A Calibre library with only kepub

[Sirtel]

Originally Posted by Regard_39

I wonder though why the kepub file generated by kobotouchextended does not go into a temporary file. Shouldn't on the fly behave like this? So you have to delete the kepub manually once it is transferred to the e-reader. Maybe there is a setting to delete it automatically.
And do you leave your kepubs or do you delete them?

The kepub generated by the extended driver is generated only on the device, not in the library. Now the ordinary calibre conversion generates a kepub copy that stays in the library along with the original epub. It seems to me you've been using the latter, not the extended driver.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The precursor to ePub 2 is the now defunct MS LIT format.

More correctly, the predecessor to epub was the OeBPS (Open eBook Publication Structure).

The .lit format used some of the OEBPS items such as the markup for text files and a subset of the OEBPS CSS but the file structure was based on Microsoft's compressed HELP files.

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by Regard_39

I have to digest this avalanche of information. I realized that my idea was dead end. Also, it seemed to me that by looking at the contents of the folder of each ebook, the metadata.opf file was shared by the epub and the kepub.

That metadata.opf file is created by calibre. There is one for every book you have in the calibre library not matter what format. Or if there is no format. But, it is really just a backup of the metadata for the book that is in the database calibre uses. If that gets corrupted, calibre can recover the library using these files.

I wonder though why the kepub file generated by kobotouchextended does not go into a temporary file. Shouldn't on the fly behave like this? So you have to delete the kepub manually once it is transferred to the e-reader. Maybe there is a setting to delete it automatically.
And do you leave your kepubs or do you delete them?

That was a deliberate design choice. The point of the extended driver is to generate a kepub without going through the full conversion. At the time the extended driver was created, none of the other plugins needed to manage kepubs existed. As the only use for a kepub was on a Kobo device, adding it back to the library was not thought useful. And for most people it isn't useful.

The plugin does have an option to store the generated file elsewhere, but, I think of that mainly to help with debugging.

I did not report the error and unfortunately I could not find on which Kobo e-reader and which ebook I had this failure. Mea culpa.

If you work it out, or see the problem again, report it then. Of course, the problem might have been fixed in some other way.

In fact I discovered by chance kepubify far from home and it helped me a lot. I secretly hoped to find a way to combine the speed performance of kepubify and still enjoy Calibre. Wrong way it seems.

Someone was looking at a plugin that used kepubify, but, I don't remember what happened. And unless you are sending a lot of books at a time, the performance isn't that meaningful. And calibre or the driver does a lot more than just generate the kepub when sending the books. It also updates the metadata, the cover, does the copy, updates the metadata.calibre file for book matching, collection management and some other things.

[Rid]

I really like this thread for some reason.....

The response is plentiful and considerate, this is what makes mobileread.com so great for fledgling members; like myself

[Regard_39]

Originally Posted by Sirtel

The kepub generated by the extended driver is generated only on the device, not in the library. Now the ordinary calibre conversion generates a kepub copy that stays in the library along with the original epub. It seems to me you've been using the latter, not the extended driver.

Yes that's also why I was hoping to somehow force kepubify to cooperate with Calibre. Actually I would like to convince my wife to leave her kindle for a kobo (yes I know, some people might joke about leaving her kobo or her husband ).
By the way, I wonder if there is a specific way to use Calibre when you only own a Kobo. I'm not sure if it's very different from other e-readers but if so (enough peculiarities, of course I'm thinking of the kepub format, but maybe other features ...) it would almost deserve a dedicated forum section [/newbie suggestion mode]
Ultimate clarification: it is indeed the updated kobotouch extended plugin that I use.

[Regard_39]

Originally Posted by Rid

I really like this thread for some reason.....

The response is plentiful and considerate, this is what makes mobileread.com so great for fledgling members; like myself

I take your words to heart. Thank you, you say it so much better than me.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by Regard_39

By the way, I wonder if there is a specific way to use Calibre when you only own a Kobo.

