Könyvek AsYouKnow_Bob könyvtárából
The Atomic Age Opens írta: Donald Porter Geddes
A New Generation Draws the Line: Kosovo, East Timor and the Standards of the West írta: Noam Chomsky
Novelty : Four Stories írta: John Crowley
Moonchild írta: Aleister Crowley
The Engines of Dawn írta: Paul Cook
If I Had a Hammer: The Death of the Old Left and the Birth of the New Left írta: Maurice Isserman
The Glass Palace : a novel írta: Amitav Ghosh
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Tag: AsYouKnow_Bob
Könyvtár12,946 könyv — nézd meg a könyvtárat
Kritikák117 kritika — kritikák mutatása
Felhőkcímkefelhő, szerzőfelhő
Címkéksf (7,226), science fiction (5,637), DAW (1,391), fantasy (1,311), anthology (1,195), 1995 (1,147), new (1,146), 1996 (1,053), 2007 (1,025), main sequence (983) — mutasd az összes címkét
Csoportok18th-19th Century Britain, 20th Century British Realism, Ace Doubles, Albany NY Area Science Fiction Fans, American Politics, American Revolution & Founding Fathers History, anarchism, Annus mirabilis, Astronomy & Astrophysics, Baker Street and Beyond — mutasd az összes csoportot
Kedvenc szerzőkAbdul Alhazred, Kingsley Amis, Poul Anderson, Anonymous, Assorted Authors, Ann Beattie, Elizabeth Bowen, Buddha, Noam Chomsky, Avram Davidson, Richard Dawkins, Samuel R. Delany, Peter DeVries, Barbara Ehrenreich, Loren C. Eiseley, Brian Eno, John M. Ford, Frederick R Ewing, Alice Fulton, Gang of Four, Anonymous, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Stephen Jay Gould, Michael Harrington, George Herriman, Christopher Hill, Nick Hornby, The Jam, Joy Division, R. A. Lafferty, Ken MacLeod, John McPhee, George Orwell, Samuel Pepys, Barbara Pym, Keith Roberts, Sonny Rollins, Bertrand Russell, Marquis de Sade, Satan, Robert Sheckley, Cordwainer Smith, Sonic Youth, Neal Stephenson, Max Stirner, Charles Stross, The Smiths, Hunter S. Thompson, Gore Vidal, John Wain, Howard Waldrop, Gerrard Winstanley, P.G. Wodehouse, Various Writers (Közös kedvencek)
Kedvenc könyvesboltokAmherst Books, Bakka-Phoenix, Blackwell's (Oxford), Bookmarks, Fantasy Centre, Hay Cinema Bookshop, Librarium, North Country Books [closed], Raven Used Book Shop, Strand Bookstore, The Cranbury Bookworm, Troubadour Books, World's Biggest Bookstore
Kedvenc könyvtárakBerkshire Athenaeum, Bodleian Library, Library of Alexandria, New York State Library, The Library of Congress
Rólam "Book collecting is a full-time occupation, and one wouldn't get far if one took time off for frivolities like reading" - A.N.L. Munby
Which, these days, seems to be more than a little true: for the past few months, I seem to have been spending more time cataloging my books and reading the book groups on LT - and now book-swapping - than I have spent actually reading.
- - - - - - - - -
"As you know, Bob..." is one of the traditional ways to refer to the typical clunky exposition found in bad science fiction, when characters turn to each other to patiently explain the obvious. (SEE, for example: Jed Hartman's How I explained infodumps and saved humanity)
I use the name occasionally as a nom de internet, so I might as well use it here on LT, as I've certainly read more than my share of clunky exposition.
I'm a minor civil servant. My partner in this book madness is my wife [MaggieO] (who has a major library of her own); and we have three kids. Our house is now officially Full of books.
(People who visit us are at first staggered by the number of books. Then they usually manage to remark politely, "Welll...errm...I guess you can't HAVE too many books." Uh, no, sorry: we are living proof that you CAN in fact have too many books....)
I have a B.S. in Communication Theory, a reasonably numerate branch of the social sciences. (I washed out of Physics because I'm only reasonably numerate.) While beating my head against upper-division physics courses, I somehow picked up three minors - in Philosophy, in History, and in something called "The Human Dimensions of Science and Technology."
Our friends also tend to be fairly high-powered nerds; between myself, my wife, and our friends, we're interested in a wide swath of human activities, from flint-knapping and (fiber) spinning to nanotechnology and astronomy. You can of course get the gist of our interests from our tags.
E.g.: see the above photo of the 2004 transit of Venus: I made it myself, with some not-so-simple tools found around the house. Note that the photo is of an earth-sized planet half-way between us and our star: our entire planet set against the sun would be about half the size of that black dot. The photo serves as a reminder to keep things in perspective.)
A könyvtáramról No, I have NOT read everything here. (I've read more of it than you might think, though.) I custom-built a couple hundred feet of bookshelves for our family room. Yes, we have now officially run out of shelves (we've been forced to resort to the barbarity of double-shelving (*Gasp!* The horror!), and - until the kids leave the nest - we've just about run out of wallspace to put bookshelves. Consequently, some of the older/rattier/less-referred-to stuff has Gone to Storage.)
We are gradually coming around to the strategy of building a library put forth by Samuel Pepys: "For every book that comes into the house, a book will have to leave the house."
{Diaries February 4, 1668: I all day at home, and all morning setting my books in order in my presses for the fallowing year, their number being much increased since the last, so I am fain to lay by several books to make room for better, being resolved to keep no more then just my presses will contain.}
Right now, I'm using LT as a catalog of my BOOKS. I know that a "library" can include more than just books, but that's not how I think of LT.
For about a year, I seemed to have had the largest library of books on LT. This of course was temporary - in the real word, I know a guy who has about 40,000 books, and I'm sure there are plenty more out there.
I have a huge collection of SF, but my non-SF collection is a respectable library all by itself. If we're keeping count, I also have several thousand CDs, several thousand LPs, and probably 4,000? science fiction magazines. I have not yet included these in my LT catalog, although if I ever get some sort of hand-held LT-reader, that may change. (How is "porting LT to the iPod" going?)
Some highlights of my SF collection: I have all of the "Ace Science Fiction Specials" (all three series); (Somewhat surprisingly, this seems to be the only complete set on LT, even after two years here.) I think I have all of the Ace (and Tor...) SF "Doubles"; I have most of the DAW Books (all of them through #1,000). I have every "Year's Best SF" collection that I've been able to find (well over two hundred of them...).
It's said that "the Golden Age of science fiction is 'twelve'". Which is certainly correct in my case - I had been reading the stuff as soon as I could read, but discovering the Wollheim/Carr World's Best Science Fiction anthology when I was, yes, twelve, made my head explode. I've been hooked ever since.
