Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

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How to get rid of book collections

Poll ended at Fri, 6. Sep 19, 21:44

Chuck 'em in recycling
1
6%
Sell them online
0
No votes
Donate them
15
94%
 
Total votes: 16

exogenesis
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Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by exogenesis » Thu, 22. Aug 19, 21:44

Books are just pages of cellulose with printed ink, right?

Kindle & other electronic books have taken over completely, right?

So why am I trying to get rid of these books in any way except chucking them in the paper/cardboard recycling section at the local tip.

Like chucking out the complete Terry Pratchett & Iain Banks set, many hardback, but all on Kindle now.

Why should I feel the need to make any effort to e.g. donate them to libraries, or sell them to on-line book 'movers' ?

I'm not sure I do, but somehow feel I should,
do I just dump them or bother to find a new owners ?

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by Gavrushka » Thu, 22. Aug 19, 21:52

I've been toying with the idea of getting hold of outdoor bookshelves, and inviting the neighbours to help themselves, much as if it were a community library. Thing is, I'd struggle to recycle books unless they were in too poor a state for others to read.

I think it'd be uneconomic to try selling online as eBay as a few professional 2nd hand booksellers who seem to sell books for cheaper than Joe Public can post them.

IF you've any hardbacks, your local library may be interested?
“Man, my poor head is battered,” Ed said.

“That explains its unusual shape,” Styanar said, grinning openly now. “Although it does little to illuminate just why your jowls are so flaccid or why you have quite so many chins.”

“I…” Had she just called him fat? “I am just a different species, that’s all.”

“Well nature sure does have a sense of humour then,” Styanar said. “Shall we go inside? It’d not be a good idea for me to be spotted by others.”

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by Alan Phipps » Thu, 22. Aug 19, 22:55

They also make great donations to charity shops, to village/school fete bookstalls, or even activity or recreation centres that run book exchange schemes. I would recommend trying to keep author/series sets intact rather than letting them scatter piecemeal though.
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Observe
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by Observe » Thu, 22. Aug 19, 23:18

Well vinyl records are making a comeback. Probably printed books will too before long. Old books could be worth something someday. Also, a nuclear war EMP might wipe out all the Kindle readers. Something to keep in mind...

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by RegisterMe » Thu, 22. Aug 19, 23:43

One of my local tube stations, completely on its own initiative, has a set of "book swap shelves". The deal is you take a book you leave a book. It's not my main station, but I have, often, seen random people looking through it, and sometimes people leaving stuff there quickly kind of like "well I took one last night on my way home, here's one by way of return on my way to work".

Brilliant idea.

Books, as in paper based ones, are far from dead. They are, and will remain, incredibly important.

Please don't throw them away. I don't care as long as you don't throw them away :).
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by pjknibbs » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 08:50

RegisterMe wrote:
Thu, 22. Aug 19, 23:43
Please don't throw them away. I don't care as long as you don't throw them away :).
Yeah, this. A Kindle doesn't have the ambience that a shelf full of books does!

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by RegisterMe » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 11:06

Yeah, I have an use a Kindle, I think they're great. But I feel kind of weird if I go to somebody's home and there are no books on shelves.
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by CBJ » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 11:50

I don't think books are going to become obsolete just yet. While devices such as the Kindle are great, there is something about reading (and holding, and owning) an actual book that it doesn't quite match up to. Usually I'd be happy to admit that this could be just nostalgic nonsense, but since there are still plenty of children who feel the same way about them, books probably still have at least a generation left in them.

I agree with the people above who suggest donating them to a charity shop (recent donations of books I've taken to one have been gratefully received) or adding them to a local free book exchange scheme. Or just keep them; bookshelves make a home look more lived-in.

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by Ronald Sandoval » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 12:40

so i read in the news just this week how some person left an armchair and a large number of books at a bus stop !
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exogenesis
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by exogenesis » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 16:06

Well, it's clear that people think I should take them to a library or charity shop,

I gave the local library a ring first... but they don't want books 'under 2 years old' & they're not really keen anyway.

British Heart Foundation sound like they want them - I'll find out shortly...


I'll guess I'll just have to watch out for the EMP from a nuclear war, in case it kills my Kindle

I'm agreeing with the sentiment here, books are 'nicer' in many ways,
but those 2kg plus hardbacks of Iain Banks are darned tiring to hold up when reading on your back in bed :)

Just want all that bookshelf space back...

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by pjknibbs » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 16:47

exogenesis wrote:
Fri, 23. Aug 19, 16:06
Just want all that bookshelf space back...
What are you going to have on the bookshelves, if not books? Or do you mean the bookshelves themselves are going?

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by fiksal » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 16:51

do you not have those little reading boxes outside in the neighborhoods?
if you'd, you could drop them there

we have a second hand store/organization around us, which I think would take books just as well. Do you have something like this around?

maybe a 'Garage sale'?

Indeed, libraries probably won't go for commonly found and too used books.
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by RegisterMe » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 18:02

Do you have any local schools that might be interested?
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by Sorkvild » Fri, 23. Aug 19, 19:20

Recently I donated a large cardboard full of sci-fi, fantasy and some history books to... local penitentiary.

