Sunday, July 29, 2007

steel cage death match


It's LibraryThing vs. Shelfari. Both are online communities where users catalog their own libraries--then tag and review books and share recommendations with other users. After a brief tour of each of their websites, here are my impressions of each:

Shelfari:

  • Offers a Shelfari widget for users to post on their blogs or MySpace. If I indulged my widget desires, my blog would be cluttered with them. The widget holds weight with me.
  • Shelfari apparently joined forces with Amazon.com this year. Can world domination be far behind?
LibraryThing:
  • More users, it seems like--the better to add to my virtual book club! LibraryThing has been out there longer than Shelfari, and was on my radar screen before I started library school.
  • Much more advanced options for tagging, organizing, and searching--and these options are accessible on the user interface--not a whole ton of clicking through.
  • List option for displaying your catalog: I think the covers are helpful, but they can clutter the display.
As someone who regularly experiences book club envy (but . . . how to find the time?)--both Shelfari and LibraryThing appeal to me. But as someone who wants a personal catalog that is as versatile, searchable, and well-organized (the last according to my definition) as possible, I'm going with LibraryThing. I guess that makes me a thingamabrarian (although, for the record, I prefer Shelfarian, as a term).

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