Play Book Tag discussion
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Q &A: Transitioning from Shelfari
Barbara wrote: "I've been going back and forth between GR and Shelfari. I just went to see what I might have on my TBR shelf by using multiple tags on Shelfari - my initials and the WWII tag. Guess what? The tag l..."Barbara, here's what I do.
Pick a book, any book. Click on any tag in that book. Click on filter with multiple tags. Just type over the random tag and type in what you want. Or, pick a book you know has your initials and start there.
Does this make sense?
Denizen wrote: "I would use the tags on Shelfari to note why I added a book to my TBR - if I found it on a specific list such as the Booker longlist or which Shelfarian's review piqued my interest. Then when I hov..."You have an unlimited number of shelves. I have a couple of shelves that are related to recommendations from podcasts or books in the "tournament of books" or 1001 books before you die series. When you look at your "to read" shelf, you can see the other shelves that it is on OR you can just go to that shelf and see all the books on it.
Denizen wrote: "The read shelf has a spot for notes and recommender if you select them in shelf settings but I can't find a way to put that on my TBR. ."I have been using those fields in the review area, even if the book is on my TBR and not read. Any notes and who recommended then show up on my books page in the section where the review will go once I read it. I have begun to think of this section not so much as "review" but as my individual information.
FYI: I was one who supposedly had my books "successfully" imported from Shelfari. I looked at a couple of books to ensure they moved. What I didn't notice until yesterday was that I had some duplicated books, some books moved over marked as read but no rating or review, and some moved over with tags and some did not.I went through my who "read" list last night to make sure reviews that I definitely wanted to keep were included.
I may be slow to the game and be the only one out there who didn't realize it. But, in the event others don't know it I wanted to give you the heads up before Shelfari shut down.
I am sure that someone has asked this but I can't find it. Can you and if you can, how do you strike, put a line through, or make words bold? Do you do it the same way as Shelfari?
SouthWestZippy wrote: "I am sure that someone has asked this but I can't find it. Can you and if you can, how do you strike, put a line through, or make words bold? Do you do it the same way as Shelfari?"Yes, it is the standard html tags --- above the text box (where you type your comments) there is the (some html is ok) ---- it's not ovbious, but you can click on that and get what's available.
Just to elaborate on JoLene's answer a little more, SWZ, yes, you can use the same code you used on Shelfari. But now, there are more things you can do using HTML.When you see the comment box, you can see everything you can do by clicking on the teensy tiny words just above the comment box, on the right hand corner, that read (some html is ok). That will open a box of all the html you can use.
Anita wrote: "Just to elaborate on JoLene's answer a little more, SWZ, yes, you can use the same code you used on Shelfari. But now, there are more things you can do using HTML.When you see the comment box, yo..."
THANK YOU! Very helpful. Off to test it out.
Denizen wrote: "I would use the tags on Shelfari to note why I added a book to my TBR - if I found it on a specific list such as the Booker longlist or which Shelfarian's review piqued my interest. Then when I hov..."Denizen, in Shelfari, when you add books, you add / create your own tags, yea? It's similar here too on GR, when you add books on to your to-read shelves, you can also then tick the shelves (aka tags) you'd want the book to be on.
There is a drop down menu (the arrow right next to 'want to read') where you can tick as many 'shelves' as you'd like OR if the shelf is not set up yet, right at the bottom of the drop-down menu, you can 'add shelf' right there and then.
Then when you view your bookshelf on GR, you just choose on your setting to show shelves and it will show all the shelves your books are on, like this...
I think this is what you're after?
ps: sorry the pic is blurry not sure why... but I think you get the picture ;)
SWZ (and comments 58,59,60). Most of those html codes work the same!
For strikethrough, though, at shelfari, I used the entire word "strike". Here it's only the letter "s". The entire word wouldn't work for me here (I'm not sure what is the correct html for that, though, so maybe s is it! I do know that I also use the entire word "strike" over at LT, but that didn't work for me here).
Many of my tags.shelves haven't made it here, based on the drop down list I get.
Karin wrote: "Many of my tags.shelves haven't made it here, based on the drop down list I get."Karin, the dropdown list you get on your personal shelf is based on shelves you have added. So, if it is not there it is because you need to add it!
