More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort >their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October): >https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October): >https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort >their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October): >https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
On 7/15/2024 10:01 AM, Tony Nance wrote:
On 7/15/24 9:54 AM, Tony Nance wrote:
On 7/15/24 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually >>>> have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized.
That is indeed a point mentioned in the article.
- Tony
Whoops - I thought I hit "draft" while I looked it up, but instead I
must have hit "publish by accident" ... anyhow:
That is indeed a point mentioned in the article:
"One in five Americans (20%) say they own between one and 10 physical
books, while 14% own between 11 and 25 books, and 13% between 26 and 50."
Tony
An example of this method of saying 'I don't actually read':
https://www.reddit.com/r/oddlysatisfying/comments/r9fc7p/this_book_collection_sorted_by_color/
In article <v73fh7$oeem$1@dont-email.me>,
Cryptoengineer <petertrei@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/15/2024 10:01 AM, Tony Nance wrote:shocked! —
On 7/15/24 9:54 AM, Tony Nance wrote:
On 7/15/24 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked —
who sortto report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some
That is indeed a point mentioned in the article.their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually >>>>> have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized. >>>>
- Tony
Whoops - I thought I hit "draft" while I looked it up, but instead I
must have hit "publish by accident" ... anyhow:
That is indeed a point mentioned in the article:
"One in five Americans (20%) say they own between one and 10 physical
books, while 14% own between 11 and 25 books, and 13% between 26 and 50." >>>
Tony
An example of this method of saying 'I don't actually read':
https://www.reddit.com/r/oddlysatisfying/comments/r9fc7p/this_book_collection_sorted_by_color/
If they are young and have mostly ebooks, they may be fans of control f. >Several of my young co-workers rely on search over organization. No
proper file structure to organize files, just one big folder.
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! — >> to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort >> their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized.
On 7/15/24 9:54 AM, Tony Nance wrote:
On 7/15/24 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! — >>>> to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort >>>> their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized.
That is indeed a point mentioned in the article.
- Tony
Whoops - I thought I hit "draft" while I looked it up, but instead I
must have hit "publish by accident" ... anyhow:
That is indeed a point mentioned in the article:
"One in five Americans (20%) say they own between one and 10 physical
books, while 14% own between 11 and 25 books, and 13% between 26 and 50."
Tony
More signs of madness in this crazy world:americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October): https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-
Tony
If they are young and have mostly ebooks, they may be fans of control f. >Several of my young co-workers rely on search over organization. No
proper file structure to organize files, just one big folder.
On Mon, 15 Jul 2024 09:32:33 -0400, Tony Nance wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books- >americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
Then there are people who heard about this, evidently,
and tried it out.
https://wapo.st/463w5h9
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! — >>>> to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort >>>> their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized.
As a general observation, the viability of various organizational
systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works
reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the
author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few
thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that
contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually >>>> have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized.
As a general observation, the viability of various organizational
systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works
reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the
author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few
thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that
contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any >system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent >limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose
last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library
is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D.
K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan >Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two
random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized.
On 7/16/2024 1:37 AM, Titus G wrote:
On 16/07/24 02:01, Tony Nance wrote:
On 7/15/24 9:54 AM, Tony Nance wrote:
On 7/15/24 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,That is indeed a point mentioned in the article.
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked —
shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who >>>>>> sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people
actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized. >>>>
- Tony
Whoops - I thought I hit "draft" while I looked it up, but instead I
must have hit "publish by accident" ... anyhow:
That is indeed a point mentioned in the article:
"One in five Americans (20%) say they own between one and 10 physical
books, while 14% own between 11 and 25 books, and 13% between 26 and
50."
Tony
I thought I owned about 50 real books but after curiosity motivated a
count, I discovered I own 140 of which about 30 are of SF genre in a
separate bookcase in no particular order other than series/trilogies in
sequence. The children's books are together as are the 1960's FI and
Indianapolis racing books but the rest are a muddle. All are simply dust
collectors including the 30 SF favourites as they are duplicated as
ebooks using Calibre. When I finish reading a book, I delete it from the
Kindle on which I store books to be read, collections and some
non-fiction stuff. My understanding is that I do not legally own ebooks
on my PC in Calibre whose library system is suitable for me for 2000+
ebooks.
When I do enter the spare bedroom where the SF bookcase is, I do get a
small pleasure from speed reading the titles, a different experience to
reading a title in Calibre.
How many e books have you bought?
I (and I expect many of the regulars in this group) own well over a
thousand physical books. It was one of the hallmarks of an SF fan
until ebooks became viable.
A favorite quote on the topic:
"I am a product of long corridors, empty sunlit rooms, upstairs indoor silences, attics explored in solitude, distant noises of gurgling
cisterns and pipes, and the noise of wind under the tiles. Also, of
endless books. My father bought all the books he read and never got rid
of any of them. There were books in the study, books in the drawing
room, books in the cloakroom, books (two deep) in the great bookcase on
the landing, books in a bedroom, books piled as high as my shoulder in
the cistern attic...In the seemingly endless rainy afternoons I took
volume after volume from the shelves. I had always the same certainty of finding a book that was new to me as a man who walks into a field has of finding a new blade of grass."
 - CS Lewis
On Tue, 16 Jul 2024 07:57:51 -0000 (UTC), Charles Packer <mailbox@cpacker.org> wrote:—
On Mon, 15 Jul 2024 09:32:33 -0400, Tony Nance wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked!
sortto report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who
their books by color. Color!
