Get Libra is a program that is free for non-commercial use and it's pretty cool. You can enter all your books, CDs and DVDs to keep track of them. The program has a place for all the pertinent information. You can also tag each with information like fiction, thriller, history, suspense, etc. When you are ready for a good thriller, just put the word "thriller" in the search field and you will be reading or watching your spine-tingling books and/or DVD in no time at all. You can also add information like director, author, and the like and use those to look up items.

Libra will let you enter all the information about your items by hand. You can simply type in the author, director, songs, and other information. But Libra also has a way to make it much easier. If you have a barcode scanner you can use it to scan in the barcode from the back of the book, CD, or DVD.  Libra will automatically fill in all the pertinent information. Its database is not all-encompassing, but it will probably be able to find the information for most of your books, CDs, and DVDs.

If you don't have a barcode scanner, you can use your webcam as a scanner. Just point your webcam at the barcode on the back of books, DVDs or CDs, and Libra will automatically retrieve the product information and fill it in for you. You can also user an old Cue Cat to scan in the barcodes. A Cue Cat is a cheap scanner that was being given away free years ago on a failed promotion. Almost every "techie" person I know has one in their junk drawer. They can still be purchased online for under $10. (See the bottom of this article for a picture and a link.)

Libra not only makes it easy to organize your collections, but it lets you create a colorful catalog of book and/or CD and DVD covers. For a free program, this one is quite impressive and it is downright pretty as well. You can use Libra in Windows XP and/or Vista. It looks good in both operating systems, but in Vista, it is truly remarkable because you can even see a reflection on the display book shelves when you view your collection on screen. The program actually lets you print out a catalog of your collection. You can even export your library to web pages to share with friends. 

The developers of this program also seem very responsive. They continue to improve the program and have a forum where you can ask questions and get responses.

Organization has never been so easy or so cheap!

Date of Review: 3-23-2008

URL: www.getlibra.com