So I seem to be strongest on the SF of the late '60s and then the 1970s - all the stuff that I read as a kid. (E.g.: I bought DAW #1 as a teenager, when I first spotted it in my local store.) As the field has grown, I've made relatively less effort to keep up.
There are some notable gaps for a major SF collection: no Rowling - those are the kids'. No Gaiman or Pratchett or Doug Adams, either - those are either my wife's, or the kids'. The magical-realists are under-represented, simply because they aren't to my taste. "Fantasy" is over-represented (for my taste), largely because for a couple of decades I was a DAW completist. (I'm better now.)
Some thoughts on taxonomy:
For a decade or so, I've kept a catalog of my SF (after a few thousand volumes, I could no longer remember just what I owned, and increasingly found myself accidently buying duplicates). "Tagging" my books has forced me to sit down and think through the taxonomy. My "SF" tag includes not only "speculative fiction", but all sorts of associational stuff: lit crit, biographies and memoirs of sf writers, poetry by Leonard Nimoy, horror by Ambrose Bierce, mainstream novels by PKD, writing guides, etc. So under my 'SF' tag, I place several major subdivisions: I have a couple hundred titles that are "non-fiction about the SF field" ("sf nf"); and the fiction proper is now somewhat arbitrarily divided into "science fiction" and "fantasy". Poul Anderson's Tau Zero is clearly "science fiction", Tolkien's The Hobbit is clearly "fantasy"; but in between, the border between SF and F is of course a question of taste. (Are the "Darkover" books SF or F?). So, each of my 6,000-odd {oops, now 7,000-odd} "SF" books now gets (at minimum) two tags.
I'm going back through to tag some information that applies only to the book-in-my-collection (and not to the work) - where and when I bought it, where I keep it, etc. Sorry if this personal info distracts from the 'tag cloud' for any particular book.
(One reason I immediately joined LT is because Tim used the word "folksonomies" in a sentence. Clearly, I belong here.)
My library is large enough that there really ARE books that I've forgotten I own. One of the pleasures of signing up for LT has been reacquainting myself with books on my shelves that I have not opened in decades.
I find the social aspect of LT to be endlessly fascinating - book lovers are certainly an interesting bunch of people.
Honlap/bloghttp://asyouknowbob.blogspot.com/
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Tagság kezdeteJul 2, 2006
Más LibraryThing-elők hozzászólásai
(Szólj hozzá!.)
i've added the canonical title.
btw -- it won't satisfy your collecting need, but if you want to *read* the book before you find it, i've got it. < g >
cheers,
laura
lquilter által bejegyzett 10:44 am (EST) -kor a Aug 25, 2008
lquilter által bejegyzett 9:02 am (EST) -kor a Aug 25, 2008
iansales által bejegyzett 3:52 am (EST) -kor a Aug 24, 2008
Cheers,
Richard
richardm123uk által bejegyzett 10:04 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 20, 2008
"We see things, not as they are, but as we are."
- Anais Nin
AsYouKnow_Bob által bejegyzett 6:32 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 16, 2008
yoyodyne által bejegyzett 7:35 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 12, 2008
"Sheer unadulterated brillance!"
supergeniuscoyote által bejegyzett 8:55 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 9, 2008
supergeniuscoyote által bejegyzett 4:06 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 9, 2008
supergeniuscoyote által bejegyzett 3:54 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 9, 2008
Hope you're both well (and reasonably dry).
Eurydice által bejegyzett 9:09 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 4, 2008
(Now, if I were ever tempted to form a band...)
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 6:18 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 14, 2008
If you're having a party, I hope the soundtrack is worthy... :)
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 3:14 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 4, 2008
pop trash
We'll see how your esteemed friendship holds up when I start entering mine. Two words: cabaret, ukulele. :)
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 10:23 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 22, 2008
Daaaaaamn! Er, most excellent! :) It's more than I can say... but from the recs, she's really very good (one always feels apologetic when it comes to near-unknowns). Eh, did you catch the circus in the first home page thread? I got a bit excited yesterday.
Music account--GO for it. It's clearly far from perfect (I couldn't decide where to stick catalogue numbers so skipped them entirely--there will be hell to pay once I enter all cca 3-4K recs and have to go back to comments or something for the lot), but I'm not fussy. It'll do. And aren't the CD covers nifty? Googling them can become a bit of an obsession though. Still, I discovered dozens of cool music sites doing that. Bottom line, I'd love more music-catalogue company. Most people didn't bother to separate them from books. Out of curiosity, which way do you lean, pure or mixed catalogue? Can't say I have very well-worked out reasons for separating them, and if collections allow integration, I may meld the two accounts. Then again... it's one thing to have a whole set of music recs called "books", and another to mix them up with actual books.
Let me know your thoughts on this that and other!
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 10:17 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 22, 2008
I guess they must not do ARCs for the best-of-year - usually someone has an ARC by the time one gets one's copy.
dukedom_enough által bejegyzett 7:30 am (EST) -kor a May 30, 2008
=================================
"caveman fiction, that is a good tag! Hope to see that one expand!"
Oh, hi.
Yeah, thanks, me too - that tag occurred to me as I cataloged a couple specimens of the genre. I don't actively read or collect that tag, but long ago I did read a children's "caveman fiction" story that I would not mind finding again. (It's too bad I don't know the title or author.) Maybe if the tag spreads, someday I'll find it.
posted by AsYouKnow_Bob at 11:47 pm (EST) on Jul 14, 2006
=================================
I strongly suspect the book you were thinking of is "Fire Hunter" by Jim Kjelgaard (yes, the guy who wrote the "Big Red", books--though I never read any of those myself. Wasn't interested in dog fiction). But "Fire Hunter" was a great book when I read it in 4th grade. I don't know what I'd think of it now. I notice that it doesn't exist on LT anywhere.
unclebaldrick által bejegyzett 11:32 am (EST) -kor a May 27, 2008
kdough03 által bejegyzett 8:18 pm (EST) -kor a May 14, 2008
Don't you dare. Maggie would have my hide on a toothpick. :)
Yeah, Pankrti are one of the glories of the old YU music scene...
