Why doesn't eBay just put an end to sniping.  Here is an idea that would curb the problem:  Someone bids in the last 5 minutes of the auction, the auction would reset the clock to 5 minutes left.  Eventually the bidding will stop and the auction will end.  Ã

Nothing ruins your day more than after a week of watching that module or blister pack sit for $1.00, than have it go to $8.84 in the last 45 seconds.     I always thought an end to the hours & minutes part would help. Buyers would just know that the auction ends in so many days.  Another thing, who is the person that goes and bids a dollar on all the buy-it-now stuff the minute it comes out?, and then never bids again. Then you watch in terror as an item that you could have grabbed (on buy-it-now) for $6 goes into a feeding frenzy and sells for $15.....drives me nuts.

Ekim Toor wrote:Another thing, who is the person that goes and bids a dollar on all the buy-it-now stuff the minute it comes out?, and then never bids again. Then you watch in terror as an item that you could have grabbed (on buy-it-now) for $6 goes into a feeding frenzy and sells for $15.....drives me nuts.

 That's probably a 'friend' of the seller...  Paul

I've seen a few (well, a very few) sellers who refuse to accept bids from snipers. Not sure if eBay will back them up or not, but sometimes you'll find someone who states that they won't accept new bids posted in the last 5/10/15 minutes of the auction.  Worked for me once, I got sniped (even though the seller had clearly stated "no sniping") in the last ten seconds of a hard-fought auction. Much to my surprise, the seller emailed me the next day and offered me the item at my maximum bid.  If more sellers did this, maybe you'd see an end to sniping. Personally, I'm not crazy about sniping, but it's the sniping software that really gets me. If you're going to do it, at least have the guts to do it yourself rather than having a program do it for you....

I have to admit, I snipe on occasion..if it's something I really want. I consider myself more of a counter-sniper..... If I'm the high bidder on a nice module that's going for $5.00, YOU KNOW, that someone is gonna sneak in at 30 seconds and snipe you, so I snipe the snipe....  That always brings a smile to my face, I can just picture that guy refreshing his screen going "what the #@%& happened"      Anyone ever lost an item to a snipe, and then a couple of days later gotten the same item in better condition for a better price?

The problem is that nobody bids their maximum.    Everyone's looking for a deal, and are upset when that "deal" disappears at the last second.  Bidders should face two facts:  1) Stop looking for a bargain.  Every once in a long while you'll score one, but don't think for a moment that "ST1 Up the Garden Path" will sell for $50 because no one's noticed the auction.  HUNDREDS of people scour the RPG category DAILY looking for the same things you are.  DOZENS of those people actually have the spending power to ensure tight competition.  And even if they don't see the auction, MIKE KUO certainly will, so you're screwed right there.  2) Set your maximum bid and forget about it.  I wrote an essay on this subject years ago (in the Library section), and it's still valid today.  There are advantages to sniping, but those advantages are largely negated if the bidder(s) bid the maximum amount they're willing to pay.  If someone beats your maximum by $1, you should feel happy that they won, because you were not willing to pay even $1 more than your maximum even if offered the chance.  Live by these two rules and do your ulcers some good --  Foul

In case people out there want to be successful in finding all the good stuff, here is a list of people all of you should watch and see what they are bidding:  ----foulfoot  -----chromaticknight ------lawrenson <--check him a lot -----blackdougal <--he bids on the good stuff that most miss. Sorry to rat ya out Adrian    -----cgould42 ----gygax <--mostly a sniper so you won't see anything he bids on except in the last seconds ----lriotto ----molecular ----visionsasia ---otherworld1 ----burntwire ----theshield2000 <--he snipes the great non tsr stuff!GRRRR  ---mcduff ----dm_dave [email protected] ----nevridleysmith  ---beasterbrook ---foster1969 ---enkidu ---trifixion --stormber  I just let these guys do the work for me and find the items HAHAH   Also go on ebay search and open up 3 separate screens. Have AD&D, D&D, and ebay role playing fantasy section on there. Make sure it shows the newest items and VOILA, you can find some kick ass items and if your on at the right time, you can get some good buy it nows. Use this knowledge well and you will get everything.

Ack, I've been spotted    Hmmmm...a name change is not a bad idea     Cheers, Curt a.k.a. cgould42 (For now).

Wow! I had no idea of the celebrity status one could gain from E-bay!  Glad to be of help!  Please don't snipe me too much though!!!   Matt foster a/k/a [email protected]