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Message:: [QUOTE="Billy Kingsley, post: 908900, member: 19456"]I'm going to (mostly) ignore the nonsence on the last few pages and give my opinion about the REAL topic here.  First off, a little background on myself. I got started in this hobby by finding my late father's small stash. 85% or more of my collection has been found in circulation.  I joined the PCGS forum on June 1st, 2008. I started collecting coins in May of 2008! When I joined there, I was totally clueless. I had never heard of a red book, the ANA, and I didn't even know that we had any mint marks other than P, D, and S! I suppose you could say it was a trial by fire, but I managed. I have managed to get along with almost everyone on there, and I've made some good friends on there...but that's not to say I like everybody on there. Some people post things I don't like, some people just have personalitys that clash against mine. The exact same thing could be said about here, word for word.  I've been a member there a few days over 2 years now, and I would not trade my time on that board for anything!  It was because of the thread Jack linked to in his opening post, that I joined CT. I read what was posted, and to be honest, it sounded like a good place to me, so in short order Charmy had PMd me the link to CT and I joined up...I'm coming up on a year as a CT member! I joined upon my first visit and I have been on both forums regularly ever since.  And guess what: I would not trade my time on CT for anything, either!  With the PCGS forum, the activity there is staggering. It IS more active than CT, there is no question about that. There is never a day on the PCGS forum where the new posts don't cover at least a page (Which I edited in my settings to max) yet here on CT, it usually takes two or three days to fill the first page with new threads or newly updated threads. As such, I don't always have a lot of time on the net each day, so if I have a short amount of time, I tend to check the CU forum, because it would be harder to catch up. That does mean sometimes I neglect CT but I always seem to manage to catch up here in short order as well. CT does have a more new collector feel to it. I like that, as I myself am a new collector and many of the questions being asked, when answered, benefit me as well. It also allows me to answer an occasional question, something I rarely ever get a chance to do at the CU forum...perhaps because the newer collector based questions are less frequently asked, or perhaps because someone else has already answered them before I got online. BUT, the new collector feel here is a great thing, because there are plenty of knowdgeable collectors always at the ready to help someone out who may not know as much as they do. It's a symiotic relationship, I believe, because new collectors are needed for the knowledge to travel on throughout the generations.  Besides the CU and CT forums, I also post on Stephanie's CoinsAreFun forum, CoinSpace, and FORVM Ancient. CT and CU are the only ones I make an effort to check daily, I try to check the others weekly. Each forum has different people, and that means different knowledge and opinions, and that can only be a good thing.  Also, some here have said that all the members on the CU forum are grading fanatics. Not true...read my blog here and see what I have to say about grading. I am/was hesitant to post it because it's not very complimentary. In fact, at my to date one and only coin show, I looked for the cheapest PCGS coin I could find just to make my forum presence legitimate. (I ended up paying $6 for a Proof 1961 dime).  I have regularly stated, albeit somewhat veiled, that I think grading coins is pointless. (Authenticating, on the other hand, is a nessicary process, especially in this day and age of such well-made counterfeits.) I have always said, and I will always say, that it's the coin that matters, not what someone else says about it. I could not care less about the opinion of a grade by some other person. If I like the coin, than that is all that matters, to me.  One thing about the forums....that seems to be universal...it seems to be the us vs. them of the toning topic. It seems almost impossible for people to respect the opinion of someone who disagrees with them. I personally don't like toning. I choose to collect coins that have remained in the condition they were minted in, but you don't see me lobbing attacks at those who do like toning. Between the two boards, it does seem like there is at least one thread a week attacking the other position, but I have to admit, it's less prevalent on CoinTalk. I've seen a few threads here that I took as attacks against Lehigh for example. The way I see it is that each side should be happy that they have less competition for the coins they choose to collect, not a "evil...attack!" position.  For those who seem to think that how much money you have to spend matters on what kind of coin collector you are....Baloney! It could not be father from the truth. I have become friends with people who wouldn't bat an eyelash at buying, for example, a Saint Gaudens $20. For someone like me, it would, LITERALLY, take me a decade to save up for even the most common, low priced example that could be found. Perhaps more so. I prove that you can still be a coin collector even well below the poverty level (I have been my entire life). My zeal for the hobby is the same, if not moreso, than for someone who doesn't have to worry about not being able to eat if they buy this $50 coin. (So far the food has won every time) For me, even a three digit purchase is pure dreaming, let alone a 4 or 5 or more (!) digit purchase...yet I have been able to get along just fine with those who can and in fact do that very sort of thing.  To me, each forum I participate on is worth it...If I no longer feel the forum is worth the time and effort, if I no longer feel that there are still good people on the forum...then I simply stop checking it.  I would also post on the NGC forum, but they don't allow registrations with Yahoo emails. Since that is all I have ever used since I first went online at my local college in 1999, I am prevented from participating in that forum.[/QUOTE]

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