I made a call to their office and then I got in touch with one of penitentiary educators. He told me they are accepting book from private people, but their main source are stocks from liquidated libraries and educational facilities. Then he asked me what books, I explained and he replied that is fine unless the book are about violence. Next week I drove there, left my package, signed the paper about donation. Later on the educator called me and expressed gratitude and after his staff review and checks all books made their way to the penitentiary library.
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by exogenesis » Sat, 24. Aug 19, 10:34

pjknibbs wrote:
Fri, 23. Aug 19, 16:47
exogenesis wrote:
Fri, 23. Aug 19, 16:06
Just want all that bookshelf space back...
What are you going to have on the bookshelves, if not books? Or do you mean the bookshelves themselves are going?
Some of both really, lose the books to reduce the count of bookshelves,
probably camera stuff & telescope stuff on the remaining shelves.


Fiksal, what's a reading 'reading box' ?,
don't think we have them in the UK, is it a common thing in the USA ?

I guess local schools might be interested in all my oldish heavy 'tomes' like VRML, HTML, Java, SQL etc,
might be a bit old hat now though.

Don't think I've got a local prison, interesting idea though

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by Gavrushka » Sat, 24. Aug 19, 11:07

One daft idea if it's really just about lack of space is to have 'picture rail' bookshelves in a few rooms. (I'm talking about a single shelf just below the coving running right around any free areas on walls. - If you're looking for minimalist/modern it'd not work, but you could easily find a home for 1,000+ books in an area we seldom use.

But, as the poll suggests, if you make any move to recycle them, the O/T Collective will hunt you down and end you. :P
“Man, my poor head is battered,” Ed said.

“That explains its unusual shape,” Styanar said, grinning openly now. “Although it does little to illuminate just why your jowls are so flaccid or why you have quite so many chins.”

“I…” Had she just called him fat? “I am just a different species, that’s all.”

“Well nature sure does have a sense of humour then,” Styanar said. “Shall we go inside? It’d not be a good idea for me to be spotted by others.”

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by fiksal » Sat, 24. Aug 19, 17:51

Sorkvild wrote:
Fri, 23. Aug 19, 19:20
Recently I donated a large cardboard full of sci-fi, fantasy and some history books to... local penitentiary.

I made a call to their office and then I got in touch with one of penitentiary educators. He told me they are accepting book from private people, but their main source are stocks from liquidated libraries and educational facilities. Then he asked me what books, I explained and he replied that is fine unless the book are about violence. Next week I drove there, left my package, signed the paper about donation. Later on the educator called me and expressed gratitude and after his staff review and checks all books made their way to the penitentiary library.
Hey that's cool


exogenesis wrote:
Sat, 24. Aug 19, 10:34
Fiksal, what's a reading 'reading box' ?,
don't think we have them in the UK, is it a common thing in the USA ?
I think I've just butchered what they are called. RegisterMe I think referred to the same thing, by "book swap shelves".

But I dont actually know what they are called.... book sharing boxes? It's a square box, with a glass door, sits on a pole. Usually people around the neighborhood drop random books in there and take some to read.

You probably have them...what do you call them?

exogenesis wrote:
Sat, 24. Aug 19, 10:34
I guess local schools might be interested in all my oldish heavy 'tomes' like VRML, HTML, Java, SQL etc,
might be a bit old hat now though.
At least SQL doesnt age. HTML maybe as introductary book will work. Java book is probably outdated if it's not 5+ version.
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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by Gavrushka » Sat, 24. Aug 19, 18:10

fiksal wrote:
Sat, 24. Aug 19, 17:51

At least SQL doesnt age. HTML maybe as introductary book will work. Java book is probably outdated if it's not 5+ version.
I'm sure I've a book lying around about CP/M, and I pray to god you've never heard of it, or it means you're closing in on an appointment with a mortician... :(
“Man, my poor head is battered,” Ed said.

“That explains its unusual shape,” Styanar said, grinning openly now. “Although it does little to illuminate just why your jowls are so flaccid or why you have quite so many chins.”

“I…” Had she just called him fat? “I am just a different species, that’s all.”

“Well nature sure does have a sense of humour then,” Styanar said. “Shall we go inside? It’d not be a good idea for me to be spotted by others.”

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by pjknibbs » Sat, 24. Aug 19, 18:37

Gavrushka wrote:
Sat, 24. Aug 19, 18:10
I'm sure I've a book lying around about CP/M, and I pray to god you've never heard of it, or it means you're closing in on an appointment with a mortician... :(
Gee, thanks, I've heard of CP/M and I'm only 49...wasn't expecting to be having my visit from the Grim Reaper just yet.

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Re: Decluttering the house - Getting rid of book collections

Post by brucewarren » Sat, 24. Aug 19, 20:22

When I was in school the class computer used CP/M. This says more about the state of funding of schools at the time than it does
about my age :wink:

If you want to feel really old look up CESIL.

My elder brother was forced to write "code" in that crap in computer class.

For those who value their sanity and would I rather i just tell you, it was an invented language designed to teach assembly language.
Like many invented languages it was far harder to use than any real assembly language because it had a ridiculously restricted
instruction set.

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