Travis McClain

On point 1, I alphabetize by the actual DVD title, not the feature title. I would put The Oliver Stone Collection in the "O" section.

On point 2, I just leave the space. I figure it's some built-in wiggle room that keeps me from having to shift everything to accommodate new acquisitions.

Trevor

There are so many topics in this thread that I feel could have an entire thread devoted just to them. The thread is moving pretty fast and things are being glossed over a bit. Well, at least for me and my wanting to talk out little details and get multiple viewpoints on them.

Manzana just mentioned sets. I love them and buy sets and double/triple/quadruple features all of the time, but I hate them when it comes to organizing.

I usually have them organized separately, two huge shelves double-wide, devoted to just these. But sometimes I decide to file them alphabetically in with all the regular films. I'll go alphabetical by first title for double/triple/etc sets, or alphabetical by boxset name for things like the Burt Lancaster Collection.

But do I file it under 'B' or 'L'?

And for sets that can be easily separated, each film in it's own case, do you toss/store the boxset and file the movies individually? I'm leaning towards doing that. I'm even contemplating making custom cases for each film for the sets that can't be separated easily.

In fact, in my perfect world with more free time, for discs with more than one film per disc, I make copies of the disc so that each film on the disc can be filed alphabetically. Anyone else do that? Or at least think about it? Or am I the silliest person here?

bse

I put the boxset in the closet and file the separate DVDs on the shelf, the only exception being Criterion boxsets stay intact, of course.

Pizza

Can you add images to an Excel doc?

I like going by the last name of an actor/director etc, but I can see the logic of going by the first word. I just don't know if I would always remember that first word without looking a title up but I would always remember a person's name.

If it was me, I'd make a second case for the additional film and put on the cover "see blank for disc." For example, "Theater of Blood/Madhouse." File the disc under "Theater of Blood" and put a blank case or card under "Madhouse" that says "see "Theater of Blood." That way you don't have to buy a second disc if you don't want to but you still have a spot for both films.

milo bloom

Mine's not nearly so involved as everyones' here, but I still get comments from people. My wife's friends call our collection "the vault", and I'm only at about 1000 titles. I can't find the pictures of the shelves on the computer, so I'll have to take some more to post.

The basic organization is the first three shelves are "everything but..." in alphabetical order. The "but" being a shelf of anime and a shelf of animated (it's a fine distinction, and I find myself questioning it fairly often).

terrycloth

i have extreme ocd with my horror collection. my fav directors get put together (think 5 total romero, fulci, argento, h.g. lewis, ryan nicholas) then all my troma, followed by blue underground titles, then my fav genres zombies, slashers, and torture/gore (toe tags films guinea pig, cannibals, etc) then remainder is alphabetical. with horror tv on the bottom. i find it simple, but frustrates my friends that try to look for something.


oddly enough my non genre movies are just thrown together half in the wrong way. might add a spot for westerns and godzilla titles as last months challenge addicted to em.

Pizza

There's the answer: sort DVDs by DVDtalk movie challenges!

Trevor

I used to do this actually, but forgot about that method. Thanks for the reminder! Much easier to do this than to buy or make another copy of the hundreds of discs this would take.

Of course, I don't have enough shelf space as it is, so I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to put this into practice.
Yes, last name is probably better remembered than the first.

If I ever have the shelf space, I'll do the above trick with all these type of boxset films also, making an empty case for each film title.

Of course, then there are the random boxsets that are difficult to file. Random example, not an actual title maybe, but something like Warner Bros Salutes the Musicals of the 40s. I'd like to file it under what I'd remember it by, musicals, since I never think in terms of studios. But I file it under 'W', and then search for it everytime I need it.
I've been tempted to do that many times!

Travis McClain

Since you've segregated them anyway, I would suggest going by the last name of the person for whom the box set is themed. I would, of course, just place the entire box in the "B" section.

I keep everything in its own box. But then, I defer to the title of the DVD/BD rather than the title of the feature. I also only have a few sets where it would make a difference anyway. Superman I-IV are going to be next to one another whether they're in the Christopher Reeve Superman Collection box set or not; the only difference is that I've got them in the "C" section for "Christopher." It's pretty easy to spot from its spine, so I'm not worried about it getting overlooked.

I wouldn't duplicate the discs, but you could consider printing custom artwork for thinpak cases to put in as placeholders. They would theoretically direct you (or whomever) to the location of the actual disc.

hindolio

im inclined to box sets going together, all alphabetized and by last name (when applicable). works very good for oliver stone or tyrone power sets, but the negative side to it is something like the controversial classics sets. cant win em all i guess.

