging the first item.

Selecting several items is now a lot more cumbersome and time-consuming.

Edit:
Especially when not in one continusous block, you now have to select them all indvidually.

And mistakingly dropping a large amount of selected files, back into calibre is *really* annoying, especially when you've done it several times. (because I was trying to select another book)

[Man Eating Duck]

Originally Posted by Perkin

I usually select a lot of books etc with mouse only, but can no longer do that, if I try a select several items, it now tries dragging the first item.

Selecting several items is now a lot more cumbersome and time-consuming.

I don't know which OS you're on, but on Windows and Linux you can select multiple books and ranges by combining Control/Shift and mouse click. I'm not at my Linux box right now (I do this by motor memory and don't remember the keys), but on Windows it works like this: Say you have 7 books:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7

Important: Never move the mouse without releasing the left button.

To select 1 and 3: Click 1, press and hold control, click 3, release control. Done (but it seems you know this already).

To select 1,3-5 and 7: Click 1, press and hold control, click 3, press and hold shift as well without letting go of control, click 5, release shift but not Control, click 7, release Control. 1,3,4,5 and 7 should now be selected. To select additional ranges, use shift as you did for 3-5.

This is a lot easier than it sounds, after a few tries it's quite intuitive. Hope this helps

Edit: I suddenly understood that I probably misunderstood your complaint. Oh well, I'll just leave the instructions in case they are helpful to someone. I do agree that the ability to drag'n'drop a book from the library to the *same* library seems a bit... superfluous
I guess there is a technical reason for it.

[Perkin]

It was a LOT simpler before, Using your example, I'd select 1, press+hold CTRL, then dragselect 3-5, then click 7. (not to bad with only 5 to select, but when you're selecting loads, it becomes a real problem)

Now can no longer do that, if I try to do the drag select calibre goes into drag-mode and if you're not careful and accidentally release the button, it will try and add all the books you've got selected.


I have found a slight help, If i select the actual numbers of the entries in the list rather than the entries themselves, calibre does what it used to. Just have to remeber to do that, not so easy when I've been doing it the old way for ages.

The times I've tried to select even just a few items, and ended up dragging the first item
already.

If you must have drag-n-drop FROM calibre, can't there be a preference to disable it OR a qualifier key to initiate it, after using calibre for ages, this is now counter intuitive and REALLY annoying

[kovidgoyal]

All you have to do is click 1 press shift and click 5 then press control and click 7

[kovidgoyal]

In anycase in the next release if you have a modifier key pressed, like ctrl or shift, the drag and drop wont be started.

[Perkin]

Kovid, I knew that , but selecting several blocks is now a lot more difficult, I would hold CTRL, drag select one block, then keeping CTRL held, drag select other blocks.

Now I can't do that, and have to select each individually.

For example say out of 100 entries I wanted to select 6-11, 18-26, 34-37, 42, 47-51, 59-64, 85-91 and 97-99

Previously this would have been simpler, but now because of the new drag-n-drop is a lot more cumbersome and counter-intuitive.

And getting un-used to the way calibre used to be able to select, by drag-selecting has already cause numerous expletives, and re-adding of selected books.

Can you please do a preference/tweak to turn off this behaviour.

[kovidgoyal]

See my previous post

[Perkin]

Missed that by cross-posting. I can't type that fast.

Thanks, now waiting for next release. (which is what I'd do anyway )

[lunixer]

I'd also like it to be optional in the next release. I keep accidentally dragging and dropping back onto the open calibre window. And then it adds the books, informs me that it is a duplicate, etc. It's just a little annoying. Or maybe you could make it so that you can't drag and drop back into the calibre window, since there are other ways to duplicate books if that's what someone is trying to do.

[DoctorOhh]

Originally Posted by lunixer

I'd also like it to be optional in the next release.

You might want to read the thread before wasting our time by posting a redundant complaint after the solution has already been decided and reported that it will be in the next release, see post #5 above.

[lunixer]

Originally Posted by dwanthny

You might want to read the thread before wasting our time by posting a redundant complaint after the solution has already been decided and reported that it will be in the next release, see post #5 above.

Post #5 is completely unrelated to what I was discussing. I was talking about when I am dealing with books, such as double clicking, not when I am selecting a number of books with or without a modifier key.

[DoctorOhh]

Originally Posted by lunixer

Post #5 is completely unrelated to what I was discussing. I was talking about when I am dealing with books, such as double clicking, not when I am selecting a number of books with or without a modifier key.

My mistake. I'm glad that's cleared up it wasn't clear from your initial post.

I do see where you can drag and drop a single book within the calibre book list. Apart from selecting multiple books I can't see where it would be common to stumble across this, but it certainly is there.

[Anarel]

>_> I just noticed the update, I tried to select several books to convert all at once and I just kept adding the books back to the library they were already in... Kinda like when there's a video on youtube and people repost it on youtube....

I don't wanna hit Command+Alt+a number every time I need to select a number of books ;_;

[DoctorOhh]

Originally Posted by Anarel

>_> I just noticed the update, I tried to select several books to convert all at once and I just kept adding the books back to the library they were already in... Kinda like when there's a video on youtube and people repost it on youtube....

Kovid in post 5 said it would effectively be corrected or at least minimized drastically in the next release.

Originally Posted by kovidgoyal

In anycase in the next release if you have a modifier key pressed, like ctrl or shift, the drag and drop wont be started.

And as an interim measure Perkin stated in post 3 that he could work around this by:

Originally Posted by Perkin

I have found a slight help, If i select the actual numbers of the entries in the list rather than the entries themselves, calibre does what it used to. Just have to remember to do that, not so easy when I've been doing it the old way for ages.

[kovidgoyal]

Originally Posted by lunixer

I'd also like it to be optional in the next release. I keep accidentally dragging and dropping back onto the open calibre window. And then it adds the books, informs me that it is a duplicate, etc. It's just a little annoying. Or maybe you could make it so that you can't drag and drop back into the calibre window, since there are other ways to duplicate books if that's what someone is trying to do.

Next reelase wont allow you to drag and drop back into calibre.