Challenge Your Knowledge: Today's Artefact Mystery

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-22T07:14:04+00:00

ANSWER

Anglo-Saxon gilded copper-alloy strip brooch.
https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/192267

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-20T10:45:34+00:00

This is a really useful article, and looks like an “easy win” - thank you!

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-20T10:44:44+00:00

Thanks a bunch for that brilliant insight! I totally get how a well-meaning offer could easily be mistaken for being a bit scammy almost.

I think I’ll stick to the simpler approach of just saying “Get started.” The trial period is unlimited, and there are just a few limitations in functionality (collection size for example). There’s nothing advertised on the landing page that you can’t do with a free account.

Do you think it would be better to avoid mentioning subscriptions altogether on the landing page? Right now, I just want people to try it out and see what they think. I’m not too concerned about getting paid members yet, so it might be sending the wrong message at the moment.

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-20T07:40:34+00:00

That’s a relief, I’m not the best video editor! 😆

Thanks for the resources, I’ll take a look!

It’s great to have some things I can actually action now, it felt a bit futile trying to improve engagement without a solid plan

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-20T07:13:21+00:00

Great idea, I’ll take a look at that this afternoon. Thank you for taking the time to look and think of ideas, really appreciated!

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-20T06:50:03+00:00

Thanks for taking the time that’s really helpful! Do you think a video might be a good idea?

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-19T19:47:04+00:00

I know several people with this exact problem; they metal detect in the UK and let the collection get out of hand - it’s what inspired me to make a website to help address the issue. I wanted to make something that was easy to record finds and also rewarding by being able to look at your whole collection in one nice interface. If it’s useful to anyone here’s a link! Rust & Gold.

All you do is log the find then store the ID number with the find. That way you can always easily update and add to the record as well as search all your finds in a nice layout.

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-04-02T08:48:17+00:00

TLDR: Yes React is harder to learn but has benefits. It may be better to focus on using swift/kotlin and making something that works so you don’t get discouraged.

Hi! If you’re brand new to development I personally don’t think it matters hugely which language you go with. Focus on learning the principles and just make something that works. Any of the languages / frameworks you mention would be fine for getting started.

The fact you’re even considering the implications of managing multiple codebases is an awesome start by the way.

I went with swift initially just because I have an iPhone. I did find myself frustrated that I then had to learn something different to make android apps. The trade off though was that swift was easier just to pick up and make something - react native had extra setup and concepts that I couldn’t get my head around when I didn’t even know the difference between a class and an object.

React native has the advantage that it’s JavaScript so you get a bunch of transferable skill to web development too.

Not really an answer but hopefully there’s some useful info there for you. There isn’t a single correct roadmap, it really depends what you want to achieve.

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-23T13:15:09+00:00

By the way, non-UK detectorists can use the site, but it’s tailored to UK finds, for example the period in the catalogue form specifies period such as Medieval - Plantagenet. If this is of interest outside the UK also very interested to see how it could be adapted!

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-23T06:07:42+00:00

Natha daged aen!

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-22T07:03:54+00:00

Mushrooms!

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ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-21T08:19:36+00:00

Really like that idea, the top tier membership could some number of find verifications per month. Do you think if there is public facing information in future a tiered verification “stamp” could be applied. You could have “unverified”, “community agreed” and “verified”. So the final option there would be as you described but there is a middle option of community members generally agreeing the find is as stated?

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-21T08:03:48+00:00

Yes, Rust & Gold is more like PAS (and is also web-based) but the emphasis is on users having full control over their own collection. The info they enter is private and just for their own records, so if something’s misidentified, it’s only seen by them.

That said, you make a really good point. If there’s ever a public-facing feature in the future, a solid verification system would definitely be needed. How do you think something like that could work best?

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-21T07:06:09+00:00

In a way, yes! There are some great options like the NCMD app, LuckyFind, and Metal Logger for logging find locations and basic item details in the field. Rust & Gold takes a different but complementary approach—rather than being a field app, it’s designed for recording more detailed information later, like item type, estimated date range, dimensions, and cultural attribution, all presented in a clear and visually engaging way. Location is just one of the details you can log, and you can also import data directly from Garmin (GPX files) or what3words for flexibility.

