Thread Name: FREE POSTAGE! From: goodbooks at webtv.net (JOSEPH HILL) Date: Sat Mar 8 17:19:28 2008 I see that I can buy a ML copy/no DJ of,Two Years Before The Mast for$79.99 on ebay Who are these sellers? Have they ever landed a fish?. ------------------------------------- From: jwol at fast.net (John Wolansky) Date: Sat Mar 8 17:30:51 2008 This morning I started a letter to the list about a book store on ABE listing a dozen or so ML's, mostly 90's for $199.44 each. I thought better of it, but now I am sharing. My thought was the same . Who are these people? Are they hoping to land a few suckers? John Wolansky ------------------------------------- From: tseymour at ptd.net (Terry I. Seymour) Date: Sat Mar 8 17:57:59 2008 There is no explanation for some of the outrageous listings. I just spotted a 1950 common Everyman's Library title in "Fair" condition for $201. (Fair condition means it's worth nothing.) Presumably the people who perpetrate these atrocities are not real book people but someone operating out of a garage who thinks they might get lucky. P. S. They won't. Terry Seymour ------------------------------------- From: bookscene at gmail.com (TheBookScene.com) Date: Sat Mar 8 21:08:47 2008 That was their bargain section. For $5467.35 you can get the top-top. All expertly graded as 'Dust Jacket Condition: Unknown'. Neal Fenty ------------------------------------- From: brianlemasters at gmail.com (Brian LeMasters) Date: Sat Mar 8 22:04:53 2008 I must confess that i have stopped using ABE for most of my price comparison (speaking as a book seller) due to this flooding with crazy prices. Looks like ebay is the next target for these scammers/spammers. I buy several books a week off ebay, and the postage gouging is becoming rampant, too. My chief concern is not to let greed or loose grading infect my listings. It is hard enough to be fair in pricing and diligent in grading (especially late at night) without these crazy competing listings popping up everywhere. Oh well, back to turbolister..... Brian ------------------------------------- From: zebradlj at yahoo.com (Darrell Johnson) Date: Sun Mar 9 13:05:33 2008 Are you all suggesting that I should be embarrassed because I have already ordered five of these? Darrell ------------------------------------- From: goodbooks at webtv.net (JOSEPH HILL) Date: Sun Mar 9 13:42:26 2008 No but, it is so strange, it works the other way as well; I put a VG/VG copy of the, Complete Jane Austen on ebay @ $10..00 (no bids); a few days later. a beat up copy of the same title, with no DJ has five bids, it's enough to pull ones. hair out...bottom line;lots of luck on ebay as well as gangsters. ------------------------------------- From: archetype at 20ants.com (Michael Watson) Date: Sun Mar 9 21:05:37 2008 It's the megalisters who aggregate other folks' listings, generally. Some have actual physical inventory, many (if not most) simply use 'bots' that traverse the big listing sites and slurp up book listings. They are then posted as seemingly legitimate listings even though the lister doesn't own the books. The pricing is usually done automatically as a percentage of the price of other copies, thus the wacky increments. Often the same copy will get two or three listings at different price points. It may be offered at $8.00, 80.00, and 800.00, the latter two for the potential buyers who equate price with value. Occasionally the megalister gets lucky. Several good articles about this in a previous IOBA Standard... http://www.ioba.org/newsletter/archive/7(2)/ -Michael ------------------------------------- From: goodbooks at webtv.net (JOSEPH HILL) Date: Sun Mar 9 22:10:24 2008 Thank you so much for the link!!! I always thought . I was hip to what goes ...still see I have much to learn, even at my age. Why do I still think, it is easier to just buy and sell a book then to go through all that flim-flam? ------------------------------------- From: jwol at fast.net (John Wolansky) Date: Sun Mar 9 22:26:53 2008 THANKS FOR THE LINK MICHAEL, GOOD READ -------------------------------------