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 1:11 pm (EST) -kor a May 3, 2008
Doug1943 által bejegyzett 4:51 pm (EST) -kor a May 1, 2008
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 11:12 am (EST) -kor a May 1, 2008
Garp83 által bejegyzett 6:22 am (EST) -kor a Apr 24, 2008
BGP által bejegyzett 4:49 am (EST) -kor a Apr 24, 2008
bslavin által bejegyzett 9:49 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 23, 2008
Vonini által bejegyzett 3:14 am (EST) -kor a Apr 16, 2008
Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be much action in the Delany group. Perhaps we can change that! Anyway, I am in awe of your library!
atthesametime által bejegyzett 8:24 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 14, 2008
Sincerely, ReneeMarie
ReneeMarie által bejegyzett 1:50 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 2, 2008
-Bob
Thanks, Bob. I bow to the superior selection and volume of your collection. I look forward to getting lost in your library. --KR
Artemis26 által bejegyzett 11:09 pm (EST) -kor a Mar 26, 2008
LordNigelKnickKnack által bejegyzett 10:33 pm (EST) -kor a Mar 26, 2008
KatsBooks által bejegyzett 10:10 am (EST) -kor a Mar 26, 2008
Yrs,
Spunky Brewster
JNagarya által bejegyzett 6:05 am (EST) -kor a Mar 24, 2008
I'm just starting my cataloging efforts, but since I've moved my bookshelves and left most of their contents on the living room floor, I'm having no trouble finding inspiration to continue the efforts. I was recently pleased to discover that it was possible to include my Analog Science Fiction - Science Fact periodicals. They seem to be uncommonly collected though - I've the only registered copy of most issues. Perhaps I'll have to scan in some covers and do some cleanup once I get all these beasts entered.
sangretu által bejegyzett 7:43 am (EST) -kor a Mar 20, 2008
PDExperiment626 által bejegyzett 11:14 am (EST) -kor a Mar 17, 2008
alibrarian által bejegyzett 9:04 pm (EST) -kor a Mar 9, 2008
And, you've got at least one of my novels on your overcrowded shelves. For which, many thanks.
greenery által bejegyzett 7:54 pm (EST) -kor a Mar 4, 2008
But it is quite disturbing that almost every 'cyberpunk' book I've read that I should have absolutely adored... well... hmmm, my grandmother's bowel movement updates are more interesting to me... ugh. That should say a lot.
*snicker*
kassetra által bejegyzett 5:15 am (EST) -kor a Mar 3, 2008
Thanks ever so for the link, and for the thought! Both tickled me immensely. I just adore the pic!
Hope you're well--
Tavia
Instigatrix által bejegyzett 1:57 pm (EST) -kor a Feb 29, 2008
BenjaminFranklin által bejegyzett 4:01 pm (EST) -kor a Feb 4, 2008
And thanks for the good words.
Arctic-Stranger által bejegyzett 2:30 am (EST) -kor a Jan 9, 2008
SaintSunniva által bejegyzett 11:44 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 28, 2007
By the standards of the LT heavy hitters we have hardly any books at all. My wife and I looked each other one day and simultaneosly said (of our books) "Too many notes, Mozart, too many notes". We havent actually uh "de-accessioned" a whole bunch, but we've been trying to hold the increase down to a dull roar.
Its not obvious so far, because I've only got about 250 which is just maybe 10% or so, wont be sure till the job is done, of our books onto LT ; BUT we are also big Sci Fi addicts.
We may have mentioned that our "master plan" (quit giggling back there!) is for us to retire to Colorado. We spend summers at our Colorado house and winters in Manhattan. Its a "bicoastal" life style that we've been enjoying so far, but figure we wont be able to support once both of us have completely quit having earned income.
modalursine által bejegyzett 3:23 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 24, 2007
MagisterLudi által bejegyzett 2:42 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 22, 2007
It certainly is.
I don`t know if you do Xmas, but Season`s Greetings anyway,
Nick
nickhoonaloon által bejegyzett 6:04 am (EST) -kor a Dec 20, 2007
bookzombie által bejegyzett 9:07 am (EST) -kor a Dec 18, 2007
Keep seeing your posts in the Pros and Cons thread, so thought I`d just say hello as we`ve not come accross each other for a while.
How are you keeping ?
As you can imagine, Ann-Marie and I are currently viewing the world through a haze of exhaustion, but are basically very happy indeed. The new arrival is largely a very contented little lad, but can certainly make his presence felt when he wants to !
Nick
nickhoonaloon által bejegyzett 3:28 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 9, 2007
I know, it's funny!
I see you like Joy Division. I collect JD concert bootlegs in a small way, and have about twenty or so. Quality varies wildly. I note you catalogue music on LT too. I'm intrigued, but part of me really doesn't want to know how you do it, as I have around 5K albums...
I have reserved the sfcollectorseditions.blogspot url, which indicates to me that my subconscious is gearing up for another book binge. Many of the editions I have found seem pretty cheap, but one or two are hideously expensive, which is putting me off somewhat.
In light of the sheer number of books you have, when you say you 'like' Penguin Classics, I envisage that you have about 400 of them!
Regards, Andrew
Diamat által bejegyzett 6:32 am (EST) -kor a Dec 9, 2007
foreign-born population:
http://www.census.gov/population/www/doc...
15% at 1900. decline from 1930 until ca. 1970, waxing since then.
(googling for 'recent-immigration-by-year' mostly turns up a bunch of RW trash - a freeper link is hit #2)
AsYouKnow_Bob által bejegyzett 3:51 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 8, 2007
Diamat által bejegyzett 2:34 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 8, 2007
marydell által bejegyzett 8:53 pm (EST) -kor a Nov 29, 2007
Say, I see you're on flickr as well, I'll go check out your pix!
marydell által bejegyzett 8:44 pm (EST) -kor a Nov 29, 2007
slpeterson által bejegyzett 9:43 am (EST) -kor a Nov 29, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 11:15 pm (EST) -kor a Nov 15, 2007
StephenDedman által bejegyzett 7:41 am (EST) -kor a Nov 14, 2007
Have you seen The Unofficial Alan Garner Website, by the way? It has some wonderful interviews and articles; the one by Charles Butler called "Red Shift and the Shifting Ballad of 'Tam Lin'" is particularly worth a read.
Incidentally, I was going to recommend to you a video I found on YouTube called "Barthomley and Mow Cop"; effectively a slideshow of photographs taken by a local, and set (disconcertingly) to the tune of "The Old Rugged Cross"! However, it's since been removed by the owner - no idea why. As it happens, when I lived in England a few years back, I made a side trip to Barthomley (couldn't manage Mow Cop). St. Bertoline's Church is exactly as it's described; I kept expecting Jan and Tom to come in the door and examine the rood screen or "that dead her" (= Lady Houghton's memorial, just as lifelike as described in the book - the locals like to put flowers on her marble from time to time). Who knows, given the fluidity of time in [Red Shift], perhaps Jan and Tom were there, I just couldn't see them...
chamekke által bejegyzett 11:06 am (EST) -kor a Oct 31, 2007
Well spotted, didn't even tihnk of there, being in more of a find the contents thought mode.
bluetyson által bejegyzett 11:58 pm (EST) -kor a Oct 26, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 8:36 pm (EST) -kor a Oct 26, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 8:33 pm (EST) -kor a Oct 26, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 1:07 am (EST) -kor a Oct 26, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 1:05 am (EST) -kor a Oct 26, 2007
amysisson által bejegyzett 1:25 am (EST) -kor a Oct 24, 2007
Funny you should pick Tau Zero as an example; it's one of the top three most important/influential books in my life. The other two are The Songs of Distant Earth by Clarke (not considered one of his better books, but I differ on that) and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn.