HereÂ’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books- >>americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
Then there are people who heard about this, evidently,
and tried it out.
https://wapo.st/463w5h9
It's guarded by a dragon. Even being referred by "a WaPo reader" isn't enough, it wants /my/ email for "free" viewing.
Here's a clue, WaPo: if I have to give you something to get something,
it ain't free.
On Tue, 16 Jul 2024 08:28:04 -0700, Paul S Person wrote:
On Tue, 16 Jul 2024 07:57:51 -0000 (UTC), Charles Packer—
<mailbox@cpacker.org> wrote:
On Mon, 15 Jul 2024 09:32:33 -0400, Tony Nance wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked!
sortto report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who
their books by color. Color!
HereÂ’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books- >>>americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
Then there are people who heard about this, evidently,
and tried it out.
https://wapo.st/463w5h9
It's guarded by a dragon. Even being referred by "a WaPo reader" isn't
enough, it wants /my/ email for "free" viewing.
Sorry about that. I'm not surprised, though, the Post is more
aggressive about pushing ads on its own subscribers than is the
New York Times.
Here's a clue, WaPo: if I have to give you something to get something,
it ain't free.
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,As a general observation, the viability of various organizational
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually >>>>> have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized. >>>>
systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works
reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the
author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few
thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that
contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any
system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent
limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose
last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library
is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D.
K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan
Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two
random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that
the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
On 2024-07-17, BillGill <tonisdad215@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,As a general observation, the viability of various organizational
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually >>>>>> have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized. >>>>>
systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works
reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the
author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few >>>>> thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that
contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any
system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent
limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose
last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library >>> is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D.
K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan
Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two
random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that
the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
"All you have to do"?? I have 88 shelves of alphabetical by author
mass market sized sf paperbacks (probably another 7-8 shelves of sf paperbacks sorted by other criteria such as anthologies, Star Trek,
and then my Favorite bookcase is mixed with hardcovers). When I
"discover" a "new" author like Elizabeth Bear and have to fit in another 10-15 'B' books, it poses a problem!
In article <pan$73944$c5a11a4$1232f6e1$bfc66baa@cpacker.org>,
Charles Packer <mailbox@cpacker.org> wrote:
On Tue, 16 Jul 2024 08:28:04 -0700, Paul S Person wrote:
On Tue, 16 Jul 2024 07:57:51 -0000 (UTC), Charles Packer
<mailbox@cpacker.org> wrote:
On Mon, 15 Jul 2024 09:32:33 -0400, Tony Nance wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! >>—
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who >>sort
their books by color. Color!
HereÂ’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books- >>>>americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
Tony
Then there are people who heard about this, evidently,
and tried it out.
https://wapo.st/463w5h9
It's guarded by a dragon. Even being referred by "a WaPo reader" isn't
enough, it wants /my/ email for "free" viewing.
Sorry about that. I'm not surprised, though, the Post is more
aggressive about pushing ads on its own subscribers than is the
New York Times.
Here's a clue, WaPo: if I have to give you something to get something,
it ain't free.
You can get around many (not all) paywalls by going to "archive.is"
and plugging in the URL you are interested in. If they don't already
have it, you can request it be archived, which, if it works, probably takes >two or three minutes.
The page for the WP url above is:
https://archive.is/HYK1b
On 7/17/2024 2:30 PM, Chris Buckley wrote:
On 2024-07-17, BillGill <tonisdad215@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,As a general observation, the viability of various organizational
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! — >>>>>>>> to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort >>>>>>>> their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually >>>>>>> have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized. >>>>>>
systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works >>>>>> reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the
author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few >>>>>> thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that
contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any >>>> system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent >>>> limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose
last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library >>>> is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D. >>>> K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan >>>> Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two
random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that
the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
"All you have to do"?? I have 88 shelves of alphabetical by author
mass market sized sf paperbacks (probably another 7-8 shelves of sf
paperbacks sorted by other criteria such as anthologies, Star Trek,
and then my Favorite bookcase is mixed with hardcovers). When I
"discover" a "new" author like Elizabeth Bear and have to fit in another
10-15 'B' books, it poses a problem!
[snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Of course, e-books and e-readers have changed the equation over the last >10-20 years, but that's a whole different can of worms.--
On 7/18/2024 12:58 PM, Paul S Person wrote:
On Wed, 17 Jul 2024 19:06:51 -0400, Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com>
wrote:
On 7/17/2024 2:30 PM, Chris Buckley wrote:
On 2024-07-17, BillGill <tonisdad215@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — >>>>>>>>>> shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no
organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who
sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October): >>>>>>>>>> https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people >>>>>>>>> actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be
organized.
As a general observation, the viability of various organizational >>>>>>>> systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works >>>>>>>> reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the >>>>>>>> author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few >>>>>>>> thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that >>>>>>>> contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any >>>>>> system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent >>>>>> limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose >>>>>> last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your
library
is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D. >>>>>> K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan >>>>>> Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two >>>>>> random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that
the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
"All you have to do"?? I have 88 shelves of alphabetical by author
mass market sized sf paperbacks (probably another 7-8 shelves of sf
paperbacks sorted by other criteria such as anthologies, Star Trek,
and then my Favorite bookcase is mixed with hardcovers). When I
"discover" a "new" author like Elizabeth Bear and have to fit in another >>>> 10-15 'B' books, it poses a problem!
[snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Provided, of course, that it (and each shelf) is able to bear the
weight.
When the shelves start curving into a "u", that is /not/ a good sign.
IMHO. YMMV.
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
pt
On 7/18/2024 12:58 PM, Paul S Person wrote:
On Wed, 17 Jul 2024 19:06:51 -0400, Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com>
wrote:
On 7/17/2024 2:30 PM, Chris Buckley wrote:
On 2024-07-17, BillGill <tonisdad215@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000
Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — >>>>>>>>>> shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no
organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some >>>>>>>>>> who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October): >>>>>>>>>> https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people >>>>>>>>> actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be
organized.
As a general observation, the viability of various organizational >>>>>>>> systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works >>>>>>>> reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the >>>>>>>> author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a >>>>>>>> few
thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that >>>>>>>> contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases.
Unfortunately, any
system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with
inherent
limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose >>>>>> last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your
library
is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely
love D.
K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or
Nathan
Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two >>>>>> random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that
the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
"All you have to do"?? I have 88 shelves of alphabetical by author
mass market sized sf paperbacks (probably another 7-8 shelves of sf
paperbacks sorted by other criteria such as anthologies, Star Trek,
and then my Favorite bookcase is mixed with hardcovers). When I
"discover" a "new" author like Elizabeth Bear and have to fit in
another
10-15 'B' books, it poses a problem!
[snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Provided, of course, that it (and each shelf) is able to bear the
weight.
When the shelves start curving into a "u", that is /not/ a good sign.
IMHO. YMMV.
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
On 7/17/2024 2:30 PM, Chris Buckley wrote:
On 2024-07-17, BillGill <tonisdad215@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,As a general observation, the viability of various organizational
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational >>>>>>>> system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually >>>>>>> have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized. >>>>>>
systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works >>>>>> reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the
author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few >>>>>> thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that
contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any >>>> system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent >>>> limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose
last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library >>>> is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D. >>>> K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan >>>> Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two
random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that
the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
"All you have to do"?? I have 88 shelves of alphabetical by author
mass market sized sf paperbacks (probably another 7-8 shelves of sf
paperbacks sorted by other criteria such as anthologies, Star Trek,
and then my Favorite bookcase is mixed with hardcovers). When I
"discover" a "new" author like Elizabeth Bear and have to fit in another
10-15 'B' books, it poses a problem!
[snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Of course, e-books and e-readers have changed the equation over the last 10-20 years, but that's a whole different can of worms.
On 7/18/2024 9:22 PM, Cryptoengineer wrote:
On 7/18/2024 12:58 PM, Paul S Person wrote:
On Wed, 17 Jul 2024 19:06:51 -0400, Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com>
wrote:
On 7/17/2024 2:30 PM, Chris Buckley wrote:
On 2024-07-17, BillGill <tonisdad215@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 >>>>>>>>>>> Americans
about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — >>>>>>>>>>> shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no
organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some >>>>>>>>>>> who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October): >>>>>>>>>>> https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people >>>>>>>>>> actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be >>>>>>>>>> organized.
As a general observation, the viability of various organizational >>>>>>>>> systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works >>>>>>>>> reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the >>>>>>>>> author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a >>>>>>>>> few
thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that >>>>>>>>> contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases.
Unfortunately, any
system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with
inherent
limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose >>>>>>> last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your >>>>>>> library
is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely >>>>>>> love D.
K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or >>>>>>> Nathan
Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two >>>>>>> random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that >>>>>> the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
"All you have to do"?? I have 88 shelves of alphabetical by author
mass market sized sf paperbacks (probably another 7-8 shelves of sf
paperbacks sorted by other criteria such as anthologies, Star Trek,
and then my Favorite bookcase is mixed with hardcovers). When I
"discover" a "new" author like Elizabeth Bear and have to fit in
another
10-15 'B' books, it poses a problem!
[snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Provided, of course, that it (and each shelf) is able to bear the
weight.
When the shelves start curving into a "u", that is /not/ a good sign.
IMHO. YMMV.
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
The "balanced mix of bindings" that I mentioned earlier helps.
Hardcovers do better on bottom shelves while mass market paperbacks can
be stacked all the way to the ceiling without causing any issues.
On 7/18/2024 12:58 PM, Paul S Person wrote:
On Wed, 17 Jul 2024 19:06:51 -0400, Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com>
wrote:
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Provided, of course, that it (and each shelf) is able to bear the
weight.
When the shelves start curving into a "u", that is /not/ a good sign.
IMHO. YMMV.
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
On 7/18/2024 12:58 PM, Paul S Person wrote:
On Wed, 17 Jul 2024 19:06:51 -0400, Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com>
wrote:
On 7/17/2024 2:30 PM, Chris Buckley wrote:
On 2024-07-17, BillGill <tonisdad215@gmail.com> wrote:
On 7/16/2024 5:15 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/16/2024 9:19 AM, BillGill wrote:
On 7/15/2024 12:25 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/15/2024 9:48 AM, Ted Nolan <tednolan> wrote:Have you checked your local library lately? They do have
In article <v738di$n4rq$1@dont-email.me>,
Tony Nance <tnusenet17@gmail.com> wrote:
More signs of madness in this crazy world:
I just ran across the results of a poll that asked 29,000 Americans >>>>>>>>>> about their book-owning habits, and friends, I am shocked — shocked! —
to report that there are people who have absolutely no organizational
system whatsoever. Worse — worse, I tell you — there are some who sort
their books by color. Color!
