Older ebooks to the 2016 format

[MikeAtBookup]

Do you have ebooks in the legacy format, from Chess Openings Wizard?

The new Chess Openings Wizard 2016 keeps ebooks in a new single-file .4MD format.

To get your ebooks in the new format, run COW 2016 for Windows. (The Macintosh version will not be able to read older Windows ebooks.)

Use File |Open Ebook... to open your older ebook. The program will ask if you want to create a new format ebook from the old ebook. Then it allows you to pick the name for the new ebook. It suggests using the name from the old ebook but you can pick any name. Repeat this process one time for each old format ebook.

The old format ebooks are opened "read only" so they will not be affected by the new program. There is no need to move your old ebooks.

The Macintosh version will also be able to read the new ebook, made by the COW 2016 Windows program.

[B-Savage]

Sorry, but your fix does now work. I can go to the directory of the older books to try to load but the program will not recognize that there is any file in that directory.

What do I do to get the older books into the new program?

[MikeAtBookup]

Sorry, but your fix does now work. I can go to the directory of the older books to try to load but the program will not recognize that there is any file in that directory.

What do I do to get the older books into the new program?

What is the extension of the "older book" that you are trying to open? Chess Openings Wizard for Windows definitely shows and opens the older .2MD files.

[B-Savage]

Sorry, but your fix does now work. I can go to the directory of the older books to try to load but the program will not recognize that there is any file in that directory.

What do I do to get the older books into the new program?

What is the extension of the "older book" that you are trying to open? Chess Openings Wizard for Windows definitely shows and opens the older .2MD files.

Mike, I have both .2 and .3 but the program does not recognize either one.

[Bogg]

B-Savage:

Just trying to help. It would probably be helpful if you could supply a directory listing. In case you aren't old enough to be aware of the old but simple technique I'll explain.

1) start <command prompt> it can be found in the accessories folder c:\accessories
2) cd to the directory i.e. cd c:\...\ebooks
3) enter the command dir > dir.dat
4) exit <command prompt>
5) back in windows open the dir.dat file with notepad
6) copy the contents and paste it here.

Doh! You are a Windows user I hope. If not, I think the Mac world is based upon Unix so something very similar should be available.

Bogg

[B-Savage]

B-Savage:

Just trying to help. It would probably be helpful if you could supply a directory listing. In case you aren't old enough to be aware of the old but simple technique I'll explain.

1) start <command prompt> it can be found in the accessories folder c:\accessories
2) cd to the directory i.e. cd c:\...\ebooks
3) enter the command dir > dir.dat
4) exit <command prompt>
5) back in windows open the dir.dat file with notepad
6) copy the contents and paste it here.

Doh! You are a Windows user I hope. If not, I think the Mac world is based upon Unix so something very similar should be available.

Bogg

No problem Bogg and thanks for trying to help. But Oh how many times I've wished for the old DOS!!!! Alas, it won't happen though. And as far as copying, if the program will not recognize the files in one directory it won't recognize in another as they are the same files, but you know that.

[MikeAtBookup]

Sorry, but your fix does now work. I can go to the directory of the older books to try to load but the program will not recognize that there is any file in that directory.

What do I do to get the older books into the new program?

What is the extension of the "older book" that you are trying to open? Chess Openings Wizard for Windows definitely shows and opens the older .2MD files.

Mike, I have both .2 and .3 but the program does not recognize either one.

To be clear, you have a folder such as C:\Chess Openings Files\Ebooks\ which contains at least one ebook named something like Sicilian.2MD but, when you run the latest Chess Openings Wizard 2016 for Windows, you can choose to open an ebook and change to that folder where you know there is are .2MD files... but no files show up to open?

If that's the case, I really don't know what would keep the program from showing your older format ebooks.

[B-Savage]

What is the extension of the "older book" that you are trying to open? Chess Openings Wizard for Windows definitely shows and opens the older .2MD files.

Mike, I have both .2 and .3 but the program does not recognize either one.

To be clear, you have a folder such as C:\Chess Openings Files\Ebooks\ which contains at least one ebook named something like Sicilian.2MD but, when you run the latest Chess Openings Wizard 2016 for Windows, you can choose to open an ebook and change to that folder where you know there is are .2MD files... but no files show up to open?

If that's the case, I really don't know what would keep the program from showing your older format ebooks.

Sorry, but I find this very amusing that the fellow who wrote code for a program does not know how to debug it. I think at this point I have to write off Bookup except for the older versions. Sadly, we don't know how long I can continue to use them but I do have a couple older computers that still work. Personally I have not enjoyed the 64 bit computers at all as there are just too many problems with them. This is just one.

So thanks but no thanks Mike. We used to have a good rapport but that was what I suppose some call the good old days, when we used to call or even contact via email and Mike could help. But, we sill wish you good luck with others in the future.

[MikeAtBookup]

Sorry, but I find this very amusing that the fellow who wrote code for a program does not know how to debug it. I think at this point I have to write off Bookup except for the older versions. Sadly, we don't know how long I can continue to use them but I do have a couple older computers that still work. Personally I have not enjoyed the 64 bit computers at all as there are just too many problems with them. This is just one.

So thanks but no thanks Mike. We used to have a good rapport but that was what I suppose some call the good old days, when we used to call or even contact via email and Mike could help. But, we sill wish you good luck with others in the future.

Your mileage may vary of course. I still take phone calls and I still answer emails.

I also got thousands of users of the legacy system to move up to the new (still 32bit) 2106 version of COW. They got their ebooks converted. The new version is no charge to legacy owners like yourself but no one is forcing you to use it.

I did spell out a very specific question but I did not see an answer to it.

You might think that my program/code is creating the window that apparently is not displaying legacy files on your computer. However that window is actually part of Windows. I wouldn't deign to code my own window for opening files.

[Frankly123]

Are conversions limited to one at a time and only manually? Or is there a way to "batch" the conversion process for larger numbers of older ebooks especially scattered in different folders?