I used to read a lot when I was younger but as the pace of working life increased I started to prefer stories in a visual form. Movies became an essential method of relaxation. My collecting hobby began about the same time that DVDs appeared in the market. At first they were outrageously expensive but nowadays Finland is a relatively inexpensive country regarding DVD prices even on a European level.
The first thing I needed to decide was in which order I would keep my movie collection. I decided to store them alphabetically according to the original title. The catalog is kept in a self-made Excel application that also has links to the IMDb.com.
So far it is unknown how DVDs stand the test of time. However just the lesser mechanical strain alone when viewing should make them outlast VHS tapes by far. For the collector the small size of the disks enable space economical storage possibilities. The DVD cases take about half the space of VHS cases so in order to really utilize the space saving one must let go of the jewel cases. As my collection expanded I switched to a much more space economical DVD storage solution.
For viewing the movies I have a Denon 3900 DVD player hooked up to a Sony VPL-HS50 projector that lites up a Da-Lite screen. Audio comes from a standard Sony 5.1 amplifier feeding a speaker set consisting of Infinity, Gradient, Migage and BT products. It is a bit overstating to speak of a “Home Theatre” when all the stuff is in a normal living room with white concrete walls. However all in all the experience is a pleasent one.