So I bet we've been at the same Albacon before. We lived in Waterford 1996 to the end of 2002, and got to at least three Albacons in that time period. We were planning on coming for World Fantasy in Saratoga Springs this year, but I changed jobs and have not yet accrued vacation yet.
Perhaps we'll cross paths somewhere down the line!
amysisson által bejegyzett 1:20 am (EST) -kor a Oct 24, 2007
But I lived in upstate NY just before we moved here.... Waterford, near Albany. My husband went to RPI and I worked at PEF. We went to Albacon several years; do you go to that?
Anyhow, thanks for the answer on Artifact by Benford. That was the quickest I've had a book mystery solved, I think!
I'm curious, what is the difference between your sf tag and your science fiction tag, if you don't mind my asking?
amysisson által bejegyzett 11:33 pm (EST) -kor a Oct 23, 2007
I wasn't aware!
Hi, Bob, I just got back from a very unrestful vacation... Altho', I was a Woman Who Swims With the Squid for a while... :)
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 7:38 am (EST) -kor a Oct 15, 2007
You're lucky that Pepys didn't specify "for X new pages coming in, X old pages have to leave." That means for any book coming in you can launch some skinny little item into the abyss. Maybe you'll want to stock up on a shelf of skinny little things before the Pepysian Rule becomes mandatory, so that you have a stockpile of ejectables. Oh, wait, you'd still be in the shelf space crunch, wouldn't you?
Never mind.
Melanchthon által bejegyzett 10:00 pm (EST) -kor a Oct 4, 2007
Here in Hoonaloon land things are going well, and the new arrival is expected early November.
For all the difficulties of running our own business, I think it will be good when that time comes that we`ll both be around so much to enjoy the experience, much better than in my own father`s day, when he actually didn`t see that much of my early years due to working long hours.
Living in Derbyshire is also appealing, after a very rough start, and things are settling down nicely now.
How are things with you ? Say `Hi` to Maggie for us.
Best,
Nick & Ann-Marie
nickhoonaloon által bejegyzett 4:24 am (EST) -kor a Sep 30, 2007
Thanks indirectly for the "Birdland" link. I also associated SilentInAWay to InASilentWay. Another also for associating Joe primarily with "Mercy, Mercy, Mercy." RIP.
DromJohn által bejegyzett 12:12 pm (EST) -kor a Sep 14, 2007
SilentInAWay által bejegyzett 12:06 am (EST) -kor a Sep 12, 2007
SilentInAWay által bejegyzett 10:26 pm (EST) -kor a Sep 11, 2007
badgerthorazine által bejegyzett 11:43 pm (EST) -kor a Sep 1, 2007
I read it, and can't think of what the bug might be. I do catch a great many such bugs in the sf I read, actually in nearly all, though I usually can enjoy the story anyway. What's the problem?
dukedom_enough által bejegyzett 7:53 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 21, 2007
FourSeasons által bejegyzett 9:42 am (EST) -kor a Aug 20, 2007
almigwin által bejegyzett 9:34 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 19, 2007
almigwin által bejegyzett 1:54 am (EST) -kor a Aug 18, 2007
freezotic által bejegyzett 11:43 am (EST) -kor a Aug 11, 2007
TheresaWilliams által bejegyzett 7:28 pm (EST) -kor a Aug 1, 2007
ggchickapee által bejegyzett 10:46 am (EST) -kor a Aug 1, 2007
ggchickapee által bejegyzett 7:49 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 30, 2007
dukedom_enough által bejegyzett 8:09 am (EST) -kor a Jul 30, 2007
Pepys által bejegyzett 3:58 am (EST) -kor a Jul 26, 2007
>patron of civil servants: Yes I noted this afterwards in your profile. It's rather logical. Do you intend to rise in the pecking order as He did?
François
Pepys által bejegyzett 3:16 am (EST) -kor a Jul 25, 2007
Best,
Nick
nickhoonaloon által bejegyzett 12:30 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 24, 2007
But how do you do with so many books?
Pepys által bejegyzett 3:26 am (EST) -kor a Jul 24, 2007
Finding a web site like this is akin to "coming home again" for anyone who loves books and reading.
LOL!...After reading some of the many comments directed your way, I'd have to say you "lead an interesting life." Best to you,
--Murray in Colorado
FunnyGrampa által bejegyzett 12:34 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 23, 2007
Since we moved house we`ve had quite a lot to contend with - the house turned out to be more neglected than we realised and our relatively small budget for improvements was soon eaten up, also the business has needed constant atention to keep it afloat. Plus, I must admit, I can only spend so much time on the computer before I long to be outdoors - this is much more pronounced now we can see Derbyshire countryside from the back windows of our house.
We`re actually finding some time to relax now and I`m getting a bit of reading done - currently making my second attempt on David Levering Lewis` Du Bois biography.
Anyway, we moved, we saw, we conquered and all OK now, plus we`re expecting our first child in November ! You can be the first LTer to hear about it.
Hope you are well, regards to Maggie.
Nick & Ann-Marie
nickhoonaloon által bejegyzett 7:12 am (EST) -kor a Jul 18, 2007
Thanks for responding to my comment-
Twa Corbies
twacorbies által bejegyzett 6:48 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 17, 2007
I popped over to your profile because of the Talk discussion about cool profiles (it is quite nice, by the way). When you were discussing your tags, you mention "speculative fiction." I was wondering if you consider it a term interchangeable with Sci Fi and Fantasy or something quite specific or even a sub genre. I was reading "Darker Than You Think" before work at a cafe and noticed one of the blurbs mentioned something like "a remarkable work of Speculative Fiction." I'm sure some could cynically compare it to the use of "Graphic Novel" in place of Trade Paperback Comic Book (or whatever), but since your library and experience with Sci Fi seems vast, I thought you would have an interesting answer (my own experience is quite small- the only thing Sci Fi I've read in my adult years that I can think of is "The Stars My Destination" so you can take my lack of knowledge on the subject as a given).
Anyway, if you get a chance, I'd love to hear your thoughts on it. In any case, great profile page- the lot of you on the Talk thread have inspired me to do a bit more work on my own!
Thanks,
twacorbies (Sean)
twacorbies által bejegyzett 3:48 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 16, 2007
Vive la liberté, égalité, fraternité!
LolaWalser által bejegyzett 12:52 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 14, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 9:32 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 10, 2007
Thanks :)
bluetyson által bejegyzett 12:46 am (EST) -kor a Jul 9, 2007
If that is handy in the Measureless Caverns of books sometime in the future I'd be interested, in knowing what is in it.
DAW 334 I think, if you have all those organised.
