What is the best coin collecting software

[Kronos 0]

What is the best coin collecting software?

I am fairly new to coin collecting (well I started as a kid 30 years ago but it has only been in the last 3 years that the bug has got hold of me good and proper) and I am currently using CoinManage UK 2007 from Liberty Street.

**Update March 2017 by website owner: For Android devices and for decimal coins there is the Check Your Change app, in the Play store here: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.googlemail.krivzy_apps.Check_Your_Change ** 

Is there anything else our there any better?

Mark

[Kronos 0]

Ok, no response.

How about a spreadsheet, back to basics.

[Teg 0]

Hi Mark,

No response because I had no helpful advice.

The commercial software I have tried was pants.

My data started on a spreadsheet, migrated to an Access

database, switched to MySQL, then OpenOffice.

My best (poor) advice is keep your own database- if you are

up to speed with these things!

Teg

[Geordie582 18]

I did try the spreadsheet route, but found the whole system heavy work. As regular members know, I keep a catalogue in Word, showing photographs of the coins along with all the data (and notes) on each one. I keep it in A5 format and by keeping each reign as a seperate file, can print out a new page when any alteration has been made. Two loose-leaf folders hold the lot. Just another way to keep track.

Edited November 4, 2007 by Geordie582

[Kronos 0]

Thanks All

I think I start messing around with a spreadsheet to see if I can come up with some kind of format that I like.

Thanks again

Mark

[Kronos 0]

I think I have come up with the main fields for cataloguing my GB coin collection in Excel, can anyone suggest any other fields that I may need for future reference.

Monach

Year

Denomination

Mintage

Catalogue Number

Varity

MM

Grade

Qty

Amount Paid

Current Value

Date Purchased

Purchased From

Thanks, all advise is appreciated.

Mark

[Teg 0]

Some random thoughts:-

A lot depends on exactly what you collect.

For example pre - GIII you may want to record the weight of the coin.

Mintage does not mean a lot - so I do not bother.

If Qty is quantity I think it should always be one - have a separate row

for each coin.

Consider a separate file, or sheet for each denomination - then all your

sixpences or whatever are in the same place.

I keep a record (column) that tells me if I have photographed the coin -

and what I have called it.

Oh and make backups!

All the best with this

Teg

[Kronos 0]

Thanks Teg

I have tailored my spreadsheet with some of your idea’s.

Mark

[Hussulo 6]

I just bought this software:

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Coin-Database-Softw...1QQcmdZViewItem

It looks quite user friendly and useful. It says you can edit all the drop down bars so if for instance there is no 1/3 farthing section I should be able to add it. It worked out to cost a little under £10 ( I didn't pay for postage as its available to download ) which doesn't seem to bad as I have seen some US coin collecting softwares priced at $100. I will let you know what its like once I have tried it.

Edited November 7, 2007 by Hussulo

[Kronos 0]

Just had a quick look at the link and the software looks good.

Let me know how you get on with it.

Thanks

[Kronos 0]

Ok, I have finally settled with Coin Manage UK from Liberty Street Software, it's just so easy to add a scan of your coin. Still running with an Excel spreadsheet though, just for the posterity.

[Stechlin 0]

I'm managing my coins with an Excel spreadsheet as Marc does. Although I use less fields he does (for example the "mintage" field), because I can find these informations easily in the catalogues, when I need them its an awful lot of work and I'm not satiesfied, because its very difficult to fit pictures in an Excel spreadsheet.

What about the compabiltity with the operating system of the PC? This is changing quite rapidly. I've got 2 computers at home, one running with Windows XP the other running with Vista. Lots of my XP-software does not run with Vista. And Microsoft is already planning a new operating system. I'm afraid nobody can guarentee coin software updates for those always changing operating systems. And perhaps over night all the work is useless. This seems to be an advantage of a simple Excel spreadsheet. Opinions?

