FAKE SHAKE LIGHTS MUST READ

Having recently been conned into buying a bunch of these lights that were (and still are) advertised on eBay as genuine,I am writing this note to help others avoid being ripped off as I was.

The fake lights at first glance appear genuine, they have an induction coil and a metal slug that slides up and down inside the body passing throught the coil.

However, the coil is not connected to anything and the slug is not magnetic.

You will see a small PC board, but this is just a connecting point for the batteries, switch and LED, there are no other components installed.

The LED bulb is in fact powered by 2 small disc shaped Lithium cells usually usedin wrist watches and once these cells are discharged no amount of shaking will produce light!

Telling the difference

If you pick up a new one of these lights and switch it on without shaking the light will come on and stay on for several hours until the lithium cells are discharged. The genuine item will not light without shaking and will only stay on for a few minutes after you stop shaking.

By the way, never attempt to re-chargeLithium cells, they could explode and cause fire and/or injury!

read this before going on a caravan holiday

hello in the summermy family and some friendsdecided to go on holiday so we looked on ebay to see what we could find. we knew we wanted to go to skegness, from saturday till saturday, so when we came across one auction we thought it was great it was supposed to be an 8 berth caravan. there were lots of great pictures of the caravan, it loked clean and tidy, so i went a head and phoned the woman and asked her if it was available for the dates i required and she did so i asked howw much ect. i sent her the money and a 100 cheque deposit that she said i would get back when i left the caravan. we were all set we had lots of trouble trying to get there so we thought it couldnt get any worse. before we left all she sent us was a set of keys and the name of the site so when we got to skegness we asked the taxi driver to take us to this caravan site she didnt tell us what number the caravan was but the keys had number 19 on them so wethought thats what is was, when we did end up in the right place there was on number 19 caravan so i phoned the woman who said it was number b17, so we went there and we were horrified when we seen it it was nothing like on the pictures it was the worst one on the site. we open the door and we were even more horrified there wereonly 2 bedrooms but 8 of us it was absolutly filthy inside and out it hadnt been cleaned for a long time and it was something out of faulty towers everything we touched broke.

we were totally gutted so we phoned this woman to see if she was having us on and she wasnt we demanded a refund but she refused we spent the whole of the first day trying to find somewhere else to stay but couldnt find anywhere.

anyway we started talking to another woman on the caravan site who own a caravan there. and she saisd this had happened to another family. so she showed us a caravan on the site that looked like the one what was on ebay so we took pictures and phoned the woman back and told her we knew what she was doing she then became very aggressive and started getting other people on the phone to give us abuse if you are interested in who this is it is SAPPERSWIFE1950 the person running this account says its selling the caravan for an auntie or something but please be warned do not trust then

w300i dont bid too high!!

ive noticed numerous people bidding well over the normal retail prices for this fone one time i saw one that was bidding up to 255,this is ridiculous as you can buy it argos for 99, it claimed to be a rare robbie wilaims phone but it still is only 99,ieven saw it on the orange website for 89.so dont be fooled people save your money and get a bargain in your local shop minus the p

resetting vaxhall vectra service warning

Push in Milometer trip button

while still holding in put foot on brake, and swich on egnition,keep holding trip button and foot on the brake till it flashes, switch off egnition

wala cured

dress sizes Conversion table/guide for UK to USA

UK 8 = US 4

UK 10 = US 6

UK 12 = US 8

UK 14 = US 10

UK 16 = US 12

UK 20 = US 16

UK 24 = US 20

UK 28= US 24

Hey it's easy just minus 4 to get the US sizes or plus 4 to get UK sizes!

Hope this helps if it does please vote yes...

many thanks

Buying good quality swarovski and beads

Hello.

I am taking this chance to help people out there get the best swarovski crystal beads available, i have noticed that there are a few people out there selling what claims to be swarovski, but in fact to a trained eye can see are cleverly crafted glass beads with a foil backing to create the look.

This makes me angry as a True swarovski will last you a lifetime and keep its brilliance.

As a rough guide you should always ask a few questions before you buy them from a seller-

Ask for the crystal style serial number and then check this against a well know online swarovski retail shop, check the styles match.

Ask for the colour- i have seen people list colours out there that are not used for swarvoski (this could be that they dont know the crystal colour name, but surely thats a sign that they dont know too much about their product)

Finally, check feedback, this will tell you weather the seller is reliable or not.

Maybe you dont mind getting glass immitations, if that keeps you happy then im pleased for you, but there are also people out there who want a high quality genuine crystal.

Quality speakes above quantity.

I have recently just started to sell swarovski crystals after completing my course in jewellery design, so i hope that this can be of some help.

ASM Direct Ltd

This is a warning!!!!!!

I purchased a DVD Recorder Recorder from this company, I was never able to record to Disc. It was sent back (at my expence) and many weeks and emails later I got my replacement. This also did not work properly, several emails later, they informed me that this item is 'NOW OUT OF WARRENTY'

BE VERY CAREFULL !!!!!!!!!

What is CE approval, and why is it important

What is the Mark?

And why is it important?

CE testing and approval is a LEGAL requirement for all electronic or electrical goods sold as new within the EEC

The CE mark means that the item has passed very strict quality and safety testing, and is fit for sale within the EEC.

Ever wonder why there are so many cheap electrical and electronic goods for sale on eBay?

Have a close look at the listings or the goods, chances are that many of them are NOT CE approved.

Thats why they are so cheap, they have failed CE testing and are not fit for sale.

A classic example of this is laptop or computerpower supplies, there are lots for sale at less than 10 on eBay, the reason for that low price?

They cant be sold anywhere on the high street legally, as they are NOT CE approved.

And its not just Laptop adaptors, its almost every electrical appliance there is for sale, you would be well advised to ask the seller if its CE approved, and when it arrives make sure it really does have the CE Mark on it.

This is very very IMPORTANT for any item that uses mains electricity, they are NOT CE approved because they are dangerous, and have failed testing.

Remember ALL Electrical and Electronic goods sold as new MUST by LAW be CE approved, dont risk your life to save a few quid

Loving Dari Meya Dresses?