Thanks,
bt
bluetyson által bejegyzett 12:40 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 6, 2007
Quaisior által bejegyzett 1:23 pm (EST) -kor a Jul 5, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 11:38 am (EST) -kor a Jul 1, 2007
gregfindley által bejegyzett 5:19 am (EST) -kor a Jul 1, 2007
gregfindley által bejegyzett 6:06 am (EST) -kor a Jun 30, 2007
He is also working on a reference work, the URL below will give you an idea. Myths has a great John Picacio cover too with a fab Modesty Blaise as part of it.
http://www.pjfarmer.com/woldnewton/Chron...
bluetyson által bejegyzett 11:34 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 29, 2007
Thanks for your post on my question about the Readercon. *Love* your library! I live in a small apt , so I have to do the Samuel Pepys order as well. I hope to see you an your family at the Readercon. I'm doin a bit of volunteering, so you'll most likely find at registration the first day or so.
All the best, Kris
krisa által bejegyzett 11:03 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 29, 2007
"no Rowling - those are the kids'. No Gaiman or Pratchett or Doug Adams, either - those are either my wife's, or the kids'."
Those are also the writers my own kids enjoy, and that I have not always been as drawn to, but I have enjoyed the sharing as we pass books back and forth. I have learned to appreciate Gaiman, and they also introduced me to Neal Stepehnson, whom I thoroughly enjoy. I started them on Orson Scott Card (whose Ender's Game I would teach if I ever had a Middle School English class again), and they read him more voraciously than I ever did. I also shared Philip K. Dick to general acclaim. They passed on their graphic novels (and I have really enjoyed both Y:The Last Man and Finder: Sin Eater by Carla Speed McNeil), and I passed on mine (Maus), much-loved by all of us. They gave me Godel, Escher and Bach, too, which is waaay over my head, but fascinating as an afternoon snack. Very nice to connect with one's kids in this way!
Yes, had I read Dhalgren in my youth I am sure I would have enjoyed it more -- it was a world I partially inhabited then and only remember with some surprise today. But the challenge of the read was quite pleasurable even now -- it kept those creaky brain cells stimulated.
kambrogi által bejegyzett 9:23 am (EST) -kor a Jun 29, 2007
quartzite által bejegyzett 1:56 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 28, 2007
marydell által bejegyzett 9:05 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 27, 2007
dodger által bejegyzett 10:54 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 26, 2007
quartzite által bejegyzett 3:16 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 26, 2007
We likely agree on very little and would probably get into it on a variety of subjects, ideologies and points of view. Nonetheless, I respect your right to disagree with me vociferously and hope you will continue to defend your way of thinking with articulateness and grace. I remain willing to be persuaded and to change my mind if I'm wrong. Otherwise, I'd be a dunderhead and an arsehole.
CliffBurns által bejegyzett 12:12 am (EST) -kor a Jun 25, 2007
~M~
Morphidae által bejegyzett 8:12 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 24, 2007
Never try to teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig.
~M~
Morphidae által bejegyzett 7:32 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 24, 2007
kambrogi által bejegyzett 12:33 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 22, 2007
Hmmm, I hadn't actually realized we had stopped speaking. I must not have received everything you've been writing to me since last December before you cut me off! Anyway, I'm so glad we've now finally got that mix-up sorted out. :)
Addressing your last point first ...
"My refutation of point "c" remains: Good writing is good writing, we recognize it when we see it, and it sometimes occurs even in the genre ghetto of SF. Because good writing can appear anywhere, even in a genre as 'low-brow' as, oh, say, golf stories in WWI-era copies of Redbook."
In 1910 Wodehouse wasn't considered "classic literature" or even "literary"; because very few people knew of his existence back then. His popularity clearly changed as he entered his purple prose period (let's say 1920 through the 60s) and it progressively increased throughout that period. However, he was still not considered "classic literature" in 1920 (just after the Redbook period you mentioned), nor was he considered that in 1930, 1940, 1950 ... 2000, or even today. But I do believe he may be getting there ... each generation he progresses further up the literary squash ladder, as it were. But one isn't generally acknowledged as being a literary master over night, any more than you go straight to the top of the squash ladder the day you join a new racquets club, even if you are the best player in the club the day that you join. You have to demonstrate that superior skill set to a fresh opponent (read each new batch of literary critics for the analogue) at each rung of the ladder.
Plum's writing was almost fully matured by the WW1 period you referenced, and by the early twenties he had definitely hit his stride - The Awakening of Rollo Podmarsh (which appeared in Redbook in 1923? I believe) is, IMHO, one of the funnier and best written pieces that he created. In fact, all of the golf stories in The Heart of a Goof appeared in Redbook that year or thereabouts. And yes, his writing then was definitely "good writing" - regardless of whether anyone labeled it as such then, or even labels it that way now. Because, I too, recognize it when I see it. However, that quality assessment is only from my OWN PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE. Just like the Supreme Court, I also recognize pornography when I see it! :)
If Plum remained a literary outsider, or was even considered absolute rubbish by the literati crowd, as long as he is still popular enough to remain in print such that I am able to currently read him I would be quite content. Yet it is so much nicer for my own ego, isn't it, if I also know that my own personal favorite author is well respected in all the best corridors of literature, and that my own choice of reading material is vindicated by people possibly much smarter than me, better qualified academically than me, and possibly even with provably better taste than me, too? And isn't that what parts of that sci-fi thread were really all about (at least in those places where the actual OP topic was forgotten)?
****************
BTW, you loaded your last argument there with quite a bit of hyperbole, IMO. "Because good writing can appear anywhere, even in a genre as 'low-brow' as, oh, say, golf stories in WWI-era copies of Redbook." I am personally not acquainted with the status and quality of the Redbook publication - unlike, say, The Saturday Evening Post or Playboy magazines, I have never actually seen one. But even if I accept that that particular publication normally churned out abysmal, lowest of the low-brow pap, the fact is, each of those golf stories were published in the Strand magazine in London about two months prior to their appearing in publication on this side of the pond in Redbook. So however much you may claim that those Plum stories were pearls hidden amongst a bunch of crap from, say, other areas of the genre ghetto(s), over in London Plum was being published in what was considered to be the best magazine in its class - one in fact that he had read assiduously as a child when one of his own literary heroes, Arthur Conan Doyle, was still publishing Sherlock Holmes short stories in it.
So Plum's writing had clearly already been recognized sufficiently in Britain for it to be published cheek-by-jowl with the best other top commercial-selling authors of the day. Now I fully realize that "top-selling" doesn't equate to "literary", nevertheless the situation is also far from being the "hidden bright spot in a dismal genre ghetto" scenario that you just tried to paint. Good writing may indeed occur within the genre ghetto of SF - for instance, I think Vonnegut would obviously fulfil that description, but no one on that thread knew enough to mention him - but IMO Plum's stories (or at least the Redbook era ones that you specifically referenced) are simply not very good examples of some of that kind of writing.
