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Old 01-24-2020, 11:32 AM   #1
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Resizing covers

I have some books with multi-megabyte cover images. To save space, I want to resize them to 300px wide (which reduces the image to about 50K with adequate quality for my Kindle). The only way I've found to do this is a real pain:
1) Edit book
1a) open cover image
1b) resize image
1c) save image
1d) use "add cover" tool to regenerate title page
1e) save book
2) Edit metadata
2a) set cover image from book

Step 1 (a -e) resizes the cover; and I have discovered that if I forget step 2a, and do anything else to the metadata without it, the original full-size image reappears in the book and I have to start all over again.

Is this really the simplest way to do this, or am I missing something? (Wouldn't be the first time if so.)

If this really is the simplest solution, would it be feasible to provide a "resize cover" option in the Edit Metadata dialog to avoid all this?

Thanks!
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Old 01-24-2020, 11:40 AM   #2
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You can do everything you want in the eBook editor. You do not need steps 1c-1d.

What I do is if the cover is not hi-res, I find a hi-res cover if possible. If I have to find a cover, I copy the cover to the clipboard and pust it over the existing cover using Calibre's editor. I reduce the cover to 1600 lines and then I recompress the images losslessly. I select to recompress at 80. That works rather well. It reduces the size of the graphics and keeps the quality well enough for eInk. 300px wide is not large enough (IMHO).
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Old 01-24-2020, 12:06 PM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JSWolf View Post
You can do everything you want in the eBook editor. You do not need steps 1c-1d.

What I do is if the cover is not hi-res, I find a hi-res cover if possible. If I have to find a cover, I copy the cover to the clipboard and pust it over the existing cover using Calibre's editor. I reduce the cover to 1600 lines and then I recompress the images losslessly. I select to recompress at 80. That works rather well. It reduces the size of the graphics and keeps the quality well enough for eInk. 300px wide is not large enough (IMHO).
What about the problem of the image used in the Edit Metadata dialog reappearing and replacing the one in the book, which happens if I touch the metadata in any way but forget to set the cover image to the one in the book? The external metadata settings seem to override the metadata stored in the book, and the book also gets updated to match.

Ideally I'd prefer not to have to edit the book at all, but just the metadata... for example, I can replace the cover entirely by pasting a new cover onto the Book Details pane, and that image then automagically appears in the book as well. But resizing the existing cover is a completely different kettle of very bony fish.

(Personally I find 300px acceptable for display on a Kindle, but obviously YMMV.)

Last edited by Phssthpok; 01-24-2020 at 12:11 PM.
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Old 01-24-2020, 12:07 PM   #4
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Simpler
Add Cover to Calibre.
Use the Resize Cover plugin if desired to adjust.
Use any of the tools that update the books: Embed Metadata, Modify EPUB or Polish

Note: fine tune settings if you don't want some metadata to NOT match the Library version
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Old 01-24-2020, 12:23 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by theducks View Post
Simpler
Add Cover to Calibre.
Use the Resize Cover plugin if desired to adjust.
Use any of the tools that update the books: Embed Metadata, Modify EPUB or Polish

Note: fine tune settings if you don't want some metadata to NOT match the Library version
The Resize Cover plugin! Aha!
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Old 01-24-2020, 12:27 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by theducks View Post
Note: fine tune settings if you don't want some metadata to NOT match the Library version
Which settings (and where)?

What I'd really like is for the library to be updated to reflect certain metadata items in the book (e.g. the cover) -- is this possible?
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Old 01-24-2020, 01:10 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Phssthpok View Post
The Resize Cover plugin! Aha!
Ugh, just tried it and it doesn't seem to support setting width-only while maintaining the aspect ratio. Oh well.
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Old 01-24-2020, 01:36 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Phssthpok View Post
What about the problem of the image used in the Edit Metadata dialog reappearing and replacing the one in the book, which happens if I touch the metadata in any way but forget to set the cover image to the one in the book? The external metadata settings seem to override the metadata stored in the book, and the book also gets updated to match.

Ideally I'd prefer not to have to edit the book at all, but just the metadata... for example, I can replace the cover entirely by pasting a new cover onto the Book Details pane, and that image then automagically appears in the book as well. But resizing the existing cover is a completely different kettle of very bony fish.

(Personally I find 300px acceptable for display on a Kindle, but obviously YMMV.)

After the eBook is edited, in Calibre with that eBook selected, press E. Then in the metadata dialog, in the upper right corner, select the eBook if more then one format, and press the blueish icon net to the eBook list. That will get the cover from the eBook and replace the existing cover. I do it and it works very well.

I have never used the Resize Cover plugin and I don't find it useful given that you can do the same thing in the editor.