Here’s a link to the main source (published in October):
https://today.yougov.com/society/articles/47712-how-many-books-americans-own-and-how-they-organize-them
I could read the link, I suppose, but I wonder how many people actually
have a sufficient number of books such that they need to be organized.
As a general observation, the viability of various organizational >>>>>>>> systems depends on the number of books to be organized. What works >>>>>>>> reasonably well for a few hundred books -- e.g. sorting by the >>>>>>>> author's last name -- may be problematic for a collection with a few >>>>>>>> thousand books and completely unworkable for a collection that >>>>>>>> contains tens of thousands of books.
thousands of books. They use a system that separates the
books by class, first fiction and non-fiction. Then
they separate the non-fiction according to the Dewey Decimal
Code. The Fiction is separated into a number of sub
classifications, such as General Fiction, Mysteries,
Science Fiction, and of course Children's. Then within
those categories they are sorted by the author's last
name.
[snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any >>>>>> system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent >>>>>> limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose >>>>>> last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library >>>>>> is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D. >>>>>> K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan >>>>>> Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two >>>>>> random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I'm don't understand what the problem is. Are you suggesting that
the books are packed in, so that there is no room to insert that
many more? If that is the case all you have to do is to move
books on down the shelves to make room. I have been known to do
that. Or, best case, build new shelves and spread the existing
books out to make room. I have been known to do that.
"All you have to do"?? I have 88 shelves of alphabetical by author
mass market sized sf paperbacks (probably another 7-8 shelves of sf
paperbacks sorted by other criteria such as anthologies, Star Trek,
and then my Favorite bookcase is mixed with hardcovers). When I
"discover" a "new" author like Elizabeth Bear and have to fit in another >>>> 10-15 'B' books, it poses a problem!
[snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Provided, of course, that it (and each shelf) is able to bear the
weight.
When the shelves start curving into a "u", that is /not/ a good sign.
IMHO. YMMV.
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> wrote:Basic word processing software like Microsoft Word, LibreOffice Writer
[snip-snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Of course, e-books and e-readers have changed the equation over the last
10-20 years, but that's a whole different can of worms.
Hijacking the thread...
What software do you (or anyone else reading this) use to organize your collection? [snip-snip]
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any >system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent >limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose
last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library
is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D.
K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan >Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two
random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
On Tue, 16 Jul 2024 18:15:37 -0400, Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com>
wrote:
It's a viable system for certain types of use cases. Unfortunately, any
system that sorts books "by the author's last name" comes with inherent
limitations. Suppose you have N bookcases dedicated to authors whose
last name starts with an "H". Everything is fine as long as your library
is static or close to it. Then you discover that you absolutely love D.
K. Holmberg (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?200173) and/or Nathan
Hystad (https://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?249647) -- to pick two
random prolific authors -- and suddenly you have a problem.
My own SF books are randomly but grouping all by a particular author together. Thus a one hit wonder can take a LONG time to find...but
that's what I do with other works in my collection: Solzhenitsyn,
Churchill, 300+ chess books.
(And mostly, though she died 2 1/2 years ago I haven't tried to
'attack' my late wife's shelves which have at least 200+ themselves)
On 7/19/2024 3:01 PM, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/19/2024 12:25 PM, rkshullat@rosettacondot.com wrote:I have Calibre and it is a good program. The only problem
Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> wrote:Basic word processing software like Microsoft Word, LibreOffice Writer
[snip-snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Of course, e-books and e-readers have changed the equation over the last >>>> 10-20 years, but that's a whole different can of worms.
Hijacking the thread...
What software do you (or anyone else reading this) use to organize your
collection? [snip-snip]
or even Notepad scales up reasonably well. It doesn't support bar-code
based automation, but it's straightforward, flexible and compatible with
Kindle/other e-readers.
On the e-book side, Calibre (https://calibre-ebook.com/) is a very nice
tool. Perhaps the UI is not as polished as what a major company might be
able to do, but it's very powerful. It also comes with lots of useful
add-ons like FanFicFare, which lets you create (and automatically
update!) ebooks from Web serials hosted by RoyalRoad, SpaceBattles, AO3,
etc.
with it is that there is no longer any way to break the Kindle
coding, so it can't handle Kindle books. I do use it when I
digitize books, because it makes it easy to convert text from
a word processor to EPUB. Then it can be sent do any device
that has a program that can read EPUB (tablet, phone, or whatever).
Bill
Hijacking the thread...
What software do you (or anyone else reading this) use to organize your >collection? We're in the middle of an extended move with all of our books >boxed and either at the old house, the new house or in storage. There's no >particular order to them and I'd love to just shelve them for "best fit" and >have the software track their location. Ideally I'd like something that could >read the spines (a lot of the books predate UPC codes). We have 14 6-foot tall >bookcases, half with hardbacks and half with double-shelved paperbacks, so >manual entry would be a pain.
