Pipswich wrote:
 This new way, the sellers can chose to block my bids if they think I was unfair.

How? When you or anyone esle for that matter anonymously dings them with low DSRs they have no clue as to who to block. Also, with no sellers now allowed to leave negs for buyers, how exactly are they suposed to know who is good or bad.  According to Ebay's new feedback policy now, "All buyers are good buyers" to which anyone who actully has sold more than a few items is complete and utter horseshit.

Pipswich wrote:I will go ahead and email the handful of people out of my last 200 or so purchases that got low dsr's and tell them why.  It does only seem fair that they be told.  In a previous post, I simply noted that one rating could not drive a powerseller down... in the s/h category so if they are down to 4.2 after a few hundred sales a month....  at least FIFTY or more people decided they were out of line and left an average of 1...

But again, according to Ebays own guidelines to buyers, a 4 DSR is "good".  

Pipswich wrote:I am talking about the real deadbeats in general and the occassional numnut who thinks it's funny to get away with selling a $25 item for $1 with a $25 shipping charge.  I don't appreciate it, but if it's a scarce item I need... I will buy it and complain in the feedback.

Ebay has a reporting system in place for sellers who abuse S&H fees.  Why not go the route of reporting them?   

Pipswich wrote:As for 3)... I drove 90,000 miles a year and had business licenses in 13 states to sell less in a month at the countries largest collectibles events than I can sell in a week on ebay.  I pay every dime they ask for with a smile just like I paid referral fees for large purchases to pickers for a decade.  They provide a means for transactions that are not possible without them.  It's a small anonymous thank you, you deserve it... that makes me feel happy.

I am curious, what is your Ebay ID?

Mars wrote:
I don't think that Ebay is a failed business model but more that it is a limited model.  Their model of collecting fees to sell and item and also to buy an item works fine for collecting truck loads of money.  The trouble comes in when you start to look at it as a publicly traded company.  Stock prices remain high because there is an expectation of growth and increasing profits.  When the business fails to change and doesn't meet the high expectations, stock prices drop and they are forced to try something new.

If Ebay did go under, then no doubt the RPG community would continue and places such as NK, Dragonstrove and even TrollandToad would no doubt prosper.  However, a lot of RPG items would also be lost.  We have seen many auctions for rares show up where the seller knew nothing about them.  If there was no easily accessible outlet like Ebay for selling these then they would probably be tossed away.  Chances are that the person cleaning out their basement who finds a box of D&D stuff will not hunt down places like NK.  In that sense fewer rares and small press items would probably come out of the woodwork.

Hmm, failed was probably too strong. Limited model is much better.  Ebay is going through that right now and unfortunately instead of working to make their core business better have opted to basically become Amazon with tweaks.  

I have no doubt the RPG collector community would go on. While RPG gems might be harder to find, it would reward the potential buyer that worked harder and went the extra mile.  I remember in pre-Ebay days doing things like checking with wholesaler's warehouses to see if they had old product, or putting out lots of "Want to Buy" notecareds at local conventions. I was rewarded in many cases.  History will favor the swift, or the harder worker, as the case may be.  But seriously there are just too many outlets nowadays to completely shut down the collector who is either buying or selling, plus Ebay, in some shape or form, will continue to go on.

Mike, B.

I refuse point blank to ship to Italy. It has one of the worst postal services in the world. If they want to buy from Italy, either post me cash, or come and collect in person. The other problem we have here in the UK is people who live in Ireland who think because they are closer to you they should be allowed to pay for domestic instead of International postage. Like they don't realise they live in Europe and the IRA and independence doesn't mean they shouldn't be allowed to screw you on postage when it suits them.

bbarsh wrote:You say in an earlier post that you never have a problem with international buyers but later state you refuse to ship to Italy? WTF?  

I suppose I am fortunate in that I sell majoritively to well established collectors, and rarely to newbies, but I do have the odd sale outwith the community, and even outwith my D&D core business.

In the 5 years I have been using eBay, I have lost maybe two White Dwarf DVDs, one back in 2005 to a Mr David York of Chattanooga, Tennessee, who ripped me off and received 2 copies after claiming the first didn't arrive and refusing to allow me to go through due process and prove that the recorded delivery had be signed for by him, and the other to a UK gentlement where the Royal Mail failed to obtain a signature to prove delivery, and upon receipt of the Royal Mail compensation, I refunded the gentleman his money.

My perception of the italian postal system is based purely on two facts. Firstly, until September 19th of this year when UK PayPal policy changed, the majority of shipped packages to both France and Italy were not covered by PayPal's Seller Protection Policy, and secondly, a large majority of international sellers who express declare counties they will not ship to, state that they will not ship to Italy on account of the amount of problems they have with that county's postal service. I don't need to loose my money to learn the lessons so many sellers have already screamed about. Maybe one day when the mafia have been removed from government and they begin to function with honest in their postal service, I will consider risking it, but until then. I'll give it a miss. Lets face it, a customs label with a declared value of $150 is a very appealing target for a resaleable product, and the post office is the easiest place to get free stuff.

