CueCat from LIbraryThing

[thorfinn]

So... I'm going to actually catalogue my books this year.

Thus, I shall be ordering at least two of the CueCat from LibraryThing, since:

1. they appear to actually be the cheapest USB hand scanner available by rather a long way,
2. unlike every other USB hand scanner available, they actually have clear user testimonials and instructions for use regarding LibraryThing.

So, who else wants one? I'm going to order two for myself (the device itself is from a dead manufacturer, so it's good logistics to have more than one) within the next few days. Let me know if you want one and are in Melbourne, so we can share International Shipping cost.

Edit: List of people wanting them:

thorfinn	- 2
raven_	- 2
delwyn	- 1
quiet101	- 4
arienmir	- 1
mordwen	- 1
subtle_eye	- 2
nikkicat13	- 1
nigelw	- 1
spare for logistics issues	- 3
Total	- 18

I shall be putting the order in this weekend (12th Jan 2008).

Edit: Order has arrived - total cost, AUD 336.35 after conversion and including postage. Unit cost = AUD 18.68.

Comments

[reddragdiva]

And to think I got one merely as an amusing dot-com relic. Apparently it works just fine with Leengux too.

[http://users.livejournal.com/raven_/]

Nifty. I think I want one. :)

[http://users.livejournal.com/raven_/]

Hell, make it two. I can think of one other person who may Need This to Live.

[thorfinn]

Bump. :-) Cuecats have arrived. AUD 18.68 each. Contact me via phone or email or faceborg to arrange pickup fu. :-)

[doushkasmum.livejournal.com]

I was all excited when I got mine. The shiny wore off when I realised how high a proportion of my collection was to old to have a barcode. Must get back to that project soon.

[whitebird.livejournal.com]

I like my CueCat. I got it via ReaderWare (http://readerware.com/), and it's been quite good to me ever since. Luckily, they're one of those devices which don't really break if they've been working nicely for a while.

I haven't yet done LibraryThing, but I'm thinking about it.

[delwyn.livejournal.com]

Sure, I'll grab one.

[thorfinn]

Bump. :-) Cuecats have arrived. AUD 18.68 each. Contact me via phone or email or faceborg to arrange pickup fu. :-)

[thorfinn]

Err, never mind, that'll teach me to copy and paste without looking. :-) I just delivered yours.

[xole.livejournal.com]

I did my library over Xmas break last year, using Bookpedia. It uses the camera in my screen, so I didn't end up needing a bar code reader (and a large chunk of my library is barcode-less anyway).

You'll have to share your LibraryThing name so I can check out your geekitude!

[thorfinn]

I'm Thorfi there... I haven't done *anything* with it yet, just created the account. :-)

I shall get the CueCat anyway (just because I'm a giant nerd and there's a certain appeal to buying a cheap obsolete product), but if it turns out that a significant chunk is non-barcoded (which may well happen - there's a lot of old SF&F), then I'll certainly look into doing the Bookpedia thing in addition!

[fnoo.livejournal.com]

LiveJournal told me that this entry had adult content.

And it doesn't! I feel ripped off!

I'm going to add some adult content of my own:

Fuck. Tittie. (.)(.)

There we go! :)

[iki-maska.livejournal.com]

Me too. It's like LJ has invested in the same manifestly broken morality protection software that work uses to prevent me from doing my job.

[quiet101.livejournal.com]

Sounds like it could be worthwhile, so I'll be up for 4 :)

It never hurts to have spares and I'm sure a friend of mine would also be interested, thanks :)

[thorfinn]

Bump. :-) Cuecats have arrived. AUD 18.68 each. Contact me via phone or email or faceborg to arrange pickup fu. :-)

Ooh.

[baroquestar.livejournal.com]

Thorf, would it be cheaper for me to buy one with you, and pay extra postage to get it to WA (if you're able), or to order one straight from the site, do you think? Not sure what the weight or package size is likely to be.

Re: Ooh.

[mr-e-cat.livejournal.com]

Do you want to go in with us instead?
That way we can have it shipped to perth

Sounds like a plan.

[baroquestar.livejournal.com]

Hurrah! Because I really needed another project to do! :D

Where shall we ship to? Are there many of us Perthies wanting one?

Re: Sounds like a plan.

[mr-e-cat.livejournal.com]

I can get them shipped to our place and then send it on (or drop it off somewhere)
What ever is easiest for you.

email me with how many you want etc n4cat at hotpop dot com

Re: Sounds like a plan.

[thorfinn]

Hooray for shared shipping! :-)

Re: Sounds like a plan.

[thorfinn]

Hooray for shared shipping! :-)

I don't *think* I have many perthies on my LJ... just you two, AFAIK.

[arienmir.livejournal.com]

Me Please!!!

[thorfinn]

Bump. :-) Cuecats have arrived. AUD 18.68 each. Contact me via phone or email or faceborg to arrange pickup fu. :-)

[fnoo.livejournal.com]

Also:

This is totally the book-nerd version of ripping every CD you own into itunes, even the ones you don't listen to any more.

[thorfinn]

Gawd yeah. Also, in both cases, it's actually useful for Insurance purposes. :-)

[khrister.livejournal.com]

I gave away my CueCat (I picked it up in the states from a Radio Shack shortly after DCC went bust, back in 2001) and got a better one off of eBay for about $60.

The CueCat wasn't bad, but it sometimes has a lot more trouble scanning codes than the new one. I don't regret buying the other one at all.

I hope you find it really useful. :-)

[mordwen.livejournal.com]

Sure. I keep starting a cataloguing project by hand and failing so maybe this time?

[thorfinn]

Bump. :-) Cuecats have arrived. AUD 18.68 each. Contact me via phone or email or faceborg to arrange pickup fu. :-)

[subtle-eye.livejournal.com]

Put me down for a pair too :)

[thorfinn]

Bump. :-) Cuecats have arrived. AUD 18.68 each. Contact me via phone or email or faceborg to arrange pickup fu. :-)

[nikkicat13.livejournal.com]

Add one for me, please? Ta :)

[thorfinn]

Bump. :-) Cuecats have arrived. AUD 18.68 each. Contact me via phone or email or faceborg to arrange pickup fu. :-)

[frou-frou.livejournal.com]

Sounds great! A word of caution: be careful about ordering in commercial quantities as the Federal Govt (as in Customs) might decide that you're a business and hit you with 27% tax plus 10% GST. That's what happened to us when we ordered ten copies of Donnie Darko for friends.

[thorfinn]

Thanks for the heads up! I shall poke around and see if I can find some info on customs fu. :-)

[thorfinn]

Oh, did you want one, or was this just a heads up? :-)

[frou-frou.livejournal.com]

I'd love one, but I'm currently in major cull mode: we have too much stuff. So whilst it sounds like a great idea, we'll leave it for the moment, thank you.

[thorfinn]

FYI - they've arrived, we'll see once I've handed them out, but I may have spares. :-) No issues with customs, thankfully! I think they probably fell under the price amount that might raise a "commercial quantity" flag.