Not really. That's another reason why I have all my books as EPUB. I just set up a plugboard to convert to AZW3 for my old Kindle, the KoboTouchExtended driver converts to KEPUB for my Aura ONE, and if I ever buy another kindle I'll either keep using AZW3 or (if possible/needed) set up a plugboard to convert to KFX. Should I get something like a PocketBook, I can just use the EPUB.

Because I can either use the EPUB directly or convert it to anything I want, it doesn't matter what format the e-reader requires as long as Calibre can convert to it. And if it can, the chance it can use EPUB as the input format is probably 100%.

If I recall correctly, Calibre uses an intermediate format, but I forgot what it is. It converts everything to that format, and then converts to the output format. AFAIK, EPUB is one of the best formats (along with LIT) to convert to that intermediate format. That could have changed though; "use LIT or EPUB as input format" is an old practice that may no longer be true.

[davidfor]

Originally Posted by Regard_39

Yes that's also why I was hoping to somehow force kepubify to cooperate with Calibre. Actually I would like to convince my wife to leave her kindle for a kobo (yes I know, some people might joke about leaving her kobo or her husband ).

All you should need to do is show her how much happier you are with the Kobo than she is with her Kindle. My wife does love her Kobo, but, if I am honest, she wouldn't be able to tell the difference. I chose Kobo in 2011 and she followed a bit later. But, she couldn't change to a Kindle now, because she wants the bigger screen. She went Touch, Glo, Aura ONE, Forma and now Sage. There is no way she would go to a smaller screen.

By the way, I wonder if there is a specific way to use Calibre when you only own a Kobo. I'm not sure if it's very different from other e-readers but if so (enough peculiarities, of course I'm thinking of the kepub format, but maybe other features ...) it would almost deserve a dedicated forum section [/newbie suggestion mode]
Ultimate clarification: it is indeed the updated kobotouch extended plugin that I use.

Occasionally, someone asks what they need to do to setup calibre for a Kobo device. They get lots of responses about what plugins to install. My response it that they don't need anything extra. Everything you need is built-in. Everything else is extra function and/or a complication. And that is coming from the person who either wrote the plugins people are suggesting, or has done a lot of work in maintaining them.

About the only thing I think you should do is to create a metadata plugboard for the author. The reason for this is that the way that calibre sets the authors for books with multiple authors when sending the books is not the way that Kobo wants them. Calibre sets them as separate entries in the OPF but Kobo wants a single entry as "FN1 LN1, FN2 LN2". Neither is wrong, but calibre is more right.

The next thing is collection management. If you want to use collections, you can do this through the driver. It is a matter of choosing which columns to use to specify the collections.

After that it is more complicated. If you prefer kepubs to epubs, then the KoboTouchExtended driver is usually the way to go. But, if you only want kepubs for books were there is a real advantage in the format (footnotes show as a popup, image zoom), then you can convert to kepub which means you need the Kepub Output plugin. And you should then install the Kepub Metadata reader and writer plugins. The latter allow calibre to update the metadata in the kepubs that are in the library or get the metadata from them.

Then there is my Kobo Utilities plugin. That has lots of function to do various things. Some are set and forget (backup the database and other important files when the device is connected). Or the reading status fetch. That gets the reading status of the books on the device and stores it in the library. It can be restored to the device if needed. There are other things for cover management, database checking, updating books, updating metadata etc. All functions that are handy, but, just as likely to be unneeded for a lot of people.

If you want these things, you can get them. Or make suggestions about other things that could be done. But, some people just want to read, and keeping it simple is the way to go for them.

[Katsunami]

Originally Posted by davidfor

All you should need to do is show her how much happier you are with the Kobo than she is with her Kindle. My wife does love her Kobo, but, if I am honest, she wouldn't be able to tell the difference. I chose Kobo in 2011 and she followed a bit later. But, she couldn't change to a Kindle now, because she wants the bigger screen. She went Touch, Glo, Aura ONE, Forma and now Sage. There is no way she would go to a smaller screen.