Later.
Rule42 által bejegyzett 1:10 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 20, 2007
I really have no idea why you found my post "borderline offensive" but hopefully I addressed your concerns somewhat with my response. However, having just reread that second post I now realize that it may contain something that could well be misconstrued due to my poor sentence structure. At the end I wasn't calling you a numpty; only the people that have previously flagged other innocuous posts of mine. I probably need to go back and remove that comment.
The problem with aesthetics is that it's such a thorny discipline. If you insist that there is an aesthetic in whichever field of endeavor you're addressing - art, music, literature, or even just the sci-fi genre thereof - then someone is bound to call you an elitist and a snob. If you acknowledge that all tastes are somewhat valid then you've just destroyed the concept of their being an aesthetic hierarchy (i.e., good all the way through bad, by whatever value system you choose to use in order to determine that progression). Finally, if you try and take the middle ground between these two extremes (as I think you were doing), in the end all your arguments will end up sounding like something that is straight out of Orwell ... all tastes are equally valid but some are more tasteful than others!
So you can choose to be an elitist snob (in the eyes of others), or you can adopt the skeptical viewpoint that you cannot discern between different values (what I was calling intellectual nihilism), or you can try and walk the middle ground and end up sounding like a hypocrite! Elitism, nihilism, hypocrisy ... not a pretty choice! I never enjoyed aesthetics. :( Of the three, I prefer to be an elitist simply because I don't want to be a nihilist or a hypocrite.
I think that Warhol and Duchamp pretty well destroyed the elitist position in art (if Brillo pads and urinals are art, what isn't art?) which might be one of the reasons why nihilism is now so prominent in post-modernist thinking. Anyway, I'm sorry you thought I was trying to put words in your mouth ... I really wasn't ... it's just the nature of the beast. To my mind, aesthetics is just one big slippery slope. Personally, I prefer not to think about it too much and read Plum instead! :(
Take care.
Rule42 által bejegyzett 11:40 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 17, 2007
I've only listed 68 books so far - 11 of them non-fiction - and we share 50 of them, so I naturally admire your taste!
The SF and warships groups look interesting - I'll have to join those.
Tony Williams
AnthonyGWilliams által bejegyzett 10:09 am (EST) -kor a Jun 4, 2007
Thanks for the heads up on the Utica group, nice of you to think of me. I took a peek, it looks like she wants to begin a reading group and as you suspected, Utica is a bit too far for me to drive for that. Thanks though:)
cckelly által bejegyzett 10:58 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 3, 2007
thanks for offering to help me get the utica ny book lovers grp goin
nice profile
bookwhore78 által bejegyzett 7:10 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 3, 2007
I'm gobsmacked. Thanks for the info on the author site...and Inman. The book has been of interest to me for years, one of those niggling titles that you can never really get out of your head. The only thing comparable was this short sports novel called THE ONLY GAME IN TOWN a friend gave me when I was in Grade 7. Only problem was, the last five pages were missing so I never knew how it ended. A couple of years ago, thanks to abebooks.com, I found the book super-cheap and read the conclusion. A mystery stretching back 25 years solved. Doncha love when that happens? I'll follow up your tips in the a.m. I'm a bit tired and 50 pages into the new Lee Child "Jack Reacher" novel. I find the series bloody addictive. Reacher solves the crime and viciously exacts punishment on wrong-doers. Often with fatal consequences. That gibes well with my northern Irish genes, methinks. Be well--undoubtedly there will be further contact between us.
CliffBurns által bejegyzett 12:25 am (EST) -kor a Jun 2, 2007
Having trouble paring down the "LT Author" site you alluded to. Is there somewhere specific you have in mind? I'm getting something like 60 entries...keep in mind I'm a technological moron and make the appropriate adjustment in terminology/approach.
C.B.
CliffBurns által bejegyzett 10:49 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 1, 2007
Thanks for the invite and I'm intrigued that of all the people in LT I think I have the most books in common
with you. I appreciate your modesty (describing yourself as a "minor civil servant"). No inflated egos there. I shall have a look at the group you mentioned and hope I fare better there than with the SF fandom crowd. I envy your collection and have a feeling that if I dropped by to browse your collection you'd have to get rid of me with mace and a Taser.
Regards to you,
Cliff
CliffBurns által bejegyzett 10:40 pm (EST) -kor a Jun 1, 2007
You have a VERY impressive collection here.
I guess that makes me just another admirer of your library. *chuckle*
Although, by the looks of things, and after reviewing the number of books we share (167 works, 197 books) I'm not really that surprised that so many eventually wander into the corners of your library to gaze at, wander around and hopelessly stare at the collection you have amassed here. Will Durant in common, very nice. :)
Anyways, just rambling about and thought I would throw a smile/comment your way.
Much bliss & happy reading! :)
~PandorasRequiem
PandorasRequiem által bejegyzett 7:39 pm (EST) -kor a May 31, 2007
Harry Harrison
1967 : The Left Hand Way - A. Bertram Chandler
Judith Merrill
07 : Parky - David Rome
08 : Change of Heart - A. Bertram Chandler
10 : It Could Be You - Frank Roberts
11 : There's A Starman in Ward 7 - David Rome
bluetyson által bejegyzett 10:32 pm (EST) -kor a May 20, 2007
Thank you for the welcome - some people are lumpers/some people are splitters - I'm a lumper is all.
I am very excited about this site - I have been looking for something like this for years and have contemplated actually, in the past, buying software to do the job. (Usually when I get home from the library booksale and find I have bought another duplicate...)
I imagine that I will run into you a few times - you have 58 of the 75 books I have entered - and I have only put in my Heinlein and one shelf of anthologies!
Thanks again for the welcome.
PortiaLong
PortiaLong által bejegyzett 10:32 pm (EST) -kor a May 16, 2007
Even though I have less than half as many books as you, I too have to double-shelve and keep finding books that escaped the first cataloguing. One side benefit is that I discover (after years or decades of ownership) that two or more books that I kept in completely separate mental drawers were written/edited by the same person! Another benefit is that people can finally dare to give me books as gifts, since they can easily find out whether I already have them.
languagehat által bejegyzett 3:49 pm (EST) -kor a May 12, 2007
Thanks for the welcome!
It's always nice to come across another Keith Roberts fan--in fact it's always nice to come across someone else who has heard of Keith, it amazes me that a writer so good can be so little known, but then I suppose the the old "lowest common denominator" rule comes into play, and that means the best known and the most liked of anything, books, music, movies, is . . . . um....ordure!
solarisbooks által bejegyzett 9:23 am (EST) -kor a May 12, 2007
mamachunk által bejegyzett 8:32 pm (EST) -kor a May 11, 2007
this thread on least favourite works by Card?. Some interesting discussion to read, at least for me, in finding others who liked some of the works but really disliked some of his other opinions. I remembered your previous comment on the throwing a book across a room.
ryn_books által bejegyzett 7:46 am (EST) -kor a May 3, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 10:35 pm (EST) -kor a May 2, 2007
http://adventuresinscifipublishing.blogs...
