Out of curiousity, when reading a hardcover, do you take the dust jacket off or leave it on? I can never decide which to do.

I leave it on and often use the front inner flap as a bookmark.

I take it off and put the book into a cloth book cover.

Take it off and put it in safe place until I'm finished.

Then I put it back on.

I'm a collector, and don't want my books damaged.

Taking it off helps preserve the dust jacket. But leaving it on can protect the book from water stains or oil from your skin.

I take it off when reading and use a bookmark.

Of course, if it's a real collectable, I don't read that copy.

I take it off. Especially if it's a favorite author.

I use BroDart, a clear, plastic, protective cover. So, I cover the dust jacket with BroDart, then read the book with the cover on.

http://www.shopbrodart.com/contents/bjcs.htm

This is why I use a cloth book jacket.

1. Preserves the dust jacket (I use Brodart covers, but it can wrinkle if handled too much)
2. Protects the book against oil and sweat from my hands
3. Zips shut, protecting the book from dust and other foreign objects while not being read.
4. Built in bookmark
5. Looks nice

So where do you get one at cineman?

Took the jacket off.

take it off, I don't want to mess up the cover

Beaver -

I bought mine at Amazon.com in 1996 (my first internet purchase). I'm sure they still carry them.

Ditto. I've been using these for 15+ years.

What kind do all of you BrodArt users use? There are several different varieties on that site and it's hard to tell what the difference are?

All I'm looking for is a plastic sheet that folds over the dust jacket and covers the book snug, but not sure which one to get.

Any suggestions?

I go cheap with the Just-a-Fold II pre-measured covers. While not "archival" by terminology, I think they're just fine. The paper backing is the same acid free type that the archival covers use, and none of the books I've used them on have lost their lustre over the years. If I had a first edition Maltese Falcon or Confederacy of Dunces, I'd go with archival, but for the bulk of my collection, Just-a-Fold II is just fine.