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Smart CD Catalog was developed to assist in effectively organizing and managing your disk database. All you need to do is to scan all your disks just once. You will then be able to view the list of folders and files on any disk in the same way you can do it in Windows Explorer. But now you do not need to insert your CDs/DVDs into the drive or connect your external hard disks to the USB port. With Smart CD Catalog you will be able to easily find the necessary file across your entire disk collection in a few seconds.
Smart CD Catalog Professional Editor's Review Smart CD Catalog is a useful application for users who want to keep track of their file locations. It can create catalogs from CDs, DVDs, floppy disks, from HDD and other drives. Free download previous version Smart CD Catalog Professional 2.53 - It is designed for organizing and managing CDs, DVDs, and other digital media collections and allows you to catalog your disks.
Plus, you can add your comment to any disk, folder or file. In addition, Smart CD Catalog allows you to maintain a list of people who borrow your disks and when they borrowed them. You will no longer have to remember who you have lent your disks to. Please note: The program may not work on Chinese and Japanese Windows. Special Offer for GAOTD visitors: Save 50% off your order with coupon code GAOTD50. #16 'But now you do not need to insert your CDs/DVDs into the drive or connect your external hard disks to the USB port. With Smart CD Catalog you will be able to easily find the necessary file across your entire disk collection in a few seconds.'
If the disk hasn't been ripped or is on an external storage medium, how can this program catalog it??? It's one thing to catalog what I've ripped and save to my computer and attached externals but I have CDs and DVDs that I haven't backed up yet (hundreds from over the years) but this is telling me it can catalog those without me having to put them in the drive! It doesn't make sense! I want a program to catalog all my movies but I'm not going to trust one that makes claims that don't make sense! Thanks but no thanks, GOTD!
'But now you do not need to insert your CDs/DVDs into the drive or connect your external hard disks to the USB port. With Smart CD Catalog you will be able to easily find the necessary file across your entire disk collection in a few seconds.' If the disk hasn't been ripped or is on an external storage medium, how can this program catalog it??? It's one thing to catalog what I've ripped and save to my computer and attached externals but I have CDs and DVDs that I haven't backed up yet (hundreds from over the years) but this is telling me it can catalog those without me having to put them in the drive!
It doesn't make sense! I want a program to catalog all my movies but I'm not going to trust one that makes claims that don't make sense! Thanks but no thanks, GOTD!. #13 Knowing some 'dos' commands negates the need for any of these. Open command prompt.
'CD' (change dir) to your storage media. 'Dir' lists everything in a verbose mode. ' this character redirects the output. Dir 'filename.txt' will give you the verbose output in a text file inside whatever folder you're working - of course you need to be inside a writable folder.
Using some switches dir filename.txt /b - gives you the bare output - each filename in whatever folder - in alphabetical order. other switches will recurse your results through multiple folder trees. Copy your results of something like 'word' - with your identifier for each archive. Google (bing, duckduckgo) for 'dir switches' and get all the information.
As long as you have 'command prompt' - this will never be obsolete. Knowing some 'dos' commands negates the need for any of these. Open command prompt. 'CD' (change dir) to your storage media.
'Dir' lists everything in a verbose mode. ' this character redirects the output.
Dir 'filename.txt' will give you the verbose output in a text file inside whatever folder you're working - of course you need to be inside a writable folder. Using some switches dir filename.txt /b - gives you the bare output - each filename in whatever folder - in alphabetical order. other switches will recurse your results through multiple folder trees. Copy your results of something like 'word' - with your identifier for each archive. Google (bing, duckduckgo) for 'dir switches' and get all the information.
As long as you have 'command prompt' - this will never be obsolete. John - Knowing another way to get things done is a good thing, and it definitely comes in handy at times, doesn't it? I haven't used this particular program yet, so I can't comment on its usefulness, but I have used system scripts to index disk contents since 1991, and from one command-line/DOS prompt/system console/shell script guy to another, I have to respectfully disagree with your statement that knowing DOS commands makes this type of utility unnecessary. After 25 years of experience as an IT pro I know one thing very well: The average PC user has never been a 'Command-line Ninja', and quite frankly isn't the slightest bit interested in becoming one.
This simple fact creates a need for ready-made, easily-used, GUI-based tools to handle daily tasks that guys like us might accomplish 'the old way'. My scripted process for creating and manipulating text files works, and I can change it at will.
But setting up and maintaining that 'system' has taken far more effort than necessary, given that utilities like this one exist which could produce a similarly useful result. I am looking to move my disc/file index from text files to a searchable database app, and I'll look into this one. One of my main concerns is that any app I choose must store my data in an easily accessible format. I have seen apps similar to this one that use a 'proprietary' format which would make it difficult to move my data to another program when needed. For that and other reasons I have a.strong. preference for open source applications that use well-defined open formats. Best of luck to you!