Like many of you eBay gals I'm just loving the Dari Meya dresses as
seen on Kate Moss and Peaches Geldof and have been surprised to see the
extremely high prices that these dresses have been selling for on eBay.If
you have been coveting one but your pocket won't stretch to 120 for a
simple jersey dress then head on over to ASOS who have just had a
delivery of Dari's dresses at realistic retail prices! Use the search
function on the site with Darimeya.....no spacesIf you buy from ASOS also use the code CLOTHESHOW to get a 10% discount off any purchase on the siteEnjoy shopping ladies!!!

From Clay To Bronze Using The Lost Wax Process

The most traditional method of casting bronze is the Lost Wax Process. This process is more commonly used for figural sculptures capturing fine detail whilst the other common method, Sand Casting is used for larger pieces not requiring such fine detail.

Here we look at the Lost Wax Process step by step.

Original SculptureThe artist creates an original artwork from wax, clay, or another material. Wax and oil-based clay are often preferred because these materials retain their softness.

Create MouldA mould is made of the original sculpture. Most moulds are at least two pieces, and a shim with keys is placed between the two halves during construction so that the mould can be put back together accurately. Most moulds of small sculptures are made from plaster, but can also be made of fibreglass or other materials. To preserve the fine detail on the original artwork, there is usually an inner mould made of latex, vinyl, or silicone which is supported by the plaster part of the mould. Usually, the original artwork is destroyed during the making and initial deconstruction of the plaster mould. Sometimes, especially in the case of large originals such as a life-size, the original is broken down to manageable parts requiring many moulds to be made to recreate the original sculpture.

WaxOnce the plaster and latex mould is finished, molten wax is poured into it and swished around until an even coating, usually about 1/8 inches thick, covers the entire inner surface of the mould. This must be done in several layers until desired thickness is reached.

Removal of waxThis new, hollow wax copy of the original artwork is removed from the mould. The artist may reuse the mould to make more wax copies, but wear and tear on the mould limit their number. For small bronze artworks, a common number of copies today is around 25.

ChasingEach hollow wax copy is then chased. A heated metal tool is used to rub out all the marks which show the parting line or flashing where the pieces of the mould came together. The wax is then dressed to hide any imperfections. The way the wax looks at this stage, is what it will look like when it is cast. Wax pieces that were moulded separately can be heated and attached. Foundries often use registration marks to indicate exactly where they go.

SpruingOnce the wax copy looks just like the original artwork, it is sprued with a treelike structure of wax that will eventually provide paths for molten bronze to flow, while allowing air to escape. Spruing usually begins at the top with a wax cup, which is attached by wax cylinders to various points on the wax copy.

InvestingA sprued wax copy is dipped into a ceramic slurry, then into a mixture of powdered clay and sand. This is allowed to dry, and the process is repeated until a half-inch thick or thicker surface covers the entire piece. The bigger the piece, the thicker the shell needs to be. Only the inside of the cup is not coated, and the cup's flat top serves as the base upon which the piece stands during this process.

BurnoutThe ceramic-coated piece is placed cup-down in a kiln, whose heat hardens the ceramic coatings into a shell, and the wax melts and runs out. The melted wax can be recovered and reused, although often it is simply combusted by the burnout process. Now all that remains of the original artwork is the negative space, formerly occupied by the wax, inside the hardened ceramic shell. The feeder and vent tubes and cup are now hollow, also.

TestingThe ceramic shell is allowed to cool, then is tested to see if water will flow through the feeder and vent tubes as necessary. Cracks or leaks can be patched with thick ceramic paste. To test the thickness, holes can be drilled into the shell, then patched.

PouringThe shell is reheated in the kiln to harden the patches, then placed cup-upwards into a tub filled with sand. Bronze is melted in a crucible in a furnace, then poured carefully into the shell. If the shell were not hot, the temperature difference would shatter it. The bronze-filled shells are allowed to cool.

DevestingThe shell is hammered or sand-blasted away, releasing the rough bronze. The spruing, which are also faithfully recreated in metal, are cut off, to be reused in another casting.

Metal-chasingJust as the wax copies were chased, the bronze copies are worked until the telltale signs of casting are removed, and the sculptures again look like the original artwork. Pits left by air bubbles in the molten bronze are filled, and the stubs of spruing filed down and polished.

PatinaThe bronze is coloured to the artist's preference, using chemicals applied to heated or cooled metal. Using heat is probably the most predictable method, and allows the artist to have the most control over the process. This colouring is called patina, and is often green, black, white or brown. Current artistic trends have brighter, more stylized patinas. Patinas can be applied to replicate marble or stone. Depending on how the metal is prepared, either sandblasted or polished, the finish can be either opaque or transparent.

Final coatingAfter the patina is applied, a coating of wax, which is the most traditional type of sealer, is usually applied to protect the surface. Many artists prefer to use laquer as a sealer on more unstable patinas. This protects the piece more from ultraviolet rays. Some patinas change colour over time because of oxidisation, and the wax layer slows this down.

If this or any of my guides are of assistance and found useful, please vote using the links below.

Ear Piercings

In this guide i will describe some ear piercings such as:

