i have a library. i am reminded of its sheer mass every single time i move to a new domecile. paper in such a thin and inconsequential thing until you stack several hundred sheets together and bind them into a shell of cardboard or hardcover. once you pack several of these bound copies into an empty typing paper box, well, you’ve got the potential for doing some serious back damage. worse than the inconvenience of transport, however, is the inability to consistently organize and keep track of just what books you have.
perhaps i have found a solution. singlefile. the site is very slow, but i am hoping that the sludgery is just a symptom of opening day overload. you can list and categorize all of your books just by entering the ISBN number from the back — then keep track of where they are (at home, at work) or who is borrowing a particular one. the icing is that you can share your list with the world at large. this is mine, but it is not at all finished. so far it only contains just the pair of books that live on my workdesk.
(credit is due to kottke, since he found it first.)
