| When you look to organize your coin collection do | | | | can customize to your heart's content. You want |
| you use a free spreadsheet or do you pay | | | | to see the information in a certain way? No |
| potentially big bucks and get a complete software | | | | problem, just do it. You want a custom report? |
| package? It's a big question, especially when | | | | No problem, just use a pivot table. They can be |
| you're on a budget. | | | | formatted just the way you want, you can even |
| The Coin Collecting Software Package | | | | use conditional formatting to give your coin |
| This option may seem like the obvious "best | | | | collection inventory a little extra visual flair. No |
| option" with its built in database of most coins | | | | need be an excel wizard to make a simple |
| known to man. It also may have pictures of each | | | | spreadsheet, just put some column titles in and |
| coin as well as a visual guide to grading your coins. | | | | away you go. |
| Prepackaged software can also have reports of | | | | The bottom line of using a spreadsheet to track |
| every kind ready to be generated at a single click | | | | your coin collecting is that they are free. It takes |
| offering you all the coin collecting statistics you | | | | a little time to format the columns and rows the |
| could imagine. | | | | way you would like, but after that it's good to go |
| However, the downside of using a purchased | | | | and best of all it is yours. You know how it works |
| program are not few either. First of all you have | | | | and trust if the statistics it is reporting are |
| to shell of $40-$99, which is quite a few coins | | | | accurate. |
| you are going to have to pass on at the next | | | | Coin Collecting Spreadsheet versus Coin Collecting |
| coin show. Secondly while a program may have | | | | Software |
| reports built in, it may not have the exact report | | | | While ultimately the decision comes down to you, |
| you are interested in. Prebuilt software likely isn't | | | | don't forget to do your homework. Look at |
| very customizable, they programmed it one way | | | | customer reviews of the products you are |
| and you have to use it in their specified way. | | | | looking at before you buy and try to make sure |
| Another problem to look out for is that if the | | | | the company is going to be around for the |
| company from whom you purchased your | | | | foreseeable future to provide updates for each |
| software from goes out of business you are | | | | new year of coins. If you don't see what you like |
| stuck with the 2003 version that doesn't allow for | | | | or don't want to spend any money then use |
| you to add in all the different Presidential coins. | | | | Excel or OpenOffice to make your own coin |
| Coin Collecting Spreadsheets | | | | collecting spreadsheet. |
| The beauty of using a spreadsheet is that you | | | | |