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Stock list database


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23 hours ago, Dungrange said:

When compiling a stock database in Excel, do RMWebbers tend to produce one line per item of stock or one line per catalogue reference?  I have several multi-packs - particularly wagons, but also locomotives that were bought as a twin pack.  Would most people record these as two or three separate records (one per item of stock) with each item being valued at one half of one third of the multi-pack value?

 

A stock database is something I feel that I should have, but currently don't.

Excel allows for the item to be catalogued as one but individually listed in its component parts.  That way you don't over-value the collection by duplicating items but neither do you overlook any inherent value in boxed sets.  

 

The bottom-line figure I used for insurance purposes on my layout (now closed) was frightening as it included all the scenic pieces and an allowance without being specific for paints, glues and other consumables which might not have all been used on the layout but were often bought for it.  

 

The rolling-stock database takes a while to set up but very little time to maintain and continues to show a total "new for old" replacement value on the bottom line.  That isn't corrected for market value or net realisable which may be more or a lot less than was paid but provides evidence and a book value for insurance purposes.  

 

A database also helps those of us with larger collections (and possibly memories not as good as they once were) to check whether we really need "one more of those".  

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I initially went with an Excel spreadsheet, then made an Access database a few years ago, but I never really populated it fully.

 

However, this year I did this:

 

fyp.png.4f6d04d4efda864cf1ca52c1e4d4f2a3.png

 

Yes, I am that sad that I literally wrote my university dissertation on it. In this, I developed a web-based (SQL backend, PHP frontent) system from the ground up, did all the feasibility stuff, risk assessments, a bit of market research etc... And then wrote a 106-page, 20k+ word report on it. The most tedious thing I've ever written. But it did get me a First Class degree!

 

This, coupled with the lockdown over the summer, gave me the perfect opportunity to log all of my stock. I'm still not finished, got a couple of drawers of odds and sods to do, but the vast majority is on there now. I still need to go through them all and do a decent valuation, but I built in an estimater based on type (loco, multiple unit, coach, wagon, etc) to give ballpark figures where needed. That still needs tweaking though.

 

fyp1.png.82ea7c26e6f73a789d28c297143b20c2.png

 

fyp2.png.906f422f6ffc7492a7aad742c8cdc21e.png

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On 16/09/2020 at 11:44, spamcan61 said:

Nothing to stop you adding photos directly in Excel , either embedded so you have to click them, or directly 'on the page' ,or so they appear when you roll the mouse pointer over a specific cell.

Hi Spamcan61

 

I have produced an Excel spread sheet with a hyperlink to a photo of each item of stock.  Not ideal as the photos are stored on the C drive separate from the Excel program.  How do you embed photos on an excel spread sheet?  Ideally I would like a thumbnail in a cell which when clicked on opens up to a full page.  I am using Excel 2003.

 

Thanks Norman

 

 

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1 hour ago, Dragonfly said:

I initially went with an Excel spreadsheet, then made an Access database a few years ago, but I never really populated it fully.

 

However, this year I did this:

 

fyp.png.4f6d04d4efda864cf1ca52c1e4d4f2a3.png

 

Yes, I am that sad that I literally wrote my university dissertation on it. In this, I developed a web-based (SQL backend, PHP frontent) system from the ground up, did all the feasibility stuff, risk assessments, a bit of market research etc... And then wrote a 106-page, 20k+ word report on it. The most tedious thing I've ever written. But it did get me a First Class degree!

 

This, coupled with the lockdown over the summer, gave me the perfect opportunity to log all of my stock. I'm still not finished, got a couple of drawers of odds and sods to do, but the vast majority is on there now. I still need to go through them all and do a decent valuation, but I built in an estimater based on type (loco, multiple unit, coach, wagon, etc) to give ballpark figures where needed. That still needs tweaking though.

 

fyp1.png.82ea7c26e6f73a789d28c297143b20c2.png

 

fyp2.png.906f422f6ffc7492a7aad742c8cdc21e.png

 

And why not - it's always worth picking something you are interested in as a project to help with enthusiasm to put the effort in.

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42 minutes ago, Shed Driver said:

Hi Spamcan61

 

I have produced an Excel spread sheet with a hyperlink to a photo of each item of stock.  Not ideal as the photos are stored on the C drive separate from the Excel program.  How do you embed photos on an excel spread sheet?  Ideally I would like a thumbnail in a cell which when clicked on opens up to a full page.  I am using Excel 2003.

 

Thanks Norman

 

 

 Use either  from within Excel   Insert Picture    or use the Snipping Tool in Windows to select a photo & copy & paste.

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On 16/09/2020 at 10:54, Chameleon said:

I’m looking to create a full list of all my trains, primarily for insurance listing but also to keep track of what I have. I have a large collection of 00 and HOe and really need to get it organised. 
what software etc do people use to list and keep track of their stock?

Another alternative is to use the free JMRI program 'decoder pro'. It's obviously not as flexible as Excel (or any spreadsheet) but it does easily incorporate photos of each rolling stock item. I use it for locomotives only as I've not found how to add coaches and/or wagons.

