Pasting (and editing) this post is no problem whatsoever. The text was put together entirely on the basis of recurring complaints from WoC members, so it really belongs to no one. We'd be glad to have been of help to our partner site Numista.
Thank you, Figleaf. Below for convenience is a copy of the current version of the statement on the World of Coins site referenced by Sjoelund. I would recommend adding some similar statement on Numista, and making it mandatory for new posters of coin ID requests to view and acknowledge it, and to keep it easily visible to all members.
WOC post text follows
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On this board, you can ask people to identify your coins. Volunteers will often be able to help. Fine. Everybody wins. Except that the identification is nothing more or less than friendly help from another collector, not a paid service, not an obligation, not slave labour. IMPORTANT if you have lots of unidentified coins, don't dump them all at once, but space them out, preferably two a week maximum and be prepared for reactions that aim at teaching you how to identify coins yourself.
Here are some guidelines to make it pleasant for your helpers also. They should be pretty obvious once you thought about them.
- make a sharp picture of both sides. Details count. Use artificial light only when you know what you are doing. Use or improvise a stand and do not make a picture of a coin you are holding. If your picture is unsharp, make a better one. It's not just to your own advantage, it is a basic form of politeness
- Give weight and diameter, try adding metal. If you don't have a caliper or pocket scales, go out and buy them before posting. They are really cheap and your coins will still be there when you get back. More information here. Please don't use lame excuses like "my scales broke down". Get new ones before you post. Identification is no hurry job.
- Tell us what you can read. Try hard to post your coins in the correct position. You wouldn't hand anyone a photo of yourself with the top of your head pointing down or sideways either. Photos can at least be turned. Computer screens cannot.
- If you get a request for further information, provide it or say why you can't. Don't ignore the topic you started and the people trying to help.
- Post one coin per thread (unless you are absolutely sure and certain all the coins are of the same type.) This is not an identification site. It is a reference tool for collectors. It has different boards for different coins. If you fail to do this, your coins will end up on the wall of shame, marked with a sad face. This is a particularly stupid way to treat those who help you. Post the coins separately and the sad face posts will be removed.
- If you are posting several requests for identification, use different titles (e.g. add a number), so people don't have to click through all of them to find the one they need.
- Remember that World of Coins is a community. If you come in, post ten requests for identification, never contribute anything else and show no signs of learning, you make yourself look like an oaf. Rather, motivate people to help you, at least by understanding this post. Do not write "require" when you mean "request". Remember to thank those who helped you. You do that at home or in the street, so you can do it on the internet.
- When your coin is identified, post a cross reference to Numista and, if applicable, Zeno. This is not difficult, it increases the value of the thread and it is in your own interest to learn how to find your coins on these two sites. If you fail to do this, you are signalling that you don't care about the aims of WoC, such as education, helping all users and co-operation with other non-commercial sites.
- Post an identification if you found it yourself or got it from a third party. An identification instantly doubles the value of the thread you started and saves unnecessary work.
- World of Coins is a strictly non-commercial site, but dealers are welcome. However, the identification service is for collectors. It is not for dealers and others with a heavy selling presence on internet auction sites.
