Howdy self-hosters!
I’ve got a huge pile of eBooks flying around here: poetry, scientific literature, magazines, comics, teaching materials, RPG rule books - it’s a wildly mixed bag. I’m still looking for a self-hosted solution to make it more accessible and get an overview of what I actually have. (Calibre looks promising!)
My question here is not about software, though, but about organisation at the filesystem level: what folder and file name structure have you established for your eBooks? Do you just dump everything into one single folder and let the software do the rest? Do you create sections by genre (“Crime”, “Fantasy”, “Young adult”, like the libraries do it) or application (job-related, hobby-related, cooking, …)? Does it matter at all?
Lots of varied advice in the thread. I would suggest you choose a software first, then find recommended naming for it. Many will do some organisation for you, or even let you define the structure.
I don’t like calibre, but it’s undeniably the most complete solution. I’m not a fan of having to remote into a desktop for certain actions that given frontent doesn’t support (there are many).
Some other options: https://selfh.st/apps/?tag=Books