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Thought I'd throw this out there since I haven't seen a FAQ on the subject. I love the Release note feature in sets that let's you enter info on the insert set, like if the cards are autographed or serial numbered.  

My question to the members is what do you prefer for the notes.  Abbreviations like AU, SN56 or notes actually written out like Autographed, Serial numbered to 56?  I'm fine with either I usually go for brevity but I can see the arguement that not everyone might know the the abbreviations mean. 

I do like the feature and it save a lot of time trying to figure out what insert parallel set you may have in hand and want to make an effort to updating sets notes when I have free time.

Thoughts?

I like the abbreviations there. Since you're describing an insert/parallel set, any abbreviations you use should be explained in the glossary already.

Dan's personal opinion:

Save the abbreviations for the Notes - write out the words in the Release Notes - and USE the Release Notes. The more they start being used, the more likely it is that people will become accustomed to READING them. So many IRs come in "add this card" when they are in another set - and the Release Notes already said that!

I like it.  I'm guilty of using mostly abbreviations, but I've seen quite a few members write out the description in the RNs and I have to say I really like it.  Either way having those notes under the inserts and parallels on the insert/related landing page is super helpful.  I can't count the times I've had to go hunting for the right insert or parallel and then I had to hope the notes were right and included.

Everything I've updated the past few months has the full description. I've even specified "hand numbered" vs "serial numbered" even though both are noted as SN in the database. I've also added the following where possible:

-- Which series an insert/parallel was in, and if something is exclusive to Hobby, Retail, HTA, a specific store, etc., that is also noted.
(e.g. "Issued in Series One Hobby packs and serial numbered to 250" or "Inserted one per specially-marked Walmart pack")

-- If the card has a MEM, I describe what the card says it is, which may or may not actually be a "Jersey" card.
(e.g. "The MEM note in this set refers to a piece of unspecified event-worn memorabilia which may or may not be a patch.")

-- If something is die cut, I add "Die cut." to the end of the notes since we do not note any card with "DC" notation.

There are a lot of examples in the 1990s and early 2000s sets for what I've updated if you want to use those for an idea, including the following:

- All 1991-92 through 2009-10 Upper Deck Basketball
- All 1991 through 2009 Upper Deck Football
- All 1989 through 2002 Upper Deck Baseball (and I'm about halfway done 2003, still have 2004-2010 to go)
- All 1990-91 through 2000-01 Upper Deck Hockey (and I'll eventually get to the 2000s and 2010s sets ... someday )
- All 1995 through 2000 Upper Deck Racing/Victory Circle/Road to the Cup

I'd like to add, do not put Release Note information in set names.  For an example; "Blaster exclusive", "Walmart exclusive", "Hot Pack exclusive" goes in the Release Notes, not in the set name "Purple (Blaster)", "Gold (Walmart)", "Hot Pack Silver".

Thanks Chuck.  If I have a blue parallel, I'm going to look under B for Blue, on a long list of parallels, not W for Walmart. 

Some additional tips I forgot to add earlier:

-- If I see a checklist has missing spots due to a misnumbering issue (e.g. a card was accidentally numbered 98 instead of 55) or something happened that caused a card to be pulled from production (no rights to the player, bad photo, whatever), I'll put that into the Release Notes of the main set and any parallels so set collectors are aware and don't accidentally miss out on a card or two. (EX: 1998 UD Football Bronze parallel). I may also add similar alerts on some insert sets, like if an autographed parallel of a 20-card insert has only 17 or 18 autographs, I might mention the three that don't exist in the autograph set.

-- If there are sets that are tough to distinguish, like a certain pattern/background/finish or a difference in copyright year or something printed or something stamped in different foils, add a helpful note so the collector gets tipped off on what to look for. For example, the 2000-01 sets, the Series One and Series Two Game Jersey cards had similar numbering and could only be distinguished by the small copyright year on the lower back, so I added a note telling collectors to check for that. Another one that came up yesterday: Topps/Bowman reprints. Many of those sets have a tiny number to look for and it's easy to miss it, and we get IRs saying a card image is in the wrong spot because the card says one number but our checklist says something else. Leave a tip in the Release Notes telling people where to look for the reprint set number. (EX: 2001-02 Topps Abdul-Jabbar reprints)

-- If there are inserts that were distributed among multiple sets, or an "update" set was released in something completely different, like #1-25 in Brand X and #26-50 in Brand Y, I like to leave a note instructing people where to find the appropriate checklist so they don't ask us to add something to a checklist where it doesn't belong. Examples:

* 2003 Donruss Studio Proofs (where I noted the 11 update cards were released in a different product)
* 2003 DLP Rookies & Traded (where I noted these sets were continuations of other sets)
* 2015-16 Upper Deck Update (where the update cards are found in SP Authentic)
* The evil late-90s Epix inserts (where specific sections of the insert were found in one of four releases)

The goal is to help visitors of the site find what they're looking for, and hopefully the increase in using Release Notes will help with that. I'd encourage everyone adding all the new sets to take advantage of these areas to help others out. Also remember Admin will review all entries first, so although the updates won't appear immediately, they will if done right. Thanks!

The work Ed has been doing on updating the Release Notes alone was what made him 100% worthy of being Member of the Year. (He's also been doing A LOT of other stuff.)

Seriously, I have stumbled a cross a couple of these sets that he's put this work into, and it makes a HUGE difference. Just need to get everybody looking at these Release Notes. But I still maintain, the more they get used, the more they will be noticed.

Thanks Ed, for all the work you do here to help with this!

Appreciate that, thank you!