If you go to your personal bookshelf and find the book you want to add tags to, then scan over to the right you will see the column "shelves." Under that column, if you have any tags already added, they will be listed there.
If you want to add new tags, click on the [edit] button. You will see a list of the tags you already have on your shelf and you can simply check any that apply. There is a convenient little search box as well so you can jump around quickly.
If you do not have the shelf on your personal bookshelf yet, then in the dropdown options, there is a link that says "add new shelf." Click that, enter the shelf, and voila!
Now, that book will be tagged with your new shelf and that shelf will be available in your dropdown menu for future books.
Nicole wrote: "Karin wrote: "Many of my tags.shelves haven't made it here, based on the drop down list I get."Karin, the dropdown list you get on your personal shelf is based on shelves you have added. So, if i..."
Thanks. That is going to be hard, then, since I don't have all my shelves memorized and I used to rely on being able to see all of mine when I tagged on Shelfari to reduce the number of new ones I made.
Karin wrote: "That is going to be hard, then, since I don't have all my shelves memorized and I used to rely on being able to see all of mine when I tagged on Shelfari to reduce the number of new ones I made. ..."Karin, you can download a spreadsheet of your Shelfari bookshelf into a CSV file from the Red Banner of Death. In that spreadsheet is a list of all of the tags for each of your books.
You have to transfer them by hand, and it is a total PITA, but it does get the job done. I have been working on mine bit by bit and am about 1/3 of the way through. I only have about 600 books on my shelf though, so if you have more it could be quite the endeavor.
However, just having the spreadsheet is nice because then the information is not lost.
Nicole wrote: you can download a spreadsheet of your Shelfari bookshelf into a CSV file ."It appears that the CSV file only downloads to GR. Is there a way to save that file to your own computer? I can't find how to do it. It looks like I've lost up to 1,000 books I had on Shelfari. :-(
Barbara wrote: It appears that the CSV file only downloads to GR. Is there a way to save that file to your own computer?..."
You should be able to open in excel (or similar) and save as ...
Barbara wrote: "It appears that the CSV file only downloads to GR. Is there a way to save that file to your own computer? I can't find how to do it. It looks like I've lost up to 1,000 books I had on Shelfari. :-( ..."Oh man! I swear not too long ago there was an option to download into a CSV file. Actually, I know there was because I got an email with all of the spreadsheets attached.
Does anyone else know if they took this option away? I cannot seem to figure out anymore how to get a file emailed to you and not have it auto-imported to Shelfari.
You can download the tsv file directly to your computer from Shelfari.Go to account settings, then shelf, and click download. Everything you need will be in spreadsheet form.
Sara, I just tried that way too and now I am directed back to a page that tells me that it will directly download it to GR and there is no other option that I see. Maybe I am just missing something, but I just spent a solid 25 minutes on Shelfari and still cannot figure it out.
Maybe Shelfari knows that my account has already downloaded the bookshelf and it is no longer an option?
This one has me stumped.
15 minutes, not 25. I am not that crazy.
Cora wrote: "Denizen wrote: "The read shelf has a spot for notes and recommender if you select them in shelf settings but I can't find a way to put that on my TBR. ."Cora wrote: I have been using those fields in the review area, even if the book is on my TBR and not read. Any notes and who recommended then show up on my books page in the section where the review will go once I read it. I have begun to think of this section not so much as "review" but as my individual information.
That helped a lot, Cora. Under the review section is a notes section. Notes are private which I like. When I go to my TBR list, I can hover over the title to see a description of the book and can then go to the other end of the row and click on "edit view". That takes me to another page where I can see my private note. Hitting the back arrow takes me back to the same book on my TBR list. That's reasonably workable.
Nicole wrote: "Sara, I just tried that way too and now I am directed back to a page that tells me that it will directly download it to GR and there is no other option that I see. Maybe I am just missing somethi..."
Huh. I did it last week with no problem and my shelf was already here. I am out if ideas.
Tien wrote: "Denizen wrote: "I would use the tags on Shelfari to note why I added a book to my TBR - if I found it on a specific list such as the Booker longlist or which Shelfarian's review piqued my interest...."Thanks, Tien!
