Well put OP. I will put in an argument that in certain situations it is considered earning an exotic, like my Gjallarhorn, which dropped after my first ever VoG normal clear. That was a 7 and a half hour raid that took up my entire day.
Otherwise yes, Xûrning something is most definitely the true "earning" of an item
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My point is, no one way is harder or superior to the other. My first Weekly Heroic strike was so hard to complete. And I still don't have extra accounts maxed out, so strange coins are hard to come by. For others, though, they have accumulated three characters at the same level and can earn strange coins much faster, making the process seem less challenging. In the same way, Nightfall activities were extremely difficult at first, but are relatively easy for me to complete now that I've accumulated experience with the game.