Helix

Industrial

Rook

Daith

Tragus

Snug

Conch

Anti-tragus

Lobe

1) The helix piercing is any piercing through the rim of the cartilage. Improper piercing, usually with a piercing gun, can lead to shatter the cartilage. Healing time: 9-12 months.
2) An industrial piercing is two or more pierings connected by a single barbell. In normal usage it refers to an ear piercing whereby two helix piercings are connected by a single barbell. They are also often done vertically or through piercings other than helix. Healing time: 9-12 months.
3) The rook piercing is through the fold of cartilage between the inner and outer conch. Care must be taken with it during healing, as it is easy to contaminate and damage from telephones touching it. Healing time: 9-12 months.
4) The daith piercing passes through the ear's innermostcartilage fold. In mostareas this piercing is pronounced day-th although the proper pronounciation is doth. It is meant to mean knowledge since the piercer has to be very clever in order to figure out how to perform this piercing. Healing time: 9-12 months.
5)Piercings through the tragus, the little nub in front of the ear canal, are a common form of ear piercings. This piercing is not known to have any effect on hearing or facial paralysis or any other urban legends. Healing time: 4-6 weeks.
6) This cartilage piercing passes through the vertical ridge that outlines but does not edge the ear. Technically speaking, this is an anti helix piercing, although snig seems to be the term in most common circulation. An extremely painful piercing described by many people. Healing time: 9-12 months.
7) The inner conch piercing is a piercing through the innermost shell of the ear, next to the ear canal itself. Piercings through the outer shell are called outer conch. People use to dermal punch this piercing immediately to a larger gauge. Significant changes can cause loss of hearing. Proper pronunciation is konk. Healing time: 9-12 months.
8) An anti-tragus piercing is an ear piercing done through the ridge of cartilage immidiately above the earlobe. To many people's surprise, it is also one of the most painful! Healing time: 9-12 months.
9) The typical placement for an earlobe piercing is directly in the center of the lobe and can vary from one earring to multiple earrings. Earlobe piercings other than directly include transverse and vertical lobe piercing. Healing time: 4-6 weeks.
Hope my guide contains a lot of useful information about all the different ear piercings!!

BEWARE scam feedbacks

Dont be scammed on eBay.

Ebay buyers are recommended to check sellers feedback before making any purchase. This is one of the most important factors before you make decision about purchase from particular seller.

I have noticed that some people are buying themselfs feedback to build credibility on ebay. It is quite easy and very cheap. They are buying popular ebooks. You can find themwheninserting a word "ebook" in your search engine.Than you buy as many auctions as you like for 1 pence YES just 1 pence each or 1 cent if you buy them from USA. It only cost you 1 to build 100 positive feedback.

Then some individuals once received few hundred positive feedbackwould start selling very expensive items. Try to purchase from them. You will never receive the item and you have already lost your money.

BEWARE!!!!!!!!!!

My advice is:

Not only read comments as they might look great but ALWAYS check the item this feedback has been received for.

Also check if your seller has already sold the same item as you are going to purchase and what feedback have they received.

There are lots of frauds and scams going on in the Internet today and E-bay is not excused. So, it's important for buyers to detect early signs of fraudulent activities before it gets them. BE ON YOUR GUARD!!!!!!!!

Erasing your data prior to selling your goods.

This relates to lots of high-tech items, not just the obvious.

The obvious is of course hard disk drives (HDD) on your PC and laptop. This is easy, download one of the many freeware 'eraser' programs available on the net, just use your favourite search engine to search for 'free data eraser'. Most of these utilities will overwrite your data either 1, 3, 7, or the highest Gutmann level at 35 passes, not only do they erase the data, but they write a load of jumbled nonsense in it's place, making it economically impossible to read any of your data. But as the price of HDD's is so low these days, it would be sensible to remove the HDD and put a hammer to it.

But don't forget the not so obvious, sell a digital camera on eBay, and it could be very embarrassing if the buyer undeletes the pics of your other half (or you) in a compromising pose. Ideally, connect the camera or memory card to your PC and use the eraser program to overwrite all your old pics (refer to your handbook or online support as some rare andobscure cameras write system files to the removable memory card, so wiping the card may corrupt the camera), if that's not possible, then delete all the pics on the camera, put the camera on the highest resolution and take pictures of your carpet, then delete, then repeat again. Sounds mad, but it works.

Don't forget to delete the memory from MP3 players, games console units, digital tv boxes and tv recorders with a hard drive, as selling these on with information onmay breach intellectual copyrights. Just use the delete/erase function on the unit to stay legal.

It is best practice to sell a mobile 'phone without the simcard, even if you do sell it without a sim, or with a new one, you still need to make sure the 'phone hasn't stored any of your numbers or messages in the 'phone memory, also, erase your photos' and videos.It's a good idea to reset the 'phone to 'factory settings' before you sell it, this will wipe all your downloaded ringtones, wallpapers.This applies to modern home 'phones too, as they store your numbers in their memory.

Don't forget to delete your favourites, home and recently visited places from your sat-nav prior to sale too.

Regards, Walter.

BURBERRY FAKE FAKES GUIDE BAG PRADA GUCCI DIOR VUITTON

Ein Top Merkmal von Burberry Originalen ist die Burberry Schrift auf den Hngeetiketten: sobald man Feuer bzw. Hitze aussetzt, verschwindet die Schrift BURBERRY und erscheint wieder nach etwa 30- 45 Sekunden!
BURBERRY Schtzen Sie sich vor Fakes!

Niemand muss heute mehr Opfer von Produktflschern werden, denn die Topmarken der Fashionindustrie sichern sich durch technologisch immer ausgefeiltere Methoden gegen den Betrug ab. Leider tummeln sich auf dieser Plattform unserise Verkufer, die Ihre geflschte Ware als Original anpreisen. Unser Ratgeber weist auf alle unverkennbaren Merkmale der authentischen Burberry Kollektion hin, und soll dabei helfen Echtes von Geflschtem zu unterscheiden. Wenn Sie also sicher gehen wollen, kein Opfer von Fake-Hndlern zu werden, achten Sie auf unsere Hinweise und am sichersten: kaufen Sie in Zukunft risikolos bei uns ein! ;-)

Burberry Merkmale eines Originals (Classic Check

A4 padded envelopes and parcel tape

There is the possibility that you are, like me (but not anymore)paying as much as 0.80p extra in postage costs for what amounts to the edge of your padded envelopes, which does not even impedetheir progress through the larger aperture in thenewly created Post office template, designed to 'make things easier for us' when it comes to posting our mail.

I have found myself being charged an extra 0.80 on a number of occasions simply because the edge of the envelope protruded over the edge of the grey area of the template used by the Post Office by about a quarter of an inch.

Many apologies if you are already doing this but please do youselves a favour if you aren't. Get yourselves down to the nearest market where you will be able to purchase either 4 or 5 rolls of brown parcel tape for 1. This tape is about 2-3 inches wide. It is no good using cellotape as it just pops off.