I have had a few packages never show up   in both Italy and France.  I will not ship to either without signed shipping.

Didn't someone get ripped off sending an ST1 to Italy?

Can't quite remember who it was

Very interesting articles on the recent re-release of classic video games, and how it's affecting the price of the originals:

http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081230-game-collectors-angry-at-inexpensive-digital-re-releases.html

Some parallels to RPGs, but some serious differences. Thought provoking though....what if WOTC came out with an official complete download of all their 1E, 2E & 3E adventures?

Mike B.

bbarsh wrote:
I am sure there are those who suggest it would increase the demand for the originals. I am not so sure. The hardcore collector will not care. But the guy who just wants to read the stuff would have easy access. How would that affect the collectability market? It is hard to tell.

My theory has always been that that guy (the guy who just wants to read it) is NOT the one spending $1000 on a POTVQ.  At least I've never met him yet in all my year's of collecting, buying and selling.  A lot of that stuff is out there in downloads/bit torrents if you look (ST1 is one of them) and yet the originals continue to maintain their worth.  

Anyone who can afford $1000+ to just satisfy his curiousity about what an item looks like (as opposed to paying that much for the collectibility and possible investment of a super rare piece of history).....well, I wanna party with that guy!

Just one example among many, I knew a guy last year coughed up $1000+ for a POTVQ and I know for a fact he has both a photocopy and PDF of the same.....

But to say it would have no effect, I wouldn't go that far. Maybe on the marginal stuff.  Let's face it, with a little bit of work you can get a copy of pretty much everything anyway, and that doesn't stop many of us from still wanting a hard copy.  The main difference to me between video games and P&P RPGS is that the main reason for wanting the video game is to experience it....actually pop it in the machine and give it a run.  With P&P games, that ability is already there whether it's a download, a photocopy, or an original copy.  There aren't different "levels" of experiencing a RPG when you run it or read it from one medium or another.  It's just an aesthetic choice for some people to have an original, much the same in other fields of collectibles.  A video game is different (IMO) in that respect.  However the article did make a point that the true video game collectors (the ones who enjoy reading the manuals and looking at the artwork) will always want an original copy regardless if they can download a cheaper copy.

Mike B.

!@#$%!  Someone knocked my mailbox over again.  

On Thursday night, a pickup truck was idling next to my mailbox, and at least two people were wiggling the mailbox post.  They spun their tires and tore off down the road after I turned on my porch light.

Tonight (Saturday night) someone knocked my mailbox so it's hanging backwards and drooping off one side of the post.

Can I legally discharge a firearm on my property if I am not aiming at someone?  They are not on my property; they are on the road.  I do live in the country, so I think that this is acceptable.  I want whoever is knocking over my mailbox to know that I am tired of having to fix my mailbox because they want to get a cheap thrill.  I believe that a shotgun blast would convey this message.

Or would such an action invite some retaliatory action on their part, now or in the future?  I assume that at least some of us have done similar things in the past.  (Not me, I am a angel.   )

*sigh* I'll just glue my mailbox back on the post Monday, since it gets savaged frequently.

Here are some options(WARNING!  Consult your local laws before doing any of this).

Place a sign on the mailbox, "Exploding mailbox!  Caution!"

Purchase an anti-vandalism mailbox that is approved by the postal service.

Get a surveillance camera, and prosecute.

Use a paintball gun.

Fill the mailbox with bricks that have those annoying postage paid return envelopes taped to them.  The magazine pays for the postage and it becomes a legal piece of mail.  If someone rides by and hits it with a bat or hockey stick, it'll bounce back and smash out the rear window and possibly break their arm.  

However, Your mailbox is federal property.  ANYTHING you put in your mailbox becomes the property of the USPS; your mailman has permission to confiscate anything left in the mailbox. Filling the box with bricks could be considered booby trapping; a person involved in a car accident might hit said box and perish due to the booby trap, when they may have otherwise survived had it been a break away box.  If you booby trap the mailbox, use something like Gentian Violet which is used to clean laboratory slides. When it comes in contact with skin, it stains the skin purple.  I'd double check area laws on this.

Make the mailbox out of steel and concrete and cover it in wood.  If someone gets hurt when all you did was have a sturdy mailbox, you should be fine.  I think there are limits on how sturdy a mailbox can be.

Coat the outside of the box with axle grease or some other repulsive substance.  Just don't put the stuff on the parts used by you and the mail service.

We look forward to good news in the near future.