Book Collector Manual
for Windows edition
Welcome to Book Collector Download and Install Navigating the Main Screen Adding Books How to search your Collection Adding Books Automatically Adding Books Manually Barcode Scanning Adding e-book Files Search Settings Importing from text Managing your Wish List Importing from Windows/XML Field Defaults Editing Books Editing Multiple Books List Items and more Adding Links and Files Update File Links Find Cover Image Managing Pseudonyms Editing List Icons Adding a Box Set Changing the layout Sorting your Collection Custom Field Names Using Folders Custom Views Edit, Merge List Items Customizing Book Collector Activating Connect Sync & Share Linking your books for Connect CLZ Books for iPhone/iPod CLZ Books for Android CLZ Books HD for iPad Loan Manager Printing a Simple List Lists for insurance purposes Using the Filter screen Updating Book Collector The Options Screen Print screen Keyboard Shortcuts Creating a Backup Data Submission Guidelines Lists for insurance purposes Collection Statistics Validating Book Collector Field Reference
Adding Links and Files
Contents:
- Introduction
- The Links Screen
- Online
- Local
- **NEW!!** Template Backdrops - v8 and above
Introduction
Book Collector allows you not only to catalog your collection, but to interact with it as well. You can create links to ebooks as well as add hyperlinks to both online and local sources which can be accessed from within your database. You can also add images, interior art and background images.
Figure 1: Details Template showing the various types of links available
Note: Book Collector does not open your linked files it uses your default Windows software. For example if your default reader for .pdf files is Adobe Acrobat Reader and you click a .pdf link, Book Collector will tell Adobe Acrobat to open the pdf. Find out how to change your Windows default programs here
Back to Contents
The Links Screen
The links screen (Figure 2 below) can be accessed via the Edit Book window. Here you can control which links and hyperlinks will appear in your Details Template. Click the topics below to learn more about the different kinds of links you can create.
Back to Contents
Figure 2: Edit Book > Links
Back to Contents
Online Links
You can create links to webpages which will appear in your book's Detail Template. Figure 3 below shows the icons available when creating an online link.
Figure 3: Onine Link Icons
The icons from left to right:
- Add URL - Link to a website of your choice; clicking the link in your Details Template will open your default browser and display the page.
- Edit URL * - Click to Edit an existing link from the list
- Remove URL * - Click to delete the selected link from the list
- Move Up * - Move the selected link up the list, this changes the position in the Details Template
- Move Down * - Move the selected link down the list, this changes the position in the Details Template
- Open * - Opens the selected link in its default program
N.B. Icons with a * will appear grey if a link is not selected from the main list.
Back to Links
Local Links
Adding a local link allows you to open a file on your computer from within Book Collector. This can be an ebook, audiobook, an author image, or anything else you deem appropriate. You can link to any file on your computer and it will appear in your books Detail Template. Images will also appear embedded (as shown in Figure 1 above) in selected templates. Linked files will open using your default Windows software.
If you have an e-book or audiobook stored on your hard drive you can link it to your database and play it by clicking the link within Book Collector's Detail Template. The book will open the file in your default media player. If you have a lot of e-book/audiobooks you can add them in batches, we have a separate topic explaining this:
Figure 6: Local Link Icons
The icons from left to right:
- Add Interior Art - Add interior art from the book; clicking the link in your Details Template will open a pop up showing the image.
- Add e-book File - Adds a link to an e-book file which will appear as a link in your Details Template. Click the link to open the book.
- Add Audio Book - Adds a link to an audiobook which will appear as a link in your Details Template. Click the link to open the book.
- Add Other File - Create a link to any other type of file on your computer
- Edit * - Here you can change the details, e.g. give it a description and change how it appears in your Detail Template
- Remove * - Click to delete the selected link from the list
- Move Up * - Move the selected link up the list, this changes it's position in the Details Template
- Move Down * - Move the selected link down the list, this changes it's position in the Details Template
- Open * - Opens the selected link in its default program
N.B. Icons with a * will appear grey if a link is not selected from the main list.
Template Backgrounds
Book Collector 8 allows you to specify background images which can be used in your Detail Template. Adding a Backdrop is easy, you can even use Book Collector's Cover Finder to locate a wide variety of HD backdrops.
To add a backdrop image:
- Open the Edit Book screen and click the Covers tab.
- Click the Backdrop tab and you can now add your own image:
- Click Browse to find a local image
- Click Find Online to use our built in Cover Finder to find high resolution images from Google
- Click Acquire to obtain an image from an image scanner (must be setup and selected via the Options menu)
- Click Settings to view the Image Settings screen within Book Collector's main options
To use a backdrop image as a background for your Detail Template you will need to select an appropriate template. You can change your Detail Template by clicking View > Details View Template > Vee 8 > Backdrop
Back to Links
Back to Contents
