Automaticaly fatten TOC for Kindle? (azw3, mobi)

PunkMeUp · 03-22-2013, 11:05 AM

It seems to me that this option would be available on this great Calibre software but I can't seem to find it or work out how to do it in an easy way. Or, maybe what I have here is a suggestion.

Background of the Problem
I'm not sure if all Kindles are like this, but my mother's newest model basic Kindle shows the chapter markers at the bottom of every page along with an arrow showing the current location when reading a book (both within the chapter and the overall book). It's very handy to see how close you are to finish a chapter and how many chapters are in a book, etc.

A problem with this is that the progress bar only shows the main levels of a Table of Contents (TOC). The kindle completely ignores secondary levels which a book will usually have if it's divided into parts and then into chapters within the parts.

I've been working around this problem in a tedious way and wonder if there is an advanced option for when converting to azw3 or when side-loading on to a Kindle to automate this process.

My current tedious procedure when loading an ePub with a muli-tier TOC onto the Kindle:
1. Make a a copy of the original file elsewhere from the Calibre library
2. Use the 'modify ePub' plugin on the ePub with the 'flatten TOC hierarchy in NCX file' option and let it replace the existing copy.
3. Convert the ePub to .azw3 format
4. Delete the ePub format from the book
5. Open up the medadata editor and drag back in the original ePub back into Calibre
6. (now, when I use Calibre to side-load the books into the Kindle it puts on the .azw3 file with the flattened TOC and all is well on the Kindle)

Thanks for reading!

kovidgoyal · 03-22-2013, 01:07 PM

There's no automated way to do it, but you can use the new toc editor tool to easily flatten a toc in an azw3 file. And in the enxt release I will make it even easier by add a "flaate all entries" button to the toc editor, currently you still have to flatten one entry at a time.

PunkMeUp · 03-22-2013, 02:58 PM

Thank you for the quick reply. I now see the mention of the TOC Editor in the changelog and have added it to the toolbar and played with it a little. I should start reading every changelog more carefully as I upgrade versions. :-)

While it does do what I want I'll be honest that it's still as inconvenient/tedious as my current method of using the plugin and still needs to be done one at a time, as you mentioned.

If a flatten TOC option was one of the settings in the convert screens that would be perfect.

03-22-2013, 11:05 AM	#1
PunkMeUp Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2013 Device: Nook Simple Touch, Basic Kindle (5)	Automaticaly fatten TOC for Kindle? (azw3, mobi) It seems to me that this option would be available on this great Calibre software but I can't seem to find it or work out how to do it in an easy way. Or, maybe what I have here is a suggestion. Background of the Problem I'm not sure if all Kindles are like this, but my mother's newest model basic Kindle shows the chapter markers at the bottom of every page along with an arrow showing the current location when reading a book (both within the chapter and the overall book). It's very handy to see how close you are to finish a chapter and how many chapters are in a book, etc. A problem with this is that the progress bar only shows the main levels of a Table of Contents (TOC). The kindle completely ignores secondary levels which a book will usually have if it's divided into parts and then into chapters within the parts. I've been working around this problem in a tedious way and wonder if there is an advanced option for when converting to azw3 or when side-loading on to a Kindle to automate this process. My current tedious procedure when loading an ePub with a muli-tier TOC onto the Kindle: 1. Make a a copy of the original file elsewhere from the Calibre library 2. Use the 'modify ePub' plugin on the ePub with the 'flatten TOC hierarchy in NCX file' option and let it replace the existing copy. 3. Convert the ePub to .azw3 format 4. Delete the ePub format from the book 5. Open up the medadata editor and drag back in the original ePub back into Calibre 6. (now, when I use Calibre to side-load the books into the Kindle it puts on the .azw3 file with the flattened TOC and all is well on the Kindle) Thanks for reading!

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03-22-2013, 01:07 PM	#2
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 43,858 Karma: 22666666 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	There's no automated way to do it, but you can use the new toc editor tool to easily flatten a toc in an azw3 file. And in the enxt release I will make it even easier by add a "flaate all entries" button to the toc editor, currently you still have to flatten one entry at a time.

03-22-2013, 02:58 PM	#3
PunkMeUp Junior Member Posts: 3 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2013 Device: Nook Simple Touch, Basic Kindle (5)	Thank you for the quick reply. I now see the mention of the TOC Editor in the changelog and have added it to the toolbar and played with it a little. I should start reading every changelog more carefully as I upgrade versions. :-) While it does do what I want I'll be honest that it's still as inconvenient/tedious as my current method of using the plugin and still needs to be done one at a time, as you mentioned. If a flatten TOC option was one of the settings in the convert screens that would be perfect.

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