I am a self-confessed bibliophile… I have been a voracious reader since I was little. That is a nice way to say I have a problem… I am addicted to reading 🙂
Like all addicts, we bibliophiles have a problem or two… chief amongst them storage! I have bookshelves on every level of my home crammed with books. But I always have a hard time remembering how many books I have on a particular subject, or even (I am ashamed to admit this… I really do have a problem) if I own a particular book, or just borrowed it to read from the library or a friend.
I have long searched for a good software solution to my book problem… and finally found it! I would like to recomend the Delicious Library (right now only for mac – sorry those of you still residing in Gates’ prison :).
This electronic library displays all of my books, in thumbnail picutres, on a virtual bookshelf. Adding books is easy – it allows me to scan the ISBN barcode off of the book using a barcode scanner or the iSight camera on my mac, and it automatically adds the book and all relevant information into my library. I can enter notes, create genres… just about anything I need to do. Then I can create smart lists – called shelves – that will list all books by a particular author or genre. The software also will print a list of all the books in my library, along with a replacement cost from Amazon, for insurance purposes… a big deal for those of us bibliophiles who have thousands of dollars invested in our libraries. Also, when I loan a book, the Delicious Library will log the book as checked out, send reminder emails, and calendar a reminder to return the book. This is a particularly GREAT feature – as I have had MANY books go on permanent loan when friends forget to reutrn them, and then I can’t remember who has my copy of XYZ!
chrisbellonline 