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Pin Database alternative? What do you think?

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Pin Database alternative? What do you think?
We already have a large number of pictures we have taken recently. We took them for our sales, and for our personal records... As well as planned to use them to assist in setting up a new database. I have nooooo problems letting multiple databases use our images as long as they realize I am keeping those images on my computer for future use as well.... watermark if ya want, but that exact image is still in my computer for me and any other site or use I feel like.

I also agree. a database that is JUST a pin wiki would be totally cool. One without a trade assistant. However it would not have accurate current $ values. it would need to be just a wiki with relevant info such as original retail, sales locations, sku #'s etc..... but a wiki, lacking a trade mode would allow more space for better images!!!!!
 
How did it take me so long to see this thread @_@ :lol:


I don't know if it's already been addressed, I understand that taking certain information from Pinpics would be wrong, but for a majority of the newer pins (at least before it got upgraded) it was all the user's work that Pinpics took for their own, so as long as the user who did all the work to put up the pin says yes to this new site, I don't see anything wrong with literally copying the Pinpics information since Pinpics didn't do anything really (if you wanted to).


This is almost so brilliant I cannot even imagine O_O I mean, think about it. If someone who really wanted to get this site up and running had a contact in CA, they could do a competition. Person who uploads the most accurate and detailed pins (that way someone can't upload a pin and in the description put "pin of Ralph" in order to rush more pins) could get a whole set of DSF pins (Frozen comes to mind) for free or something like that. Considering at cost the pin set is like $60, I could see a lot of people (including myself) really trying to help the cause.


Wow, that's amazing Ethan, I'd be very interested in testing it (if you'll have me :lol since I, like many others have expressed, cannot deal with the new PP


I agree. While weight is nice, especially when we get to the smaller pins like HMs, every pin might be different depending on if the person who weighed it reset their scale, or if the scale is functioning properly, etc. which could case a slew of problems if the weight they upload is incorrect by even a few digits.

Psycho Pixie said:
However it would not have accurate current $ values. it would need to be just a wiki with relevant info such as original retail, sales locations, sku #'s etc..... but a wiki, lacking a trade mode would allow more space for better images!!!!!
Click to expand...

As much as I would love current $$$ values, implementing an accurate one would pretty much force the site to charge money because it's almost impossible to keep track of all the prices that pins fluctuate in value if you don't pay someone to actively do it. Why look at all the D23 pins recently, started out so high, lowered, and constantly lowered, and now are finally starting to be stable. It'd be too hard for someone to keep updating that and lord knows we can't use all eBay sales causes of shill bids.
 
Regarding adding Weight as a part of description....

It would actually be helpful. Counterfeit factories and manufacturers use a different metal quality. Often counterfeits are thinner, and even sound "tinny" if you drop them on a hard surface. Weight is definitely a factor to consider.
 

Interesting...I honestly did not know that, thanks for letting me know Kristine ^_^ On that note, I guess it wouldn't be bad, though I think it'd be a hassle and many pins wouldn't be weighed because of the hassle, but heavily counterfeited ones could be for that reason
 
How about also posting pics of the scrapper versions? Many must still have some lying around and is much easier to tell from a picture then from a description.
 
Something that needs to be kept in mind for images of scrappers would be that no 2 scrappers are really the same. they are scrappers because they failed quality control. so some may have lots of paint dips, some may have rough edges, some may have sloppy backstamps... So an image of the scrappers might get crazy.

and the other concern is that DISNEY doesnt like Scrap or counterfeit accusations. I think some of the scrap warnings on pincpics were removed because Disney told them to. But thats a whole new can of worms.....
 
OK, didn't know that Thought it would just be a more helpfull way for new traders. As I had 2 in my collection for over a year now (long before I joined here or was really that much into the "pin-business"), and never knew untill last month or so.
 

And yet, my husband's hobby sites seem to manage to have widgets that are automated to pull data off Ebay and/or Amazon, because many times his hobbies the items are still available or through sellers. Current auctions and/or completed sales. All for free. Which is part of why I find the premium features so distasteful. What I'm used to is hobby communities working together to provide resources to promote the "health" of the hobby. They don't throw up pay walls, except they do charge a ~3% fee for selling through their Marketplaces.

Here's an example of an item page for Boardgames http://www.boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/12333/twilight-struggle Just look at all the types of information provided through there.

This is one for one of the LEGO sites: http://brickset.com/detail/?Set=7104-1

LEGO is interesting, because many years ago someone set up a LEGO marketplace separate from Ebay, which is the best way to get missing parts. And now the number of sales that run through it, is very large. But because it is their own private Marketplace, they can track all the sales data. Here's a link to their price guide for a specific set: http://www.bricklink.com/catalogPG.asp?S=4729-1

While shilling is a concern, if someone is scraping data, presents it in a high/low/average presentation there will eventually be enough data to determine trends. And I would find automated mathematical processed data more reliable than someone trying to pull out info on their own. People have bias, people have agendas.
 
