Does Anyone Write Up Their Collection?

I believe the OP (circa 2012) meant to ask "Does anyone catalog (or inventory) their banknote collection" not "write up" as that tends to infer insurance. I'm sure most collectors have an inventory these days. I use both a "Numbers" like spreadsheet and I'm developing a Google Docs webpage for my collection.

Anyone else cares to add?

I, too, use an Excel spreadsheet to track all the details that are important to me such as date purchased, country, Pick #, series/year, denomination, amount paid (USD), etc.

I do like the "write up" concept though and the look of the stamp write up on the first page of this thread. I want to do something similar with the world notes that I keep in a lighthouse 4-ring binder. I've been toying with the best way to do such a thing as the pages I use are 3-pocket and depending on the size of the note, there's not much room for a little slip of paper with notes on it. At the very least I would like to identify each note with country, series/date and pick # because there are many notes that I can't identify by sight, specifically the ones in Cyrillic, Arabic and Asian character sets.

Issues/considerations:
1. Want to include the info in each pocket vs. affixed to the outside of the pocket since I periodically move notes around when I add new notes.
2. Concerned about ink jet printer ink reacting with the notes or transferring to the inside of the pocket
3. Size... many of my notes don't allow much room for anything else in the pocket.

Optionally I could number the pages and create a few index pages for the "write up", but I'd prefer that the pertinent info to be right there with the note.

I have kept a detailed Excel spreadsheet for years with columns entitled,

1. year,

2. name of coin,

3. country of origin (if foreign),

4. denomination,

5. variety (if applicable) with applicable Breen, FS or VAM #s...,

6. grade,

7. defect descrip. (ie.: rim ding, rev. scratch etc),

8. acquisition price w/ date of purchase,

9. sold price,

10. inventory number,

11. was a photo of coin taken(Y or N with the inventory #)

I write all of the aforementioned #s' data except 7, 8 & 9 with ink on the Mylar holder or a white sticker on the corner of a slab to maximize auction sale prices.

I sincerely believe more qualified and elevated auction bids emanate from more interested bidders with a sense of purchasing valuables that have apparently been researched with some degree of structured effort; perception is reality...

It may seem like a lot but when it comes to tax time inventory reconciliations I can sleep at night. Plus I'll know that if I pass in the night etc. my heirs will have 0 problems getting FMV on a collectible that more than likely they'll have no clue of its value nor research time to be assured that they will not be taken to the cleaners when they eventually sell.