John - Knowing another way to get things done is a good thing, and it definitely comes in handy at times, doesn't it? I haven't used this particular program yet, so I can't comment on its usefulness, but I have used system scripts to index disk contents since 1991, and from one command-line/DOS prompt/system console/shell script guy to another, I have to respectfully disagree with your statement that knowing DOS commands makes this type of utility unnecessary. After 25 years of experience as an IT pro I know one thing very well: The average PC user has never been a 'Command-line Ninja', and quite frankly isn't the slightest bit interested in becoming one. This simple fact creates a need for ready-made, easily-used, GUI-based tools to handle daily tasks that guys like us might accomplish 'the old way'.
My scripted process for creating and manipulating text files works, and I can change it at will. But setting up and maintaining that 'system' has taken far more effort than necessary, given that utilities like this one exist which could produce a similarly useful result. I am looking to move my disc/file index from text files to a searchable database app, and I'll look into this one. One of my main concerns is that any app I choose must store my data in an easily accessible format. I have seen apps similar to this one that use a 'proprietary' format which would make it difficult to move my data to another program when needed.
For that and other reasons I have a.strong. preference for open source applications that use well-defined open formats. Best of luck to you!. There are some DOS programs that are infinitely better than anything produced for Windows. When I was programming the company I worked for was having great difficulty transferring information from other systems into our own. It was taking for ever in Windows using programs of many megabytes.
An old 2K DOS program called print2file did the job in seconds. In my postgrad work when attempting an analysis of the traffic flow of the network the Windows program produced erroneous results. The information was extracted using the old DOS program PCwrite and then transferred into Excel for analysis. There are some DOS programs that are infinitely better than anything produced for Windows. When I was programming the company I worked for was having great difficulty transferring information from other systems into our own.
It was taking for ever in Windows using programs of many megabytes. An old 2K DOS program called print2file did the job in seconds. In my postgrad work when attempting an analysis of the traffic flow of the network the Windows program produced erroneous results. The information was extracted using the old DOS program PCwrite and then transferred into Excel for analysis.
#12 Before installing this GOTD giveaway, I set a system restore point. Unable to activate.
Click on the Activate.exe and presumably it goes to the internet to connect to some place to get some codes. PC pop up error window repeatedly says site unavailable. Maybe the antivirus is doing its job to block the site. Noticed another user commented that the site has malware.
I will NOT disable the anti virus software temporarily in order to activate this Smart CD Catalog Pro. Uninstalled it with Revo. Revo found no registry remnants and only 1 Left over File. A further check with Regseeker found 5 registry entries. Just to be safe, did a System Restore to the point (before installing Smart CD Catalog Pro).
If you have better experience with this software, good for you. You mileage may vary. No great loss when there are so many good freeware alternatives.
Especially Virtual Volumes and Visual CD, both of which are portable freeware. Before installing this GOTD giveaway, I set a system restore point. Unable to activate. Click on the Activate.exe and presumably it goes to the internet to connect to some place to get some codes. PC pop up error window repeatedly says site unavailable.
Maybe the antivirus is doing its job to block the site. Noticed another user commented that the site has malware. I will NOT disable the anti virus software temporarily in order to activate this Smart CD Catalog Pro. Uninstalled it with Revo.
Revo found no registry remnants and only 1 Left over File. A further check with Regseeker found 5 registry entries.
Just to be safe, did a System Restore to the point (before installing Smart CD Catalog Pro). If you have better experience with this software, good for you. You mileage may vary.
No great loss when there are so many good freeware alternatives. Especially Virtual Volumes and Visual CD, both of which are portable freeware. #10 Installed on latest version of Windows with no issues except an unusual Win security warning, but BitDefender had no complaints. This giveaway comes at an opportune time as I am archiving a dozen external hard drives into a new multi-disk array which will be left unplugged (power issues here) most of the time. Cataloging 3TB of data, over a half million files, 25,000+ different directories, took only a minute or two. Search function was fast, returning results in seconds.
Browsing the directory hierarchy was a piece of cake. So, a keeper. Thanks GAOTD and Abaiko. Installed on latest version of Windows with no issues except an unusual Win security warning, but BitDefender had no complaints. This giveaway comes at an opportune time as I am archiving a dozen external hard drives into a new multi-disk array which will be left unplugged (power issues here) most of the time. Cataloging 3TB of data, over a half million files, 25,000+ different directories, took only a minute or two.
Search function was fast, returning results in seconds. Browsing the directory hierarchy was a piece of cake. So, a keeper. Thanks GAOTD and Abaiko.