Nicole wrote: "Barbara wrote: "It appears that the CSV file only downloads to GR. Is there a way to save that file to your own computer? I can't find how to do it. It looks like I've lost up to 1,000 books I had ..."1. On Pink Banner of Death, click 'Learn more'
2. On next page, scroll to the bottom and instead of 'Move to Goodreads', click the 'Download your data in a CSV file'
3. This is a good time to grab a beer or a nice glass of wine because... you now have to wait for Shelfari to e-mail you some files. One of those files is called 'library.csv'. This is the file that contains your book data, (ISBNs, titles, your ratings and reviews, etc).
Incidentally, another file will contain every post you have ever made in the Shelfari discussion groups.
HTH!
EtA: Please note that this is a different operation from the TSV file download that you access via your Shelfari account page.
Sara wrote: "You can download the tsv file directly to your computer from Shelfari.Go to account settings, then shelf, and click download. Everything you need will be in spreadsheet form."
I did it so it's still working? Though I haven't previously bothered (my shelf on GR is more up to date)... maybe it was just down for a day or so?
I don't have all my shelves memorized and I used to rely on being able to see all of mine when I tagged on Shelfari to reduce the number of new ones I made. ..."Any tags (i.e. shelves) I add to a book on my own shelf, I am in "edit" mode for the book. I can click the drop-down menu for the tags and they are all listed there in alphabetical order. It's not as pretty, but you can always scroll through (or just start typing) to see if you have already added a shelf. Scrolling through also gives you ideas of what you've already tagged things and if you want to use that tag for the book you're currently editing. Does that make sense? Am I even answering your question!?
Nicole wrote: "Sara, I just tried that way too and now I am directed back to a page that tells me that it will directly download it to GR and there is no other option that I see. .."That is not good... :-( I was going to also download my own tsv (in addition to the csv I already have) + download both the PBT and Author Author shelf this way... Those email addresses for PBT and AA shelves are old.
"I did it so it's still working?"Whew! That's a relief!
Nicole wrote: "Sara, I just tried that way too and now I am directed back to a page that tells me that it will directly download it to GR and there is no other option that I see. Maybe I am just missing somethi..."
Nicole, if you follow the instructions I posted above, (message #77), it will take you to a page that says, "We are exporting your data in a CSV. We will email you to let you know when the export is complete. Until then, why not curl up with a good book?"
Below that are three links:
1. Visit Goodreads
2. Export your data to Goodreads
3. Frequently Asked Questions'
Do not click any of those links! The export is already in progress and will be e-mailed to you. I don't remember how long I waited but it was several days. The attachments they send you contain a lot more information than what you get with the TSV export under the 'Shelf' tab in your Shelfari account settings.
EtA: Sorry Nicole, I see now that you already went through this process and it was someone else that was asking how to get a CSV file from Shelfari... (oops! ;)
ScoLgo wrote: "Nicole wrote: "Barbara wrote: "It appears that the CSV file only downloads to GR. Is there a way to save that file to your own computer? I can't find how to do it. It looks like I've lost up to 1,0..."Found it and got the file, I'm not sure if it is downloading or not. I'm working on it. I will not give up! It is interferring with my reading, commenting on books and being with the PBTers for the tags, etc. I'll get there though.
This is a stupid question, but I'm not a techie. What is the difference between a CSV file and a TSV file? I only know about PDF's.
Ghost of a Rose wrote: "This is a stupid question, but I'm not a techie. What is the difference between a CSV file and a TSV file? I only know about PDF's."I have NO idea! I only know that I wish they worked.
Ok so this is clearly obvious to everyone else but how do you quote someone else's comment in your comment? Are you just writing So-and-so wrote and then putting a quote in italics or is there some better way to do it! I'm so lost here!
If you select "reply" under a specific comment you want to reply to, GR automatically does what you describe. If I want to reference something specific in the comment I am replying to, then I just copy it and replace the language that GR chose.
Nicole wrote: "If you select "reply" under a specific comment you want to reply to, GR automatically does what you describe. "Oooh yes it does! Thank you! I'm very slow at figuring things out over here but step by step!
I should add that that feature doesn't seem to work through the app. I can't figure out of to reply to a specific comment unless I am on an actual computer.
Ghost of a Rose wrote: "This is a stupid question, but I'm not a techie. What is the difference between a CSV file and a TSV file? I only know about PDF's."I think that CSV is comma-separated values and TSV is tab-separated values.
