Gun Inventory

[Liberty]

While Access is a true database system it isn't always the most suitable for all database aplications.

If A database is linear (simple inline list), not requiring forms, nor complex reporting and if one doesn't need server access control I can't see any benefit to using a a complex database program such as Access.

My rule of thumb. If its a list that I will be the primary user it will be a Spreadsheet. If it is going to be a melding of more than 1 lists then Access is the the better tool.

I use Open Office now when ever practical

[GrandmasterB]

I've used Excel and it seems to do what I need it to. I did stumble on this little program calle PointBlank a couple of years back: http://www.huntingnut.com/index.php?nam ... icle&sid=3

It has a firearms database feature to it along with a place to keep details about loads and ballistics. It is pretty friendly to use and works good too.

[Braden]

Another Excel user here.

I keep it on my computer along with a printed copy in a fireproof safe. I also gave my parents a copy to keep in their safe just in case both of my copies were somehow destroyed or stolen.

[Glockamolie]

IThe other thing I go is email the file to one of my web based email accounts as an attachment. That way I can get to the file from anywhere with an internet conection.

Also handy, should your home get burglarized. Your computer(s) may be part of the loot taken, along with your guns. You need access to your serial numbers, to get them in the system as soon as possible.

[nmCollector]

Hey everyone, I just found this site and am happy that my gun collecting software has been a topic of discussion.

I noticed two things of interest: 1) The desire to find free software and 2) The desire to find software that will run on a platform other than Windows.

I just want to note that I am working on a whole new collecting software package which addresses both of those needs. It is currently beta but is stabilizing nicely. I'm uploading a new release tonight that will make it very close to first release quality. Anyway, if you want it you are free to have it. Please see http://www.nmcollector.net/JE/ for more info.

Thanks,

Clay

[dukalmighty]

I made a list on an email message to myself with type ser.# etc then i sent it t myself then i moved it to a folder,i can retrieve it from anywhere i can log into my email account at

[Stupid]

Excel is not FREE!

Open Office. :-)

[KD5NRH]

They can also be easily encrypted with GnuPG (GNU's Privacy Guard) or PGP (Pretty Good Privacy - use the last version put out by MIT for a free copy). GnuPG is great for encryption, and is also free, but I am a little biased on that one (being the FAQ maintainer).

Keep an eye on Staples, and probably any of the other office stores; every now and then you can get 2G flash drives for $25-30. I grabbed a 2G Sandisk Cruzer a few months back for that, and I carry several product manuals for my portable electronics on it so I have them when I need them. It also carries an encrypted gun inventory in tab-delimited .txt format so I can get to that from any machine PGP or GPG will run on.

[carlson1]

While it's not free, Clay Pryor's "NM Gun Collector Software" gets good reviews from crufflers and others with large collections. Lots of features.

It's PC-only, so I don't use it, but you might want to check it out:

http://www.nmcollector.net/nmguncollector/index.htm

Kevin

Thanks Kevin. I am not computer smart nor am I very organized in the order of serial numbers etc. . . I can now say, "Kevin advise changed my life!"
This program is built with simple and easy to understand directions, but very precise and detailed. EXCELLENT!

[KBCraig]

Keep an eye on Staples, and probably any of the other office stores; every now and then you can get 2G flash drives for $25-30. I grabbed a 2G Sandisk Cruzer a few months back for that, and I carry several product manuals for my portable electronics on it so I have them when I need them.

A "few months" can make a huge difference in price. Last week I perused USB thumb drives at Wal Mart, and 2GB were as low as $20, and 4GB were no more than $59. Today I was tossed a 1GB as a freebie.

They are incredibly handy. Great for backing up a specific set of files.

[Piney]

IThe other thing I go is email the file to one of my web based email accounts as an attachment. That way I can get to the file from anywhere with an internet conection.

Also handy, should your home get burglarized. Your computer(s) may be part of the loot taken, along with your guns. You need access to your serial numbers, to get them in the system as soon as possible.

I use a simple EXCELL SS
I keep a USB drive contaning pics and serial numbers of guns, other valuables and a set of house/property pics in the SD box. I also keep a listing of my guns' s/n on a YAHOO email account. I keep this info there in the event I am out of town and a burglary happens, I can get their info on to "the system" quickly.

[Liberty]

Keep an eye on Staples, and probably any of the other office stores; every now and then you can get 2G flash drives for $25-30. I grabbed a 2G Sandisk Cruzer a few months back for that, and I carry several product manuals for my portable electronics on it so I have them when I need them.

A "few months" can make a huge difference in price. Last week I perused USB thumb drives at Wal Mart, and 2GB were as low as $20, and 4GB were no more than $59. Today I was tossed a 1GB as a freebie.

They are incredibly handy. Great for backing up a specific set of files.

Whats pretty nice is that you can load up the Suite (from PortableApps on those things and not only is there plenty of storage on them but yo can actually run some pretty great apps on a 1 gig drive.
I have open office, firefox , time and chaos, calc97(a free calculator) and a bunch of other programs from my thumbdrives. Its prety nice not only having your inventory with you, but the program that opens it too. The main thing to remember is that the data always needs to be backed up or syncronized.

[philbo]

Years ago I wrote a shareware database that would keep track of guns. Never ported it to Windows XP. Now I am using a form I designed in Word to keep track and it prints the records out on 3x5 index cards for my off-line records. Maybe it's time to write another program...

[KD5NRH]

Whats pretty nice is that you can load up the Suite (from PortableApps on those things and not only is there plenty of storage on them but yo can actually run some pretty great apps on a 1 gig drive.

Go one better; there are entire Linux distributions designed to run from small drives (and old hardware) that will work great if the machine you want to use will boot from a flash drive. Even if it won't, you can make a boot CD or floppy and use the flash drive for all your settings and documents. PuppyLinux seems to be the easiest to use, and generally most cooperative for varied hardware, though if you're wanting to get more involved, Slax might be a good choice.

[NcongruNt]

I do the Spread Sheet thing. If you don't want to spend money on MS Office you could try Open Office(It's Free).

+1 on that... have used OpenOffice since early beta days (along with Sun's StarOffice before that) and have seen it come a LONG way. Great application that helps you stand off vendor lock-in, and is available for a wide variety of operating systems.

The other thing I go is email the file to one of my web based email accounts as an attachment. That way I can get to the file from anywhere with an internet conection.

Another handy idea, especially since the USB keys have come down in price so much, is to keep a copy of the files on them. That way you always have access to your important files. They can also be easily encrypted with GnuPG (GNU's Privacy Guard) or PGP (Pretty Good Privacy - use the last version put out by MIT for a free copy). GnuPG is great for encryption, and is also free, but I am a little biased on that one (being the FAQ maintainer).

+1 on OO and GPG

OO is my defacto Office suite, as I switched to Linux in 2001 and have never looked back.