Cover Metadata - need clarification

[Paula-59]

Hi:

I'm trying to understand the relationship between the Calibri metadata info and the book itself (epub or mobi).

Here's where I'm confused. If I take the epub file I created in Calibri to Apple of iBooks, for instance, does the metadata information I created in Calibri go with it?

[theducks]

Originally Posted by Paula-59

Hi:

I'm trying to understand the relationship between the Calibri metadata info and the book itself (epub or mobi).

Here's where I'm confused. If I take the epub file I created in Calibri to Apple of iBooks, for instance, does the metadata information I created in Calibri go with it?

Depends on how you sent the book
OR
What process you followed after updating the Library (view) Metadata.

What is in the Library GUI has not automatically made it TO the Book

Send To Device / Send to Folder INSERTS the update into the exported copy (only)

Polish UPDATES the Library copy (EPUB, AZW3)

Conversion Updates the Target

[Paula-59]

Thanks, thanks, thanks for replying!

You said: "Conversion Updates the Target"

OK, to do a conversion I "add book" (my html files) to Calibri. Then I fill in the metadata. Then I do a conversion (convert individually) to an epub. I want the epub to submit to the different portals/distributors etc. that use epubs. From the epub I convert to a mobi.

What I have been doing is selecting cover art that is sized for iBooks for the epub, and changing the cover art to a jpg sized for Amazon for the mobi.

Then I download the epub and mobi to my desktop.

So, the download folder contains:
Booktitle.epub
Booktitle.zip
Bootitle.mobi
Booktitle.jpg
Booktitle.opf

I don't know what the Bootitle.jpg is? I don't know if it's the iBook cover art, the mobi cover art, some jpg FROM one of those, or what?

Separately, if I go to KOBO, let's say, which uses a different size cover yet again, but works with epubs, if I use just the epub from the above folder, does that epub include the Apple cover? Or no cover?

Thanks!!

[eschwartz]

When metadata is updated in calibre, it only updates the cali8bre database, not the books themselves.

There is a special Embed Metadata feature which will update the in-library copy. "Polish Books" ca do that as well.
Conversion from one format to another uses the current library metadata when creating the new ebook file.

Using Save-to-Disk by default performs an Embed Metadata on the exported copy (the one you saved on your Desktop).
Save-to-Disk also by default saves a copy of the Calibre Library cover as Booktitle.jpg, and an XML representation of the metadata as Booktitle.opf


calibre does not know or care what an "Apple Cover" is.
The only cover that calibre cares about is the cover image specified according to the official EPUB specification, or the documented cover image from the AZW3/MOBI/etc. formats.


P.S. You cannot update the cover inside a MOBI file once the MOBI file is created. You need to decide on an image before you create the MOBI.

[Paula-59]

eschwartz: Thanks for your help! I've almost got this figured out!

OK, the object of my creating the epub and mobi files in Calibri is to ultimately submit those to Amazon, Apple and potentially other distributors.

If I'm understanding you correctly, and because Amazon is the only distributor that seems to use mobis, I should use the cover art sized for Amazon in the metadata when I convert from the epub to the mobi, right?

The remaining question is what cover art do I use in the metadata for epubs to be submitted to different distributors with different size requirements?

If I am understanding you to say that when I save-to-disk I am embedding whatever cover art I used in the metadata, then does that mean I should save different versions of the epub, each with different cover art?

Thanks!!

[eschwartz]

If your objective is to upload different EPUBs to different distributors because they want different cover image sizes, then yes, you should save to disk for one distributor and then switch the cover in calibre and resave.

Note: I don't really know a lot about selling ebooks, so I have no idea whether that is something the distributors want, but if you say that's what you are trying to do then

Note2: When selling on Amazon, it is best to use the official Amazon-blessed KindleGen on the final version of your EPUB rather than using calibre. Amazon has been known to throw hissy fits when it senses that you used calibre.
Also, Amazon only accepts dual-MOBI (or old MOBI?) which is the native output of KindleGen. calibre creates old MOBI and new AZW3, so if you want to make sure your customers get the best (AZW3) experience you should upload a KindleGenned dual-MOBI. You can also upload an EPUB and Amazon will convert it for you.

Note3: Amazon requires a separately uploaded cover image anyway.

[BetterRed]

@Paula59 - as I understand it, what you want to do is to create book files of different formats for various distributors with different cover image files. Assuming that's true, I would try something like this:

• Put the different images inside an archive with names like apple.jpg, kobo.jpg, mobi.jpg, generic_epub.jpg etc.
• add the archive to the book, drag and drop into the Book Details sidebar will do the trick
  
  Calibre will auto-rename a zip archive full of images from .zip to .cbz, same for a solid image .rar archive, it'll be renamed to .cbr. However, you can workaround the auto-renaming by including a non-image file in a zip or rar archive. Or you could put the images into something like a .7z archive, it won't get renamed.
• Before creating a book file for a particular distributor in a particular format open the archive (either using View specific format, or by clicking it in the Book Details sidebar), drag the required image out of the archive to the desktop, and then drag that image from there to the Book Details sidebar. This has to be a two step process because calibre will not accept an image when it's dragged and dropped into book details from an archive.
• Create the book file via Save to Disk,

BR

[Paula-59]

Eshwartz & BetterRed: Thank you very much for replying.

BetterRed: I normally select the cover art when completing the metadata prior to doing a conversion. It sounds to me like what you're suggesting is a way to have the different jpgs saved in Calibri, rather than bringing them up one at a time for each version of the epub. Is that correct?

[BetterRed]

Originally Posted by Paula-59

BetterRed: I normally select the cover art when completing the metadata prior to doing a conversion. It sounds to me like what you're suggesting is a way to have the different jpgs saved in Calibri, rather than bringing them up one at a time for each version of the epub. Is that correct?

Yes - its just a way to keep the different covers adjacent to the format files etc in the calibre library.

I didn't grasp the fact that you want to attach different covers as part of conversion. To do that I think you need the images in a folder that you can browse into, and that will have to be outside the calibre library folder.

I sometimes want to use different covers on a book but I don't want/need to do a conversion, I want to do it, via Polish Book, before doing a Save to Disk. The 'problem' is where to keep the various images, putting them in an 7z archive was one solution.

In actual fact I now store the images in Evernote notes. I can drag the image I want out of the EN note and drop it into the Book Details sidebar (which I can't do with an archive), but that wasn't why I put them in EN notes, that was an unexpected bonus. I have a link to the relevant Evernote note in the Book Details sidebar.

My want/need has nothing to do with commercial books or distribution channels and such like.

BR

[gbm]

Originally Posted by Paula-59

eschwartz: Thanks for your help! I've almost got this figured out!

OK, the object of my creating the epub and mobi files in Calibri is to ultimately submit those to Amazon, Apple and potentially other distributors.

If I'm understanding you correctly, and because Amazon is the only distributor that seems to use mobis, I should use the cover art sized for Amazon in the metadata when I convert from the epub to the mobi, right?

The remaining question is what cover art do I use in the metadata for epubs to be submitted to different distributors with different size requirements?

If I am understanding you to say that when I save-to-disk I am embedding whatever cover art I used in the metadata, then does that mean I should save different versions of the epub, each with different cover art?

Thanks!!

Do not submit a mobi to Amazon, submit an EPUB and Amazon will convert it to mobi and AZW.

bernie

[Paula-59]

BetterRed & gbm: thanks for you replies!