Manzana

I've never tried that, but Excel is pretty amazing, so I'd assume there's a way. I know you can add charts. They all just end up being embedded objects with an anchor in a particular cell.

slop101

I'll be posting some pics later today, but I figure I'll mark this thread by saying how I organize.

I personally hate how flat shelving--for 500+ DVDs--against an entire wall looks - it looks so cheap and gaudy. But I do have close to 2K dvd/blu-rays! So to combat the unattractive aesthetic of a flat, spread-out display, I have 3 spinning towers, which aren't nearly as much as an eyesore as a whole wall of DVD shelves would be. So, while they take up more 3-dimensional space, they only take up one-quarter of the wall-space they would if they were spread out flat.

The first two tower/racks are all movies, organize alphabetically. The 3rd tower's first few shelves are music/concerts by artist name, followed by TV shows for the rest of that tower's shelves, organized alphabetically. And on top or each tower, I've arranged most of the box-sets, which might look like a game of Jenga, but they're easy enough to get at.

I also conserve a lot of space by putting multiple discs within the same case - I'll explain later with some pics.

It's pretty much the tidiest I can manage such a huge collection while still making everything relatively accessible.

TheNightFlier

So I just got a 100 pack of the thin dvd cases from Meritline. The quality is ok. Does anyone know of any places to get high quality thinpaks?

Trevor

I usually order mine from Shop4tech. They are on some of the referral sites like Bing for cashback, and offer monthly coupons of 15-20% off your total order.

TheNightFlier

Thanks

A 100 for 18 bucks plus free shipping wasn't a bad deal, the cases just feel a little on the flimsy side though.

fiction

I use my laptop as my main organization tool. I have a typed list of every recording I own, but I was too lazy to do a database. Instead, I organize with a picture file. I find or take a picture of the exact cover I own and also the back if there are extras that I'm interested in. If it's a DVR, I find or make cover art, but put a capital D after the title to remind me that it's a DVR.

Once you have the pics in one folder, you can create dozens of subfolders: Christmas, Actor, Year Made, Year Depicted in Movie, Pretty Scenery. You can also put the same movie in multiple categories. I enjoying being able to browse through my virtual dvd collection.

Trevor

That's pretty cool, Fiction.

taco5

I've been wanting to get out here and post some pictures but unfortunately a tragedy (although small but a tragedy all the same) fell upon me a few weeks ago in my basement rec room. After days of heavy rain I came home to almost a foot of water throughout the entire basement/rec room. Needless to say I was devastated to say the least. Fortunately most of my collection was spared but I did loose some valuables that were sitting low or on the floor. Before I get blasted by anyone about leaving these type of collectables on the floor we NEVER had water in the basement/rec room at all. This was a freak thing where the sump pump was working fine. The ball and rod came loose from the rod guide and the assembly in turn cocked and was not letting the ball rise with the water and kicking on the sump pump. I am in the process of putting everything back and or replacing cabinets, furniture, etc. Once I get everything back together, I'll post some pictures of my storage setups/solutions.

One good thing that did come out of this is that I was able to start putting my collection back together in a way that makes it a little easier for me to find things. TV sets together, more than one version of a title together & certain series' together. Only thing I did not do (like I see some of you guys did) was break down each genre and put them together.

Another bright side that came out of this was that I came across alot of bonus discs that I forgot I had and will start updating my list here and on my computer.

And no, my home owners insurance did not cover anything from clean-up to replacing lost/damaged goods!

Trevor

^ Sorry for your loss there Taco. Time to up my insurance!

snausages

Would you be able to share a screen capture of it with us? I am always looking for new ideas on how to organize my collection as right now I can 30% of the time find them LOL.

I'm so sorry to hear that taco5 I could only imagine the pain and angst. I am glad that most of your items were fine. That sucks your home owners' insurance didn't cover anything. Perhaps time to shop around for better insurance deal.

Trevor

Taco, let us know what you lost. If I have doubles, they're yours.

taco5

Thanks! I'll get a list together this weekend.

taco5

Funny thing is we have the top of the line homeowners but they do not cover water damage that is considered "Act of God" sorta speak. If it was a water heater or something along those lines it would have been covered... to an extent. Could not really see me putting in a claim for a damaged DVD boxset.

The Man with the Golden Doujinshi

An umbrella policy is the way to go if you can afford it.

hindolio

arg one worst scenario nightmare indeed. glad you are looking at potential bright sides though