As a collector, I prefer full books and that's what you'll find most of in my binders. However, I also like variations, which in many cases means the basic design is the same but something in the Manu mark, or on the saddle, or printed inside is different. One of the big benefits of The Chip Guide is it provides visual information that is very hard to convey in a text-only reference. That means, in many cases you have to show the saddle or inside printing to determine whether the difference deserves a distinct catalog number. The Chip Rack, although it doesn't show images, does a great job of pointing out the variations in chips.

If I have both a full book and a matchcover in my collection, what I submit to The Chip Guide is a flattened cover image of the front and back, and if there's printing inside, a scan of the inside as well. I've done that even when there is already a good scan of the closed front and back of the match book because it provides more information. Some of those may have been yours, Frank, and I envy the full book in your collection when I have only a cover. For the really old stuff (1920-1940) most of us wlll never have an opportunity to get a full book because the old-school match collectors only wanted the flattened cover. They removed any matches in th book, and in some cases they even cut off the striker (bob-tailed it) so it took up less space in their scrap book. I will take those when there is little likelihood I'll find a full book (just like I'll take notched or drilled examples of old or rare chips). The Tahoe Colonial is an example of that.

The question of what a collector should submit when the inside is unprinted is one I've vacillated on. It's important to show that there is a distinct cover type that's unprinted inside. I submitted some that way and Al put them in. Now that I see how dumb the blank insides look, I've started just sending the outside scan and if the inside is unprinted, I say that in the notes I submit. I see Al is starting to put all the notes in the database, which I've concluded is probably the best compromise. The notes are also a place for the submitter to comment on owner's names, locations, kind of phone number, differences in phone numbers, and approximate age of the cover. I think this is useful to later collectors who look at the covers to learn about different eras of the club. I've also found a couple of cases in small N. Nevada clubs where the dates on a cover don't match the date that TCR and TGT show for when the place opened. In my opinion, actual dates of operation are useful because many old places had gaming even when it wasn't yet legal in Nevada.

If you haven't tried phillumineny, give it a shot as a way to add color and history to your chip collection. Someday we may even have The Match Striker bulletin board to discuss the subject .