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eBay - Memorabilia Mecca

© Susan Duckett

This site is completely addictive, so if you end up in a twelve-step group for memorabilia junkies, remember you were warned.

So just what the heck is an eBay? It is an on-line auction house where you can buy or sell almost anything.

There are two secrets to its popularity. One is that it is shockingly simple to use. Bidding is easy for even the most inexperienced surfer, and selling is only a few easy hoops to jump through.

The second is selection. EBay doesn't own the merchandise itself, it is only a conduit for users to put items up for sale and others to bid on them. Since anyone can sell there, the items come from all around the world, like a massive worldwide flea market. You can find anything from a Scooby-Doo lunchbox to expensive rare collectibles.

This is how it works. Say for instance you are going through your garage and you come across an old "Star Wars" Princess Lea action figure. Could be valuable today, you think to yourself, so you logon to eBay (registration is free), you fill out a couple of questions, pay a small fee (usually 25 cents to $1.00) and boom, your toy is up for auction.

Meanwhile, somewhere in Idaho Jerry is also logged on at eBay cruising the listings for new "Star Wars" items for his collection. He sees your Princess Lea action figure and rejoices since he has looked everywhere for one. He enters the maximum amount he is willing to pay (this is hidden). The bidding starts at the minimum price you have set.

Sara, another "Star Wars" fan, sees this toy and puts in her own bid. The price goes up to whatever she bid. If her bid is more than Jerry's maximum bid, Sara becomes the high bidder. Jerry can then outbid her if he wishes.

When the auction is over (they last from 3-7 days) the high bidder and seller e-mail each other and arrange for payment and shipping. (eBay takes a small percentage of the amount the item sells for) That's it.

But how do you know the person selling the item isn't going to take the money and run? Feedback. Every user has a feedback rating for everyone to see (+1 for each positive comment, -1 for negative, 0 for neutral). Anyone can look over the comments left by people who have traded with them to see how reliable they are. Any abusers of the system are quickly weeded out since you cannot use anonymous email addresses.