I was thinking....

what if one group opened a new database that included trade assistance and such... something like the old pinpics?

And another group set up a Pin Wiki database that just tracked pins, no trading or current values? It would be really neat to have a wiki-style site that had all the basic info, a HEAVILY detailed description, numbers for the different database sites, multiple high quality images of front and back. A site that didnt have to worry about trade assistance would be able to focus more on the details of pinformation.
 
Keeping the database/wiki and the trade assist separate is a great idea. That way the wiki group doesn't get bogged down with requests to mediate disputes.
 

I agree that it could be helpful in theory, but how would you determine the 'right' weight? Metal composition could vary from factory to factory (even factories contracted by Disney). Also, as Kupo said, differences in scales would make a determination of the 'right' weight impossible. We would be dealing with small weights - the average HM is maybe 1/4 oz?; even my Jumbo Maleficent Klimt, including all packaging and Mickey backs, weighs less than 3 oz. The weight difference between a known authentic and a known fake would generally be less than a ounce, and might be measured in tenths of ounces. How many people (other than jewellers and drug dealers) can guarantee that their scales are capable of accurately measuring weight that precisely? If X says his known-to-be-authentic pin weighs 0.3 ounces, and mine weighs 0.4 ounces, is my pin fake? or is my scale or his scale or both our scales calibrated incorrectly?
 
As I've said before, I have no desire to have a trade assistant on a new site. I just want detailed descriptions and lots of pictures. I am happy to contribute as much as I can.

As for weight and showing pictures of scrappers, I think other aspects of the pins may be more descriptive than the weight - such as paint color, cutouts (where the metal is cut out and should be vs. shouldn't be, etc.), glossy vs. matte, and smaller details. I also think it could be helpful to show "suspected" scrappers and fakes (if you don't want to call them scrappers because Disney doesn't approve). Yes, there are some pins that truly just did not meet factory standards and, therefore, have a variety of differences, but there are also pins made by non-Disney companies that are just fakes and tend to be a bit more consistent in their faults. And even if not all the variations of bad pins are posted, it is often helpful to see the real one and a fake to help make decisions about authenticity. When you have both an example and a non-example you are better able to make those kinds of decisions.
 
I have been telling people for years now that the sound of the pin is a big clue to if its fake. Often people think I am crazy when I say they need to tap it on a hard surface. If the pin makes a tap tap kind of deep sound its most often real. If you have the same pin and it makes a ting ting kind of sound its fake.

The example people need to think of is a old cash register. Anyone know why there is a big marble slab across the top of the change drawer??? Well incase you didn't know. It was put there so people could tap the coins on the marble and check if they were real. Remember that coins were used to buy everything as the price was much less back in the old days. So as a way to keep from getting bad or fake coins, cash registers had a slab of marble to help out.

Maybe my idea of tapping pins and listening to the sound is not as crazy as some people may have thought. lol
 
Had a bit of a snag this weekend with a power outage at home, so I wasn't able to get a test version up today. Look for something by next Sunday though.

And it will be very rough... no graphics or shiny design, just functionality so users can tell me what they like and don't like. I'll give more details soon.
 
ethanwa said:
And it will be very rough... no graphics or shiny design, just functionality so users can tell me what they like and don't like. I'll give more details soon.
Click to expand...

The simpler the better. The original Pinpics was quite simple, 2 color-palette, simple, and look how great it worked! As long as it gets the job done, I'm sure I'm not expecting anything flashy. Thanks so much Ethan, this is really exciting (as others have said).
 

Yeah, I'm all for simple... Nothing should be animated, it shouldn't use Flash, or even Java unless it's needed for the database itself of course... Animations, cutesy stuff, sounds, pages that keep auto-filling as you scroll to the bottom, little 'flags' that sit on the edge of the screen and never move when you scroll... None of that.

Plain, simple, normal working website.

Ultimately, if I turn on my script blocking plug-in, the page will still work perfectly. That's always a good rule of thumb.
 
Here are some interesting sections on PinPics terms:

 
which basically means. use the images for anything except sales threads, posts or ebay.

I agree with that actually. any time someone posts something for sale they should have an image of the actual item in hand. NOT some stock image they copy/pasted from a database. the actual pin they are selling may have a flaw and should have a real image of the actual item. ebay has similar rules, although folks still pop stock images and artist concept images up on their pin sales.
 
Psycho Pixie said:
which basically means. use the images for anything except sales threads, posts or ebay.
Click to expand...

Or use on any site where a profit is made... If the new site has banner ads (or ad links), options for members to pay, etc then the use of any PP images/information could probably be stopped. But if it's a truly free, not-for-profit site, then it might be okay.

Even if the users don't have to pay, if there's anyway the owner of the site is actually making a profit off of running the site, that can probably be considered a commercial venture...
 
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