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big teej
2010-12-10, 06:59 PM
greetings playgrounders

I just got my hands on the Player's Handbook (hoorah)

however, as I slipped the book into my little messenger bag that I carry all of my books (and dice) in.

I noticed that I'm running out of room.

I have (spoilered for irrelevance to topic)

Races of Stone
Arms and Equipment Guide
Dungeon Master's Guide
Book of Exalted Deeds
Masters of the Wild
Deities and Demigods
Cityscape
Book of Vile Darkness
Player's Handbook

and I'm running out of room in my bag


so I ask my fellow DM's in the playground (and players for that matter)

what do you carry your books in?
giant messenger bags?
duffel bag?
giant boxes?
what?

or do you just insist the game be at yourhouse and game in your library?*


*if this is what you do
1) thats awesome.
2) I envy you
3) shut up don't rub it in! :smallwink:
4) don't suggest that, as it's not feasible yet.


thanks in advance playgrounders

HunterOfJello
2010-12-10, 07:02 PM
I have a backpack and Stephen Colbert bookbag that I carry all my books in. I have a satchel that I carry all my notebooks, folders, binder, file folder and other papers in. Also, I have a cooler/bag thing that I carry my miniatures, figures, maps and map pieces in.

The stuff gets heavy, but I like having all my materials on hand without having to go look at a computer.

Can you tell that I'm a DM?

Sucrose
2010-12-10, 07:03 PM
I generally reserve a backpack for this purpose, and only bring the books that are relevant for my purposes. If someone else wants to make use of one of my books, and I'm out of space, then he has to arrange for transport. This system has not failed me yet, even during my short stint as a DM.

Feliks878
2010-12-10, 07:04 PM
I have a standard bookbag/backpack. But if you're feeling awesome and have cash to spare, the Bag of Holding (http://www.thinkgeek.com/computing/bags/aaa5/) from ThinkGeek is popular, and fairly awesome, if expensive. One of my gaming friends has one, and I know a few people at my University who use it as a standard bookbag as well.

pffh
2010-12-10, 07:05 PM
If we aren't playing at the usual place we just put the essential books (dmg, phb, mm and what ever books someone is using something from) in a backpack and then simply keep pdf backups of all our books on the 2-3 laptops we always have at the table.

Just noticed your comment about the library and as a matter of fact we are renovating a room in my home to be a dedicated gaming room so nyah :smallbiggrin:

dsmiles
2010-12-10, 07:24 PM
I carry mine in a standard size Heward's Handy Haversack. :smalltongue:

Seriously, though: My friends and I have about the same library, so the only books I need to carry are the ones I reference frequently as a player. As a DM, I just use his library.

true_shinken
2010-12-10, 07:26 PM
I usually try to make notes so that I won't have to keep the books on me. Lots of books = heavy bag.

WinceRind
2010-12-10, 07:34 PM
Electronic format and a laptop, for the win!

Zeta Kai
2010-12-10, 07:41 PM
A backpack for the essentials (no capital E for me), & a thumb drive with my PDFs for anything else that may come in handy.

faceroll
2010-12-10, 07:44 PM
Hard drive.

arguskos
2010-12-10, 07:46 PM
I carry my laptop, which is an electronic library.

My actual paper library is too large to actually carry around frequently. I store it in three milk crates (http://www.caseymhunt.com/scooter/cratemod/milkcrate_000.jpg) (the PERFECT size for a hardback D&D sourcebook). I've got a "Extended Core" crate, a "Supplemental" crate, and a "Third-Party/Old Stuff" crate. I can post the contents, if anyone really wants to know.

When traveling for gaming, I tend to just take the Extended Core crate and my laptop. When at home, I have access to them all, obviously.

EDIT: When a crate can't be brought, I carry my leatherbound PHB and DMG, nothing else. That just in a backpack really.

Maho-Tsukai
2010-12-10, 07:47 PM
It depends on the books. I own a small number of RL books but most of my books are pdfs.....and I have a LOT of pdfs. So many in fact that I forget half of what I have in my 3.5e folder from half the time.(Yeah...I have so many pdfs I have separate folders for different systems. I has a folder for AD&D, 3.5e D&D, Pathfinder, D20 Modern, shadowrun, M&M, D20 Rokugan, and a (small) 4e folder...yeah...that's a lot of pdfs...)

So, needless to say my "transport" of choice is almost always my computer or a thumb drive or three..

big teej
2010-12-10, 07:52 PM
I have a backpack and Stephen Colbert bookbag that I carry all my books in. I have a satchel that I carry all my notebooks, folders, binder, file folder and other papers in. Also, I have a cooler/bag thing that I carry my miniatures, figures, maps and map pieces in.

