How Does Everyone Catalog Their Collection?

Each coin gets a unique inventory number. I keep verbal and numerical data in a spreadsheet. Makes it easy to sort, search and do calculations. Pictures I keep in individual directories (i.e. folders), one for each coin. Individual coin directories are grouped under category directories (Roman_Republic, Roman_Imperial, two_cents, half_eagles, etc.). For some coins, I have as many as 20 pictures; too much megabytage for use in spreadsheets or word processor docs. For each pic, I use long file names that describe the coin, grade, inventory number and pic number for that coin. There are some tricks and utilities for naming files in Windows that avoid typing repetitive info for each file name.

When a coin is sold, the spreadsheet info on it is moved to a different spreadsheet, and the pics go into a group of directories under a master directory with the name of images_formerly_owned.

Programs: Excel, FastStone (great, free image viewing/manipulating program), bulk rename utility (great, free program for renaming groups of files).

Cal

 

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Pictures don't actually need to be stored in spreadsheets. Just links to them.

 

Yeah, I know that. I also know what happens to those links if you rename the pictures or the directories in which they reside.

Cal

 

Ken has the great truth here. What works for a collection of 30 perfect coins does not do as well for a lifetime accumulation of 3000 coins. My first IBM computer came with a program called Microsoft Works which was a amateur level Office. I continued to use that program with regular upgrades when I got a new computer until we reached WIN 7. WIN 10 won't run Works and there is no low end upgrade. I refuse to rent Office 365 so I switched to Open Office freeware which allowed easy transport of my Works files but everything works just a bit different so I am learning.

 

I use MSWord and make a table template that I used for each coin. A single document might have all my Constantines, or Biblical coins, or Twelve Caesars, or whatever. I probably have maybe 150-200 coins total, and I've catalogued probably fewer than 50 coins this way (it's a new system). I suspect this system will get unwieldy quickly. I just don't know of another way to do what I want to do in a simple fashion. Below is a typical entry. I do like my "notes" section, where I can type up a bit of the coin's "story." But again, that takes time. The "code" entry is how much I paid. I guess that's not particularly "coded." But I didn't want cost to be a distraction to someone I was casually showing the catalog to, especially if I wanted to talk coins, not cost.

 

This is what I do as well. I print the relevant page, showing all the details as far as auction/seller, price paid, and date of purchase. The pages are organised in three-ringed binders by RIC number, handwritten in the upper right hand side of each page. In case of a coin purchased by a private sale I print off a photo and write all the sale info in the upper right hand side.

On my computer the photos of each coin are organised by RIC number for easy access. Also, online all my important coins are in my Forvm gallery.

 

Very true, of course. But that is the way of life in the world of computers and is the reason we take regular backups.

I have everything encoded and password protected. The Excel file, the catalog data, the inventory data and the pictures are all in different locations, determined by the password. All are encoded, even the pictures. That way if anyone hacks in and gets the files they are useless to them unless have recovered all the files from different locations, know to associate them (the names are random strings with no file extension), and have the password.

In that sort of environment backups to an external drive are essential. That take minutes only after each session of adding new data. I have accidentally deleted data files not realizing what they were but it was not a problem.

 

Those who want a code may like the old letter substitution code trick. For those not familiar with the idea:
Select a ten letter word that is easy for you to remember and has no repeating letters. The link below has a few thousand suggestions but I suggest you pick one you can spell and remember.
https://www.morewords.com/unique-letters/
Since the list is divided by first letter, I'll use D as an example:
https://www.morewords.com/unique-letters/10d/
Of the 63 suggestions I'll select discourage for this explanation.
D I S C O U R A G E
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 *

The original form of this used the last letter E as a 0 but I prefer to use E for something else and use all the other 16 letters to mean 0 in my codes. E will mean "hundred". I always use four letter codes so a cheap coin will record cents while an expensive one will be rounded off. For example a coin costing $76.30 will code RUST with the T being insignificant. RUSK would be the same. A coin costing $1250 would code DIEO DI being 12 then E means 'say hundred' followed by O for the 500 losing the last digits. If rounding bothers you and you buy many expensive coins you could select your code word from the 11 letter list and have a letter that means "thousand". After a little use, you get to know your word/letter substitutions so looking at READ means $781 without having to think about it too much.

If you fear someone like me might break your code, you could always throw in a twist like coding numbers right to left so $781 would be DAER or having more than one letter to mean "hundred" interchangeably. Two shorter words together that add up to the desired number but don't share letters between them works, too. BYTE CORDIAL works but only for the computer friendly user. Just don't make it so complex that you can't read it.

I was shown this trick by an elderly collector back in the 1960's and in his memory I still use his code word which for some reason he shared with me. Back then, selecting a cool code word was a lot harder since we did not have a list online with all those non repeating letter words.

If you choose to shop for a word in the list you might find one especially suitable for you. For example a physician might choose the 11 letter HYPODERMICS which makes C "hundred" and S "thousand". I can not emphasize too strongly the need to pick a 'good' word that you can spell and remember.

 

My main document is an excel spreadsheet. At the moment I have different worksheets for different years. Each coin is given a unique number starting with the year and then a sequential number starting with 0001.

So the Otho I bought this year has a picture reference of Otho 20170001 obv/rev.

I have a word template to print the labels which are stored in an index box. I don't keep the labels on file once they have been printed. The coins are kept in trays with a small circular label with the number of the coin, emperor's name and on the reverse of the label a short description and sometimes the weight of the coin.

It works. Perhaps not ideal. I would like a database if I could find one. The commercial ones are geared to modern coins.

I keep a record of my coins on Tantalus so that I have a record on line for security purpose.

 

Seems extremely cumbersome. It seems like a toggle (say Ctrl-Shift_G) to turn certain cells on and off would be much easier. This is trivial to do without any coding.

 

Wow! I NEVER keep anything sensitive online - for security purposes.

If anything is anywhere except on a drive which only you have access to then it is not secure. If you want a second copy then just backup it up to a thumb drive and keep it somewhere very safe.

 

None, all prices I paid are in my head, old receipts I do get are in pcgs blue boxes, as are old tags and what not.

Forvm gallery is really where all the info and pics are.

 

If my house is burgled they are likely to take any electronic devices at the same time. Having photos on line gives me evidence of my property.

 

For aubade......everyone beat me to it, but it is straightforward:

1. insert from folder or URL sort and filter including pics

Search Results

Step 1: Open your spreadsheet in Excel 2010.
Step 2: Select the cell into which you want to paste the picture.
Step 3: Click the Insert tab at the top of the window.
Step 4: Click the Picture button in the Illustrations section of the ribbon at the top of the window.Feb 24, 2014

 

That's why my backup are not in any place which anyone would ever think of looking. Plus, I keep a second backup of all critical data offsite.

(FYI, I am sure I am only one of many on here, but I was a top-level IT professional before semi-retiring. So I know my way around getting it all done right.)

 

I like open office a lot.

 

Me too, I am comfortable with my sysem.

 

I'm dying to see how you write that number on the tag/envelopes.

 

Very simple. I don't it is only in the database.

 

Here is another code for alpha-numerics: "ExtraCoins"

e=0
x=1
t=2
etc.