On Thu, 18 Jul 2024 21:22:32 -0400, Cryptoengineer
<petertrei@gmail.com> wrote:
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
Way back when some well-wisher gifted my late wife a complete set of Brittanicas from the 60s - she kept them on the bottom shelf (which
was a 3/4" thick piece of wood that sat on a concrete floor) just
outside this room which she then filled up with various boxes. [snip]
On 7/19/2024 12:25 PM, rkshullat@rosettacondot.com wrote:
Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> wrote:Basic word processing software like Microsoft Word, LibreOffice Writer
[snip-snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Of course, e-books and e-readers have changed the equation over the last >>> 10-20 years, but that's a whole different can of worms.
Hijacking the thread...
What software do you (or anyone else reading this) use to organize your
collection? [snip-snip]
or even Notepad scales up reasonably well. It doesn't support bar-code
based automation, but it's straightforward, flexible and compatible with Kindle/other e-readers.
On the e-book side, Calibre (https://calibre-ebook.com/) is a very nice
tool. Perhaps the UI is not as polished as what a major company might be
able to do, but it's very powerful. It also comes with lots of useful
add-ons like FanFicFare, which lets you create (and automatically
update!) ebooks from Web serials hosted by RoyalRoad, SpaceBattles, AO3,
etc.
Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> wrote:
On 7/19/2024 12:25 PM, rkshullat@rosettacondot.com wrote:
Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> wrote:Basic word processing software like Microsoft Word, LibreOffice Writer
[snip-snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books
into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass
market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings
can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Of course, e-books and e-readers have changed the equation over the last >>>> 10-20 years, but that's a whole different can of worms.
Hijacking the thread...
What software do you (or anyone else reading this) use to organize your
collection? [snip-snip]
or even Notepad scales up reasonably well. It doesn't support bar-code
based automation, but it's straightforward, flexible and compatible with
Kindle/other e-readers.
I may give up and write my own. I really don't want to manually enter the contents of 20 full-size bookcases.
On the e-book side, Calibre (https://calibre-ebook.com/) is a very nice
tool. Perhaps the UI is not as polished as what a major company might be
able to do, but it's very powerful. It also comes with lots of useful
add-ons like FanFicFare, which lets you create (and automatically
update!) ebooks from Web serials hosted by RoyalRoad, SpaceBattles, AO3,
etc.
I like Calibre, although I miss the ability to back up my Amazon purchases. (I've periodically tried, but the oldest functioning Kindle I have is a
10th generation Paperwhite and I've never been able to do it.)
Robert
On 7/19/2024 10:46 PM, The Horny Goat wrote:
On Thu, 18 Jul 2024 21:22:32 -0400, Cryptoengineer
<petertrei@gmail.com> wrote:
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be
a different matter.
Way back when some well-wisher gifted my late wife a complete set of
Brittanicas from the 60s - she kept them on the bottom shelf (which
was a 3/4" thick piece of wood that sat on a concrete floor) just
outside this room which she then filled up with various boxes. [snip]
Smart. Encyclopedia Britannica is a known bookshelf-killer.
On 21/07/24 09:38, rkshullat@rosettacondot.com wrote:
Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> wrote:
On 7/19/2024 12:25 PM, rkshullat@rosettacondot.com wrote:
Ahasuerus <ahasuerus@email.com> wrote:Basic word processing software like Microsoft Word, LibreOffice Writer
[snip-snip]
Indeed. I started using removable labels and word processor-based
catalogs some decades ago. As an added bonus, you can fit more books >>>>> into a bookcase if you separate hardcovers/trade paperbacks from mass >>>>> market paperbacks, then double-stack them. A balanced mix of bindings >>>>> can accommodate 700-800 books per bookcase.
Of course, e-books and e-readers have changed the equation over the last >>>>> 10-20 years, but that's a whole different can of worms.
Hijacking the thread...
What software do you (or anyone else reading this) use to organize your >>>> collection? [snip-snip]
or even Notepad scales up reasonably well. It doesn't support bar-code
based automation, but it's straightforward, flexible and compatible with >>> Kindle/other e-readers.
I may give up and write my own. I really don't want to manually enter the
contents of 20 full-size bookcases.
On the e-book side, Calibre (https://calibre-ebook.com/) is a very nice >>> tool. Perhaps the UI is not as polished as what a major company might be >>> able to do, but it's very powerful. It also comes with lots of useful
add-ons like FanFicFare, which lets you create (and automatically
update!) ebooks from Web serials hosted by RoyalRoad, SpaceBattles, AO3, >>> etc.
I like Calibre, although I miss the ability to back up my Amazon purchases. >> (I've periodically tried, but the oldest functioning Kindle I have is a
10th generation Paperwhite and I've never been able to do it.)
Robert
You probably don't need to back up Amazon purchases as you can download
them again for no cost. (I haven't done that for years and years but
when I lost a hard disk once, it was a simple task to reload them Amazon >using "Kindle for PC".)
If you need to back up individual books, then do a web search for DeDRM >Calibre Kindle (or maybe Amazon).
On Sun, 21 Jul 2024 13:59:34 +1200, Titus G <noone@nowhere.com> wrote:
You probably don't need to back up Amazon purchases as you can download >>them again for no cost. (I haven't done that for years and years but
when I lost a hard disk once, it was a simple task to reload them Amazon >>using "Kindle for PC".)
If you need to back up individual books, then do a web search for DeDRM >>Calibre Kindle (or maybe Amazon).
The "Manage Content and Devices" Page (can't find it? Pull up "Returns
and Orders", go to "Digital Orders" and find an eBook; the button
should be the right) can download files for transfer by USB. You have
to designate which device you are planning to use it on, but it
downloads to Download and from there it can be moved ... anywhere.