The stuff gets heavy, but I like having all my materials on hand without having to go look at a computer.

Can you tell that I'm a DM?

so you have a total of.... 4 containers you lug around?

while such an option is on the table, I'm doing my best to have as much of this as possible in the form of 'over the shoulder' bags.

thus far one of my players provides minatures (when absent we use dice)

and so far we have few books (but we're working on it)



I have a standard bookbag/backpack. But if you're feeling awesome and have cash to spare, the Bag of Holding (http://www.thinkgeek.com/computing/bags/aaa5/) from ThinkGeek is popular, and fairly awesome, if expensive. One of my gaming friends has one, and I know a few people at my University who use it as a standard bookbag as well.

..... O.O =O
WANT!!!!
WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT WANT......
:smallredface:

I totally just added that to my christmas wishlist :smallsigh:


If we aren't playing at the usual place we just put the essential books (dmg, phb, mm and what ever books someone is using something from) in a backpack and then simply keep pdf backups of all our books on the 2-3 laptops we always have at the table.

Just noticed your comment about the library and as a matter of fact we are renovating a room in my home to be a dedicated gaming room so nyah :smallbiggrin:

you're breaking the rules!
-blows the whistle-



I generally reserve a backpack for this purpose, and only bring the books that are relevant for my purposes. If someone else wants to make use of one of my books, and I'm out of space, then he has to arrange for transport. This system has not failed me yet, even during my short stint as a DM.

I like to have all my books
just in case. :smallwink::smallcool:

Eldan
2010-12-10, 07:54 PM
I only have electronic versions of the books, because it's pretty impossible to get them here for a reasonable price (seriously. Ordering them from the UK and paying the shipping and taxes? Costs more than the books themselves). However, we have banned laptops at the table.

So the solution was printing the three or four pages you need that day and forget about teh books otherwise.

true_shinken
2010-12-10, 08:02 PM
I've got a "Extended Core" crate, a "Supplemental" crate, and a "Third-Party/Old Stuff" crate. I can post the contents, if anyone really wants to know.
Well, now I'm curious. Tell us the contents!

arguskos
2010-12-10, 08:13 PM
Well, now I'm curious. Tell us the contents!
...I really gotta learn not to bait such. Oh boy, here we go. Note that the following is my entire hardback collection, so if stuff you deem important is missing, it's cause I either don't own it or don't care about it. :smalltongue:

The Extended Core crate:
Leatherbound PHB/DMG
The Player's Guide to Faerun
Toolbox, by AEG
PHB2/DMG2
MM1, 3, and 5
Dragon Compenium
The Fiendish Codices
Spell Compendium
Tome of Magic

The Supplemental crate:
Elder Evils
Lords of Madness
Heroes of Horrow
Arms and Equipment Guide
Expedition to Castle Ravenloft
Frostburn
Complete Arcane/Warrior/Mage
Stronghold Builder's Guide
Manual of the Planes
Planar Handbook
BoED
BoVD
Faiths and Pantheons
Dragons of Faerun
Serpent Kingdoms
Unapproachable East
Champions of Ruin
Monster Compendium: Monsters of Faerun

The Third-Party/Older Stuff crate:
Box set of Dragon Mountain
Box set of Planescape Campaign Setting
Planescape: Monstrous Compendium Appendix
Planescape: In the Cage: A Guide to Sigil
Warcraft the RPG: Magic and Mayhem
Warcraft the RPG: Manual of Monsters
Pathfinder Core Rulebook
AD&D Book of Artifacts
Rings of Power
Path of Magic
Ultimate Equipment Guide
Arcana Unearthed
Volo's Guide to All Things Magical <--- BEST BOOK I OWN

Not in crates, due to odd shape of the books:
Encyclopedia Magica Vol 1 and 2
Full set, including box (4th printing box, the white one, not the pine box), of 3rd printing OD&D <--- personal treasure

Tech Boy
2010-12-10, 08:15 PM
This probably has been said already. I like to carry PDFs of my books.

I am not a DM, yet, but I like to carry all the books I can on my laptop so that I can help the team out as we play.

Save the Trees.

Eldonauran
2010-12-10, 08:17 PM
I own quite a lot of 3.5e (and some 3.0e) D&D books and use milk crates to store them in too (yay!). I've got about 6 crates all together. Fits nice and snug in my closest, stacked up all nice and neat.