#9 This appears to be JUST the sort of thing I have been wishing I could find for cataloging all my HARD DISKS. Because only yesterday I was recalling that back in the early 90's, there was a programme I had that was very useful: As your collection of floppies built up, it would be hard to remember on which 5.25' floppy or 3.5' 'stiffy' (as the Aussies called them), a certain file or programme could be found.
The programme could scan all my floppies in turn, and produce a directory of each, which I could at least print out, or maybe search on my computer's 40Mb hard disk(!!). I was thinking that THAT's what I really need for all my hard disks, as with THREE working computers, and FIVE OS's (with partitioning), there are loads of programmes and files that are on one or other of the hard disks - which sometimes I would like to get ACCESS to. Like, for instance an earlier GOTD, InPaint, which is very useful to paint out trees growing out of people's heads - and which exists only on ONE hard disk - but I don't recall WHICH one. I hope that I might be able to do for my HDD's what it offers to do for CD's - and if so, I do not understand why it should be marked down to only 47% (currently), as surely many people must need such a programme. Unless it is not that great a programme after all - in which case, I am very grateful to 'Occasional Visitor' for his alternative suggestions, because a way to find files and programmes across various hard disks (I must have at least eight that still work) is, to me, very useful indeed. And I am glad to find such programmes are still produced.
Good luck to Abaiko Software! This appears to be JUST the sort of thing I have been wishing I could find for cataloging all my HARD DISKS.
Because only yesterday I was recalling that back in the early 90's, there was a programme I had that was very useful: As your collection of floppies built up, it would be hard to remember on which 5.25' floppy or 3.5' 'stiffy' (as the Aussies called them), a certain file or programme could be found. The programme could scan all my floppies in turn, and produce a directory of each, which I could at least print out, or maybe search on my computer's 40Mb hard disk(!!). I was thinking that THAT's what I really need for all my hard disks, as with THREE working computers, and FIVE OS's (with partitioning), there are loads of programmes and files that are on one or other of the hard disks - which sometimes I would like to get ACCESS to. Like, for instance an earlier GOTD, InPaint, which is very useful to paint out trees growing out of people's heads - and which exists only on ONE hard disk - but I don't recall WHICH one. I hope that I might be able to do for my HDD's what it offers to do for CD's - and if so, I do not understand why it should be marked down to only 47% (currently), as surely many people must need such a programme. Unless it is not that great a programme after all - in which case, I am very grateful to 'Occasional Visitor' for his alternative suggestions, because a way to find files and programmes across various hard disks (I must have at least eight that still work) is, to me, very useful indeed. And I am glad to find such programmes are still produced.
Good luck to Abaiko Software!. Just a heads up. This is a good program, and you should definitely get it while it is free. However, being heavily into video production for many years, and having around 90 hard drives (video/graphics/audio) my software of choice for this is the venerable app, 'Where Is It?' It is VERY sophisticated (though quite easy to use).
It automatically indexes all my drives, indexes inside files (including metadata and archives), and makes a catalog that will span all your drives. My catalog probably contains several million files, all of which I can find quickly and easily. It notes the drive number (I use removable drives with an external dock) and I simply grab that numbered drive off the shelf and away I go. If you have a LOT of data spanning many drives (and that can include virtually any type of removable media), then what I use may also be very useful to you.
Just a heads up. This is a good program, and you should definitely get it while it is free. However, being heavily into video production for many years, and having around 90 hard drives (video/graphics/audio) my software of choice for this is the venerable app, 'Where Is It?'
It is VERY sophisticated (though quite easy to use). It automatically indexes all my drives, indexes inside files (including metadata and archives), and makes a catalog that will span all your drives. My catalog probably contains several million files, all of which I can find quickly and easily. It notes the drive number (I use removable drives with an external dock) and I simply grab that numbered drive off the shelf and away I go. If you have a LOT of data spanning many drives (and that can include virtually any type of removable media), then what I use may also be very useful to you.
#7 It is simple, but this program is usefull to me. Not for cd's but categorizing USB sticks (I have about 20 of them, not for backup but for lots of other reasons).Program works easy: I added a category 'usb sticks' with Categories. Click on plus: Select the usbstick to scan. Untick 'Eject cd' for preventing name of usbstick clearing after using this program. CLick on Scan. Point to the folder you made for usbsticks or anything else: Name it if it could be unclear which usb stick the catalog is about. When you insert a usbstick which content had changed you scan it the normal way with plus icon: program will notice the same usbstick 'similar disks detected' and a button 'update disk' is shown: I am keeping this.