On 21/07/2024 06:23, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/19/2024 10:46 PM, The Horny Goat wrote:I have a Funk & Wagnall's on the bottom of one of my bookshelves.
On Thu, 18 Jul 2024 21:22:32 -0400, Cryptoengineer
<petertrei@gmail.com> wrote:
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be >>>> a different matter.
Way back when some well-wisher gifted my late wife a complete set of
Brittanicas from the 60s - she kept them on the bottom shelf (which
was a 3/4" thick piece of wood that sat on a concrete floor) just
outside this room which she then filled up with various boxes. [snip]
Smart. Encyclopedia Britannica is a known bookshelf-killer.
In article <je9vmk-ned.ln1@paranoia.mcleod-schmidt.id.au>,
Gary R. Schmidt <grschmidt@acm.org> wrote:
On 21/07/2024 06:23, Ahasuerus wrote:
On 7/19/2024 10:46 PM, The Horny Goat wrote:I have a Funk & Wagnall's on the bottom of one of my bookshelves.
On Thu, 18 Jul 2024 21:22:32 -0400, Cryptoengineer
<petertrei@gmail.com> wrote:
I built my shelves from poplar, and have had no problems. Pine would be >>>>> a different matter.
Way back when some well-wisher gifted my late wife a complete set of
Brittanicas from the 60s - she kept them on the bottom shelf (which
was a 3/4" thick piece of wood that sat on a concrete floor) just
outside this room which she then filled up with various boxes. [snip]
Smart. Encyclopedia Britannica is a known bookshelf-killer.
Should have it in a mayonaise jar on your front porch..
How many here remember, "Look it up in your Funk & Wagnall's?", or, "No,
not another chicken joke!". :-)
Way back when some well-wisher gifted my late wife a complete set of
Brittanicas from the 60s - she kept them on the bottom shelf (which
was a 3/4" thick piece of wood that sat on a concrete floor) just
outside this room which she then filled up with various boxes. [snip]
Smart. Encyclopedia Britannica is a known bookshelf-killer.
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On Sun, 21 Jul 2024 13:59:34 +1200, Titus G <noone@nowhere.com> wrote:
You probably don't need to back up Amazon purchases as you can download >>>them again for no cost. (I haven't done that for years and years but
when I lost a hard disk once, it was a simple task to reload them Amazon >>>using "Kindle for PC".)
If you need to back up individual books, then do a web search for DeDRM >>>Calibre Kindle (or maybe Amazon).
The "Manage Content and Devices" Page (can't find it? Pull up "Returns
and Orders", go to "Digital Orders" and find an eBook; the button
should be the right) can download files for transfer by USB. You have
to designate which device you are planning to use it on, but it
downloads to Download and from there it can be moved ... anywhere.
This is great if you trust Amazon's long-term ability to keep providing
them.
On 21 Jul 2024 16:29:21 -0000, kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) wrote:
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On Sun, 21 Jul 2024 13:59:34 +1200, Titus G <noone@nowhere.com> wrote:
You probably don't need to back up Amazon purchases as you can download >>>>them again for no cost. (I haven't done that for years and years but >>>>when I lost a hard disk once, it was a simple task to reload them Amazon >>>>using "Kindle for PC".)
If you need to back up individual books, then do a web search for DeDRM >>>>Calibre Kindle (or maybe Amazon).
The "Manage Content and Devices" Page (can't find it? Pull up "Returns >>>and Orders", go to "Digital Orders" and find an eBook; the button
should be the right) can download files for transfer by USB. You have
to designate which device you are planning to use it on, but it
downloads to Download and from there it can be moved ... anywhere.
This is great if you trust Amazon's long-term ability to keep providing >>them.
Actually, the idea is that you do this every time you buy one and then
move it somewhere Amazon can't find it and so can neither modify it
nor remove it. That still leaves DRM to be handled, of course, but I
keep reading about that not being unsolvable.
The last time I tried to actually copy a file to a Kindle, I found the >directory system hard to understand. I don't know where they are
supposed to go, but they can be found and used in what is clearly not
the intended location. Or could be, I think this was with my
now-replaced PaperWhite.
With the new Kindles, for a while, if I did the "download and
transfer" before having Amazon send it to the device [1] the device
would claim that, since I had copied it via USB, it was not synched
and never would synch. Rather a churlish attitude, but what can you
do?
[1] Which quite an adventure with the new Kindles: by default, they go
to sleep and so /cannot receive books/ until you turn them on and they
wake up. And even then it is possible to see a book, delivered to the
wrong one because of Amazon's no longer allowing you to choose where
it is to go when you buy it (at least they stopped asking where you
wanted it to go and then sending it wherever /they/ decided was your >default), on the device and not be able to get the "Manage Content and >Devices" page to recognize that it is there and so cause it to be
removed. Chewing gum and baling wire, /that's/ what Amazon's support
of this feature is made of.
--
On 7/22/2024 2:01 AM, The Horny Goat wrote:
On Sun, 21 Jul 2024 21:53:22 +1000, "Gary R. Schmidt"
<grschmidt@acm.org> wrote:
How many here remember, "Look it up in your Funk & Wagnall's?", or, "No, >>> not another chicken joke!". :-)
Yes I remember Rowan + Martin back in the day - I even watched the
Richard Nixon guest episode live back then and was a precocious enough
12 year old to know who he was. (My grandfather had run unsuccessfully
for the Canadian parliament in 1965 and 1968 so I started young as a
political junkie...)