Holger

[Kronos 0]

What about the compabiltity with the operating system of the PC? This is changing quite rapidly. I've got 2 computers at home, one running with Windows XP the other running with Vista. Lots of my XP-software does not run with Vista. And Microsoft is already planning a new operating system. I'm afraid nobody can guarentee coin software updates for those always changing operating systems. And perhaps over night all the work is useless. This seems to be an advantage of a simple Excel spreadsheet. Opinions?

Holger

Coin Manage UK from Liberty Street Software is compatible with Vista.

Mark

[Chingford 166]

What about the compabiltity with the operating system of the PC? This is changing quite rapidly. I've got 2 computers at home, one running with Windows XP the other running with Vista. Lots of my XP-software does not run with Vista. And Microsoft is already planning a new operating system. I'm afraid nobody can guarentee coin software updates for those always changing operating systems. And perhaps over night all the work is useless. This seems to be an advantage of a simple Excel spreadsheet. Opinions?

Holger

Coin Manage UK from Liberty Street Software is compatible with Vista.

Mark

Most older programs will work with vista, go to properties for the file and choose compatability, then compatability mode, you can choose the operating sytem compatable with the program.

[Geordie582 18]

I now have been using the free spreadsheet I detail in my signature for a while, and have modified it to my own requirements. All my coins are on it now and I have no wish to change again,It's worth a try.

[Oxford_Collector 0]

Apologies for resurrecting this thread, but was wondering what to use as a Mac user for an inventory of my coins, I really don't want to have to boot into Windows each time to check my coin inventory. I thought maybe just to use a spreadsheet , so earlier today asked a question about this in the beginners forum (i.e. any recommended existing templates to use as a starting point etc.), but perhaps this thread is a more appropriate place to ask?

I'm not aware of any Mac-specific coin inventory software, apart from Numismatist's Notebook II (http://www.tabberer.com/sandyknoll/more/coin/index.html ) and some templates for the "Bento" database e.g. http://solutions.filemaker.com/database-templates/detail.jsp?serial=2550103 - has anyone tried either of these, and are they any good? They look more basic than Coin Manage UK, though. Thanks!

[Oxford_Collector 0]

Apologies for resurrecting this thread, but was wondering what to use as a Mac user for an inventory of my coins, I really don't want to have to boot into Windows each time to check my coin inventory. I thought maybe just to use a spreadsheet , so earlier today asked a question about this in the beginners forum (i.e. any recommended existing templates to use as a starting point etc.), but perhaps this thread is a more appropriate place to ask?

I'm not aware of any Mac-specific coin inventory software, apart from Numismatist's Notebook II (http://www.tabberer.com/sandyknoll/more/coin/index.html ) and some templates for the "Bento" database e.g. http://solutions.filemaker.com/database-templates/detail.jsp?serial=2550103 - has anyone tried either of these, and are they any good? They look more basic than Coin Manage UK, though. Thanks!

BTW I also found another Bento spreadsheet for Mac called the The Numismatist (http://solutions.filemaker.com/database-templates/detail.jsp?serial=2551152# ), though as with much coin inventory software, it looks geared towards the US market (mind you, I also collect US coins...)

[Rob 3,155]

Apologies for resurrecting this thread, but was wondering what to use as a Mac user for an inventory of my coins, I really don't want to have to boot into Windows each time to check my coin inventory. I thought maybe just to use a spreadsheet , so earlier today asked a question about this in the beginners forum (i.e. any recommended existing templates to use as a starting point etc.), but perhaps this thread is a more appropriate place to ask?

I'm not aware of any Mac-specific coin inventory software, apart from Numismatist's Notebook II (http://www.tabberer.com/sandyknoll/more/coin/index.html ) and some templates for the "Bento" database e.g. http://solutions.filemaker.com/database-templates/detail.jsp?serial=2550103 - has anyone tried either of these, and are they any good? They look more basic than Coin Manage UK, though. Thanks!