When you have placed your item in the envelope tape both of the long edges over. It doesn't look pretty but the whole thing takes about 2 minutes, costs about a penny per parcel and will save you at least 0.80p every time.

AMANO SHRIMP CARIDINA JAPONICA AQUARIUM INVERTEBRATE

Caridina Japonica also known as Amano Shrimps or algae shrimps are freshwater shrimp said to have been introduced to aquarium keeping by the famous Japanese aquascaper Takashi Amano.

These shrimp are found in the Yamato river area of Japan living amoungst the algae which grows along the banks, particually in the delta areas.

Capitve breeding of this species has been done but is difficult as in the wild the adults lay eggs which are washed in to more saline waters where the young hatch before beginning the journey upstream to restart the process, this means that to suceed in beeding, relative salinity must be achieved at each stage as well as correct hardnesses, temperatureand PH.

The fish make an excellent addition to any aquaria that meets their parameters and does not contain any fish large enough to eat them. They really are facinating to watch as they travel around the aquarium floor, constantly sorting debris and eating algae using their4 feeding limbs, shovelling food into their mouths.

If you do decide to add these to you aquarium beware that those on sale on ebay are usually very young and thus small when purchaced so easily eaten by even reletively small fish. Check with the seller when purchacing and if you do go ahead and buy young specimins,set up a breeding net in which to feed andseperate the new additions to the tank, do not try and use a floating breeding trap as they can be small enough to pass through the slats. They can alsospend time out of the water so make sure that you cover the top of the container you use to house them and thatyou have a tight fitting hoodon the tank.

The shrimp will prefer the following parameters;

Temp : 18 - 27oC ideally 24oC

Hardness : 6-10 dGh

PH : 6.1 - 7.1

Adult Size : 5CM

Feedng; Algae based sinking Feeds, suppliment with fresh veg ie weighed down cucumber, blanched spinach etc. Flake

If kept well these little shrimp are fascinating and well worthy addition to the aquarium, try to keep in groups of 5 or more if possiable and never use any copper based medicines.

Please vote on the usefullness of this guide

many thanks

BOSE 802 speakers

There is a huge amount of snobbery surrounding and nonsense spoken / written about BOSE products in general and particularly the 802 range of speakers.

Many of the drivers fitted to the BOSE range of speakers LOOK similar: 901, 802, 502, 402 and 101 but they ALL have different impedances ranging from 0.9 ohms to 8 ohms. This is simply good business practice to standardise the components that make up these drivers. All the voice coils have different impedances though - this is very important.

802 drivers are 1 ohm impedance - NO other Bose drivers are 1 ohm impedance.

Many Ebayers advertise items as 802 / 502 / 402 drivers. THERE IS NO SUCH THING.

Never mix impedances in a cabinet as some drivers will dissipate more power than others which will always lead to early failure of these drivers.

Imagine if you bought eight 8 ohm drivers to re-furbish your 802 cabinet! You would end up with a 64 ohm cabinet!!!! If you run your 802 cab from a 200W into 8 ohm amplifier, the amplifier would only deliver 25 WATTS into a 64 ohm cabinet before running into clipping. Clipping can be about the most damaging condition speakers will experience.

All 8 drivers in an 802 cabinet are wired in series despite what you might read in Ebay listings.A single blown driver might not stop the sound completely but that is because some signal can reach some of the drivers via the frequency / dispersion networks.

You will NOT blow up your 802 cabinet by running without the "dedicated" controller. The controller BOOSTS nearly all of the frequency range to make the speaker sound OK. The only frequecies that are cut are in the 20Hz and 30Hz ranges which are generally cut by any decent modern amplifier anyway. If anything, using the controller actually drives the speaker harder. Some frequencies are boosted by a massive 17dB.

Many sound "experts" look down their noses at graphic equalisers being used in a system but think nothing of using BOSE speakers and "controllers" - a BOSE controller is no more than a non-adjustable graphic equaliser.

The 802 is a decent cabinet - compact, lightweight, fairly rugged and sounds OK - but do not get carried away with the notion that it delivers the very best in high quality sound. Accept it for what it is.

JO MALONE FAKE CANDLES

I have just won a fake jo malone candle paid nearly 29 so a dear fake.For the sake of an extra tenner i could have brought a real one from the jo malone website.I have now brought one from the website and the pure fragrance you get from a proper jo malone candle makes your whole house smell gorgeous,even when not lit you can still smell it.A fake candle will look just like the real thing ,it will even smell nice if you sniff it but thats it.When you light it the fake candle doesnt give you the strong scent that a real one does.So before you buy just check the sellers feed back of what they have sold and if its all jo malone just ask youself how do they get all these jo malone items.For the sake of a few pounds just log on to the proper website and buy a proper one that WILL make your house smell gorgeous

Posting to or from Isle of Wight

Both buyers and sellers should be aware of the following if posting to or from the Isle of Wight.

Virtually all post to or from the Island is carried across the water by hovercraft from Southsea to Ryde.

The post arrives in a Postvan and is unloaded by Postal staff. The sacks of mail are then loaded onto the hovercraft by Hovertravel personnel who subsequently unload it on the other side for another postal van to collect.

It matters not how well you package your item or how many 'FRAGILE' stickers you attach to your parcel, they are all in grey sacks so nobody will see them anyway. They are all treated the same, that is roughly. The sacks of mail are literally thrown onto and off the hovercraft with no apparent concern for the contents.

Combined Shipping Costs Guide

We've all seen on seller's feedback profiles adverse comments about how much actual postage was in relation to the charge in the auction but in essence there really is no need to any buyer to complain as long as they know the cost of shipping up front.

While it is nice for sellers to combine shipping costs on multiple sales it is not mandatory and in some cases not even feasable with is being cheaper to post things separately than to send an oversize or overweight parcel, especially when shipping abroad. I tend to stick to a standard formula where the most expensive charge stands and any others are discounted by 50% but then most of my stuff is sent by courier which enables me to combine a lot of weight easily and offer such a high discount. The postal charges for small items sadly do not really make this as easy when sending smaller postable items.

