Comicbase software worth getting?

[Paladin]

Got 8 thou. catalogued on paper. Thinking about getting Comicbase from Bill Cole to catalogue my books. Worth getting? Other software suggestions? Should I save the 100 bucks for more books ?

[The_Man_Of_Steel]

Another board member asked me in a PM: " "Talk to me about “Comic Base 6” do you like it? What does it do for you?"

 

Here is my response:

 

"Do I like it? No...I love it, and enough to try and convince a friend that he NEEDS it! My goal here is to give you a wealth information about it and provide you web links to get you started on your quest for the best Comic Book DATABASE, and the closest thing to a comic book encyclopedia your likely to ever find. ComicBase is comparable to OverStreet for the breadth of information for nearly every North American comic book. But before I give you more detailed information...

 

Here is the story of my quest for comic collection management software. After making a brief list with MicroSoft Word, it occured to me how long it would take for me to manually create a comic book inventory list (which changes frequently). So I decided to search eBay for software to manage my collection. I searched with the words "Comic Software" and to my surprise, I came up with a good number of results. I started looking further into it by checking out the cheap $10-20 "collection management" software offered on eBay by different sellers. I almost purchased one of them, and then it occured to me that, I might regret the purchase. I know $10-20 is not a lot to loose, but it adds up real quick, especially after the shipping charges. If I tried out 2 different programs, I might be out about $40, and I cannot afford to throw away money, and being the intenet security geek I am, I didn't want to take the chance of potential Trojan Horse baggage. My reasoning there (which could be flawed) is that the most widely known/used Comic Collection management software is the least likely to have Spyware and or harmful Trojan Horse (A type of PC "virus", commonly used by "hackers" to attack or steal information) baggage. So I started thinking, and I remembered seeing an offer for Comic collection management software at BCE Mylar.com , but I thought the price was a bit high, but from my searching it appeared that "ComicBase" is the "only game in town". Looking to verify my "most widely known/used" theory, I pulled out the latest OverStreet Price Guide, and sure enough I found a BCE Mylar.com advertisement offering "ComicBase". From there I decided to look into it further by going directly to the ComicBase web site. After browsing the site, and learning more, I wanted to know if it's exactly what I was looking for, so I decided to download the 4.2 MB ComicBase 7 User Guide/Mannual Please note: This file requires Adobe Acrobat Reader. After reading the mannual, I knew that ComicBase was exactly what I was looking for. BCE Mylar.com had the best deal for a new copy of ComicBase, but I decided to look for ComicBase 6 on eBay at a cheaper price, and I won a "like new" copy of the program for $50. Seemed like a good deal to me, a really good deal, and it still would be!

 

To the best of my knowledge ComicBase is the only program with a built in DATABASE of comics, not to mention the database is like OverStreet in the .

 

Quote from the ComicBase web site: "The leading program for comic collectors. ComicBase a professional inventory system on CD-ROM for your comic book collection with cross-indexed descriptions of over 200,000 issues, with price histories for the past four years. Unlike other programs, it can automatically price your comics according to their condition and lets you take note of autographed copies, special covers, multiple printings and of course, your cost, in your inventory.

 

ComicBase also creates price labels and a wide variety of reports to help you buy, sell and evaluate your collection. Best of all, however, may be its industrial-strength search feature, which lets you find comic-book characters' first appearances, second appearances, deaths, origin stories, or trace a certain storyline or find work by favorite writers and artists."

 

And here is a ComicBase Fact Sheet Please note: This file requires Adobe Acrobat Reader

 

And here is the introduction from the ComicBase 6 manual (please note: this introduction is from the previous version)

 

Quote: "Thanks for purchasing ComicBase, the finest software available for people who love comic books. ComicBase comprises an encyclopedia of comic books, a database for organizing and managing your collection, and a price guide with comic book values for the past four years. It includes reviews, as well as detailed notes on over 13,000 titles, combined with full-color illustrations of cover art. ComicBase tells you what each title is about, how it relates to other titles, and helps you find special issues by first appearances, origin stories, or by the writer

or artist who wrote for it.

 

ComicBase is also a professional tool for organizing and managing your collection. It keeps track of which comics you have, charts your collection’s value over time, and prints a wide variety of reports to let you manage your collection like a pro. These include detailed price lists, collection statistics, checklists, and much more. You can also use ComicBase to create price labels or automatically post your books to an online auction site.

 

ComicBase is updated regularly. We’ve combined our research with that of Comics Buyer’s Guide to cover more titles, both mainstream and independent, than any other guide. We’ve also expanded our pricing research, including sales at retail stores, conventions and online auction sites. The result is the most realistic, hard-hitting price guide available.

 

ComicBase 6 is also available in a Deluxe Edition which includes a special bonus disk, containing thousands of additional cover art scans, interviews with comic book creators, and movie previews."

 

I also purchased the bonus discs because it would take thousands of dollars to buy all the books (maybe millions of dollars), and thousands of hours to scan them. I can look at covers of books I'll never own or want to own! What a burden, I guess somebody must bear it!

 

Your Fellow Comic Collector,

 

M.O.S.