I have electronic copies of my all my books, viewable on my iPad. Don't need no laptop after a few software modifications. :smallamused:


Books I own

:smallfrown: *scribbles down* Toolbox, Path of Magic and Rings of Power. Those are new to me. I must get copies. :smallbiggrin:

JonestheSpy
2010-12-10, 08:21 PM
Second on milk crates. If I'm gm'ing at someone else's house, I'll stack everything relevant to that night's game in, dice on top.

Not recommended if you travel by bicycle.

Hanuman
2010-12-10, 08:24 PM
you're breaking the rules!
-blows the whistle-

I like to have all my books
just in case. :smallwink::smallcool:
Yes, rules of the forum suggest torrenting and other things like that are banned from discussion, but really anything you actually own is owned intellectual property. If you own a video game, you can have the ROM, if you own a book you can have the PDF, if you own a CD you can have the MP3's.

Carrying the actual books is a novelty, it's really nice to have 10 books open at once circulating around the table, and it's nice to be away from screens, but compared to carrying it digitally it's really outweighs it's usefulness in, well, weight.

Also, as much as I'd like to spend thousands of dollars on sourcebooks I really have better things to buy with my money, like rent for instance.
I'm not saying that supporting a game the owners aren't supporting anymore is bad, I'm just saying that for the price of a sourcebook you could plant 3-4 mango trees for african schools that teach the children how to raise them as a means of food production, and mangoes are delicious.

Zephyros
2010-12-10, 08:33 PM
1.Rules Compendium carried by whomever is willing.
2. Laptop with all books in PDF format is possible.
3. GOLDEN RULE: Each Character sheet will always encompass a small notebook in which all-things-characteristic are written. Yes that means the reach for your BoEE spell, and your internet homebrew feat, and your w/e book w/e gimmick your character uses.Everything the RC doesn't cover you ought to have it written in that notebook so we don't waste time looking.

Rule no3 is my favorite. I have enforced it to every single group I've been in, and thus saved countless gaming minutes of fooling around with the books.

gbprime
2010-12-10, 08:36 PM
I use an older model of one of these. Got it for about 300 on ebay. It has one thing an Ipad doesn't have... a stylus. I can write on it, which makes it amazing for c-sheets.n And it lays flat like a book, so it doesn't block anyone's view of the minis and map.

http://www.gottabemobile.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/le1700_tablet_pc.jpg

Only thing I don't use it for is dice rolling. Throwing the d20 in the middle of the table where everyone can see it is just good ettiquette. :smallwink:

Tar Palantir
2010-12-10, 09:08 PM
I have a collapsible crate with wheels and an extendable handle (kind of like this (http://www.amazon.com/Rubbermaid-3N83-Collapsible-Cargo-Crate/dp/B0011NCTJU/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1292033256&sr=8-2)) that I use for all my gaming supplies. It's about the size of a milk crate when the handle's collapsed, so it's not too hard to get in and out of vehicles, and the wheels mean I don't need to carry it as much.

LibraryOgre
2010-12-10, 09:24 PM
I have a couple solutions. I keep materials for several different games in my car. My 4e stuff, my d6 Star Wars, and my Pathfinder stuff is in some library tote-bags. We had a number left over, and I can carry enough to be a player (or GM, in the case of SW) in one of those tote bags. They sit in the back of my car.

My C&C collection includes a lot more; several FR books, an old boxed set, a couple different printings of C&C and the Monsters and Treasures book, my dice chest, etc.; so I keep it in a milk crate. I have a few of those that I use for specific book collections.

Dsurion
2010-12-10, 10:07 PM
I like having books in hand, it an exceptional feeling... But not when it's outweighed by the, erm, weight. The books are basically a luxury if they're available at someone's house, otherwise all of the Deadlands, 7th Sea, and D&D stuff is accessed through the laptop on a need-to-know basis. I've got a lot of PDFs on my netbook, so I like being able to have my library in three or so pounds compared to... Whatever the rest is :smalltongue:

Kerrin
2010-12-10, 11:55 PM
I love having my hardcopy books for perusing and using at home but would prefer to also have PDFs of them if I could when going to someone's house to game - sigh, if only companies would make it possible to get either or both.

When going to someone's house to play I use a nifty messenger style bag I received when attending Tech Ed (or was it PDC?) back in 1999. If it doesn't fit in the bag then I don't need it.

I imagine a decent backpack would work well too.

valadil
2010-12-11, 01:30 AM
My backpack from high school holds all my books. I don't have enough books in any one system that they don't fit. If I did, I'd leave out the books that weren't relevant to me or that the books that other people at the table owned (DMG and MM being likely contenders). I also keep PDFs of all relevant books in my Dropbox account, which I can read from my iPhone (using Goodreader of course).