Remember too that shipping/postage costs are not just related to the price of the stamps. Packing materials cost money too (usually), even second hand padded bags have cost the sender money as they paid someone else for them! Also bear in mind that sellers can live many miles from their nearest post office and they may factor in the cost of fuel or a bus trip to post the items they are sending you.

If a seller is VAT registered, bear in mind that there is no VAT they can claim back on postage costs so if they charge 5 then 65 pence of that is money they have to pay to the Customs and Excise as VAT leaving them with 4.26 to actually spend on postage and packing your items.

Reasonable shipping and handling costs are pretty much irrelevent as long as they are known by the bidder before placing the bid. Asit is known up front how much it will be you simply deduct that from the total you are willing to pay and bid accordingly. For instance if you want to spend 25 on an item where shipping is quoted at 12, just bid no more than 13 (25 - 12 = 13). That way you will never pay more than you intend regardless of how much the shipping

eBay sellers BEWARE !!! Paypal has a Dark Side !!!

Paypal is great for buyers but for sellers can become a nightmare !!! I am not trying to discourage you from using Paypal (as I use it myself every week as both a buyer and a seller) This guide is intended to inform.

You may have noticed recently that eBay has been trying to encourage as many sellers as possible to only accept Paypal but sellers beware as Paypal has a "darkside" !!!

You may think that every package you send out is covered by Paypal's "seller protection" scheme ... but this just isn't so !!!

Seller protection will actually only be offered if you meet specific criteria. And, while many sellers do send valuable packages by recorded delivery it is not just this ctiteria that protects the seller.

This is because to qualify for Paypal's seller protection the buyer who you send the parcel to must be verified with a confirmed address.

Therefore, if the buyer has not verified their account (which an estimated 30 - 40 % of eBayers haven't) then you will not beeligible for seller protection !!!

When you send out a package it usually arrives but what if the buyer claims it has not arrived, or what if it gets lost or damaged ??? Even though you may have tracked the item and added recorded delivery Paypal will not offer you seller protection if the address it has been sent to in unconfirmed !!!

As a result of this you will not get the cost of the item refunded and as a seller you will be out of pocket as your items will not have met the criteria for seller protection.

Worringly Paypal do not make this at all
obvious. Their guidelines on seller protection are very unhelpful.

I hope by reading this guide you are a little more informed !!!

Many thanks ... please vote positive if you found this guide helpful.

How to make sure your eBay offers are found

There is little point in spending time and money on uploading your offer to eBay if you ignore the single most important aspect. Can you afford to ignore the vital requirement which will help your offer to be seen by potential buyers?

The Title FieldHow many times have you searched through eBay and found short and cryptic titles for offers.

For instance, take this title: Clay chimenea L @ @ K

What does this tell you? Well, it says that it a chimenea and is made of clay. It is possible that a potential buyer will use the search term chimenea and if they do, will find a fair number of hits. However, does your Clay chimenea L @ @ K say very much? Not really.

What should goThe word look with the @ character. People do not search for that as a word. This takes us down to simply Clay chimenea

Fifty-five characterseBay allows you to use up to 55 characters as the title for your offer. That is 55, including spaces. Your mission, for everything you sell, should be to use all 55, or as close as you can possibly get. These 55 characters are the most important characters you will ever use on eBay.

Lets look at our example again: Garden chimenea

This uses 14 characters, less that a third of the total available. What you need to do, is to describe the chimenea so people know more about it.

Lets expand our exampleYou know from the chimenea that it is 75cm high. Also that the model is an Adora. Also, it has a lid and a stand. In addition, it is brand new.

Take this valuable information and rework the title as follows:

Adora 75cm high Clay Chimenea with lid

Mirror Dinghy Restoration

Mirror Dinghy Repair Many people regard plywood dinghies as lesser mortals of the sailing world. However what is forgotten is the fact that they have lasted 30yrs and were protected with materials far inferior to what we have available today.Too often Mirror Dinghies have seen neglect in their life, together with maintenance using very poor materials. One such example is that shown below which fell into my hands recently. I will attempt to give a step by step guide to her restoration and return to the water.Her sails and spars were in fine condition however the hull needed urgent attention.1) carefully remove paint and varnish with Nitromoors craftsman (yellow can stripper)2) carefully cut out any rotten areas of ply. this one was lucky she had about 5 relatively small areas of damage.3) Decking has been stripped and cleaned in the above photo, with any rotten ply removed. Hull can now be turned over, brass rubbing strips carefully removed, and the yellow paint stripped off.4) Ply patches were scarfed glued into three areas with epoxy resin, where the boat had suffered damage beaching. 5) Hull is now carefully sanded back, repairs faired in and a sheath of light grp cloth applied so as to just cover the tape on the main chine which was sound. See photos below.6) With the bottom of the hull now solid and rigid, it was turned upright, and attention paid to the gunwales. This is an important area on a Mirror, in that the gunwale firstly provides rigidity to the structure. Secondly poor glue joints and coatings allow ingress of water in this area often fatal for the ply. 7) The next step was to remove the gunwale and inwale, very easy as most of the glue joint was broken. The inwale was cleaned up and repaired as necessary whil'st the gunwale itself was replaced. Both were carefully glued with an epoxy fibres mixed. Knees at transom and bow could then be replaced.8) The interior of the hull could now be retaped as necessary and preliminary coats of varnish applied.9) Hull was now turned over again, and any necessay filling and fairing done before it was painted with epoxy primer as photos below10) Epoxy primer was now flatted back with 240 grit dry paper, and two coats of 2-pack polyurethane applied.Now to finish the interior and fit out.Guide to be continued (Will start work on a Mirror 16 shortly, this will also be featured as a guide)

Nathaniel Mills Famous 19th Century Silversmith

Nathaniel Mills

The Greatest Ebay Sting.

So you set up your account, you list a few things and think - Hey this works and the prices aren't bad either!. It's all the Ebay sweetner to get you in.