May be of interest, there is a SF book club editor one in the middle episodes.
Also saw Dozois has a Best of the Year's Best book out too, while browsing ABE. Lol.
bluetyson által bejegyzett 3:41 am (EST) -kor a May 2, 2007
I do believe someone was asking about $50 for that issue of Interzone. I wondered if Angela Carter might have been the British equivalent of our John Crowley within the genre. You know? Not in writing style, but in their relationship to the genre.
Dealer list is up on the Readercon website now. Start saving your pennies:-) Best, Lois
avaland által bejegyzett 12:52 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 29, 2007
To collect them if they keep going at this rate you would need a titanium reinforced bookcase (and probably floor) as they ain't small.
bluetyson által bejegyzett 9:32 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 24, 2007
http://www.yearsbestsf.info/
Population of world much bigger than in DAW's day, so should be able to fill a few more books I guess. :)
bluetyson által bejegyzett 10:35 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 23, 2007
http://www.bestsf.net/reviews/wollheim19...
When it said review, I figured that is what it was, not a story list!
bluetyson által bejegyzett 7:41 am (EST) -kor a Apr 23, 2007
I think the 1979 has Creator by David Lake, which is in one of Paul Collins' anthologies here, but not one I have found at other than very keen collector prices.
So he may be the earliest local in one of those.
Thanks,
bt
bluetyson által bejegyzett 7:39 am (EST) -kor a Apr 23, 2007
-- Clarke's Fourth Law.
(I don't see why Arthur should be the only Clarke who gets to formulate them.)
-- Paul Clarke, rec.arts.sf.written
bluetyson által bejegyzett 3:00 am (EST) -kor a Apr 21, 2007
PZ rocks!
Highly recommended: "Evolution" by Carl Zimmer.
monado által bejegyzett 2:58 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 18, 2007
Thanks again and have fun with the shelf checking.
ryn_books által bejegyzett 10:21 am (EST) -kor a Apr 12, 2007
On a more positve anthologies note....when you get a moment I'd welcome any opinion on the Brian M Thomsen Novel Ideas anthologies. They look interesting, but would be an import/bookstore order for me to get down here.
ryn_books által bejegyzett 6:07 am (EST) -kor a Apr 11, 2007
ginmar által bejegyzett 9:27 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 9, 2007
I like some of you blog entries. Particularly the home ownership analysis.
And I'm not so keen on SF, but I notice we have a lot of other books in common. The question of tagging is an interesting one, though the divisions for me were slightly different - I puzzled over the divisions between national/language-bound literatures and settled on an inadequate compromise, but I did go over some of the points in detail on a thread started by LolaWalser. I'll dig it up if you're interested.
Existanai által bejegyzett 1:43 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 9, 2007
I've started reading your blog too - interesting. See you around!
Existanai által bejegyzett 12:07 am (EST) -kor a Apr 9, 2007
NativeRoses által bejegyzett 11:05 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 7, 2007
http://gregegan.customer.netspace.net.au...
bluetyson által bejegyzett 1:44 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 6, 2007
I will look at the Bookmooch list, but there is the whole tyranny of distance/postage! :)
bluetyson által bejegyzett 9:53 pm (EST) -kor a Apr 5, 2007
bluetyson által bejegyzett 8:09 am (EST) -kor a Apr 5, 2007
steinbock által bejegyzett 11:06 pm (EST) -kor a Mar 23, 2007
NativeRoses által bejegyzett 8:19 pm (EST) -kor a Feb 27, 2007
Fnarf által bejegyzett 4:23 pm (EST) -kor a Feb 23, 2007
I saw your post about selling duplicates on ebay. I have a few I'm thinking of selling but I've never done the ebay thing. What were the advantages of ebay over, say Amazon, for you? Any pointers of wisdom you'd be willing to impart?
I keep trying to get through your Bookmooch inventory btw, however, I'm always about 10 pages in when the site becomes ungodly sloooooow. Probably just as well since I could blow all my measly few points and not get through half your offerings.
cckelly által bejegyzett 12:24 am (EST) -kor a Feb 7, 2007
andyl által bejegyzett 4:30 am (EST) -kor a Jan 30, 2007
AND "Growing Up In Tier 3000"!
doubtfulpalace által bejegyzett 12:12 am (EST) -kor a Jan 19, 2007
MyopicBookworm által bejegyzett 6:46 am (EST) -kor a Jan 11, 2007
You're high on my list of "raw" booksharers at present, but I think that's because my catalogue currently prioritizes books in boxes under the bed, and that's where most of the SF is!
MyopicBookworm által bejegyzett 12:29 pm (EST) -kor a Jan 10, 2007
thanks for your reply. "Site Talk" is there such a group, or is it a fishing expedition.
I seem to miss a help link (for some of my basic questions) on this site.
anyway, belated A Merry Christmas and a Happy new Year.
bolger által bejegyzett 12:26 am (EST) -kor a Dec 30, 2006
selfnoise által bejegyzett 7:07 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 29, 2006
DeadGoodBooks által bejegyzett 6:03 am (EST) -kor a Dec 25, 2006
howie által bejegyzett 9:20 am (EST) -kor a Dec 24, 2006
Anyway, I sympathize about shelf space. Of course, I have far, [i]far[/i] fewer books than you do, but I also only have a single room to put all my belongings in. Right now I have all the books I've read in storage, and the unread ones are all piled onto a single bookcase, all jumbled and out of any sort of order (which drives me nuts). Whenever I get around to getting my own house, I think I'm going to have to get at least one extra bedroom to function as a private library.
Maybe I can get them to build shelves into the walls.
stochasticooze által bejegyzett 12:20 am (EST) -kor a Dec 20, 2006
Fnarf által bejegyzett 12:38 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 15, 2006
I remember the Konica T3 as being quite an important product in some ways; though not to me personally. I didn't have an auto-exposure camera until 1987, when I got an Olympus OM-4T; I'm a bit of a curmudgeon on the topic of exposure automation still. My first SLR was a Miranda Sensorex; decent enough, but a clear mistake for me (courtesy of Consumer Reports; I like them better than any other consumer review magazine, they're the only one that understands statistics for one thing, but they're not so good at reviewing things for specialized markets, and for me camera and computer gear isn't just ordinary consumer toys). I eventually traded that for an Asahi Pentax Spotmatic and a Leica M3, then replaced those when they were stolen out of my house with a Nikon FM (about 1980). Switched to Olympus in 1987 for the multi-spot metering, and back to Nikon in 1994 for auto-focus. My first DSLR was a Fuji S2 (Nikon mount) in 2003 (well, 30-Jan-2002), and I upgraded that to a D200 last spring (in time for Minicon of course). I've still got a darkroom in boxes around the basement here, including an Omega D5 enlarger and three lenses (there are 4x5 and 6x4.5 cameras around too, though little used). At this point the darkroom is not, I think, going to happen again. There's some slight possibility I might shoot B&W film and develop it weirdly and then scan it still, but that's about all.
