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Keeping track of one's collection
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Mars
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Posted: Mon Apr 09, 2007 4:37 pm

Xaxaxe wrote:Any advice or resources you'd recommend? Or should I pretend it's no worse than Excel and just jump right in?

Access isn't that bad, just jump right in. The main difference between using something like Access vs Excel is that you try to avoid duplicating information. So you would probably have a separate table that lists company info that would link to your entries in the items table (so you avoid typing in the company each time - just reference it from the Companies table).

I'm not sure how many tables you really need in setting up a database - the obvious ones are an Items table, Company table, Store Purchased From table.

Radovarl
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Posted: Mon Apr 09, 2007 4:56 pm

Xaxaxe wrote:Sadly, that is not me. But I'm assuming Access would still work for small collections.

It'll work, you just wouldn't derive as much benefit. Access can make huge amounts of data much more manageable than they would be in Excel. It'd still be a good way to learn the program.

killjoy32
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Posted: Mon Apr 09, 2007 7:05 pm

i've used access many times in the past. its a good little program and very easy to manipulate and quite easy to learn as well.

might not be a bad move....

Al

Are we nearly there yet?

NetRodent
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Location: Montreal, Canada

Posted: Mon Apr 09, 2007 8:21 pm

If you don't want to pay Microsoft to be able to track your items, you might want to check out MySQL.

"Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats."
--H.L. Mencken

gkramer
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Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2007 8:34 am

Still using Excel, with hyperlinks to external documents..

I made an attempt to convert to Access, but it turned out to be more work than I thought (to achive the desired results), so it was abandoned.

Gary H. Kramer

deimos3428
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Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2007 4:49 pm

Mars wrote:Access isn't that bad, just jump right in. The main difference between using something like Access vs Excel is that you try to avoid duplicating information. So you would probably have a separate table that lists company info that would link to your entries in the items table (so you avoid typing in the company each time - just reference it from the Companies table).

I'm not sure how many tables you really need in setting up a database - the obvious ones are an Items table, Company table, Store Purchased From table.

Everything Mars said is correct. However, as databases go, Access is a horrible, horrible beast. It's only saving grace is that it works on a typical Windows PC. If you don't need to use a database, I'd recommend sticking with Excel. It might not be as tidy but it gets the job done.

For my own collection, I use a technique called "looking at the pile of stuff in the corner". Sometimes, I rummage through it like an untrained bulette.

jasonw1239
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Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2007 5:13 pm

If you want to use a spreadsheet that is Microsoft compatible without having to pay for office try:

http://www.openoffice.org/

Check out my Chaosium sourcebook.
Secrets of Tibet

killjoy32
Grandstanding Collector

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Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2007 5:38 pm

deimos3428 wrote:
For my own collection, I use a technique called "looking at the pile of stuff in the corner". Sometimes, I rummage through it like an untrained bulette.

Deim? i like your style dude

a person after my own heart

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Plaag
Long-Winded Collector
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Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2007 5:58 pm

Get organized. Course it sucks having something on a list and not knowing where it is :wink:

(But I want to say I'm more like a blind Umber Hulk digging through the shelves and boxes)

ShaneG.

I reject your reality and substitute my own

IttyBitty
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Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2007 10:49 pm

killjoy32 wrote:
Deim? i like your style dude a person after my own heart

Al

Me too!

A Wizard is never late, Frodo Baggins, nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to.

flying_purple_monkfish
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Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 10:11 am

Finding stuff> This is where i'm sorta glad my collection isn't that vast and we have that huuuuge set of shelves. I have one shelf.. seriously.. only ONE. out of about 12.. bah. My man keeps buying books so I just leech off his collection.. mwahahaha.
But, it does mean everything is nice and easy to find. It's on the D&D or AD&D shelf provided Rob hasn't taken one of the books to read and left it somewhere stupid (why oh WHY does he do this? Books do not belong under BEDS! or half under the sofa!)
I love my shelf of books, it's all meticulously organised unlike his shelves.. i'm a bit obsessive about things like that... hell, I'm the person who keeps her cd collection in alphabetical chronilogical order and will rearrange other peoples stuff because it bugs me.. i'm terrible.

"Somehow, in hell I knew there would be mushrooms"

killjoy32
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Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 10:45 am

flying_purple_monkfish wrote:I love my shelf of books, it's all meticulously organised unlike his shelves.. i'm a bit obsessive about things like that... hell, I'm the person who keeps her cd collection in alphabetical chronilogical order and will rearrange other peoples stuff because it bugs me.. i'm terrible.

hey just yesterday i found my kobold hall inside my bloodbowl box.

you know, i dont even remember putting it there and couldnt figure out where the hell it had gone! i'd also put 2 tourney mods inside my silver anniversary box and didnt realise they were there either

oh what fun, no wonder i can never find anything.

however on a lighter note, i DID find a packet of 6 old unused orange dice. gotta try and figure out now what the hell they belong to

the joys of collecting

Are we nearly there yet?

flying_purple_monkfish
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Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 2:37 pm

Silly men, putting your things in any old box (hmm.. was that euphamism intended? lol)
At one point I used to store all my planescape books inside the larger box sets because I didn't have the room on my bookshelf (I used to live in a tiiiny room... seriously.. our BATHROOM is bigger than that bedroom.. it was a nightmare. So nice to have our own house and not share with 6 guys)
It is fun finding wierd things though. We were going through a bunch of stuff we'd stored in the "basement" (it's more a glorified cupboard really) and so going through a few water damaged boxes of books we found a whole bunch of things we forgot we had. Like a few of my PS1 games (i'd wondered where i'd put them) and a couple of half read books that still had the recepts for movies from 1996 as bookmarks! eeep. No interesting rp related finds yet though... I might trawl through the box of CCGs and see what I find.

"Somehow, in hell I knew there would be mushrooms"

killjoy32
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Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 3:18 pm

nah it was a case of i was moving things to look for something and i must have put it there for safekeeping and totally forgot.

i dont mind at all. its an adventure then finding it again

Are we nearly there yet?

deimos3428
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Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 4:05 pm

killjoy32 wrote:nah it was a case of i was moving things to look for something and i must have put it there for safekeeping and totally forgot.

i dont mind at all. its an adventure then finding it again

Al

Hunting for parts of your existing collection in your own home is infinitely more exciting than hunting for stuff on eBay:

Almost no bidding wars.
No stock photos.
It's easy to stay within your budget.
Eventually, if you're patient, another copy will come along.
You don't have to worry about somebody else grabbing the BIN before you.
It's rare to have excessive shipping & handling fees from the kitchen.

killjoy32
Grandstanding Collector

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Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 5:23 pm

deimos3428 wrote:
It's rare to have excessive shipping & handling fees from the kitchen.

i was thinking of a $200 handling fee....

Are we nearly there yet?

Plaag
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Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 5:36 pm

killjoy32 wrote:
i was thinking of a $200 handling fee....

Don't forget to MBag that too, it'll find your storage area no problem :wink:

ShaneG.

I reject your reality and substitute my own

killjoy32
Grandstanding Collector

Posts: 8241
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Location: Wallasey, Merseyside, UK

Posted: Fri Apr 13, 2007 5:48 pm

Plaag wrote:
Don't forget to MBag that too, it'll find your storage area no problem

ShaneG.

but it might go missing between the kitchen and the back room...

Are we nearly there yet?

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