You open a shop - to avoid the big listing fees andit's all rosey - So whats the problem now? Whats gone wrong?

It's a combination of thingscombined. Ebay are always striving for initiatives to take that little bit more from your profit and boost theirs - after all they are Gods and can do what they like - or sothey think. If you add all the little charges up they come to a whopping 10 to 15 percent of the total price sometimes - and a lot more on the cheaper bread and butter items.

They purchased Paypal and overnight doubled their takings (then they increased prices and made so many regulations that it's tighter than amillitary convention in Iraq, IN THEIR FAVOUR not yours (note the subtle you can claim up to $500 (doesn't mean you are covered by the way - just means if they can get it back you get it back and if they can't you're stuffed)- you try and recover money after a loss - I have and failed.Then Ebay add little things - then charge for each one eventually - the gallery picture, a little pink hi light, buy it now etc etc. If I were to rent a shop to you for say 50.00 a week with the advantage ofa high street postion and pleanty of advertising space then overnight say right I'm bricking up your windows and doubling your rent the law would be on my ass quicker than aCow pie downDesperate Dan's throat.

One things for sure - so many people around the world rely on Ebay , Ebay should look after them as they are Ebay, they make it what it is. The sooner Ebay is regulated to protect sellersfrom overnight hikes and ridiculous fees the better.Ebay has gone down hill and the spiral needs to stop before it's too late. Sellers in the categories I like have abandoned it , they don't try and sell quality items as the fees and prices mean they give away their goods - 3 Years ago and more Ebay was on the winning streak. Now it's losing the heads and God like figures that control Ebayshould re-evaluate whats gone wrong and bring back the old winning formaula.

BELOW IS A TABLE OF WHAT THE NEW PRICING MEANS TO SELLERS WITH SHOPS - THE CATEGORIES ARE

PRICE (WHAT ITEM SELLS FOR)

OLD SHOP (ORIGINAL EBAY TAKE)

NEW SHOP (WHAT EBAY NOW TAKES)

LISTED (WHAT EBAYTAKES FOR A LISTED NON SHOP AUCTION ITEM)

Currency is not an issue - the amount is the same regardless of currency.

PRICE SHOP NEW SHOP LISTED

2.50 0.17 0.245 0.13

5.00 0 34 0.49 0.2625

7.50 0.51 0.735 0.3925

10.00 0.675 0.90 0.525

20.001.35 1.500.785

30.00 2.025 2.10 1.575

40.00 2.402.70 1.895

50.00 2.775 3.30 2.22

75.00 3.15 4.30 3.03

100.00 3.525 5.30 3.845

200.00 5.025 9.307.1125

500.00 9.52 21.30 16.8625

1000.00 18.025 31.30 27.11

2500.00 44.275 61.30 53.3125

5000.00 88.025111.30 97.0625

Hope this makes the new prices clearer than Ebay Have. Thanks for looking.

Powersellers Suspended From eBay

Powersellers Suspended From eBayAccording to eBay, most "Powersellers" get suspended from eBay, or have been suspended. Does this give you cause to think twice?Who's To Blame?If an eBay member is suspended, whose fault is it? Is it because the member is doing something wrong, or is it because eBay cocked up?If it is due to the member's behaviour, what was the problem?ReasonsThere appear to be five main reasons why an eBay member should find his account suspended. These are:1 Selling Counterfeit, Fraudulent, Stolen or Mis-Described GoodsJudging by the number of eBay items with obviously misleading descriptions or titles, this is one of the less serious reasons as far as eBay are concerned, and eBay will only suspend a seller if enough other members complain. 2 Failing to pay eBay fees on time.This seems to rate highly, as if eBay selling fees are not paid on time, then the account is suspended, and no further selling activity can take place.3 Repeated Copyright ViolationsUsing other people's copyright images, text, and sometimes copying complete eBay listings will result in a ban, at least if you get reported enough times, possibly three or more. Of course, if nobody notices or complains, then you can get away with it indefinitely. The reason that eBay will suspend or terminate you account is that if they fail to do so, they themselves could be held responsible for permitting, or failing to stop, the violations, and they could be sued for large amounts of money. Courts may decide to award actual and punitive damages, and eBay would have little if any defence, and would almost certainly have to pay the other party's legal fees, which could run into hundreds of thousands of dollars or pounds.4 Whistle BlowingOne of the quirkier eBay rules is that members may not contact each other to warn about other members suspected of fraud or selling counterfeit goods. Anybody caught doing so will have their account suspended or terminated. This strikes us as very unfair indeed, and we wonder if it is because eBay are making plenty of money from the crooks? 5 eBay's Incompetence or NegligenceeBay have been known to suspend members by mistake, and we believe it is quite common, They probably also do so out of fear. Because there are few if any checks when members first join or start to sell, and eBay suddenly notice that a member is selling large volumes or values of goods, they are likely to panic and suspend a member, then ask questions later.Our ExperienceOur company has been selling coins and bullion since before 1964, well over 40 years. We are properly incorporated, file annual accounts, and our current turnover is around 10 ($20) million per annum. We registered with eBay in 2001. We started slowly, mainly offering 10 to 50 repeatable items. It took us some time to set up an administrative system for our eBay sales, which take about twice the work compared with our normal direct sales. Once we thought we had got it about right, and had installed and trained some semi-dedicated eBay staff, we started to offer many more items, and also increased the price levels, for example 500 krugerrands in one lot which equals about 170,000 on current values. One Sunday, when our office is closed, at about 4 a.m. UK time, when we are in bed asleep (we do not trade 24/7), we received an e-mail from eBay demanding that we reconfirm our personal membership details. Even if we had seen them, we would probably have assumed it was some kind of phishing scam. This was followed about half an hour later by a second e-mail telling us that since we had failed to respond to the first e-mail, that our account was suspended. A third e-mail followed telling us that they were sorry this had been done in error!It took us hours of telephone calls and work before our account was de-suspended on the Monday, and we got no satisfaction or good explanation from eBay for their mistake. At the time, we had about 260 auctions running, each with an average of about 10 bidders. One of the most annoying aspects of this is that eBay automatically e-mail all the bidders, to tell them the account is suspended, and advise them not to complete any transactions. It is not surprising then, that about 2,500 people, all potential customers, think there is something bad about us, and we firmly believe that under the circumstances, eBay should have e-mailed all the bidders to state clearly that it was their fault and not ours. Their initial negligent suspension, and subsequent failure to publish an apology and correction is in our opinion defamatory. Perhaps we could and should have sued them, the main problem with this it that legal action is very expensive, and should not be undertaken lightly against people with more money than yourself. As we estimate eBay to have about 4,000 times our resources, we have not yet taken any action.Was This Guide Useful?If you found this guide interesting, informative or useful, please spare few seconds of your time to vote for it by clicking on the "Yes" button below, thanks. We will undoubtedly get a few "No" votes from people selling these coins.A better test than usefulness might be to vote "Yes" if you agree that most or any of our points, thanks.Other GuidesYou may be interested in viewing our other guides:-