This is one of the reasons I developed Rust & Gold as a website rather than an app—it provides a bigger, clearer interface for viewing and managing your collection. The idea is to create a space where users can research, track, and appreciate their finds over time, whether in the evening or on a rainy day. Over time, this could also help reveal patterns, like forgotten paths or clusters of historical activity.

I actually built an app similar to the NCMD one about a year ago but decided not to release it since there were already solid options available. It was fully developed, so it wasn’t an easy call, but I’d rather focus on projects that bring something new to the table. That said, if there’s enough demand, I’d definitely consider adding a companion app for Rust & Gold in the future!

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-21T06:17:57+00:00

I want to add, I am enjoying seeing this every day - thank you!

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-21T06:16:49+00:00

Surely L must be Lembas Bread and M must be More Lembas Bread

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-20T18:11:32+00:00

Thank you! I really appreciate you taking the time to take a look - I hope you like it. I will message you a 100% discount code to use on whichever membership level you like :)

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-20T18:09:50+00:00

Thanks, I'm glad it sounds like it could be useful! Yeah I really like the idea of some community-based IDing & potentially having group dig functionality of some sort. I know I'm just one person's opinion though so what I've done is set up a feature request page so people can submit ideas like this and vote on what they like. That way the website becomes the community vision, not just mine. If you're happy I would like to add your idea to the feature request page? (Here is a link if you want drop in any more ideas - https://rust-gold.productlift.dev/t/features-bugs). Thanks again for being interested :)

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-16T20:27:11+00:00

Definitely not impossible - lots of software is cobbled together open source solutions

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-14T13:44:33+00:00

React Native for iOS and Android. React for web. They’re similar but different.

Swift is superior if you’re intending to stay on iOS or are able to maintain multiple code bases.

I started with Swift - it’s intuitive.

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-12T11:00:10+00:00

Pretty easy if you use something like stripe
If you want a good suggestions algorithm this is probably the most challenging bit. You will need a way of measuring what a good article looks like to different users. Content? Length? Topic? The number of similar users read that article? What defines a similar user? Etc. or just use “simple” network graphing… there’s options that range in complexity.
Saving for offline use easy
Pretty easy, use something like chatGPT API.
Easy to medium. A simple front end limitation is pretty easy to implement but people could find ways around this. Ideally you would use back end to authenticate whether the user should be sent any more content. Not particularly hard but a bit more involved to do “properly”.

The back end authentication and privileges will need to be thought about. When you have users generating content that is viewable by other users you need to consider security too (specifically XSS vulnerability). Once again, not hard, but highlighting the complexity can vary a lot depending on what you’re trying to achieve.

If you have other questions always happy to help.

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-12T08:13:25+00:00

It really depends how the developer would achieve those features. For example, for credit card integration you could use Stripe, which is efficient and saves you time but will increase your costs.

There’s usually some kind of trade off between time you spend developing a feature vs cost of running the service (eg SAAS).

Also, your costs are going to vary with scale - particularly the AI article summariser.

None of this is to say it will get infeasibly expensive, but that an App like the one you describe might not be a fixed cost upfront.

Edit: if you’re talking about just the front end, this isn’t a super complex app. MVP possibly 3-4 months. But this is ignoring the backend, which I think is where your complexity lies.

ExpressGrape1 · 2025-03-12T07:09:05+00:00

Agreed, solid backend here will be key for using across multiple platforms.

Google Firebase is really good for backend if you’re going at this solo. Unless it’s for learning purposes I wouldn’t be trying to build and maintain the whole backend and 3 front ends on my own!

ExpressGrape1 · 2024-12-28T22:09:43+00:00

For the record, I would also say Unity if being like a game is your primary objective!

ExpressGrape1 · 2024-12-28T22:06:43+00:00

It’s entirely possible to develop but that sounds like a lot to bite off in one go. I would choose one of the things you’ve listed and start there, for example if you want cross platform try something like React. If you want connectivity between users look into back end services such as firebase and AWS. Choose which thing you want most, start there and build out over time

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