I caught a rerun of Laugh-In the other day. It seemed a little -
pedestrian by today's standards. The Gen-Z lady watching it with
me was boggled by R&M smoking cigarettes on-screen, blackface done >un-ironically, and absolutely enchanted by Tiny Tim.
In article <aavs9jhv508p9e8nl9au2gd8bikug3k21l@4ax.com>,
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On 21 Jul 2024 16:29:21 -0000, kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) wrote:
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On Sun, 21 Jul 2024 13:59:34 +1200, Titus G <noone@nowhere.com> wrote: >>>>>
You probably don't need to back up Amazon purchases as you can download >>>>>them again for no cost. (I haven't done that for years and years but >>>>>when I lost a hard disk once, it was a simple task to reload them Amazon >>>>>using "Kindle for PC".)
If you need to back up individual books, then do a web search for DeDRM >>>>>Calibre Kindle (or maybe Amazon).
The "Manage Content and Devices" Page (can't find it? Pull up "Returns >>>>and Orders", go to "Digital Orders" and find an eBook; the button >>>>should be the right) can download files for transfer by USB. You have >>>>to designate which device you are planning to use it on, but it >>>>downloads to Download and from there it can be moved ... anywhere.
This is great if you trust Amazon's long-term ability to keep providing >>>them.
Actually, the idea is that you do this every time you buy one and then
move it somewhere Amazon can't find it and so can neither modify it
nor remove it. That still leaves DRM to be handled, of course, but I
keep reading about that not being unsolvable.
The last time I tried to actually copy a file to a Kindle, I found the >>directory system hard to understand. I don't know where they are
supposed to go, but they can be found and used in what is clearly not
the intended location. Or could be, I think this was with my
now-replaced PaperWhite.
With the new Kindles, for a while, if I did the "download and
transfer" before having Amazon send it to the device [1] the device
would claim that, since I had copied it via USB, it was not synched
and never would synch. Rather a churlish attitude, but what can you
do?
[1] Which quite an adventure with the new Kindles: by default, they go
to sleep and so /cannot receive books/ until you turn them on and they
wake up. And even then it is possible to see a book, delivered to the
wrong one because of Amazon's no longer allowing you to choose where
it is to go when you buy it (at least they stopped asking where you
wanted it to go and then sending it wherever /they/ decided was your >>default), on the device and not be able to get the "Manage Content and >>Devices" page to recognize that it is there and so cause it to be
removed. Chewing gum and baling wire, /that's/ what Amazon's support
of this feature is made of.
--
Alternatively to putting an ebook file into the "documents" folder
when the kindle is attached by USB, there is an email address associated
with every kindle to which you can mail an ebook as an attachment and
have it appear automagically.
On 22 Jul 2024 16:35:46 GMT, ted@loft.tnolan.com (Ted Nolan
<tednolan>) wrote:
In article <aavs9jhv508p9e8nl9au2gd8bikug3k21l@4ax.com>,
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On 21 Jul 2024 16:29:21 -0000, kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) wrote:
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On Sun, 21 Jul 2024 13:59:34 +1200, Titus G <noone@nowhere.com> wrote: >>>>>>
You probably don't need to back up Amazon purchases as you can download >>>>>>them again for no cost. (I haven't done that for years and years but >>>>>>when I lost a hard disk once, it was a simple task to reload them Amazon >>>>>>using "Kindle for PC".)
If you need to back up individual books, then do a web search for DeDRM >>>>>>Calibre Kindle (or maybe Amazon).
The "Manage Content and Devices" Page (can't find it? Pull up "Returns >>>>>and Orders", go to "Digital Orders" and find an eBook; the button >>>>>should be the right) can download files for transfer by USB. You have >>>>>to designate which device you are planning to use it on, but it >>>>>downloads to Download and from there it can be moved ... anywhere.
This is great if you trust Amazon's long-term ability to keep providing >>>>them.
Actually, the idea is that you do this every time you buy one and then >>>move it somewhere Amazon can't find it and so can neither modify it
nor remove it. That still leaves DRM to be handled, of course, but I
keep reading about that not being unsolvable.
The last time I tried to actually copy a file to a Kindle, I found the >>>directory system hard to understand. I don't know where they are
supposed to go, but they can be found and used in what is clearly not
the intended location. Or could be, I think this was with my
now-replaced PaperWhite.
With the new Kindles, for a while, if I did the "download and
transfer" before having Amazon send it to the device [1] the device
would claim that, since I had copied it via USB, it was not synched
and never would synch. Rather a churlish attitude, but what can you
do?
[1] Which quite an adventure with the new Kindles: by default, they go
to sleep and so /cannot receive books/ until you turn them on and they >>>wake up. And even then it is possible to see a book, delivered to the >>>wrong one because of Amazon's no longer allowing you to choose where
it is to go when you buy it (at least they stopped asking where you >>>wanted it to go and then sending it wherever /they/ decided was your >>>default), on the device and not be able to get the "Manage Content and >>>Devices" page to recognize that it is there and so cause it to be >>>removed. Chewing gum and baling wire, /that's/ what Amazon's support
of this feature is made of.
--
Alternatively to putting an ebook file into the "documents" folder
when the kindle is attached by USB, there is an email address associated >>with every kindle to which you can mail an ebook as an attachment and
have it appear automagically.
Provided it isn't sleeping, of course.