Mints

PRADA FAKE FAKES BAG GUCCI LOUIS VUITTON FENDI COACH LG

Prada Spotting the Fakes!

Don't get fooled with cheap Asia-Fakes anymore! You have a buyer protection garanty when you buy over ebay and pay with paypal . Internet platform is polluted with fake-sellers who advertise their products to be authentic Prada. Especially in the new collection the label protects itself through hightech features on their products, which are almost impossible to copy. So be aware of those signs of authenticity for Prada, and check out our list below, if you wanna be sure to buy the Original, and to be absolutely sure- next time buy at our shop!

Prada - Signs of Authenticity (Bags, Shoes, Wallets)

- Autheticity Certificates: authentic Prada products come with two certificates. One of them is a plastic card. On ist back you can read : Art = Model nameMateriale = material nameColore = colour nameTaglia = sizeBelow that two sentences and then:Negozio = shop (blank)Data = date (blank)

The second certificate is made of paper and on the back it has some more informations about the product:On the upper left : Articles name (i.e. Cinture for belt oder Portafoglio in Pelle for leather wallet), beside that the size if given.Art = Model nameColore = colour name Group Name = Article group nameBelow that there is a bar code, which has to contain the model name given above!- Material: authentic Prada bags, shoes and wallets are made of the finest materials in excellently crafted quality. You can see, feel and smell that! Prada is famous for their innovative use of a wide variety of very high-quality materials for their handbags. Below is a list of those materials

Bufalo= Buffalo LeatherCanapa= CanvasCinghiale= Wild Boar SkinCoccodrillo= CrocodileDaino= Deer SkinFeltro= Felt (usually made of wool)Lucertola= LizardNappa= Full Grain LeatherPelliccia= FurRaso= SatinSaffiano= Textured LeatherScamosciato= SuedeSpazzolato= Polished LeatherStruzzo= OstrichTessuto= Woven MicrofiberVela Sport= NylonVernice= Patent LeatherVitello= Calf Leather

- Triangle Logo: Most bags have the Prada triangle logo outside, usually in the center on the front or on the side; some style will have the logo affixed in the back. The logo should be attached securely on all three corners to the bag. If you run your fingers across the logo, you should be able to feel that the letters and symbols on the logo are slightly raised. The colour of the enamel on the logo must match or be very close to the colour of the bag. The placement of the letters, their size and spacing are all proportionate to each other. Some style of bags will have Prada embossed on the bag instead of the usual Prada triangle logo.

- Interior Plaque: The interior Prada metal plaque has to be firmly attached to the lining on all sides. You will be able to feel a piece of backing material underneath the plaque. All 4 corners have to be rounded. The colour of the enamel on it must match or be very close to the color of the lining. The color on the rim of the plaque (gold or silver) must match the color of the hardware of the bag. The placement of the letters, their size and spacing are all proportionate to each other.Prada wallets will have Prada - Milano embossed on one side and Made in Italy on the other side. All wallets are lined in either textured leather (Saffiano) that is excellent at resisting wear and tear or smooth Calf Leather (Vitello).

- Lining: Prada bags are lined in the following types of lining material: Prada signature fabric = Usually in black or coordinating color with the word Prada and a symbol that looks like a sideway letter S woven throughout.Vitello= Smooth Calf leatherRaso= Satin

- Hardware: Hardware used in Prada products comes in three colours: Silver-toned, Gold-toned, Rose colour-toned. The bag's hardware will have one of those colours, never a combination of both or all colours. Hardware on authentic bags is marked with the word Prada very cleanly (the embossing on counterfeits looks messy and not clear at all).

- Zipper: Prada products will have zippers from one of the brands listed below or a combination of them:Lampo (without the lightning bolt)IPIriri

In some purses and cosmetic bags the zippers are just plain and not from any these three brands. Newer bags used mostly metal zippers on the outside and inside. Older bags used plastic zippers on the inside.

- Dust bag: Prada bags come with a white cotton dust cover (that looks and feels like felt) with the Prada logo embossed on the front in black with drawstring closure, inside the dust cover there is a tag that says Prada - 100% cotton - Made in Italy. Older dust covers color is navy blue with Prada printed in gold color ink.

ATTENTION: Since the fake producers sometimes manage to copy one or two of these authenticity signs, make sure that all of them apply to your Prada product!

Protect yourself from fakes and make sure you buy real Prada quality products from honest sellers on Ebay! Check out our Trensandbrands Shop, cause with us you're on the safe side! We carry all the European and US high brand labels for reasonable prices with lots of winter specials right now!

We'll be happy to answer any further questions!

