In search of...open-source BookCAT

June 22, 2008 11:33 AM

Is there any open-source book cataloging program, based on MS Access or another popular database, for personal use?

I've been using BookCAT to catalog my personal books, but I think I'd like something that I can open up and change around a lot more.

BookCAT, designed for small libraries, uses MS Access to store data with a proprietary interface. I've tried to create my own Access database using the same data, but the many-to-many relationships required are too much for me to handle with my lack of $killZ. I also use LibraryThing, but it seems not too well designed for what I want--namely, keeping track of the books I read, and books I come across that I might want to read.

BookCAT's ability to query Amazon and LoC are amazing...I just wish I could get a little more control. A properly-designed Access database would do the trick, but I don't have the aforementioned $killZ. Anyone know someone who does?

posted by mjklin to media & arts (5 comments total)

I've been keeping an eye on this, via metafilter projects. Not sure if it'll end up being opensource.
posted by acro at 12:38 PM on June 22, 2008 [1 favorite has favorites]

I haven't used any of these, but:

* Alexandria (described at Linux.com)
* Tellico (also described at Linux.com)
* TyrannioWare

Personally, I like Books, but it's Mac OS X only.
posted by kristi at 12:52 PM on June 22, 2008

Sorry, I forgot to mention that this is for a Windows machine. Thanks for the suggestions so far; I'll try them out and see which one fits the shoe.
posted by mjklin at 1:36 PM on June 22, 2008

You might try GoodReads which is a social-network oriented web application, but it meets your request that it track "books I want to read" and not just "books I own." I'd be interested in non-webapp software with this set of features too.
posted by Alterscape at 5:25 PM on June 22, 2008

Thanks all...I ended up going with BookCAT itself anyway, after I found out it's more customizable than I thought. I also joined GoodReads for the want-to-read and recommendations side of things.
posted by mjklin at 9:25 AM on June 23, 2008