Coco_Clark Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 It's finally happened. I'm buying books multiple times :(. It's those darned Redwall! There's so many!! And they are all the same! I need an app (so it's accessible on my phone), ideally free, to help keep track of what I own, so I can go crazy at yard sales in peace. I use Goodreads to track my own reading, but is there something better than starting a folder titled "children's Library"? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hellen Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 I use the Book Catalogue app. It works fine and can by synced to Goodreads. I've been using it for two years so there may be better options. I don't know if I will lose my catalog if I get a new phone. I'm too scared to find out. I don't want to re-enter 1000+ books when I get a new phone. I tried a list on a google drive folder once and it didn't work at all. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamiof5 Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I have no idea what we have...well, sort of, but not keeping track. Thankfully no doubles yet...that I know of :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Petrichor Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I <3 librarything.com for keeping track of our 1000+ books. It's free until you get to a certain number of books, then it's something like a donation amount of your choice to add books. Once your yearly membership runs out, you don't have to pay again unless you want to add more books, since it saves your books. Or you can purchase a lifetime membership for something like $20. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
purduemeche Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 I found my kid who is best at memorizing what books we have, and we rarely buy one without his stamp of approval. Thankfully we take them out book buying often enough that I am not too torn up if I don't buy a book I see on sale. We have tried the tracking idea but it frankly takes too much time. It wasn't worth the benefit. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yinanyinu Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 We use Delicious Library. There used to be a free version which we still use, but I see that the current version is 25USD. It was quite easy to add books to the library using the computer's built-in camera to scan the books' barcodes. This works extremely well for books from North American or European publishers since I think they search the Amazon database, but you can always add items manually. This is how we found out the children have close to a thousand books! We also use it to catalogue movies and music. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess4879 Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 :bigear: I have the same issue. We recently donated 3 copies of Anne of Green Gables and kept a single copy for ourselves. I also have this problem with PDF's! I'd love to find something that would let you search multiple ways too. I am always forgetting to pull out certain resources. Being able to search via grade and topic as well as title would be a.m.a.z.i.n.g. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sammish Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 We also use Book Catalog. You can categorize books by "shelves", and put books on multiple shelves. You can also tag books, and scan them in using your phone's camera. I use it not only to track all of the books we own, but I also entered in all the books we'll need for the next several years of our curriculum (BYL). I tagged those books as "need," (or "own" if I already own them) and sorted them onto shelves by which grade they are used. This has been super helpful when I make trips to Savers and can't remember if I already have a book, or if I even need it! (Well, of course I need it- it's a book!- but you know what I mean :)) 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eternallytired Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 We also use Book Catalog. You can categorize books by "shelves", and put books on multiple shelves. You can also tag books, and scan them in using your phone's camera. I use it not only to track all of the books we own, but I also entered in all the books we'll need for the next several years of our curriculum (BYL). I tagged those books as "need," (or "own" if I already own them) and sorted them onto shelves by which grade they are used. This has been super helpful when I make trips to Savers and can't remember if I already have a book, or if I even need it! (Well, of course I need it- it's a book!- but you know what I mean :)) Oooo! I am SO excited about this--and it's for Android! This never happens to me! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sk8ermaiden Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Oooo! I am SO excited about this--and it's for Android! This never happens to me! :iagree: Thanks! I am a book hoarder and as time goes on it can be hard to remember if I have something. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meena Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 Bookcrawler There is a trial version where you can add 20 or so books to see if you like it. I really liked it so I bought the full version. I like the clean interface, barcode scanner to auto populate book info, and ability to scroll through cover art to find a book. My absolute favorite feature is the ability to apply and sort by multiple tags, as well as sort by various book info (for example, genre, copyright date, read vs not read). I have books tagged generally (i.e. Sonlight, Biblioplan) and specifically (i.e. Year 3, Unit 1, Week 2), so I can easily see all the books needed for a curricula or just what's needed in a certain time range. This app is also good for creating reading lists regardless of whether or not you own the books, which is handy if you use a literature-rich curriculum but want to use library books whenever possible. For each title added, there is a link to WorldCat to show you if the book is available in a nearby library. As an example of how I use this, I can pull up all my books needed for the next three weeks using the tags. Then I sort by owned vs. not owned. Then the books I don't own I can click the WorldCat link and see if my county library has them. If they do, I go to the library's website to place a hold; if not, I know to look for an alternative title or order online. The owned vs. not owned sort comes in very handy at book sales to avoid duplicates. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nobeatenpath Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 I use librarything because I have been using it for a decade now and it works (and has all our stuff on it ....) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sk8ermaiden Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 I just spent an hour on BookCatalog, and I am through barely a fraction of the children's and homeschool books. Whew. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterPan Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I've used Readerware for 10+ years now. In that time, other library software options and online options have come around. I stick with it because my 7300 books are in there. Not starting over anywhere at this point! :D It has a barcode scanner option, lets you enter in ISBN/LCCN, has a drag and drop feature, can back up files to dropbox or another drive, has worked consistently and without problems, and has a reasonable price ($35?). It also has an app version for your phone. I bought it and then bogged up my phone so much with pics I never got around to using it, oops. Definitely get actual software or an online program (rather than just making a file somewhere). I don't think which software you get really matters, as long as it's of good reputation. I like having the features I listed. I started with another software years ago that didn't have as many features. Some things aren't important to me (social media integration, etc.). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alessandra Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 I like Library Thing. By being consistent with tags/categories, I can find books by multiple categories. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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