Movie Database

apc

Do any of you maintain a database of your DVDs? If so, is it web-based or PC-based. Any preferences?

AsSiMiLaTeD

I use an access database that keeps the title, genre, release year, running time, plot and an index number giving the locatiion of that movie in my cases.

I use the DB to store all the information, but actually use Crystal Reports to build a 'report' of the movies table, which is what I print out and keep in a leather binder by my chair - you could also buils such a report directly in Access.

I've used several movie and music database programs, and find that none really do exactly what I want, so I just created my own database.

if you have a bunch of movies, what I'd do is grab a program like Collectorz and enter all your movie titles and let that program automatically pull all the information from IMDB or something like that. Once that's done, dump all that data into Excel and import it in to Access - then it's easy to just maintain the Access DB with new movies as you buy them.

If you want it, let me know and I'll send you over a copy of my Access DB.

Maurice

I use DVD Profiler, its free and works well. Download it at www.intervocative.com. Click on my dvd link below to get a preview.

AsSiMiLaTeD

Here's an attached PDF of what my printer movie list looks like - I just print this and out and slide these pages in to my binder - I update everything about once a month.

I also attached a zip file with my database and the Crystal file.

I'm working on a script now that will allow me to enter the movie title in Access and then have Access go out to IMDB and grab the rest of the movie information, basically how those other movie collector software programs work

faster100

I use my kids, i say.. go get daddy lord of the rings.. they know right where it is and even know how to start the ht up..

Demiurge

I use the same program Maurice uses. It's great. It took a while to enter in all of the UPCs, but I was glad I did. All the information is automatically downloaded and cataloged.

I also keep all of my DVDs in alphabetical order in the racks, so it makes for easy access.

faster100

how many dvd's do you guys have? to need a system like this.. just wondering

Demiurge

I'm running at about 350 right now, but I cut back. I rely on NetFlix a lot more now. Not to mention this year has been pretty bad for DVDs so far.

I should alphabetize all of my CDs and LPs, but that's a lot bigger task.

apc

Those are great, thanks for sharing.

Polkmaniac - do you use your index number as a filing or storage location reference? I've have not tried Access yet, is the Crystal file part of that?

Maurice/Demiurge - did you download the free one and if so, is it a trial version?

PS - I can see a project this weekend based on one of these!

Maurice

APC, I did download the free version and its not a trial. You can upgrade to the full version for a fee, but the free one does more than enough for me.

Faster, I'm running a little over 230 and counting.

AsSiMiLaTeD

As of the last time I ran my report (attached above) I had 316 movies.

I have a routine that I go through whenever I buy a movie:

1 - I make a copy of the movie. Two reasons for this - One, I like to protect my originals from getting scratched. Two, I don't like to deal with all the menus and crap when I want to watch a movie, and I strip all that stuff out when I make a copy - so I just pop the DVD in and it plays with the right options.
2 - I pack the original up and put that on my DVD rack in the closet, and put the copy in the next empty slot in the soft case.
3 - Then I update my database with that movie information at that time (including the new location in the case).

Then I update my movie printout every month or so...

That whole process takes about 30 per movie on average (some longer some shorter), so not too bad.

I also use inkjet printable Taiyo Yuden discs along with an Epson R300 printer that lets me print directly on the CD, I download all my images from cdcovers.com, which are basically perfect replicas of the original DVD prints, so all the DVDs in my case look like the original discs, but the originals are safely put away.

That is my system and it works well for me...

Demiurge

Okay, you win for most anal rententive. I thought I would win that award with the organization.

AsSiMiLaTeD

apc wrote:

Those are great, thanks for sharing.

Polkmaniac - do you use your index number as a filing or storage location reference? I've have not tried Access yet, is the Crystal file part of that?

Crystal Reports is a separate application from Access. It's a $500 reporting application, so it won't be a realistic option unless you already have the app.

If you want to use my Access DB, let me know and I'll build a quick report inside the database itself that you can use. I just use Crystal because I already own it...

The index number is a reference to the location of the movie. I use soft cases to store my DVDs, and that index number identifies where the disc is located in each case. The format is 1-01-01 - case 1, page 1, slot 1.

Applications like the one mentioned work fine. I'm just very particular about how I want my info organized and how I want my printout to look, and find that every program I've tried has some sort of limitation that prevents me from doing something i want.

As I mentioned, if you have a bunch of movies, definitely grab a program like that to get all the details entered for everything you already own. Then work with that program to get the info you want exported to an Excel file and import it in to your DB. Now you'll have complete control over how things are organized and how your printout looks.

The only catch with this approach is now when you enter movies in the Access DB, you'll have to manually copy the information from IMDB over to the record in the database, but that's easy and quick. I'm working on a script to automate that piece.

AsSiMiLaTeD

Demiurge wrote:

Okay, you win for most anal rententive. I thought I would win that award with the organization.

Nah, what it boils down to really is I'm just lazy. The main reason I copy everything is because I just don't like dealing with the menus, language selections, previews and crap when i want to watch a movie. I do all that whhen i make the copy (loose the menus and previews, select DTS if available if not, then DD, etc), and then never have to deal with it again.

I just really hate having to navigate through all that crap when I just want to watch a movie, especially since half the time you can't just bypass it. If I don't want to watch all the previews, I should just be able to hit the menu button and go straight there, but half the time that isn't possible. Then I gotta deal with menus and selecting the right language and sometimes turning off subtitles - the whole thing just pisses me off!!!

The added protection of my original DVDs is abonus, but not really the primary reason for my process.