It is simple, but this program is usefull to me. Not for cd's but categorizing USB sticks (I have about 20 of them, not for backup but for lots of other reasons).Program works easy: I added a category 'usb sticks' with Categories. Click on plus: Select the usbstick to scan. Untick 'Eject cd' for preventing name of usbstick clearing after using this program.
CLick on Scan. Point to the folder you made for usbsticks or anything else: Name it if it could be unclear which usb stick the catalog is about. When you insert a usbstick which content had changed you scan it the normal way with plus icon: program will notice the same usbstick 'similar disks detected' and a button 'update disk' is shown: I am keeping this. #5 Thanks GotD & Abaiko, but. Using DuckDuckGo/Ixquick CD Archiver allows you to organize and catalog your folders and disc collection.
Visual CD is a disk cataloging tool to index the contents of your media storage such as CDs, DVDs, HD-DVDs, BlueRay Discs, USB disks, hard disks, folders and allow you to search the contents at a later date. Disk Explorer Professional This application is a powerful tool for cataloging all CDs, DVDs, floppies, ZIP disks, or other removable media, hard drives, network drives, or even FTP servers Virtual Volumes View VVV is an application that catalogs the content of removable volumes like CD and DVD disks for off-line searching. Folders and files can also be arranged in a single, virtual file system. Each folder of this virtual file system can contain files from many disks so you can arrange your data in a simple and logical way.
Thanks GotD & Abaiko, but. Using DuckDuckGo/Ixquick CD Archiver allows you to organize and catalog your folders and disc collection.
Visual CD is a disk cataloging tool to index the contents of your media storage such as CDs, DVDs, HD-DVDs, BlueRay Discs, USB disks, hard disks, folders and allow you to search the contents at a later date. Disk Explorer Professional This application is a powerful tool for cataloging all CDs, DVDs, floppies, ZIP disks, or other removable media, hard drives, network drives, or even FTP servers Virtual Volumes View VVV is an application that catalogs the content of removable volumes like CD and DVD disks for off-line searching. Folders and files can also be arranged in a single, virtual file system. Each folder of this virtual file system can contain files from many disks so you can arrange your data in a simple and logical way. Same here, I have over 500 DVD and CD discs and another 300 plus recordable Blue Ray discs and 14 Terabytes of external hard drives with applications, documents, photographs, games and videos as well as five computers and two laps tops, each )apart from the laptops) with a minimum of 4 hard drives (7 on my main computer) and most have backups stored on them (I keep multiple backups of everything these days on both permanent discs and hard drives). I keep at least one backup of data on Blue Ray or DVD's so for me they are still an essential part of my backup system even though for many they are probably considered defunct. Hmmm I wonder if this application can record files in cloud storage???????
Same here, I have over 500 DVD and CD discs and another 300 plus recordable Blue Ray discs and 14 Terabytes of external hard drives with applications, documents, photographs, games and videos as well as five computers and two laps tops, each )apart from the laptops) with a minimum of 4 hard drives (7 on my main computer) and most have backups stored on them (I keep multiple backups of everything these days on both permanent discs and hard drives). I keep at least one backup of data on Blue Ray or DVD's so for me they are still an essential part of my backup system even though for many they are probably considered defunct. Hmmm I wonder if this application can record files in cloud storage???????.
@Donna: No, no - I know that you can use it for other files. Years ago I also used a tool to make an index of my DVD´s with programs when I buyed a computer magazine.
But after some time I realized that it is much easier and quicker to make myself a database and put only the programs that I really need in it. For that files what you have is such a program already useful - but not this please. Today´s is user-unfriendly to operate and a program that opens an extra search-window: No - thank you! A program that has no search on the main-window I´ll never use. But when you like it - is of course ok! But I would advise you anyway to take a look on the freeware that has 'Occasional Visitor' listed below - because when you have 'computer-problems' in the future your program/database (and all the workload for) is away. You know: You can not install/register SW from here later again for free.
When you not pay then for this tool you only can take for example a freeware but you need to make the whole 'index-work' again. @Donna: No, no - I know that you can use it for other files. Years ago I also used a tool to make an index of my DVD´s with programs when I buyed a computer magazine. But after some time I realized that it is much easier and quicker to make myself a database and put only the programs that I really need in it. For that files what you have is such a program already useful - but not this please. Today´s is user-unfriendly to operate and a program that opens an extra search-window: No - thank you!
A program that has no search on the main-window I´ll never use. But when you like it - is of course ok! But I would advise you anyway to take a look on the freeware that has 'Occasional Visitor' listed below - because when you have 'computer-problems' in the future your program/database (and all the workload for) is away.
You know: You can not install/register SW from here later again for free. When you not pay then for this tool you only can take for example a freeware but you need to make the whole 'index-work' again.