For years, ComicBase had only an expensive, professional version of their comic book database and collection manager. Recently, they moved into the free space with ComicBase Free, offering a full-featured, but also stripped-down, free version.
ComicBase Free has the same enormous comic book database that its pay cousin has. It doesn't have individual cover images in it, which is kind of a drag as images are the heart of comics. The database included with ComicBase Free also doesn't have any creative team information (writer, artists, and so on), preferring instead to focus on the fictional aspects: the characters and key moments in selected issues.
The free version of ComicBase is limited to 500 comic books per collection, or about two or three longboxes worth of comics, including bags and backing boards. If you've got more comics than that, you'll want to look into upgrading to one of the full versions. If you decide to upgrade to one of the paid versions, moving your ComicBase Free database to the paid version is a somewhat convoluted process. Instead of simply trying to open the database from the new product, visit the vendor's FAQ page for the shortcut method, which involves exporting your old database before you upgrade.
ComicBase Free won't update its database or pricing; it's static from the moment you download it, meaning you'll have to add new comic books to the database by hand or upgrade to a more expensive version of ComicBase. The ComicBase software includes a rudimentary spreadsheet that will be recognizable for anyone who's used Excel for any length of time.
ComicBase also links to AtomicAvenue, the comic book selling Web site that's also owned by vendor Human Computing. This Web site allows you to sell comics directly to the public, and it's used by a variety of comic book selling businesses. It's a direct-sale site like Amazon, rather than an auction-based site like eBay. If the comic is for sale at AtomicAvenue, you'll be able to click through in ComicBase and purchase it.
Note: ComicBase Free is complete and standalone, though there are several numerous versions of the app that have more features, such as images and free updates: ComicBase Express ($50), ComicBase Professional ($130) and ComicBase Archive ($300).
--Steve Horton
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