Import list of ISBN numbers into print library feature

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Comments

  • Wayne Moore
    Wayne Moore Member Posts: 5
    Excellent idea. This would be helpful.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    a CSV import should be exportable from most 3rd party applications that document this. Even just a raw, single-column list of either short or long ISBNs could be provided and Logos just executes the same searches the normal engine uses in batches. The batches would be used to not overload the system and maybe produce a list at the end of ISBNs that were not found with the auto-match along with any other relevant date you wish to provide.
  • Jeremy Scott
    Jeremy Scott Member Posts: 13
    Yes. Adding a list of ISBNs rather than individually would be great. I have my print library listed in Librarything.com and I could easily export my library and it would be great to import into Logos.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    I use Librarything, this option is an obvious enhancement.
  • Phil Miller
    Phil Miller Member Posts: 38 ✭✭✭
    Wow, it has been almost two years since I initiated this feature request, and since then 215 of you have jumped on board asking for essentially the same thing.  What initially seemed to be a straight forward request apparently is not as easy as it sounds.  I inquired last week on the monthly update webinar if there was any plans to implement this feature, and unfortunately the response was a weak "maybe".  So I decided to no longer wait for the feature to be added and spent the weekend attempting to do it myself.  It wasn't as easy as this feature request would be, but it was doable, and the last thing I wanted to do was to manually rescan each book, since I had already done that into LibraryThing.

    If you have an Apple computer and an iPad, this method may work for you as well.  I exported my list of print books out of LibraryThing into a spreadsheet.  Keep in mind, the exported spreadsheet places brackets around each ISBN number, so you'll have to use the replace feature in excel to strip the brackets off from around the ISBN numbers (takes less than a minute).  With the Logos app loaded up on the iPad, I selected the "Print Library ISBN Scanner" option, and then once in the "Add To Print Library" screen, select the "123" tab to manually add an ISBN number.  At this point is where the Apple Universal Clipboard does the magic.  In the spreadsheet on my macbook pro, I select the cell with the first ISBN number and then press COMMAND+C to copy the ISBN number to the (universal) clipboard.  Then on the iPad, I press COMMAND+V to paste the ISBN number into the ISBN field and hit enter.  Alternatively, if you don't have an external keyboard on your iPad, you can force touch in the ISBN field and then select the paste option.

    This option actually went pretty quick and I made it through about 400 books in 5-6 hours.  I had alot of books where it recognized the ISBN number and knew the title/author of the book, but couldn't make a definitive match with a Logos book.  In those instances, it gave 4-5 possible options for the match, and I would say 30-40% of the time one of the options listed was a match that I could select.  Given the needed intervention for the unmatched books, I could see where the requested feature may not be as straight forward as originally thought and would require some extra development to provide a way to reconcile all the unmatched titles on import.

    Hopefully this method will help others get their print libraries added sooner than later.  Now that my print library is part of my Logos, it has been enjoyable and helpful to search for things in my print library.
  • Deborah
    Deborah Member Posts: 2
    i agree
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    I'd love to see this feature as well
  • hjsmithjr50
    hjsmithjr50 Member Posts: 19 ✭✭
    Agreed

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