2020-09-19_144441.jpg.3d3c5a2abb494f1d25904a1e53f1f8f2.jpg

 

Ian

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Hi all,

My system is quite simple. I used a rewritable dvd and set up folders on the dvd for various groups of engines/coaches and wagons etc. You can even sub divide the folders as well. So you might say have a folder SR engines and stock. In the engines folder that may be sub divided in to say goods engines and passenger engine's. That could then be sub divided into wheel arrangements, manufacturer or age of engines etc. it is basically an endless configuration for what you want. I then photo'd all my engines and stock. Labelled the photo's accordingly and placed them in the relevant folders. As the dvd is never closed down and finalised you can add and delete to your hearts content. It also has the practical point for insurance claims in that you have pictorial evidence which would be time and date stamped to proved you actually had what you are claiming for.

Edited by cypherman
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I really am living in the past. Mine are catalogued in three loose-leaf notebooks....

 

Purchases were listed in notebooks, but for the last few years listed on Wordpad. I was going to copy them, but haven't bothered.

My British locomotives were listed on another Wordpad, but a computer crash lost the list - it overheated and crashed and now won't read the operating system. Luckily I've been able to rebuild it from an outdated backup on another computer and the purchase lists.

 

Now do I use Excel or something and waste a lot of valuable modelling time copying it across or carry on as before?

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23 hours ago, Sol said:

 Use either  from within Excel   Insert Picture    or use the Snipping Tool in Windows to select a photo & copy & paste.

Hi Sol

Thanks

I think I tried insert picture but I am also looking for the method to click on the inserted photo which is quite small (1" by 2 or 3 lines) to enlarge to full page.  The hyper link that I use is clicked on a one line cell which brings the photo up as a full page.

 

Norman

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11 hours ago, Shed Driver said:

Hi Sol

Thanks

I think I tried insert picture but I am also looking for the method to click on the inserted photo which is quite small (1" by 2 or 3 lines) to enlarge to full page.  The hyper link that I use is clicked on a one line cell which brings the photo up as a full page.

 

Norman

I was having the same problem, which lead me to using JMRI Decoder Pro instead. It does the 'photos' quite elegantly.

 

Ian

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Once you have inserted the picture, click on it & get 4 little circles in each corner of the border , put your mouse pointer over one circle, hold down the cllcker & drag the border out or in to suit your size  or use a free  image software like Fast Stone & edit it the size you desire before inserting into a spreadsheet/document.

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14 minutes ago, MJI said:

I am going to just have to bite the bullet I suppose.

 

Could make reports as well.

 

Could even go multi user and client server.

Did your ‘no one could afford me’ comment not get enough response...? I don’t think you were being asked to produce something, were you?

 

On 18/09/2020 at 12:55, TheQ said:

Excel is available on android and  Apple Iphone and Mac

I use it on android .. and PC..

Trouble is they’re just a bit rubbish. I find Google Sheets is far better for multi device/platform work. Utterly infuriating when you’re used to how Excel works though, all different keyboard shortcuts!

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On 19/09/2020 at 09:49, Shed Driver said:

Hi Spamcan61

 

I have produced an Excel spread sheet with a hyperlink to a photo of each item of stock.  Not ideal as the photos are stored on the C drive separate from the Excel program.  How do you embed photos on an excel spread sheet?  Ideally I would like a thumbnail in a cell which when clicked on opens up to a full page.  I am using Excel 2003.

 

Thanks Norman

 

 

Hi norman,

 

I do exactly what you want with my photos of the item. On the top row under insert you have various options to place items in the cell and a picture is one of the options

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9 hours ago, njee20 said:

Did your ‘no one could afford me’ comment not get enough response...? I don’t think you were being asked to produce something, were you?

 

Trouble is they’re just a bit rubbish. I find Google Sheets is far better for multi device/platform work. Utterly infuriating when you’re used to how Excel works though, all different keyboard shortcuts!

It is called humour

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On 19/09/2020 at 09:49, Shed Driver said:

Hi Spamcan61

 

I have produced an Excel spread sheet with a hyperlink to a photo of each item of stock.  Not ideal as the photos are stored on the C drive separate from the Excel program.  How do you embed photos on an excel spread sheet?  Ideally I would like a thumbnail in a cell which when clicked on opens up to a full page.  I am using Excel 2003.

 

Thanks Norman

 

I've done 2 things with images in my excel spreadsheet inventory (another vote for Excel).

 

I have a small thumbnail of a side view of each loco placed in a cell. Easy enough as said before.

 

I also have a pop-up image which appears when I hover my cursor over a cell, and a larger image appears. In this example, when I hover over the class type, the large image appears.

 

215945771_RMExcel1.jpg.52e4d6d502d58c35925ba614143c0a01.jpg

This avoids having large images taking over the whole spreadsheet, only appearing when necessary.

 

Here's the steps to make this work.

1. Right-click in a cell and select 'Insert Comment'

1016665562_RMExcel2.jpg.6b7c2b744d12a073cb66e26e59fa6cc6.jpg

 

2. A box appears with the excel user-name within, ready to add text comments. But adding an image takes a few different steps.

