reranting...

From: Stephen Dauphin <ai705_at_osfn.org>
Date: Tue Jan 26 20:19:35 1999

On Tue, 26 Jan 1999, Mike wrote:

> I am just saddened when I contemplate the additional dumpster fodder that
> could have been saved were your energies spent better than at the gas pedal
> of ebay's search engine.
>

Perhaps your mind should hit the brakes and not make such a sweeping
assumption.

How do you know whether things on Ebay do not eventually make the
landfill?

Ebay is a poor source for big ticket classic items, but for more middling
computer ephemera it can be quite decent.

At this point between 7,000 and 10,000 items are listed in the computer
section daily. This works out to approximately 3 million items in a year.

Not everything sells. A lot of material goes unbid or for a single bid
which defaults to the minimum.

I remember specifically a set of 2 or 3 Corvus transporter cards for
IBM not receiving a bid in 4 successive week long Ebay auctions. They
were never relisted. Maybe they were sold in another manner; maybe they
were ditched.

A lot of amateurs cleaning out the closet and some junk shops/antique
stores. A significant number lose patience quickly and have little
inkling where to fob the item after an Ebay reject. Some relist, but I
will bet a number of items are just trashed eventually.

That doesn't mean that there aren't people who have glommed onto Ebay and
think they are participating in the second coming of the gold rush. I am
now dealing with a couple who have that notion, but will find that most
of what they have will sell for _significantly_ less than what it cost
new.

In summary, there are plenty of items that languish. If it is only going
to get one bid, that winning bidder may as well be you.


While I cannot specifically give the details on items receiving no bid
since I rarely save the results, I can note the following good deals.
All the bid amounts and the number of bids are final results.

I just picked up Central Point Copy Option board, the enhanced kind with
the interrupt switches for $2.24 plus $3.00 shipping.
Received on Tue Jan 26 1999 - 20:19:35 GMT