I've never tried it so I have no idea how well it works.
In article <h8kv9jhhp1p1mnqdrn6bu8q9rb5vou3qtk@4ax.com>,
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On 22 Jul 2024 16:35:46 GMT, ted@loft.tnolan.com (Ted Nolan
<tednolan>) wrote:
In article <aavs9jhv508p9e8nl9au2gd8bikug3k21l@4ax.com>,
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On 21 Jul 2024 16:29:21 -0000, kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) wrote:
Paul S Person <psperson@old.netcom.invalid> wrote:
On Sun, 21 Jul 2024 13:59:34 +1200, Titus G <noone@nowhere.com> wrote: >>>>>>>
You probably don't need to back up Amazon purchases as you can download >>>>>>>them again for no cost. (I haven't done that for years and years but >>>>>>>when I lost a hard disk once, it was a simple task to reload them Amazon >>>>>>>using "Kindle for PC".)
If you need to back up individual books, then do a web search for DeDRM >>>>>>>Calibre Kindle (or maybe Amazon).
The "Manage Content and Devices" Page (can't find it? Pull up "Returns >>>>>>and Orders", go to "Digital Orders" and find an eBook; the button >>>>>>should be the right) can download files for transfer by USB. You have >>>>>>to designate which device you are planning to use it on, but it >>>>>>downloads to Download and from there it can be moved ... anywhere.
This is great if you trust Amazon's long-term ability to keep providing >>>>>them.
Actually, the idea is that you do this every time you buy one and then >>>>move it somewhere Amazon can't find it and so can neither modify it
nor remove it. That still leaves DRM to be handled, of course, but I >>>>keep reading about that not being unsolvable.
The last time I tried to actually copy a file to a Kindle, I found the >>>>directory system hard to understand. I don't know where they are >>>>supposed to go, but they can be found and used in what is clearly not >>>>the intended location. Or could be, I think this was with my >>>>now-replaced PaperWhite.
With the new Kindles, for a while, if I did the "download and
transfer" before having Amazon send it to the device [1] the device >>>>would claim that, since I had copied it via USB, it was not synched
and never would synch. Rather a churlish attitude, but what can you
do?
[1] Which quite an adventure with the new Kindles: by default, they go >>>>to sleep and so /cannot receive books/ until you turn them on and they >>>>wake up. And even then it is possible to see a book, delivered to the >>>>wrong one because of Amazon's no longer allowing you to choose where
it is to go when you buy it (at least they stopped asking where you >>>>wanted it to go and then sending it wherever /they/ decided was your >>>>default), on the device and not be able to get the "Manage Content and >>>>Devices" page to recognize that it is there and so cause it to be >>>>removed. Chewing gum and baling wire, /that's/ what Amazon's support
of this feature is made of.
--
Alternatively to putting an ebook file into the "documents" folder
when the kindle is attached by USB, there is an email address associated >>>with every kindle to which you can mail an ebook as an attachment and >>>have it appear automagically.
Provided it isn't sleeping, of course.
I've never tried it so I have no idea how well it works.
It doesn't matter if it's sleeping. The document will be queued the
next time you connect to the Internet.
I've only done it a few times, but works OK. It will automagically
convert formats as well.
https://www.amazon.com/sendtokindle/email
I sort my books by category: Antique & rare books, old books, history
and books kept for historical reasons, medicine & health & gardening & cycling & stuff like that there, astronomy, whatever is behind the
wooden doors on the bottom barristers, children's books, and, on the mezzanine shelf in the halway, paperbacks, mostly F&SF, mostly
alphabetical by author.
Who knows how many books I have, but it isn't a lot.
In article <mcuhaj58qr5tnd7691a21n8on4b6b553gk@4ax.com>,
Joy Beeson <jbeeson@invalid.net.invalid> wrote:
I sort my books by category: Antique & rare books, old books, history
and books kept for historical reasons, medicine & health & gardening &
cycling & stuff like that there, astronomy, whatever is behind the
wooden doors on the bottom barristers, children's books, and, on the
mezzanine shelf in the halway, paperbacks, mostly F&SF, mostly
alphabetical by author.
Who knows how many books I have, but it isn't a lot.
I have been accumulating books since May 1973 (when I became employed,
moved to another state and set up house). I started out buying free
standing shelves (until Sears stop carrying the type I wanted) and then bought bookcases (BTW, I moved 3 times during this, into ever bigger
places). At the start, new books were in various stacks until read, then placed onto shelves. SF magazines went on shelves as well (until I start putting old ones in boxes). Besides new stuff, I was buying back issues
of various SF magazines at used bookstores (all the way back to the pulp
days in the 30s and 40s - lots of early 1950s digests as well); these
mostly were stored in boxes (and are still there).
Currently, I have thousands of books, the unread ones are in bookcases
(3 for hardcovers, 2 for paperbacks and 1 for trade paperbacks - novels
and collections sorted by author, with anthologies at the end). As for
books I have read, the hardcover novels and collections are sorted by
author and title (except for series which are in series order).
Hardcover anthologies are on the shelves after that. Paperbacks are
sorted into several groups: science fiction novels and collections,
sorted by author and title (series excepted again); fantasy novels and collections by author and title (series excepted); paperback editions of original anthologies by title; and paperback editions of reprint
anthologies by title.
Most of my SF magazines are in boxes; only Asimov's and F&SF are
complete on shelves with Astounding/Analog from 1949 on.
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