I agree -- Mine are on the shelf, in alphabetical order (I married a librarian)magazines are in chronilogical order -- unless they are not.
If I pull a book or pattern out, I try to return it OR leave it with the WIP so I do not forget what I was doing when I return to the project.
I also keep a list on Excel by title, author, date, publisher and a two word description (design, Hawaiian, celtic, appplique, machine, etc). As it is on a spread sheet, I can access it many ways. When I go to a big show, I print out the list so I do not duplicate.