There are two main ways to collect stamps—by country or by theme. Until about 1960, collectors nearly always collected by country. The reason was simple: In the era before widespread commemoratives, there were few themes that had enough philatelic material to make collecting them enjoyable. Early popular thematics were Scouting, Red Cross, children’s welfare, and sports. As worldwide stamp issues have morphed from tens of thousands of varieties to millions of varieties, the opportunities for thematic collecting have expanded.

 

But with more stamp issues have come problems for thematic collectors. Stamps depicting animals or butterflies or children now  total in the tens of thousands with thousands of new issues per year, making attempts at comprehensiveness and completion (both common philatelic goals) impossible. So modern thematic collectors are looking for areas to collect that have smaller numbers of issues. And, if you want to combine manageably with the possibility of decent increases in popularity (and consequent rises in price), there is one area that I think is going to be pretty good—computers on stamps.

 

Early computer issues, as well as those related to electronics and early computer development, are scarce. The collection can be as expansive or as restrictive as you like—it can include early pioneers in electricity or computer theory, even mathematicians. Like any good thematic collection, researching what material you wish to put in your collection expands your understanding of the field, and the many areas of science and technology have intersected to create the computer revolution. And, since computer engineers are among the most avid stamp collectors, you will be getting in on the ground floor of a hobby niche that may well show considerable growth in the years ahead.