I have a question regarding the fact many softwares and websites have the value of coins on it... I mean, there are some specialized books on this, and it must be a terrible amount of work, watching transactions and establishing a value for each coin, each year, no? Now, I don't believe there are maybe a hundred of companies who have the time for doing this... And I don't believe they can just copy what's in the Red Book, or Charlton, or anyone's book. That would certainly be stealing an important work, no? In the other side, there are many informations in these books which are just facts, which could come from anywhere, like the designer of the coin, it's weight, composition... and I believe these informations shouldn't be protected, or are they? Any thoughts, comments, experiences to share on this?! Thanks! Max Just noticed this in the Red Book: "No part of this book may be reproduced or copied in any form without written permission from the publisher. Prices listed in this book may not be used in any form of computer database or program without written permission from the publisher." That confirms my thoughts on usage of prices... But I still don't think every software/website maker creates his own data about this.
Based on the different price guides there are, and since every single one has different prices listed - it appears that they do.
I believe we can say like "...this coin is worth that much according to the R.B..." but we can't list coin values like entire pages or such. Max
No of course not. It means just what it says - it may not be copied or reproduced. For example, if you scanned a page of the Red Book and then posted that picture here or anywhere else, that would be a violation of the copyright law.
IMO the most accurate price guides are: -- CDN (greysheet) and it's other publications -- Coin World's Coin Values -- Auction results, including eBay The first two give you an idea of what you should be paying, and the last one tells you what people are actually paying.
I'd go along with your first and last kanga - but the middle one I would ignore. It's totally unrealistic and only list the highest price ever received for any given coin in a given grade.
Which is why I refer to it when buying. It's the price to beat. By how much depends upon a comparison with CDN. So I look at it as a guide.
