Upgrading the library?

SBT · 11-02-2012, 10:10 AM

Right - as of this minute, the P. Clark Memorial Library contains 24636 books, of which an estimated 12601 are unique titles. I'm sure it has been discussed before, but surely such a fine collection deserves a slightly better organization?

This is no criticism of the people running the site; they do a fine job

, and what I'm contemplating is a non-trivial task.

But first of all, something that hopefully is not too difficult to implement:
There already exists a good search function for finding books, but it's awfully well hidden away; I'm talking about not going to the library itself, but Forum->Library, select "Search Forum", select advanced search...
Would it be possible to make a more direct link to this search functionality when you go directly to the library through the "Ebooks" drop-down menu?

Next, is it possible to change book submissions so that instead of putting all information in the title line (Author, title, date etc) this could be entered via a form, ensuring that books are more conformal in their identification? Alternatively, could you have an automated conformity check on the title line in book submissions?

Finally, the big one: What about creating a proper library database, indexing books by author, language, submitter etc.?
From a cursory look, I estimate about 80% of the book titles can be automatically mapped to a database. That leaves quite a few thousand titles to be manually inspected, but with a small band of wannabe librarians and a bit of time, it shouldn't be an insuperable task, and it only has do be done once.

Waddya think?

ghostyjack · 11-02-2012, 01:09 PM

Sounds like a good idea, but as you say, it is a non-trivial task now that the library is so large.

While they are at it, how about implementing an opds catalogue function so that we can hook directly into it via our reading systems? I'd love to be able to access it on my phone, but as it stands now, my HTC One X will not download books from this site. I have to download them to my PC and then transfer them to the phone.

Billi · 11-03-2012, 02:02 PM

It's not exactly the same question but it seems like the green gods are already working on it:
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=195129

SBT · 11-03-2012, 04:08 PM

@Billi: Thanks for pointing out that thread, I've moved my discussion over there.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Billi

It's not exactly the same question but it seems like the green gods are already working on it:
https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=195129

11-02-2012, 10:10 AM	#1
SBT Fanatic Posts: 580 Karma: 810184 Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: Norway Device: prs-t1, tablet, Nook Simple, assorted kindles, iPad	Upgrading the library? Right - as of this minute, the P. Clark Memorial Library contains 24636 books, of which an estimated 12601 are unique titles. I'm sure it has been discussed before, but surely such a fine collection deserves a slightly better organization? This is no criticism of the people running the site; they do a fine job, and what I'm contemplating is a non-trivial task. But first of all, something that hopefully is not too difficult to implement: There already exists a good search function for finding books, but it's awfully well hidden away; I'm talking about not going to the library itself, but Forum->Library, select "Search Forum", select advanced search... Would it be possible to make a more direct link to this search functionality when you go directly to the library through the "Ebooks" drop-down menu? Next, is it possible to change book submissions so that instead of putting all information in the title line (Author, title, date etc) this could be entered via a form, ensuring that books are more conformal in their identification? Alternatively, could you have an automated conformity check on the title line in book submissions? Finally, the big one: What about creating a proper library database, indexing books by author, language, submitter etc.? From a cursory look, I estimate about 80% of the book titles can be automatically mapped to a database. That leaves quite a few thousand titles to be manually inspected, but with a small band of wannabe librarians and a bit of time, it shouldn't be an insuperable task, and it only has do be done once. Waddya think?

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11-02-2012, 01:09 PM	#2
ghostyjack Guru Posts: 718 Karma: 1085610 Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: Bristol, England Device: PRS-T1, 1825PT, Galaxy Tab, One X, TF700T, Aura HD, Nexus 7	Sounds like a good idea, but as you say, it is a non-trivial task now that the library is so large. While they are at it, how about implementing an opds catalogue function so that we can hook directly into it via our reading systems? I'd love to be able to access it on my phone, but as it stands now, my HTC One X will not download books from this site. I have to download them to my PC and then transfer them to the phone.

11-03-2012, 02:02 PM	#3
Billi Wizard Posts: 3,388 Karma: 14190103 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Berlin Device: Cybook, iRex, PB, Onyx	It's not exactly the same question but it seems like the green gods are already working on it: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=195129