LibraryStuffAndWhatnot

I've resisted LibraryThing for a while now, even as everyone around me in San Jose State's MLIS program sang its praises for 3 years.

The primary reason is a recurring theme through my foray into SPL's 27 Things: I already have an account at Goodreads, which is LibraryThing's main competitor in the social-networking-for-bibliophiles world. I'm feeling a little rebellious, with all of these alternative sites and programs. I'm even wearing black today. Because that's how I roll.

The second reason is the cap on what you can put into LibraryThing for free. The last couple of times I've moved has shown me with excruciating clarity how many books I own (by the way, boxes of books are FRICKING HEAVY), so I know that I'll bump into that maximum limit in no time if I make a concerted effort to catalog my private library. And even though the paid membership is actually very affordable, and doesn't run afoul of my dislike of monthly payments, I'm still a Scrooge at heart and don't want to pay.

After setting up an account and playing with it for a while, though, I have to say I can see why others swear by it:

The Humble Beginnings of my Vast and Sprawling Repository of Private Literary Enjoyment

The interface is a little daunting at first, especially compared to the relative simplicity of Goodreads. However, LibraryThing has some pretty cool features; I especially like the built-in LC and Dewey codes for entered books, and as I've said before, I'm a big fan of tagging. What little I've done for the five books of mine I've entered has shown me how much flexibility I have with organizing my personal book collection.

I can see myself using both LibraryThing and Goodreads in tandem; I've used Goodreads as a sort of "to-read" list, which includes books checked out from the library, whereas LibraryThing is tailor-made for dealing with my own personal collection. LibraryThing is decidedly more focused on bibliographic control, whereas Goodreads is a little more about the social aspect. It's easy for me to post information back and forth between the two sites, though... I think I can effectively use Goodreads as my "front end" for maintaining my to-read list and sharing my opinions, whereas LibraryThing is perfect for getting my shelves and shelves of books at home under control. After all, if public library systems have used it effectively in their cataloging, I can certainly make use of it.

I just have to motivate myself to pay that stupid fee.