1338217733_RMExcel3.jpg.ed8ba8a625a8b5ab4005ddf0ede729bc.jpg

 

3. When the comment box appears, right-click in the fuzzy border (not within the cell) and a pop-up menu appears. Choose 'Format Comment'

1207397198_RMExcel7.jpg.8599514fffd33ab35302eda2bf0151de.jpg

 

3(a). You can also right click in the cell (not the comment box), and in the pop--up menu select 'Edit Comment....'. appears. then right-click the fuzzy border. -> Another way of reaching this step.

 

4. In the box that appears, choose the 'Colors and Lines' tab, In the Fill section, click the drop-down arrow beside 'Color' and at the bottom of the list choose 'Fill Effects'.

1558108076_RMExcel8.jpg.242179a4a91a3df47db56e0cb99b2b11.jpg

 

5. On the Fill Effects window, choose the 'Picture' tab and then select your picture.

 

6. OK out of all selections and then resize your 'comment' to suit.

 

Edited by Damo666
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.

 

Oh, you youngsters !

 

I used a computer to list my model railway items when I was at Uni, but none of your modern rubbish.

 

In 1975 I started properly learning programming (what is "coding" ???) using Cobol 64 on a mainframe (what's a PC ?).  We submitted programmes (not "programs" in those days) as punched tape to the "gods" to run overnight.  Apart from real work I kept a print-out of my railway items, so I would send in the punched tape and get the printed list back on the old fashioned wide printer paper !

 

Somewhere in the Attic I still have a roll of punched tape and a folded up print-out, it would be interesting to look it out to see how my collection has grown.

 

.

Edited by phil gollin
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5 minutes ago, phil gollin said:

.

 

Oh, you youngsters !

 

I used a computer to list my model railway items when I was at Uni, but none of your modern rubbish.

 

In 1975 I started properly learning programming (what is "coding" ???) using Cobol 64 on a mainframe (what's a PC ?).  We submitted programmes (not "programs" in those days) as punched tape to the "gods" to run overnight.  Apart from real work I kept a print-out of my railway items, so I would send in the punched tape and get the printed list back on the old fashioned wide printer paper !

 

Somewhere in the Attic I still have a roll of punched tape and a folded up print-out, it would be interesting to look it out to see how my collection has grown.

 

.

 

Going off-topic a little - but my first proper local government engineering job was to help design the 'Parkway' from Middlesborough to the coast.

 

We were using the BIPS suite of highway design programmes, and data input was via punched cards; (one little hole in the wrong place and the whole 'run' was wasted!

 

When I was interviewed for my next post, I made much of my 'extensive' computer-design experience; little thinking that the City Council employer would have the necessary computer facilities.

 

Having got the post, I was presented with my first task - design an outer ring road using the County Council's mainframe computer! Cue some frantic burning of midnight oil over the programme manual!

 

John Isherwood.

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My age might be showing ... I wrote one in Basic on a BBC Micro, now long gone, the data got converted to a PC running Qbasic under MS-DOS.  A friend's O gauge railway worked by staff & ticket is still using a batch of single line tickets I knocked up in the 1960s using a teletype to print on the back of punched cards.  And I still use redundant punched card and paper tape filing cabinets for storage of kits and bits.

 

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Going back to the OP's question: Thumbs up here for an Excel-type spreadsheet (OpenOffice for me). One sheet per type (loco/wagons/coaches etc.) plus extra sheets for redundant stock (stuff that was bought in the 70s for example and not likely to be run, for example), plus for insurance purposes the all important 'Replacement Value' column. As others have mentioned, it it surprising how it all adds up - even redundant stock has value!

 

Thanks to the chaps and chapesses that gave a heads up of how to embed photos into the sheets - that'll be a nice little job should there ever be another lockdown or while away a dark winter's evening or three.

 

For those that ought to do the job properly: paper burns so that old jotter should be copied (photocopier?) and the copies kept elsewhere. Rewritable CDs (or DVDs) DO NOT LAST!!!! The 'silvering' will eventually revert to a flat surface losing all that lovely data. Save onto something else as well. (CDs/DVDs bought commercially are usually pressed like a vinyl record and should last longer - so not the same thing at all).

 

Finally, having done all of that, do make sure that you're adequately covered.

 

Cheers,

 

Philip

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5 hours ago, Damo666 said:

I also have a pop-up image which appears when I hover my cursor over a cell, and a larger image appears. In this example, when I hover over the class type, the large image appears.

I've used Excel for many years and though I knew most of it's 'tricks', but that a new one on me. And I like it. Thanks for posting.

 

Ian

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7 minutes ago, ISW said:

I've used Excel for many years and though I knew most of it's 'tricks', but that a new one on me. And I like it. Thanks for posting.

 

Ian

 

Yes Ian, it's well hidden, and not logical.

 

Whoever thought of having a picture accessed under a colour fill menu must have been looking at the clock on a Friday afternoon.

Edited by Damo666
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