I also won't go back to a smaller than 7.8 inch screen. 7.5-8.2 inch (8 inch +/- 0.2 inch) seems the sweet spot for me for an e-reader. Pity I don't like the lopsided design of the Sage that much... but I guess that this is going to be the design for the forseeable future.

The two things I love about a Kobo reader is the fact that they port their newest firmware back to very old e-readers, except maybe the Mini. Amazon doesn't do that. And, if you don't like something, there's a chance that there's a patch for it.

The patches I've got installed right now are:
- Smaller header/footer (gets me two more lines on the screen)
- Custom font sizes (I don't need the huge fonts, and this gives me more options in the middle range I do use)
- Nickel menu (for Invert Screen and Reboot, for the occasion I want to read in bed in complete darkness while my GF is already asleep; in that case I prefer dark mode. If the firmware somehow completely removes this on the KA1, I'll never upgrade it again.)

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

Not really. That's another reason why I have all my books as EPUB. I just set up a plugboard to convert to AZW3 for my old Kindle, the KoboTouchExtended driver converts to KEPUB for my Aura ONE, and if I ever buy another kindle I'll either keep using AZW3 or (if possible/needed) set up a plugboard to convert to KFX. Should I get something like a PocketBook, I can just use the EPUB.

Because I can either use the EPUB directly or convert it to anything I want, it doesn't matter what format the e-reader requires as long as Calibre can convert to it. And if it can, the chance it can use EPUB as the input format is probably 100%.

If I recall correctly, Calibre uses an intermediate format, but I forgot what it is. It converts everything to that format, and then converts to the output format. AFAIK, EPUB is one of the best formats (along with LIT) to convert to that intermediate format. That could have changed though; "use LIT or EPUB as input format" is an old practice that may no longer be true.

The part about using LIT is no longer true.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by Katsunami

- Nickel menu (for Invert Screen and Reboot, for the occasion I want to read in bed in complete darkness while my GF is already asleep; in that case I prefer dark mode. If the firmware somehow completely removes this on the KA1, I'll never upgrade it again.)

I highly recommend you use NickelMenu for the Force USB function which means you can plug your Kobo into Calibre a second time (to update the database) without unplugging the USB cable.

[geek1011]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I highly recommend you use NickelMenu for the Force USB function which means you can plug your Kobo into Calibre a second time (to update the database) without unplugging the USB cable.

Most people should use NickelSeries if they're just plugging it in again for the series metadata. It's fully compatible with both Calibre and manual sideloading of EPUBs and KEPUBs.

[MGlitch]

Originally Posted by geek1011

Most people should use NickelSeries if they're just plugging it in again for the series metadata. It's fully compatible with both Calibre and manual sideloading of EPUBs and KEPUBs.

Dumb question: Will this also work with Sherman's KoboUNCaged? I suspect the answer is yes (I also have a feeling this has been asked before but I can't recall the answer).

[geek1011]

Originally Posted by MGlitch

Dumb question: Will this also work with Sherman's KoboUNCaged? I suspect the answer is yes (I also have a feeling this has been asked before but I can't recall the answer).

Yes, it'll work with anything since it just augments the existing import process and doesn't touch the metadata again after that.

[BookCat]

Originally Posted by Regard_39

Yes that's also why I was hoping to somehow force kepubify to cooperate with Calibre. Actually I would like to convince my wife to leave her kindle for a kobo (yes I know, some people might joke about leaving her kobo or her husband ).
By the way, I wonder if there is a specific way to use Calibre when you only own a Kobo. I'm not sure if it's very different from other e-readers but if so (enough peculiarities, of course I'm thinking of the kepub format, but maybe other features ...) it would almost deserve a dedicated forum section [/newbie suggestion mode]
Ultimate clarification: it is indeed the updated kobotouch extended plugin that I use.

Why not buy your wife a nice Clara or Libra as an "Unbirthday Present" just because you love her?
(And it makes life simpler for you )