Potential New US Section Forum Category 'Is This A Rare Stamp?" Poll

I am one of the two although I have reservations. Folks do not read a post when it does not interest them. That is why we get so many questions that have been answered ( many times ) before

Peter

I voted yes.

I believe that keeping all of the "treasure hunters" in one place would help to clarify the big picture. If this were done, there would be a clearer understanding of the percentage of those who might, in the future, post non-treasure hunting questions at the SCF. I suspect this percentage would be very small to zero.

Also, going back over the past and moving old postings around doesn't seem necessary. The date of inception of the new forum category could be posted at the heading.

I would fully defer to the admins and moderators who have to manage it. They have my proxy to cast as they wish.

I voted yes, but I agree with John Becker that those doing the heavy lifting on these queries should decide the matter. Most of the people asking the rare stamp question have not bothered to do the basic work necessary to find the answer on their own. It's easier and quicker to ask on SCF than to do the research. Good-hearted souls try to point them in the right direction and encourage them in the hobby. I fear that might be in vain and a waste of good time: Most of these folks are not going to become collectors.

The three "NO" votes are more then I would have expected. I would love to know the reason why one is against this

Peter

I voted yes, but with reservations. I read most of the posts where someone with little to no knowledge is asking if they have a hidden treasure. I feel bad that it seems to be the same set of people answering those queries, but do not feel that I have enough knowledge or experience to answer.

When pictures are supplied, it certainly appears that the stamps shown are common and low value.

If anyone has some advice that might help me contribute, please feel free to offer suggestions.

Dale

I think I will leave it to the moderators as well.
I agree with Bud that many have been gracious about giving their time and knowledge trying to help those who request information.
Unfortunately sometimes it does wear on those who try to assist and then are challanged and disagreed with, often leading to the question - "why did I bother".
This way a person can sidestep these landmines if they wish to do so, and keep enjoying this forum of knowledgable contributors.

Edit: And I just thought of this- I believe Don just posted the solution without even knowing it. If you create that catagory, I do not believe it should be U.S. only; and why not just allow the person to place their post and have a pole automatically attach to the post in that catagory. Yes or No poll, no names or ID's and the post is answered annonimously without wasting time or energy trying to convince them otherwise.

Mike

Echoing the comments of some others, I'll defer to the moderators and their assessment of the additional work load this will create vs. anticipated benefits since the extra effort will fall on their shoulders.

The mission of this forum is education on stamp collecting. I think it will be more educational for the treasure seekers to see all the other treasure-seekers in one place. To see 50 "I have a 594!" or "I have a 613!" on one page will help make the point that, "No, you did not find treasure in the back of Aunt Gertrude's sock drawer." The forum should be called something like "I think found a rare stamp!" And there should be a pinned post at the top called, "No, you did not find a rare stamp." that explains the basics of look-alike rarities and that the last time someone found this or that rarity was 1954 or whatever and that there are 12 (or whatever) of this stamp, and they are all accounted for. I think that information is what people need to read before they get into how to use a perf gauge or how to tell the difference between rotary press or flat plate printing. I think the last 613 was found a couple years ago when someone went through a hoard of a few hundred thousand (millions?) of Harding stamps and found one. . .that kind of story is interesting and useful to the would-be treasure hunters. Telling them to print off a perf gauge is boring and not terribly useful if they are going to check one stamp ever.

Although I voted "yes" I think there may be a need for a second category "Can you help identify this(these) stamps?"

I voted "no". In an ideal world, newbie posters would look for a forum category "Is this a rare stamp", but I am a bit jaded and believe most would not search it out (causing more work for the moderator(s)).

Also, again a bit jaded, but believe most of the posters asking this question, will likely not be long-term members or contribute significantly to this forum. Of course, there will be the few exceptions, that I and others will welcome gladly.

Ultimately, I think the decision should be left to the moderator(s) who will shoulder the burden.

OTOH, I DO think there should be a forum category for "Please help me identify this stamp". This is one that will most likely have both newbies and longer-term members asking for identification help.

i voted yes. I think it will put the questions in one place, and let those who want too provide advise or an answer find them in one spot much the same as the " inherited" category.
i do agree with the suggestion of a "please help me identify this stamp" as well as both a pinned explanation and a link to the stampsmarter.com site.

Even though I voted yes the majority of these postings are US stamps. The first thread regarding stamps is the classic US stamp forum and I think they quit reading right there and continue to post in the US stamp section. These people want a quick answer and won't take the time to read through the site to determine the best place to post their question. Just my 2 cents.

I voted but refer a name like "how much is this worth" since it covers a broader area.

What you want is a thread "I have inherited this collection and want to start to collect stamps".

Could the new forum also have an automatic reply "No, you do not. Please see Stampsmarter.com for more information" haha just kidding. I voted yes, in the hopes that they would see others asking similar questions.