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SOME FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

1. Is the term "Cyberstamps" unique to this Web Site?
   At the time of our Club's official launch on the WWW, there were a few references to the words "cyberstamps" and "virtual stamps" as you would expect. One site was actually named Cyberstamps. That Web Site however, was a traditional philatelic trading company with absolutely no connection to the hobby of "computerized" stamp collecting. The "virtual stamps" referred to by another site were innovative look-alike stamp designs portraying themes of various causes. We use the terms: "cyberstamps" and "virtual stamps" as the most appropriate generic descriptors portraying the activities of our Club i.e. the pursuit of Virtual Philately.

2. Doesn't this form of stamp collecting detract from traditional stamp collecting?
   The very opposite is true. Its just a matter of moving with the times. Collectors today can have the best of both worlds ... each complimenting the other. Its like the old adage: "You've seen the movie, now read the book." Chances are most people will do both. Which is good for business. Stamp dealers with a positive outlook stand to benefit: "You've got the Virtual Stamp - now get the real thing." Especially as interest in virtual stamps stimulates interest in philately in A BIG WAY. That's why we actively encourage dealers to place their links on our Site under "Philatelic Links".
   There is the story of two shoe salesmen who went into darkest Africa in the early pioneering days. One returned dejected saying: " People in Africa don't wear shoes - there's no market." The other salesman came back and declared excitedly: " That must be the biggest shoe market in the whole world!"  We like to think most stamp dealers are in the second category. 

3. Can anybody trade in "virtual stamps"?
   The more the merrier. If anybody stops you, call a policeman. We hope the concept takes the whole world by storm. Like a "virtual hula-hoop".  

4. How is the value of virtual stamps determined?
   Prices are determined by the factors of production and viability. There is no intrinsic or rarity value as one finds with the trading of normal paper postage stamps. One pays, in effect, for the service supplied in making collectable images available on demand.
   The average VIRTUAL STAMP PACKET price is US$2-50.
   We don't think that many people can cost-effectively source, scan, sort. catalogue and e-mail virtual stamp images for less ... unless, as we are, they are wholly geared for the operation. 
   There can be virtual savings to collectors in the sense that if one collects 
   normal physical stamps, the equivalent purchase price of some of our 
   "$2 packets" could be in excess of hundreds, even thousands of Dollars. 
   Its an Entertainment Value/Investment trade-off. With Virtual Stamps you can add the very best stamps to your collection for unbelievably low prices.
   CyberStamp Collections can be offered for resale in CYBERSPACE, governed by the usual market forces of supply and demand.

5. What does it cost to make use of the "SwopShop" on this site?
   TRADING ON OUR "SWOP" COLUMN IS ABSOLUTELY FREE. Swapping takes place on a stamp for stamp basis.

6. Is virtual stamp collecting only a form of computer entertainment?
   For many it is a form of recreation - for some even, a therapy. A lot of bored secretaries, housewives, executives and convalescents need a break from solitaire - this is the answer to all their frustrations. In the process they're enriching themselves with all sorts of knowledge and becoming socially interactive with the global village - all through the humble postage stamp - now very much alive and living in cyberspace.
   But there are many others for whom CyberStamps forms a serious part of life ... dyed in the wool philatelists, history professors, educationalists, designers, students and the like.

7. Do stamp stamps have to be professionally scanned to qualify as cyberstamps or virtual stamps?
   The CyberStamp Club "SwopShop" belongs to the people. Quality is therefore a matter of supply and demand and finds its own levels of acceptance or rejection among virtual stamp collectors themselves. Astute collectors will always be able to spot, or produce an upgraded item. Then the older, poorer copy finds its way to the recycle bin. Even in the material world of stamp collecting, a tattered Cape of Good Hope TRIANGULAR "Woodblock" is better than no "Woodblock" at all!

8. Are CyberStamps merely of interest to stamp collectors?
   No, there is a much broader spectrum of interest:
   Bird watchers
   Graphic artists
   Illustrators
   Image banks
   All kinds of collectors
   Animal lovers
   Sports enthusiasts
   Bored secretaries
   Music lovers
   Fan Clubs
   etc.