BookshelfTracker: Coming to iOS, Android, and the Web
Have you ever lost track of a book you lent to someone? I have many times and then forget to get it back, let alone remember who I gave it to. If that’s you too, then you’re in luck, because this app aims to solve that problem. Store books you own. Track who you lend them to. Secured with end to end encryption. Read on to see what’s coming!
📧 Visit our website to join the waitlist and be notified by email when the app is live!
💡 Problems, Solved
📚 Your Very Own Library
I own hundreds of books and don’t have a great way of keeping a log of them. Adding books to your library is simple. You can scan your book’s barcode or manually enter it’s ISBN code! Conveniently access all the books you own from the Library tab, view the books details, and more.
In the future you will be able to search for books and select from a list of results to add to your library. Maybe I’ll even add support for a wishlist!
📧 Visit our website to join the waitlist and be notified by email when the app is live!
🔀 Keeping Track of Lent Books
Now we’re getting to the really cool features. If you’re like me, you’ve lent books to friends and family, only to forget and never get it back again. Keeping track of who you lend your books to is easy:
- Choose the book you want to lend
- Define who you want to lend to: (a) scan a user’s QR code or input their username (b) select someone from your contacts or (c) manually fill out a form with the borrower’s information
- Set the date it was borrowed, the date its due back, and any notes that might be helpful
You will receive notifications if your book hasn’t been returned and is approaching the return date. From the Activity tab you can view all of your lending activity. Your Activity is conveniently categorize based on when they’re due: Due Later, Due Soon, Overdue, and Returned.
📧 Visit our website to join the waitlist and be notified by email when the app is live!
🔐 Security
This is the most secure personal library app out there. All of the books you own, your book’s lending activity, and more, is end to end encrypted (E2EE). This allows your data to be readable only by you and whoever you choose to share it with. So unless someone knows your password, or you intentionally share your data with others, not even I can access your data.
So why did I choose this extra layer of security? The answer is simple.
Firstly, I have no need to know what books you own, your lending activity, etc. The 21st century has brought about a disgusting obsession with tracking and selling user data. You don’t have to worry about that here.
Second, books are being banned in schools, universities, and public libraries, all over the country. Censorship is spreading like a plague. Now, and someday even more so, you might not want the books you own to be known by anyone else. With this app, thanks to E2EE, this is solved for you.
📧 Visit our website to join the waitlist and be notified by email when the app is live!
💰 Pricing
The exact pricing is something I’m still working through. For access to all features I will offer a monthly and/or annual subscription. Additionally, there will be a free trial for either a limited time with full features or free forever with limited features (up to 25 books, no lending activity tracking, something like this).
💪 Motivation
I’ve loved to read since I was a little kid. I’m lucky enough to have grown up right before the mobile phone boom, so it was either play outside or read. I’m also very passionate about creating technological solutions that solve people’s needs. So this project is the best of both worlds for me!
✔️ Conclusion
I’m getting closer and closer to releasing the MVP. The best way to keep up with my progress is to follow me on Twitter where I’ll be tweeting frequently about its progress and estimated release date. I look forward to releasing this, getting feedback, and making this the best library app out there! Thanks for reading.
📧 Visit our website to join the waitlist and be notified by email when the app is live!