Basically, when data is exported, these are a couple of choices for separating each piece of data so that when the data is imported somewhere else, the system knows where to parse it.
Not sure that actually helps, but that's my very basic understanding.
So data that is in columns in Excel for example, will be exported to a file of text where each piece of column data will now be separated by commas (or tabs).
Anita wrote: "Ghost of a Rose wrote: "This is a stupid question, but I'm not a techie. What is the difference between a CSV file and a TSV file? I only know about PDF's."I think that CSV is comma-separated val..."
Today I stumbled across my old TSV file from 2014 when I was looking for something else, but since I already moved that one, there's no point. This year I only got CSV files.
Hope wrote: "Nicole wrote: "If you select "reply" under a specific comment you want to reply to, GR automatically does what you describe. "Oooh yes it does! Thank you! I'm very slow at figuring things out ove..."
Good to know!
Yeah, me too!And thanks for the info on CSV and TSV files, everyone. It makes sense, you explained it well.
There are some extensions which have been written for the Chrome browser that I use a lot here at Goodreads.Goodreads right-click
This extension allows you to search Goodreads from anywhere on the web. Simply highlight a title and/or author, right click, and select Search Goodreads. You can search from here in Goodreads this way as well, which you might want to do when someone posts but doesn't use the add book/author feature.
bbCodeInsert
This extension will help you with html tags. You probably don't need to use it for bold or italics, but it sure can help with blockquotes, href, and adding images. This extension was developed for GR by request, but I believe it is also available for Firefox users.
Available Goodreads
This extension will show you in your My Books and on the book page whether your library, if it uses Overdrive, has a particular title and whether there are holds. It will show for both ebooks and audiobooks. A recent enhancement gives you the option to also have it provide this information on listopia, popular books, shelves, and author pages.
I use the first two of these extensions everyday - and Available Goodreads helps my wallet.
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "There are some extensions which have been written for the Chrome browser that I use a lot here at Goodreads.The Available Goodreads is just wonderful for me since I am an avid library user! I'm looking forward to checking out the others too. Thanks for this!
I have a headache. This whole discussion just shows me how NON-tech I am!
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "There are some extensions which have been written for the Chrome browser that I use a lot here at Goodreads.So do I need to download these or somehow turn them on in Chrome to use them? Chrome is my default browser. I think these look helpful!
UPDATE: Ok, I'm so silly. I see you conveniently linked them for me so I can click on it and add it. HOW NICE!!!
Is there a way to get rid of a shelf? I have a few misspelled shelves I'd like to get rid of but I have no idea how to.
Rachel wrote: "Is there a way to get rid of a shelf? I have a few misspelled shelves I'd like to get rid of but I have no idea how to."Yes. In the upper left of My Books is "edit" to the right of bookshelves. On that page are all of your shelves and to the left of each shelf name is an "x" which will delete that shelf and all of the books on it.
While we're talking about shelves, you can also make a shelf sortable. I think the To Read shelf defaults this way, but you can change that or add sorting to any shelf. For instance, you might decide to have a shelf for one of your longer series and want that shelf sorted in series order. On the edit shelves page, click the box "sortable" for that shelf. I can't remember if that automatically makes your sort by position or not. If that isn't the first field for that shelf when you've finished editing shelves, go up to the box "settings" and make sure "position" is one of your column settings, then set that as your default sort for that shelf. NOW, you can rearrange the books on that shelf to appear in the proper order.I think it took more to type this out than it does to do it. ;-)
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: Yes. In the upper left of My Books is "edit" to the right of..."Thank you! I see I can also rename shelves. That will help with my tendency towards typos :-)
Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Rachel wrote: "Is there a way to get rid of a shelf? I have a few misspelled shelves I'd like to get rid of but I have no idea how to."Yes. In the upper left of My Books is "edit" to the right of..."
Thanks; couldn't find a way to do that on Shelfari, so there's one plus.
Play Book Tag
Books mentioned in this topic
There are Little Kingdoms: Stories (other topics)The Lilac Bus (other topics)
The Execution of Private Slovik (other topics)
North (other topics)
Tess of the D’Urbervilles (other topics)
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One of Goodreads experts, like Michael should answer that but my guess if you post the picture to your pictures you could add it.