angore
Junior Member
Posts: 75
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Post by angore on May 1, 2023 10:54:17 GMT
Scott has an identifier in the beginning of the catalog that associated catalog numbers to a design number.
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Post by ClassicPhilatelist on May 1, 2023 13:58:16 GMT
Al, yeah, but it's not as good or convenient. I think Scott does a terrible job with their "Stamp Identifier" actually. Oh, Ted, I'm about to launch my new paper discussion on your forum. Feel free to mute me.
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Post by khj on May 1, 2023 14:15:36 GMT
It would be nice if Scott would have the identifier in table form for more complicated definitive sets.
Unitrade excels in that regard. Although, I have noticed that there are some "missing" items in their tables -- I assume either because the table wasn't updated or it was still work in progress. I don't have the most recent Unitrade, so perhaps the missing items have been added to the tables already. There was a note on one of the tables that mentioned it wasn't comprehensive (i.e., some types of varieties had been left out).
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Post by michael78651 on May 1, 2023 20:02:15 GMT
The Postal Service Guide to US Stamps is printed by Amos Press (Scott).
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Post by michael78651 on May 1, 2023 20:06:29 GMT
"Scott has an identifier in the beginning of the catalog that associated catalog numbers to a design number."
Not since the 2023 catalogue. It was removed from the US Specialized Catalogue in the 2023 Edition. You now have to purchase Scott's "Identifier of Definitive Stamp Issues" handbook to get that information.
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angore
Junior Member
Posts: 75
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Post by angore on May 6, 2023 10:35:00 GMT
Yes, they have been removing sections to keep page count down.
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Post by Ted Talks Stamps on May 6, 2023 12:07:25 GMT
Yes, they have been removing sections to keep page count down. And to milk more money from collectors.
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Post by ClassicPhilatelist on May 6, 2023 15:41:05 GMT
That's right. They pulled the ID and the "Yellow Pages" (graded values) from the specialized catalog. An extremely annoying move. Then they changed the digital thing to yearly without retention, that was a bridge too far. It may take a year or two but I suspect we'll see a backpedal on these decisions.
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angore
Junior Member
Posts: 75
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Post by angore on May 7, 2023 11:39:17 GMT
The real stab in the back would be to force everyone online so there is no used catalog market. It is in their interest to reduce this market.
In an online interview Jay Bigalke, stated that they were following the trend of subscriptions. Well, some software like Microsoft Office is available for a one time purchase as well as subscription. I have the one time purchase for Office 2019. Every mature software application runs into the challenge where there are not enough new features to drive significant increases in new sales so needing revenue to pay the bills to maintain.
From what I see the technology is changing from under them or making changes that have consequences. For example, they used to use Olive software for digital Linn's then they switched so all the back issues are gone. When they switched they decided not to allow downloads of PDFs in the name of preventing sharing but they did backtrack on that decision.
The high prices for the online catalog shows you that not paying for the printing cost (not a significant cost) but for their Intellectual property. and overhead They are not going to leave money on the table if they can help it.
I sure would like to see their business model (cost structure).
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angore
Junior Member
Posts: 75
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Post by angore on May 8, 2023 10:10:49 GMT
Here is Jay's interview.
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Post by Ted Talks Stamps on May 8, 2023 13:29:19 GMT
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Post by ClassicPhilatelist on May 8, 2023 16:16:02 GMT
I'm with Ted. The stamp catalog business can't be compared to software. If they want a yearly subscription model, then they need to make the entire suite available. When buying the printed copy, it's mine forever. Why is this different for a digital version? I'm happy to buy my new digital copy year over year, but I should have access to my old versions (as before). Because this is a MASSIVE point of having these back catalogs. Every year they include new information about specialty topics in various parts of the catalog, but that information vanishes in the next version to take on something else. (For example, in the 2021 catalog there is extensive information from Jim Lee and Jan Hofmeyr regarding the non-reuse stamp patents (Loewenberg, MacDonough and Wycoff) that ONLY appears in that issue. By 2022, that special focus on Essay's is gone. My understanding of the "new" model is that you only have access to the current year. So how do you ever build a research library from the Scott information if you don't have access to back issues? Especially if I've paid for them once already. Software isn't like this (mostly). Some software may take a feature away that we used to love, but the entire software doesn't vanish. I have joined Ted in his boycotting of all things Amos in the meantime as well. I'm hopeful that enough people notice this and there is some shift in their position. It's a time issue now... who blinks first?
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angore
Junior Member
Posts: 75
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Post by angore on May 9, 2023 10:42:57 GMT
I am still interested in the economics. I wonder How many complete sets they sell per year. 5000? They run about $660 (6 x 110) for a set so 5000 would be %3.3 Million. Many are sold by resellers but suspect they get $70 min per book.
Ted, did you do a video of your use of the trial version?
For me Colnect satisfies my needs (identification) and older Scott's get close enough to the relative value.
If you want the articles from each issues contact our friend who sells pages.
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Post by Ted Talks Stamps on May 9, 2023 15:18:35 GMT
No, I didn’t record my experience with the trial version. I wish I’d thought of it. I utilize Colnect more and more as time goes on, and if I need to see a catalogue value for stamps later than what’s in my latest Scott, , I’ll go to StampWorld. Their values, at least, are not as over-inflated as Scott’s.
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Post by CatnapStamps on May 9, 2023 17:24:35 GMT
Our public library has current and back-issues for the US Scott catalog. The various volumes for the rest of the world can be requested through their inter-library loan program. It may take a couple weeks to get the info, but it's available for free if I ever Really need it.
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