"Dave Powell" rings a bell -- but maybe I'm wrong, because he doesn't seem to show up on the seating chart for where I worked. I was a Large Computer Group guy, Marlboro MA, from 1981 to 1985.
Yes, my photos certainly were linked from Making Light, and I comment there occasionally also. We've known Patrick and Teresa for quite a while at this point, though I didn't really meet him when he came through Minneapolis as a 16-year-old wandering around fandom.
Well, pleasant as this is, I think there are some people expecting some code to be commmitted today, so I'd better type at the other keyboard for a while.
Cheers!
dd-b által bejegyzett 12:17 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 12, 2006
Huh; strange commenting/discussion system here, clicking "reply" on your comment that showed up under my profile shows me making a new comment under your profile, with your response to my comment nowhere in sight.
I've liked the idea of cataloging my library for more than 30 years. I first started doing so on punch cards. I next started, *much* later, using ReaderWare and a cuecat scanner, and I've still got that data. That was new books and books I reread, fairly consistently for a while. At this point it'd be all four of our libraries, with owner codes and location codes (since there are very few rooms in this house with no books -- just the bathrooms and kitchens, water and books don't mix). But taking it on systematically is a HUGE job, and then I think of the high risk of it getting out of date; recovering from an out of data situation is almost as big a job as entering it in the first place. (We're talking somewhere around 15k volumes I'd guesstimate).
I certainly like the idea of having the listing with me -- and in fact I've got the Palm Pilot module from Readerware so I can do that with that database.
But LibraryThing has its own charm, too. I'm a sucker for online communities, starting with Arpanet mailing lists, then Usenet, and I ran the Fidonet SF echo and their WRITING echo for a while in the late 80s/early 90s. I don't know if that's an attraction for LT or a reason to run screaming :-).
I lived out in the Boston area 1981-1985 (working for DEC), then came back to Minneapolis. I've been pretty visible various online places, and in some parts of SF fandom; I was in charge of photography for the retrospective slide show at Noreascon III. We could have overlapped any number of ways. I'm the only David Dyer-Bennet on the planet so far.
dd-b által bejegyzett 12:01 am (EST) -kor a Dec 12, 2006
I was indexing with ReaderWare, but not too heavily; I haven't systematically attacked the shelves yet. And the shelves actually have *four* people's books on them, it's a big household. And I don't know if I'm going to use LT or not, but the way to figure it out is to use the tools a bit and see, right?
dd-b által bejegyzett 5:40 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 11, 2006
I did wonder whether it was quite the right touch to send something published by a political party (Morris) - but as SPGB is (indirectly) a decendant of Morris` Socialist League, I thought it would appeal. I must admit, I got a copy for me as well, and really like it.
You might be interested to know that Mushroom Bookshop, who published `Robin Hood`, was a worker`s co-operative (remember them?) which was in Nott`m for around 25 years. Their publishing sideline was the work of a friend of ours, Ross Bradshaw, who now runs his own publishing company (albeit he has a part-time job as well). He is very (very!)thorough, and would probably get an ISBN allocated if he sent a postcard !
You might want to know, he has published a book by a man who re-enacted (if that`s the word) Morris` journey down the Thames and wrote his own account. Our last copy sold earlier this week, but we are planning to re-stock.
Best,
Nick
nickhoonaloon által bejegyzett 5:20 am (EST) -kor a Dec 10, 2006
pechmerle által bejegyzett 4:37 am (EST) -kor a Dec 10, 2006
I brought my wife there last summer ('05). She's never been out of Texas (maybe twice, really) and I felt sorry for her because she has never seen a tree grow straight up out of the ground.
If you get the chance, you should go to the Adirondack Museum in Long Lake. Arrive early, you'll need every minute of daylight to see all of it before closing time.
Regards,
WholeHouseLibrary
WholeHouseLibrary által bejegyzett 12:43 pm (EST) -kor a Dec 5, 2006
You were commenting about the user name I chose. I guess I got inspired. The concept for making each room dedicated to a major division was adapted from our having stayed at the Library Hotel in NYC. They've got whole floors dedicated to each major division, and each room has a bookshelf in specific contexts -- our room -- 001.0006 was "Journalism". We wanted the "Astronomy" room, or the "Zoology" room, but they were already booked. Check it out online -- LibraryHotel.com (if I remember correctly).
I can't believe you've got almost 11,000 books! We've got just shy of 500 and we don't know what to do with them! My father-in-law (92 in February) has an 8x10 room that he's crammed almost 900 books into. I cataloged them for him just 2 months ago because he'd never be able to find one if he was trying. He's read all of them, except for maybe the 4 or 5 most recent acquisitions. He even wrote 2 of them.
Approximately how far "upstate" in NY are you. I grew up in Ramsey, NJ, and "upstate" was just 4 miles away. "Upstate" for us was the nearest bars across the border because the drinking age in New York State was 18 back then. That's a collective "us", by the way; I don't drink -- never did. I went to college north of Saranac Lake. It was never referred to as "upstate", despite being only 40 miles from the Canadian border. It was referred to as "Nowhere".
Regards,
WholeHouseLibrary (but you can call me "Mike")
WholeHouseLibrary által bejegyzett 1:51 am (EST) -kor a Dec 4, 2006
Aha, so that's why I couldn't find the correct word in the online dictionary I was using. Completist is not a word I often use (it still sounds like a modern contrived slang word to me) so that the word that popped into my head as I was writing (completionist) sounded just as correct to my internal ear. When I used the dictionary to check its spelling and meaning and couldn't equate the latter to my intended meaning, I added my caveat.
... not buying the same damn book again.
I have to admit, I have the same problem with the authors that you would call my "Enthusiasms" and particularly while I had many of my books stacked in boxes rather than out on bookshelves. I still have a big chunk in boxes in my closets but it's much less than it was and those books are not the important stuff. Whenever I go into a used bookstore (particularly one out of town that I probably won't ever return to) and I see a copy of a title of one of my "Enthusiasms" that I know I have been seeking for years, I tend to buy it because there is no second chance. In these situations it is better to have two copies of the book than kick yourself for having had it your hands and let it go (because you weren't certain you already had it) and then you never see it again. I'm usually pretty good at remembering what I already have but I err on the side if duplication rather than regret - though of course you end up