Demiurge

Polkmaniac wrote:

Nah, what it boils down to really is I'm just lazy. The main reason I copy everything is because I just don't like dealing with the menus, language selections, previews and crap when i want to watch a movie. I do all that whhen i make the copy (loose the menus and previews, select DTS if available if not, then DD, etc), and then never have to deal with it again.

I just really hate having to navigate through all that crap when I just want to watch a movie, especially since half the time you can't just bypass it. If I don't want to watch all the previews, I should just be able to hit the menu button and go straight there, but half the time that isn't possible. Then I gotta deal with menus and selecting the right language and sometimes turning off subtitles - the whole thing just pisses me off!!!

The added protection of my original DVDs is abonus, but not really the primary reason for my process.

Well, you like things your way, and that's a good thing. It's a lot of work, but sounds really organized. Are you burning dual layer or not? I noticed how compressed my DVDs look when I burn them on single layer discs, and that's even with all of the features and other stuff taken off.

petrym

I keep an Excel spreadsheet with these headings:
Title, Year, Time (in minutes), Sound (DD, DTS), Rating, Notes

Then I use functions to add additional "gee-whiz" info:
(as of today)
Total DVDs 400
Total Minutes 51,131
Total Hours 852.1897
Total Days 35.5079
Total Weeks 5.072558
Total Seconds 3,067,883
Total Years 0.097282
Avg per DVD 2.130474
(hours/feature)

Ratings
G = 50
PG = 70
PG-13 = 67
R = 68
NR = 144

Percentage by ratings
G = 12.50%
PG = 17.50%
PG-13 = 16.75%
R = 17.00%
NR = 36.00%

AsSiMiLaTeD

Demiurge wrote:

Well, you like things your way, and that's a good thing. It's a lot of work, but sounds really organized. Are you burning dual layer or not? I noticed how compressed my DVDs look when I burn them on single layer discs, and that's even with all of the features and other stuff taken off.

Well I used to use a transcoding program like DVD Shrink to do all my copying, but wasn't satisfied overall with the results. Now I still use Shrink to strip out all the extra crap I don't want, but save it in uncompressed format in Shrink and use a real encoding engine like CCE to do all the encoding. I've yet to find a DVD where I can tell the difference between the original and the copy using a real encoder. The drawback is that it takes a while to encode the DVD, but I only have to do this on DVDs where the compression is fairly high, maybe 1 out of every 4.

And yes, it's all on single layer Taiyo Yuden media.

AsSiMiLaTeD

I've received several requests via PM for a version of my database that has some reporting functionality built in.

This has proven a more difficult task than I originally thought, as I've never used the reporting function of Access before. it sucks.

Anyway, I did finally get this built in, and it mimics the printout I attached in PDF above for the most part. I also made a couple other changes to make the DB more user-friendly:

1 - I added a main form that opens up when you open the DB file. You have 4 options there: view the movies table, enter a new movie, generate the movie list printout, or manage your genre lookup table.

2 - I hid the basic Access database window that shows all the tables and such. You shouldn't need access to this on a regular basis, but it can be unhidden by pressing F11 in case you need to make any modifications.

Some basic information and instructions:

First, for those of you not familiar with Access - everything is real time. So changes are saved as you make them, you don't ever need to click a save button or anything like that. This also means that you have to pay attention and not just type over stuff when you enter information.

All the movie information is contained in a single 'movie' table, with fields defined below

Location - this is an index field of format xx-yy-z - where x is my case number, y is the page number, and z is the slot on that page where the disk is located.
Title - text field holds the movie name.
Release Year - 4 digit year
Running time - text field so you can use any format you want, I use ## mins (eg 100 mins)
Genre - this field is a drop down controlled by a lookup table. You can still enter data manually here, but it's best to make a choice from the drop down to ensure consistency. You can edit (add, change or remove entries) this table by using the button on the main form referenced above.
Plot - memo field so it'll hold a bunch of information

The DB I'm sending out is my current production version, so it has all my movies loaded. You'll likely want to go in and remove some or all of my entires in that table before you start entering yours. You can do this by clicking on the 'Movie Table' button on the main form and just selecting the records you want to delete and hitting the Delete button. Access will ask you if you're sure, just say yes.

Now you're ready to enter your own movies. just click the button on the main form to get started. The New Movie form will open up. If you look at the record navigation controls at the bottom of that window, you'll notice that it open to a new record. So if you have 316 movies in your database as I do, it'll open up to record 317, which is a new blank record. I programmed it this way so that I don't accidentally overwrite any records when I try to enter a movie.

To print out the list of your movies, clock the 'Movie List printout' button on the main form. This will bring up the report in a window in access. When you right click anywhere inside that window, you'll have several options. You'll want to either print the report as is, or you may choose to export the report to another program and then print or whatever from there. I personally like to either print it directly from access, or export it to Snapshot viewer format and work from there - keep in mind that if you export it to RTF you'll loose some of the formatting like the horizontal lines and such.

Finally, this was compiled in Access 2002. If it doesn't open up for you, let me know and I'll get you a version compatible with your build of Access.

Okay, think that covers it. The zip file is attached.

apc

Thank you.

audiobliss

Wow. This is all just so amazing to me. I don't really have that many movies, but still...this is interesting!

Great database you have set up there, Polkmaniac. It definitely interests me right now, since I've recently started considering a career as DBA or some such. I'll definitely be downloading the zip to play with it! Also, we'll get to see if it's compatible with the new Access in Office 2007.

Nelson57

Another DVD Profiler user here. Library now is up to 733 including a few double dips i.e. extended editions, directors cuts etc.

One of my favorite features is the ability to keep track of who you loan movies to. My friends frequently borrow moives from me. It allows you to track what movie they have, when you loaned it to them, and you can re-enter it when returned.