Database or spreadsheet, either should be ok. It is probably easier to make your own customised inventory because as has been noted earlier in the thread, any existing template will almost certainly have a missing field that you would insert if starting from scratch. The fields I use are as follows:

Collection reference number

Denomination

Date

Short Description (including grade)

Acquisition date

Cost

Bought from

Current book price

Peck, Freeman, Spink etc reference

The collection reference number links to a word file of the same name containing the coin's description together with any feature worth noting, details of acquisition, cost, seller, any other provenance, weight, images of the coin and any associated tickets etc. In the case of a coin being unrecorded, or if it is proof that a reference can be corrected, then this info is noted in the same file. This all fits onto a single A4 page at the most.

[Peckris 579]

Apologies for resurrecting this thread, but was wondering what to use as a Mac user for an inventory of my coins, I really don't want to have to boot into Windows each time to check my coin inventory. I thought maybe just to use a spreadsheet , so earlier today asked a question about this in the beginners forum (i.e. any recommended existing templates to use as a starting point etc.), but perhaps this thread is a more appropriate place to ask?

I'm not aware of any Mac-specific coin inventory software, apart from Numismatist's Notebook II (http://www.tabberer.com/sandyknoll/more/coin/index.html ) and some templates for the "Bento" database e.g. http://solutions.filemaker.com/database-templates/detail.jsp?serial=2550103 - has anyone tried either of these, and are they any good? They look more basic than Coin Manage UK, though. Thanks!

As a Mac user myself, I spent a few years in the 90s building a very customised series of interlinked and related FileMaker apps which have served me well over the years. However, you may not use FM yourself, and since the apps were to accommodate my own collection, my dealing (For Sale, Sold, Customers, Invoices, etc), and sundry other uses, you'd find them far too esoteric for your own uses.

However, just to give an indication from the database(s) used for my own collection, and ignoring the comparative values since the 1960s which is a sideline interest of mine, this is the main layouts and data fields I've set up :

LAYOUTS :

Data entry (single page, all fields)

Pictures

Values

Calculator (to calculate new values from Spink using different algorithms)

Spink input

Sets

Locations

Buying

Print list

Print for Spink data entry

Database log (history of changes I've made over time)

Tutorial (reminder to myself of how to operate the database)

FIELDS :

Denomination

Reign

Date

Variety

Condition 1/2/3 (1 = A, N, G 2 = BU, UNC, EF, VF, F, VG 3 = /BU, /UNC, /EF ... etc)

Price paid

Date acquired

Where acquired

Date sold

Comments

Composition

Proof

Latest value

Further (additional to Condition - e.g. colouration, dents, nicks, scratches, patina, toning)

Location

Values (repeating field)

Seaby Unc

Seaby EF

Seaby VF

Seaby F

Coin ID

(the reason you can't see a field for Picture is that each record on the database links via Coin ID to its corresponding picture on a separate database, to keep the size of the main database modest. You could of course add pictures to your main spreadsheet / database, but remember it will become pretty damn big!)

I hope that gives you some guidance as to the range of data and data views you might find useful. I'm pretty sure the above is replicable in Bento, which has become more sophisticated over time. Alternatively, if you have an iPhone or iPad, there are versions of FileMaker for them which are much cheaper than the full Mac versions (e.g. £20 instead of £200, though there is less functionality).

[declanwmagee 122]

Far better to do your own, Oxford. If you're not too up on database software, use a spreadsheet. If you're not too up on spreadsheets, what better way to learn than with something you're interested in, rather than someone else's meaningless tutorials.

My Excel workbook has 200 fields for each coin, but that's ridiculous, and because it has evolved over many years, rather than been designed. Only put in what you actually need, not everything you can, and you're more likely to end up with a sensible list, like Rob's!

[Oxford_Collector 0]

Thanks for the tips guys, all really useful stuff! I'm tempted the go the Bento route, as Bento itself is pretty cheap (around £35 I think) and you can get a version to run on the iPhone too (I have an iPhone, but no iPad... yet). On the other hand, it would be useful to learn Excel better, as this would be useful for my work, and as Declanwmagee says, this would be a more interesting way to learn it..

Either way, I think the custom route sounds like the best option, and the example fields people have given are very helpful. If I get Bento, I might have a look at the existing coin templates for some inspiration, but ultimately building my own system will probably be more rewarding in the long run. I'm reasonably computer-savvy, so hopefully should be able to produce something workable!