Vizzerdrix
2010-12-11, 03:02 AM
I use boating boxes. They'll hold 7 to 8 books. are water tight. Bright orange. Have lock loops so you can padlock them. Easy to carry. Cheep. and are designed to stack securely.

AslanCross
2010-12-11, 06:26 AM
Since I typically game at home, I just carry my books manually from my shelf to the living room.

When I bring books outside (usually to the local coffee shop at the mall) I either fit them into my backpack along with my laptop or carry them in a canvas shopping bag if they can't fit.

molten_dragon
2010-12-11, 06:31 AM
I have a backpack that I carry some actual books in. I usually have the core 3, plus spell compendium, Magic Item Compendium, and Unearthed Arcana, plus any books I need for that particular character in. I have everything else on my netbook in case I need to look something up.

umbrapolaris
2010-12-12, 10:01 AM
unlike d&d, we live in a world of technology, so all books are now in PDF. i sold my old books to collectors or 2nd hand shops. so i can buy new books.

Gryndle
2010-12-12, 10:22 AM
All my Alternity stuff is on my laptop in pdf format, but I have to lug my 4E library around in a backpack, and I am the DM.

If only WoTC supported 4E in pdf, or any digital format for that matter...

gbprime
2010-12-12, 10:29 AM
If only WoTC supported 4E in pdf, or any digital format for that matter...

Seriously. I'd gladly pay $15 for an e-copy instead of $30 for a hard copy. Throw all the copy protection on it you like, I'd still buy it. In the age of tablets, netbooks, and ipads, ebooks are just more convenient.

bartman
2010-12-12, 01:11 PM
Seriously. I'd gladly pay $15 for an e-copy instead of $30 for a hard copy. Throw all the copy protection on it you like, I'd still buy it. In the age of tablets, netbooks, and ipads, ebooks are just more convenient.

With the way most companies view DRM, would you be willing to pay $15 for an e-copy for your laptop, $15 for a copy for your desktop, $15 for your ipad, $15 for, well, you get the idea. And they wonder why people pirate stuff.

On another note, there is a very interesting blog (not mine) that writes/rants about this topic a lot, www.techdirt.com (http://www.techdirt.com), if anyone is interested. (note of course this is just one side of the argument and you are encouraged to read all sides and make your own decisions.)

Thurbane
2010-12-13, 08:21 PM
I lug mine around in a plastic milk crate. Good size, but can get heavy.

http://www.advantagegrip.com/2009%20Web%20Images/4-1_milk_crate.gif

Dr.Epic
2010-12-13, 08:22 PM
All my source books are on my computer as PDF's.

gbprime
2010-12-13, 08:53 PM
With the way most companies view DRM, would you be willing to pay $15 for an e-copy for your laptop, $15 for a copy for your desktop, $15 for your ipad, $15 for, well, you get the idea.

Obviously I'd prefer a format where I can use them anywhere, but I see the need to restrict that to prevent copying. Perhaps the business model that antivirus and other companies have switched to... the product comes with a license to use it on X separate computers. The first time you open it, it asks for your purchase #, calls the company database, and registers the CPU identifier to the copy so you can open it again without checking online.

Kaulesh
2010-12-13, 09:01 PM
Books used during a game are stored on spinning magnetic platters which are in turn stored inside small Faraday cages. Those Faraday cages are held within an easily transportable and sleek-looking plastic case with a 10.1" display.

Electronic copies are held on both of my laptops. Dead trees are at home. Yes, leafing through a stack of dead trees is easier than scrolling a pdf. I would rather not find dorm space for them, though. It's also easier to just sneakernet my fellow gamers a copy for character creation than it is to juggle 10+ books as well as the mandatory battle mat, dice, and Nutty Bars on the dinky college cafeteria tables we're forced to use.

Addendum to Hanuman's post regarding legality: It's only legal if you do it yourself - manually rip a ROM, manually rip a cd, manually scan a book - without the intention to distribute. But that's neither here nor there.

Thurbane
2010-12-13, 09:07 PM
Probably best to steer clear of legality issues here...it could be construed as giving legal advise, which is explicitly against forum rules. :smallwink:

Hanuman
2010-12-14, 07:25 PM
Obviously I'd prefer a format where I can use them anywhere, but I see the need to restrict that to prevent copying.
For PDF's? No. For something like an .exe? Yeah.

I agree in theory, but that sort of protection simply does not work on a pdf