Trying to avoid AI and then I get curious.
Talk Human-Robot Interactions and Intimacy
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1ulmannc
This started by asking for a bit of information about how ISDN's are controlled. See https://www.librarything.com/topic/379236#n9142541
I was thinking I wouldn't ask AI about this but once I got a few answers (just being curious, you know), I thought "oh why not ask AI (used Gemini as it was sitting right there on top of my screen)."
Look what I got back.
=-=-=
My question
Give me a brief history of ISBN's in the book trade. Brief is the operative word here!
Gemini said
Since you requested "brief," here is the high-level history of how the book trade started speaking in 10 and 13-digit codes.
The Origin Story
1966: The system was originally created as Standard Book Numbering (SBN) by Gordon Foster for the British bookseller W.H. Smith to help organize their new automated warehouse.
1970: The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) adapted this into the International Standard Book Number (ISBN) to create a global language for the trade.
The Evolution
The 1970s Adoption: Throughout the decade, major publishers began phasing out internal cataloging systems in favor of the 10-digit ISBN.
The Barcode Era: In the 1980s, the rise of laser scanners in bookstores made the ISBN indispensable for point-of-sale and inventory management.
2007 Transition: To increase numbering capacity (and to align with the EAN-13 barcodes used on other consumer goods), the system officially switched from 10 digits to 13 digits.
Who "Owns" the Numbers?
As discussed in the LibraryThing thread you were just viewing, there isn't one single "ISBN police force." Instead:
International ISBN Agency: Coordinates the system globally.
National Agencies: In the US, Bowker is the exclusive agent that sells blocks of numbers to publishers.
The Wild West: While agencies assign blocks to publishers, individual publishers are responsible for assigning those numbers to specific books. This is why you occasionally see "duplicate" ISBNs—it's usually a clerical error by a publisher rather than a central registry mistake.
Would you like me to find a guide on how to manually add your older, non-ISBN books to LibraryThing?
My response
Nope! Having used LT since 2012, I have it all set up for how I want to use it. I only use about 15 of the many fields they have.
Gemini said
Fair enough! After over a decade on the site, you’ve definitely survived the "feature creep" and found your own workflow. It’s a classic power-user move to ignore the noise and stick to the 15 fields that actually matter for your collection.
Since you're looking at "A Pioneer Woman in Alaska" (1948), that's a perfect example of why those ISBN fields stay empty—published nearly 20 years before the SBN even existed!
Is there anything else I can help you dig up today, or are you all set with your cataloging?
My response
I'm all set.
Gemini said
Understood! It sounds like you’ve got your LibraryThing system dialed in perfectly—there’s a certain satisfaction in having a lean, mean, 15-field cataloging machine that’s survived since 2012.
Enjoy your time with the "Pioneer Woman"! If you ever run into another bibliographic mystery or just want to chat about book history again, I’ll be here.
Happy cataloging!
=-=-=
1. I wonder what I would have gotten if I left off the part about a brief response?
2. It even found my talk entry in LT. Oh brother.
I was thinking I wouldn't ask AI about this but once I got a few answers (just being curious, you know), I thought "oh why not ask AI (used Gemini as it was sitting right there on top of my screen)."
Look what I got back.
=-=-=
My question
Give me a brief history of ISBN's in the book trade. Brief is the operative word here!
Gemini said
Since you requested "brief," here is the high-level history of how the book trade started speaking in 10 and 13-digit codes.
The Origin Story
1966: The system was originally created as Standard Book Numbering (SBN) by Gordon Foster for the British bookseller W.H. Smith to help organize their new automated warehouse.
1970: The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) adapted this into the International Standard Book Number (ISBN) to create a global language for the trade.
The Evolution
The 1970s Adoption: Throughout the decade, major publishers began phasing out internal cataloging systems in favor of the 10-digit ISBN.
The Barcode Era: In the 1980s, the rise of laser scanners in bookstores made the ISBN indispensable for point-of-sale and inventory management.
2007 Transition: To increase numbering capacity (and to align with the EAN-13 barcodes used on other consumer goods), the system officially switched from 10 digits to 13 digits.
Who "Owns" the Numbers?
As discussed in the LibraryThing thread you were just viewing, there isn't one single "ISBN police force." Instead:
International ISBN Agency: Coordinates the system globally.
National Agencies: In the US, Bowker is the exclusive agent that sells blocks of numbers to publishers.
The Wild West: While agencies assign blocks to publishers, individual publishers are responsible for assigning those numbers to specific books. This is why you occasionally see "duplicate" ISBNs—it's usually a clerical error by a publisher rather than a central registry mistake.
Would you like me to find a guide on how to manually add your older, non-ISBN books to LibraryThing?
My response
Nope! Having used LT since 2012, I have it all set up for how I want to use it. I only use about 15 of the many fields they have.
Gemini said
Fair enough! After over a decade on the site, you’ve definitely survived the "feature creep" and found your own workflow. It’s a classic power-user move to ignore the noise and stick to the 15 fields that actually matter for your collection.
Since you're looking at "A Pioneer Woman in Alaska" (1948), that's a perfect example of why those ISBN fields stay empty—published nearly 20 years before the SBN even existed!
Is there anything else I can help you dig up today, or are you all set with your cataloging?
My response
I'm all set.
Gemini said
Understood! It sounds like you’ve got your LibraryThing system dialed in perfectly—there’s a certain satisfaction in having a lean, mean, 15-field cataloging machine that’s survived since 2012.
Enjoy your time with the "Pioneer Woman"! If you ever run into another bibliographic mystery or just want to chat about book history again, I’ll be here.
Happy cataloging!
=-=-=
1. I wonder what I would have gotten if I left off the part about a brief response?
2. It even found my talk entry in LT. Oh brother.
2GraceCollection
Interesting. The information seems accurate, at least from what I already know about ISBNs. I've gotten nonsense that wasn't correct from AIs in the past. I didn't know there were AIs now that investigated your browsing history and attached that in their responses. Seems a little creepy and invasive to me.
3MsMixte
>2 GraceCollection: More than a little, since Tim has mentioned that certain AI bots don't (supposedly) collect information from here.
