Crowd sourcing basic numismatic research.

[RWB]

Compared to the body of coin collectors presently enjoying the hobby, the number of people doing fundamental research is very small and vastly underfunded. Most of their work is gratis and authors are fortunate if they are invited to speak at a coin club meeting where they can snack on canned soda and possibly a store-bought cookie.

 

But with the increasing maturity of internet access and data delivery, the opportunity exists to have much basic research performed by multiple people. This could expand the subject range and quality of information available to collectors. It might also open the door to wider participation as once long, anonymous series become accessible.

 

A Sample Suggestion - Liberty $5 Gold.

This is a long and superficially boring series. Factual data are scattered and the cost of some dates/mints is prohibitive.

 

1. A project coordinator solicits interest and contact information from collectors who concentrate on some part of this series.

2. The coordinator divides the long series into ranges of interest, and these are assigned to collectors whose present knowledge and collections most closely matched the date range.

3. Each participating collector is supplied with a data template, guidance on sources (largely on-line), and other administrative assistance.

4. As each participant completes a small section of their range, the materials are forwarded to the coordinator who will then provide feedback.

5. The coordinator will gradually assemble draft sections for each date/mint of the series.

 

The above could produce a very good draft covering most of the series. The time consuming work - that of variety searching and identification where hundreds of photos and coins need to be examined - would be performed by collectors following the project coordinator's guidance.

 

I'd appreciate the thoughts of members here and on other numismatic message boards.

 

[physics-fan3.14]

You would have to have a sufficient number of dedicated collectors interested in the series, who also have access to the original sources, who also have the ability to write and describe their material in an interesting and engaging way. These people also have to have the time to commit to such a project. This could be possible in a series that is collected widely enough to garner sufficient commitment. I like the idea of a "wikipedia" style approach to writing a book.

 

There is an alternative to the method you suggest: I know that one of your consistent complaints in producing your cutting edge and world class research is the lack of funding for your projects. Have you perhaps considered a crowdfunding approach, such as GoFundMe or Kickstarter type project? You could raise a certain amount of money to finance your research efforts upfront, and promise some sort of benefit to those who support you (a signed copy, for a certain level of support, for example). This would both allow you to gauge the interest, publicize and advertise a project, and defray any expenses you may occur.

 

If you post a project on several coin forums, I'll bet you get a pretty decent chunk of change to finance whatever project you might be pursuing.

[coinman_23885]

I think your project would be fragmented and may have large variations in quality among the sections. Unfortunately, there are not always enough collectors with the knowledge base and a discerning enough eye to produce quality numismatic research. If you did find enough quality researchers/collectors, then I think it would be an interesting idea. How would you select those individuals and assess their credentials?

 

I agree with Jason that a better approach might be to leave the research to the professionals, but to start funding campaigns.

[World Colonial]

I agree with Jason that a better approach might be to leave the research to the professionals, but to start funding campaigns.

 

+1

 

I would contribute if the coin or series was one I really like and the amount was "reasonable". Fortunately, the series I like best (Spanish colonial pillars) already has a relatively recent book (1999) and it is very thorough.

 

Other examples previously published that I may attempt to buy include the 1796-1797 half dollar, Bowers on the 1822 half eagle and the Peter Goetz Washington patterns. I would have little interest on most series of US circulating coinage and to my knowledge, they covered anyway though likely not in depth in every instance.

[#]

NLI

[RWB]

A kickstart test was made a couple of years ago. It was unsuccessful. Maybe another test is appropriate. Much of the expense is in publication - and collectors clearly prefer print to electronic (as do most authors).

 

RE: "...have access to the original sources, who also have the ability to write and describe their material in an interesting and engaging way."

 

As for the role of participants, part of the approach is to eliminate the difficulties described above. The greatest time consuming problem is in examining individual items. For scarce coins, hundreds of pieces should be examined; for common coins it might number in the thousands.

[#]

NLI

[coinman_23885]

A kickstart test was made a couple of years ago. It was unsuccessful. Maybe another test is appropriate. Much of the expense is in publication - and collectors clearly prefer print to electronic (as do most authors).

 

RE: "...have access to the original sources, who also have the ability to write and describe their material in an interesting and engaging way."

 

As for the role of participants, part of the approach is to eliminate the difficulties described above. The greatest time consuming problem is in examining individual items. For scarce coins, hundreds of pieces should be examined; for common coins it might number in the thousands.

 

I would be interested in knowing how the funding campaign was marketed; it could be an issue of it not being well advertised. Had you started campaigns for your Renaissance of American Coinage books, From Mine to Mint, and the upcoming 1936-1942 proof book, I would have contributed to them.

 

If you decide to split the work up, my suggestion would be to seek dealers and others who are well known in the series. For gold, asking people like Doug Winter or maybe some of the Heritage catalogers who see the material in bulk would be a good option. There are also a couple of collectors that come to mind who have enough experience with other gold series, that the skill set is easily transferable to another area.

[RB1026]

I think that RWB makes a very interesting proposal. As an independent author/publisher (not of numismatic material at present), I can attest to the costs and strains of publication. It is daunting, to say the least, to get a book to market and ANY published author ought to be applauded for persistence, if nothing else

 

Having said that, I think that the concept of "crowd sourcing" the work might be a viable option and could work if the "coordinator" is an exceptional manager. However, I can see some potential issues that might make it less than a perfect solution. I'm not sure, but with the right people involved it could work.

 

I do think that the the idea of crowdfunding a work might be the best option in the near term. It would allow a single author, or carefully assembled team, to collaborate on a book without having to address the hurdles of crowd sourcing.

 

Great topic RWB and one well worth further discussion!

 

 

[Mr.Mcknowitall]

I don't know much about this stuff, but from my own frustrations when searching a subject on the internet, I have come to the conclusion that the way info is processed on the internet/web etc., is woefully in need of technological advancement, a complete remodeling, to take advantage of information sharing. I would like to be able to see all info on a given key word/subject/phrase combined with all targeted info when I search, instead of pages and pages of mostly non-specific links. The stock market is sort of good at this in a limited manner from what I can see, and so is investment banking, imho. I understand proprietary info gets in the way, and author royalties, usage fees, copyright laws, etc. gets in the way, but I think a lot of these types of barriers are going to fall in the next 30-40 years, because the general public in any country is going to overwhelm the present situation and info sharing without boundaries will be the norm. I would love to see this accelerated to a next year launch.