DVD Cataloguing Software

[Michael Kerpan]

I don't have a clue as to how many movies I have.

[domino harvey]

I just use a Google Doc, it’s pretty easy

[Michael Kerpan]

I probably would want something more data-basey.

[Luke M]

I use that website we always make fun of.

[Cash Flagg]

I use that website we always make fun of.

I refuse to, which probably makes me more despondent over FilmAf’s sudden demise than most. The impending reality of only having a dull, imageless spreadsheet to reference for my collection, like I was some dreary accountant keeping dutiful track of his expenses for tax purposes, is an extremely depressing scenario.

[knives]

You could also be a fun loving accountant keeping a loving track of his expenses.

[senseabove]

When I bought my first accidental duplicate copy of something, I bought the My Movies mobile app (not the "by Blu-Ray.com" one, the other one) so I could just quickly scan all the barcodes and have a list. It's a pretty good database—the only bar-coded title I had to add in my entire collection was the Grasshopper DVD of Denis' Towards Mathilde—but the mobile app is unfortunately limited beyond very basic cataloging. Search seems pretty stupid (i.e. you can't search by director), so it's only good for looking up titles or sorting by some basic metadata, and you can't do things like edit box sets/groupings on the mobile app.

[senseabove]

Correction: a fellow My Movies user let me know you can search by director in the mobile app, you just have to go to the Persons sidebar and scroll through the list. You can't search in the general search box for a name. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The app has a whole host of bizarre design decisions like that... but it's still pretty handy.

[therewillbeblus]

I had no idea these logging systems existed. I just keep buying shelves that are within view from my tv couch so I can spot everything before hitting purchase. Finally out of wall space though (unless I wanna sell the instruments in the corner, or that exercise bike) so a better system is probably a good idea as I start moving stuff into our-of-eyesight storage

[black&huge]

I'm still able to add/delete titles to my collection on filmaf. Is it that they're not at the moment accepting submissions or is it sometime this week it goes down?

[wernski]

I'm still able to add/delete titles to my collection on filmaf. Is it that they're not at the moment accepting submissions or is it sometime this week it goes down?

From the official Filmaf Facebook: "The server is shutting down July 30th and not coming back (we assume).
Again, we recommend exporting your collections now." :(

[black&huge]

Oh! well... shit.

[nitin]

the site looks to now be gone.

[Grand Wazoo]

Their last facebook post doesn't seem to discount it possibly coming back. I hope so as their "export collection" option only exported the first line of each listing and I only got halfway through copy/pasting details into the new spreadsheet. I had ample warning so it's my own fault, but still the OCD of an incomplete spreadsheet is the work of the devil.

[bamwc2]

Since most of the recommendations in this thread are over a decade old, I'm not sure which apps are still available and which one would be the best choice for me. I'd like to be able to scan with my cell phone to make sure that I don't accidentally buy the same disc twice (something I absent mindedly did with an Eclipse set back in the day). Any recommendations?

[Michael Kerpan]

I bought something twice because it had a different cover and a title written only in Japanese (which I mis-read).

[senseabove]

Since most of the recommendations in this thread are over a decade old, I'm not sure which apps are still available and which one would be the best choice for me. I'd like to be able to scan with my cell phone to make sure that I don't accidentally buy the same disc twice (something I absent mindedly did with an Eclipse set back in the day). Any recommendations?

When I bought my first accidental duplicate copy of something, I bought the My Movies mobile app (not the "by Blu-Ray.com" one, the other one) so I could just quickly scan all the barcodes and have a list. It's a pretty good database—the only bar-coded title I had to add in my entire collection was the Grasshopper DVD of Denis' Towards Mathilde...

[Michael Kerpan]

senseabove -- Does this have foreign release information? And how does it handle homemade DVDs of stuff not commercially released?

[senseabove]

senseabove -- Does this have foreign release information? And how does it handle homemade DVDs of stuff not commercially released?

Yep. My collection is probably 1/3 non-Region A, and still the only barcoded title I had to enter was the Denis DVD. You can also add titles to your own and only your own collection, so homemade discs should be fine.

[DeprongMori]

senseabove -- Does this have foreign release information? And how does it handle homemade DVDs of stuff not commercially released?

There is a pretty huge non-Region A data population in MyMovies, which I’ve been using for 3-4 years now. I probably have about 2500 discs cataloged, of which maybe about a quarter to a third are Region B at this point. The software development team is in Denmark, so a lot of the customer base is Region B.

There are tools for adding records if they are not already populated in the database, as well as tools for improving information that is there. All releases are keyed to barcode. I do my data management on the PC version and use the synced iPhone client when I’m out and about. It’s very easy to pull down records by barcode from the master database, and even easier if you have a barcode reader.

There is a ton of data maintained (and shared) about releases and movies that is not yet index-accessible in the client, but I suspect that additional functionality will be coming in future versions.

You can also maintain private data if you want to index DVDs you’ve burned or other media not commercially available. That be be synched to your clients as well.

While it is not entirely without frustration, it does 90% of what I want it to out of the box. I have no interest in moving to another product.

[Michael Kerpan]

When I check the app store, I see several different My Movies apps -- who made the one you are talking about?

Oh -- and do you need a bar code reader if you use the app on your PC?

[senseabove]

Here's the website which should link to the right one in for the various app stores/OSs.

I don't know about the desktop version, but the phone version scans barcodes with your phone camera. Note that the desktop and mobile version are two separate charges, and buying one doesn't grant access to the other.

[BigMack3000]

I'm pretty satisfied with My Movies as well. It's what I moved to after Delicious Library lost their Amazon api. I have it for my phone and pc. It's also fairly easy to add a release that isn't yet in the database (or add individual films to a boxset).

[bamwc2]

Here's the website which should link to the right one in for the various app stores/OSs.

I don't know about the desktop version, but the phone version scans barcodes with your phone camera. Note that the desktop and mobile version are two separate charges, and buying one doesn't grant access to the other.

Thanks. This is very helpful, but I'm still a little confused. I see that there's a "pro" version for $9.99 and a free version, but I don't see an explanation of the difference between the two. Which one do you use? Do you know what you get with the pay version, that you don't get with the free one?

[senseabove]

Yeah, neither the website nor the app are the most... intuitive. They both have an unfortunate, kinda bizarre learning curve. Wait til you try to understand the point system they offer for contributing to the database.

The free versions of both mobile and desktop apps limit you to 50 titles. I think they’re otherwise fully functional.