Hi,
I see a lot of people asking for coin identification on here with little experience with coins.
I also see a lot of people with a lot of experience with coins replying to posts saying that it's an obvious fake or super easy to find in the catalog.
Instead of telling people they should be able to find the coin on their own, is it too much to ask that people help teach people how to find coins on their own or show what aspects of the coin look counterfeit ?
Isn't the point of the forum to help people out not make fun of them for their lack of knowledge ?
Not trying to call anyone out. I just want to make this more helpful and welcoming forum.
I don't care to see new collectors being talked down to at all but in comparison to the Facebook coin groups, I think Numista is the model of good manners. The worst offenders have moved on, hopefully never to return and those who remain seem to be doing a very good job of handling often obscure requests without disparaging remarks. It's probably unfair to single out any one person but our moderator Zak really does stand out. While most people are happy to provide links to direct the questioner to sites where they can do a little extra research, I see him quite often create a photo to help illustrate the point. Want to grow the hobby? That's how you go about it.
It is however appropriate to distinguish between a new and eager collector looking for some assistance and those folks who've seen a common coin listed for several thousands on ESTY and demands to know where he can sell his 1971 New Pence. Or those who have read sensationalized media stories about rare error coins and insist that each gouge and scratch is a "rare" mint error. I can't tell you how many times I've seen these types absolutely refuse to accept that their parking lot cent isn't worth thousands, even going so far as to accuse those trying to help of cheating him.
Yes, let's be as welcoming as possible to new collectors and try to make them feel welcomed and comfortable but let's not waste too much time on the latter. They typically seem to a create a single "wots it worth???" post and vanish without even a word of thanks.
Non illegitimis carborundum est. Excellent advice for all coins.
Make Numismatics Great Again!
It has been suggested on the forum before, but never took wings: when some new collector asks for the identification of what others consider as 'common, easy to find circulation stuff', we should first provide some hints like "check here to find out the date", "look in Thailand", look for the tag "sunflower".
This would help new collectors 'grow', and make them acquainted with the features of Numista. Plus, in the end, they will have found their coins in the catalog themselves, which is much more rewarding than someone say to you "this is the one, noob!".
It's the guy's first post ever on numista and he wants us to jump to help him. And it's not even a coin. How to be polite in such a case? I chose to NOT reply.
I don't see how saying something is an obvious fake is considered rude. I usually stick to ancient coins and use "obvious fake" in order to warn the person holding the coin not to buy or to return as soon as possible to get back their money.
Also, as far as I'm concerned asking to identify an common 20th century coin which clearly says on the obverse or reverse in Latin alphabet what it is and can be identified by simply writing the text into google is much more rude than pointing out how to find it.
I collect and deal in ancient Roman coin. In case you're looking for affordable ancient coins or need any help with the coins you already have send me a message.
Quote: "cro321"I don't see how saying something is an obvious fake is considered rude. I usually stick to ancient coins and use "obvious fake" in order to warn the person holding the coin not to buy or to return as soon as possible to get back their money.
Also, as far as I'm concerned asking to identify an common 20th century coin which clearly says on the obverse or reverse in Latin alphabet what it is and can be identified by simply writing the text into google is much more rude than pointing out how to find it.
I can only agree. A bit of research is needed BEFORE! I don't want to be at the service of lazy persons.
so there are feeble newbs who need delicate handling to come out of there shells and become flourishing numists, and there are snickering trolls from shu-chan and reddit who bait us with "how much is this trash worth" threads.
i have been posting on internet forums long enough to not care who i say htfu to.
Jamais l'or n'a perdu la plus petite occasion de se montrer stupide. -Balzac