Last edited by JSWolf; 01-24-2020 at 01:42 PM.
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Old 01-24-2020, 02:49 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Phssthpok View Post
Ugh, just tried it and it doesn't seem to support setting width-only while maintaining the aspect ratio. Oh well.
In 2019 several experimental versions of the plugin were posted on pages 3 & 4 of the Resize Cover thread, they provide a proportional-scaling/keep-aspect-ratio setting.

Unfortunately the people who posted them didn't ask that any one of them be adopted as the release version, and the mods weren't paying sufficient attention, so the one you've installed is probably from 2014!

Could you try the latest 'experimental' version, post #46. Post a message in the thread letting us know the result. If it does what you want I'll ask davidfor/JimmXinu if they could make that version python 3 compliant and we'll get the first post updated. If it doesn't….

Thanks

BR

Last edited by BetterRed; 01-24-2020 at 03:09 PM.
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Old 01-25-2020, 01:57 AM   #10
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i think its a great plug in- why bother to code stuff yourself when theres' a 1 click tool for that
I have it set to apply 600x 900, and I click it whenever I add a book. That way, for devices/apps that use cover thumbnails they all line up nicely and my OCD goes back into sleep mode

600 x 900 works well with fussy Kindles which will otherwise decide : NO , that's too small, or NO, that's too large
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Old 01-25-2020, 06:42 AM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BetterRed View Post
In 2019 several experimental versions of the plugin were posted on pages 3 & 4 of the Resize Cover thread, they provide a proportional-scaling/keep-aspect-ratio setting.

Unfortunately the people who posted them didn't ask that any one of them be adopted as the release version, and the mods weren't paying sufficient attention, so the one you've installed is probably from 2014!

Could you try the latest 'experimental' version, post #46. Post a message in the thread letting us know the result. If it does what you want I'll ask davidfor/JimmXinu if they could make that version python 3 compliant and we'll get the first post updated. If it doesn't….

Thanks

BR
OK, will do.
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Old 01-25-2020, 06:43 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JSWolf View Post
After the eBook is edited, in Calibre with that eBook selected, press E. Then in the metadata dialog, in the upper right corner, select the eBook if more then one format, and press the blueish icon net to the eBook list. That will get the cover from the eBook and replace the existing cover. I do it and it works very well.

I have never used the Resize Cover plugin and I don't find it useful given that you can do the same thing in the editor.
Yes, I know, that's what I do. I just find it annoying that in order to do something which IMHO should be simple, I have to edit the book, and then edit the metadata as well, and go back to step 1 if I make a mistake along the way.
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Old 01-25-2020, 07:00 AM   #13
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how do you check the resize cover plug in version. I was curious to look at my own install, even though it works fine, but no clues therein, if I click on the ? for help i get a red diagonal bar in circle ( = no entry? ) sign
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Old 01-25-2020, 08:20 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by BetterRed View Post
In 2019 several experimental versions of the plugin were posted on pages 3 & 4 of the Resize Cover thread, they provide a proportional-scaling/keep-aspect-ratio setting.

Unfortunately the people who posted them didn't ask that any one of them be adopted as the release version, and the mods weren't paying sufficient attention, so the one you've installed is probably from 2014!

Could you try the latest 'experimental' version, post #46. Post a message in the thread letting us know the result. If it does what you want I'll ask davidfor/JimmXinu if they could make that version python 3 compliant and we'll get the first post updated. If it doesn't….

Thanks

BR
It seems to do the job...

I've now got it set to 474x630 with "Keep aspect ratio" checked (3/8 of my Kindle's screen resolution), so it usually comes out at 630 high by 400-and-something. The image is clear enough to keep me happy, and the file size is reduced to something reasonable.

Of course the one thing it doesn't do is change the cover page SVG but I can live with that... I can do a "resize cover" as the first thing I do on new books before I edit them.

Last edited by Phssthpok; 01-25-2020 at 08:41 AM.
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Old 01-25-2020, 08:31 AM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Phssthpok View Post
It seems to do the job...

I've now got it set to 474x630 with "Keep aspect ration" checked (3/8 of my Kindle's screen resolution), so it usually comes out at 630 high by 400-and-something. The image is clear enough to keep me happy, and the file size is reduced to something reasonable.

Of course the one thing it doesn't do is change the cover page SVG but I can live with that... I can do a "resize cover" as the first thing I do on new books before I edit them.
Or do what I do, use another plug in, I use an ancient modify epub one, as a final step, with replace cover ticked. I use that step to also fix up toc if i have removed any unwanted front or back blurbs.
Actually that's my last but one step. Last is to run count pages. If I ,later on, see an entry in page count, I know I did all my steps
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