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Book catalogue building tools
THIS WEEK NetSpeak examines a few tools/services built around on-line book databases.
Some Netizens may have a large and valuable collection of books. You might have adopted some cataloguing mechanism to organise the collection so that it can be accessed easily. Of course, it would be easier to handle if there was a digital cataloguing system. But developing an electronic cataloguing system is not an easy task — you need to develop a catalogue software, enter book data and so on. The Net can come to our rescue here.
Many on-line book databases that host information on popular books are available on the Net and it is likely that the details of many of the books available in your home library have already been stored in some of these databases. This means that with a software that can scan the on-line book databases available on the Net, locate and collect the information on the books in your collection and then paste it onto the local catalogue system's database, we can skip the laborious data entry process. The software `Readerware' is one such cataloguing tool that can generate an electronic cataloguing system by collecting information from the Net.
Readerware
To use the software, access the link at: http://www.readerware.com and download the trial version. The best way to start the cataloguing process is to use the `Auto-Catalog' wizard. The wizard displays the `site selection' window where you need to enter the sites that host book databases that are to be scanned by Readerware. The program supports many on-line databases that include Amazon, British Library and the U.S. Library of Congress — you can select more than one site at a time. Now, click `Next' and type in the ISBN numbers of the books in your library. The software will then start scanning the selected sites, locate the books with the specified ISBN numbers, grab the information and post them onto your local database. The program has a number of features that can be experimented with.
Book information, price comparison service
If you want to purchase a book on-line, having some idea of the price charged by various on-line bookstores, shipping charges, and delivery times will be very useful information. ISBN.NU (http://www.isbn.nu) is a service that provides just such information. All you have to do is enter the title or author or the book's ISBN number and the service then scans many new and used book sites, and presents a table with an exhaustive amount of information on availability, prices, delivery times and so on.
Netranger
One can use the Net mechanically without knowing anything about what goes on behind the scenes. But knowing more about the internals of your Net link will make you more confident and enhance your trouble shooting skills. Many Net tools are available to let you understand the state of your Net connection. For example, the `Traceroute' program provides the list of servers travelled by an information packet sent by your machine before reaching its target. In this regard, you may try out the "many-in-one" Net tool that combines the functions of a number of utilities in a single package. The program Netranger features many tools that include the traceroute, ping, finger and portscanner. If you are in a network environment you will find the `portscanner' tool that helps you locate active services running in your server quite useful. Another highlight of the software is the `mailkit' feature that lets you automatically download mails from your mailboxes.
Check out the evaluation version at: http://www.nautidigital.com/
Becoming WebWise
Though initially a tool that was exclusively used by a few scientists and the academic world, the Net is now an essential everyday tool. But many are still ignorant of some of its basic concepts.
A simple and comprehensible on-line course on the Net and its concepts prepared by the BBC is available at: http://www. bbc.co.uk /webwise/learn/menu. shtml.
Classic novels on demand
Whether or not you have the habit of reading novels there is no denying that the relevance of some of the old English classics by famous authors like Charles Dickens will never fade. If you want to read some of the famous classics at your leisure, here is an opportunity.
The mailing list service, `Classic Novels in 5 Minutes a Day' — http://www.classic-novels.com/ — sends you an instalment of around 1500 to 1800 words every day from a classic in literature. It is not a long list that is now available, but novels on the list include works by Charles Dickens, Joseph Conrad, H. G. Wells, Lewis Caroll and Shakespeare.
J. Murali
(The author can be contacted at murali27@satyam.net.in)
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