Bookdrop tools

Two tools on the Bookdrop review page help with large imports: Bulk Edit sets the same details on many files at once, and Extract Pattern reads details out of file names.

• Bulk Edit
• Pattern Extraction

Bulk Edit Metadata

Apply the same metadata changes to multiple books at once.

How to Use

1. Select files using checkboxes, or the "Select All" button
2. Click "Bulk Edit" button in toolbar
3. Edit fields you want to change:
   • Text: Series Name, Publisher, Language
   • Number: Series Total
   • Arrays: Authors, Genres, Moods, Tags
4. Choose Merge (add new data to existing metadata) or Replace (overwrite) for array fields
5. Click "Apply to Selected"

Example: Update 150 comic issues with the same series name and publisher in seconds.

Pattern Extraction

Automatically extract metadata from filenames using patterns.

How to Use

1. Select files to process, or the use "Select All" button
2. Click "Extract Pattern" button
3. Enter a pattern or choose one of the existing ones (You can modify these after selection)
4. Preview results on sample files
5. Click "Extract and Apply"

Pattern Syntax

Placeholders (capture metadata):

• Text: {Title}, {SeriesName}, {Authors}, {Publisher}, {Language}, {Subtitle}
• Numbers: {SeriesNumber}, {SeriesTotal}
• Identifiers: {ISBN10}, {ISBN13}, {ASIN}
• Dates: {Published}, {Published:yyyy-MM-dd}, {Published:yyyy}

Wildcard (skip text without extraction): *

Literal text: Everything else matches exactly as shown, dashes, spaces etc. So adding in - between 2 placeholders would require that - is present between those placeholders in the filename for a successful match.

Example Patterns

Books:

{Authors} - {Title}
{Title} ({Published:yyyy})
{Authors} - {Title} ({Published:yyyy})

Series/Comics:

{SeriesName} #{SeriesNumber}
{SeriesName} - Chapter {SeriesNumber}
{SeriesName} v{SeriesNumber} (of {SeriesTotal})
[*] {SeriesName} - Chapter {SeriesNumber}

Pattern Examples

Date Formats

While Trove will attempt to automatically detect the right date format to match what is given, you can explicitly tell it the format to override any auto-detection. This is useful when a date is ambiguous.

The below are some example formats that can be given to a date placeholder:

Tokens: yyyy=year, MM=month, dd=day, M=1-2 digit month, d=1-2 digit day

Quick Tips

Pattern Extraction:

• Always preview before extracting to see the data that will be pulled from the files
• For files named in very different ways, work in groups rather than trying to make 1 perfect pattern to fit wildly different filename styles
• Use wildcards * for any parts that vary between files

Bulk Edit:

• Only enable fields you want to change, enabling a blank field will replace it with a blank value
• For array fields, merge will attempt to merge the data already there with what you set, while replace will override it
• Press Enter after each value in array fields to add multiple values to those fields

Combining Features:

1. Use Pattern Extraction to get metadata from filenames, useful for getting details like a books position in its series from the filename
2. Use Bulk Edit to add consistent series info, publishers, or tags across multiple files

Troubleshooting

Pattern doesn't match:

• Check literal text matches exactly (spaces, dashes, etc) and use a wildcard if in doubt
• Compare pattern to actual filenames character-by-character
• Start from a simple pattern, and add to it while checking the preview to see what's failing

Dates wrong:

• Specify explicit format: {Published:MM-dd-yyyy} for a date formatted like 02-20-2025 in the filename

Bulk edit not applying:

• Verify fields are checked
• Ensure values are entered
• Check selection count

You can always review the extracted or bulk metadata prior to finalizing the import by clicking on each book.