[Peckris 579]

Thanks for the tips guys, all really useful stuff! I'm tempted the go the Bento route, as Bento itself is pretty cheap (around £35 I think) and you can get a version to run on the iPhone too (I have an iPhone, but no iPad... yet). On the other hand, it would be useful to learn Excel better, as this would be useful for my work, and as Declanwmagee says, this would be a more interesting way to learn it..

Either way, I think the custom route sounds like the best option, and the example fields people have given are very helpful. If I get Bento, I might have a look at the existing coin templates for some inspiration, but ultimately building my own system will probably be more rewarding in the long run. I'm reasonably computer-savvy, so hopefully should be able to produce something workable!

Bento (i.e. a database) will give you a lot more flexibility of views than a spreadsheet, plus it will be easier to incorporate pictures. So that sounds like a good way to go.

[Oxford_Collector 0]

Thanks for the tips guys, all really useful stuff! I'm tempted the go the Bento route, as Bento itself is pretty cheap (around £35 I think) and you can get a version to run on the iPhone too (I have an iPhone, but no iPad... yet). On the other hand, it would be useful to learn Excel better, as this would be useful for my work, and as Declanwmagee says, this would be a more interesting way to learn it..

Either way, I think the custom route sounds like the best option, and the example fields people have given are very helpful. If I get Bento, I might have a look at the existing coin templates for some inspiration, but ultimately building my own system will probably be more rewarding in the long run. I'm reasonably computer-savvy, so hopefully should be able to produce something workable!

Bento (i.e. a database) will give you a lot more flexibility of views than a spreadsheet, plus it will be easier to incorporate pictures. So that sounds like a good way to go.

Okay, thanks for the tip, will probably give this a go!

[Sawstonjohn 0]

Hi

I have been using this free database for a couple of years for others collecting areas:

http://www.fileamigo.com/Home.htm

It's free !! to download and use.

John

[Oxford_Collector 0]

Okay, have tried out a few things now on my Mac to create a custom coin database/spreadsheet:

* Bento

* Microsoft Excel 2011

* Filemaker Pro

* Open Office Base front end with MySQL Community Edition Backend

Don't forget, there is no MS Access for Mac, so that's not an option.

Bento is quite easy to use and there is an iPhone app for it (though I can't seem to get the two to sync...), but is perhaps too simple for its own good, I've not found it ideal for setting it up with a more complex relational data model (which is what I have started to plan), but maybe I'm just not "getting it". I would also be a little concerned about "locking-in" to the Bento format. Its cheap, but not free. I'd like to like it more than I do...

Excel has the advantage of being cross-platform and fairly ubiquitous and its easy to retrieve and manipulate numerical data in it (e.g. bullion prices, if you care about that sort of thing), and can produce nice reports and charts, but its not ideal when handling relational data as is not really built for this, though you can fudge it by using different worksheets to represent relational "tables" or you can connect to MySQL as an external data source.

Filemaker Pro looks quite powerful, but I found it quite intimidating as a new user, would also be a little concerned about "locking-in" to the Filemaker format, though I guess I could just use it as a front-end to MySQL. It's also quite expensive.

The option that I think I'm going to experiment further with, though, after some experimentation, is to use Open Office (which is free) and the "Base" application as a front end to a MySQL database. This has the advantage of being cheap/free and cross-platform. I also already have some MySQL management software (Navicat) and know MySQL a little bit through work, so have a head-start there. This approach also gives me the option to host the MySQL database "in the cloud" (e.g. on Amazon Web Services), alleviating concerns about backups somewhat and also making the data available from anywhere (though not necessarily with a front-end). The Open Office "Base" application seems quite easy to use for creating and managing tables, creating data-entry forms and creating reports. There is also the MySQL Connector Open Office extension available, allowing direct connecting to MySQL (instead of through ODBC or JDBC), which seems to work well. The front-end is not as "pretty" as Bento or Filemaker, but seems more powerful than the former and easier to use than the latter.

Has anyone else tried using Open Office Base (with or without MySQL) for their coin database?