Silver Vesta Cases

Silver2Treasure

Vesta Cases

AGuide by Karen Freeman

Vesta Cases were invented in around 1840 and were made to house friction matches. These pocket-sized cases took their name from 'Vesta', the Roman Goddess of the hearth and home. A 'match' was known as a 'vesta' up until the twentieth century when 'match' became the favoured term. It became essential to carry the vestas in a case as they were highly flammable and needed to be kept dry. The inside of the case would often be gilded to protect the silver from the sulphur head of the match, which would otherwise tarnish the silver.These small cases were initially adapted from snuff boxes, with the addition of a serrated striker. Vesta cases were in great use between the 1860's and 1940's as smoking became increasingly fashionable. They were carried predominantly by men in a waistcoat pocket or on a 'double Albert' chain, which held a pocket watch on one side and a vesta case on the other. The invention of the pocket petrol lighter initiated a decline in the need and use of the vesta case, during the first world war soldiers found the petrol lighter lasted longer and was easy to refill. The vesta case can be found in all shapes and sizes, with engraved, chased or enamelled decoration and they were made from a variety of different materials.

I show below photos of a common example.

You will see most vesta hallmarks are stamped just inside the lip where the lid joins and because they are usually protected they do not get rubbed or worn.

The majority of vesta cases were made and assayed in Birmingham, followed by London and then Chester, by makers such as Joseph Gloster, Deakin

Facing The Facts with Cosmetics :).

If like me you have been browsing ebay for some time wondering how you can tap into the market and make a profit yourself then you may find my guide useful. I have been buying/selling cosmetics for a number of years and it has not always been easy and took a few months to get things right so here are a few tips to help you on yor way..............

Do not buy endless lists stating they can give you wholesale secrets or buy into "drop ship" schemes. All the information you need is on the public domain and using different methods within the search engine will enable you to find these suppliers yourself. Any reputable drop-shipping company will not ask you for a sign up fee. After all you are advertising there goods so why should you pay for that privelidge?, most reputable suppliers will also have a "no minimum order" service.

When buying cosmetics off ebay either for yourself or to sell on be safe and check the items are within date and are legit, do your research and after checking the contents of my own makeup bag to those I have purchased on ebay I was astounded how many products were fake or out of date. An example, a Mascara will dry up and have a distinguished smell when it has gone past its use by date. Cosmetics are after all intended for the face which is the most sensitive are of the body so please ensure you test any products you are unsure of on the back of your arm and leave for a short while before using to ensure you have no reaction to the product.

The trends within the health and beauty section moves extremely fast, always alternate what you are selling. When competitors see a particular item is selling well or the method you use is selling your products quickly the market will soon be flooded with these products/methods so always try and keep one step ahead. If you have found your supplier then check the retail price on ebay first, you may find you can get the items cheaper on ebay rather than from the suppliers. One supplier I used became so popular on here everyone was using them and if you keep your eyes peeled for those bargains you can as I said earlier get them cheaper on ebay.

Start looking for items after christmas, from Sep/Oct the prices start to rise in the build up to Christmas, after then the prices plummet. Look for the bargains in January and hold onto the stock but please remember to ensure the products will remain within date.

Some products do not have dates on them but it is easy to establish which are old stock. Nail VArnish for example can split with an oily residue on the top, a good shake-up of the bottle and the product is as good as new.

I hope you have found this guide useful and if you have any queries regarding wholesalers etc please contact me through ebay's messaging system.

GUINNESS CARLTON WARE

BEWARE OFFALSE CLAIMS TO AGE

IF THE SELLER HAS NOT PUT A RESERVE BE CAUTIOUS.

THE GUINNESS COLLECTORS CLUB WEBSITE IS FREE TO VIEW PHOTOS OF THESE PIECES, A MUST SEE IF YOU ARE AFTER ORIGINAL PIECES ONLY!

REMEMBER THERE ARE ABSOLUTELY HUNDREDS OF THESE FORGERIES AROUND. SPEND YOUR MONEY WISELY ?

What DVD Disc For Use with Camcorders

Generally, 8cm (mini) DVD-R/RW discs, that have been developed based on the DVD Format Standard as well as its recording format, should have no problem recording and playing back on Sony DVD Handycam Camcorders and those made by others such as Hitachi and panasonic.

The Newer Hitachi and panasonic camcorder models also use the mini 8cm DVD-RAM (single sided 1.4gb/double sided 2.8gb) formats which are re-recordable.

(Look for 'camcorder use': just because package may state for 'data and video' use does not guarantee will be compatible on most camcorders)

There are some discs on the market from other parties that do not have sufficient quality and performance. Use of these discs can cause the same types of problems that occur with discs contaminated with dirt, dust, and fingerprints. (or Camcorders firmware may not allow disc to be recognised at all, as manufacturer does not rate for use as low quality.)

Best rule is to purchase premium quality discs from manufacturers such as Verbatim, Sony and Panasonic , especially for Re-Recordable discs which will be used again and again. After all you want to capture those precious memories when they happen and not be let down by your recordable media.

Buying Bunnykins on Ebay

Revised guide - July 2008

This Ebay guide is for the Royal Doulton Bunnykins DB series, first produced in 1972. The range is currently up to DB458 (Old King Cole) although not all of the numbers have been allocated. There is a great range in price with the commonest bunnies selling for around 10, and the rarest for several hundred pounds. So how do you get your bunny for the best price and what should you look out for?Well, there are some tips and hints. Firstly, the obvious, look for auctions that end at odd times. Look for auctions with misspellings in the title, or are perhaps badly described. It is not uncommon for auctions to be simply titled Royal Doulton Bunnykins Figure. Be aware though, these auctions can get good prices, as bargain hunters usually spot them.Be aware of how much the bunnies usually sell for and search internationally for the higher priced bunnies. Sometimes they sell for lower in the US and Australia, but be aware of shipping costs and Customs charges (17.5% plus handling fee).Some bunnies sell best in a group, for example the Australian Games bunnies make about 150 as a group, and on their own they make about 20 to 30. Some are the reverse, the Red Oompah band can be picked up for as little as 150, and sell on their own at about 35 to 45.So where can you find more information on what price they sell for and details of Bunnykins produced. Well, there are some good starting points, for example, the Charlton Guide, Royal Doulton Collectables is an excellent reference guide with details and photos of all of the Bunnykins including book value. With the exception of the rarer Bunnykins, the book value is usually much higher than you should expect to pay on Ebay, for example, for example, DB25 (Cymbals) book value is 65, compared to an average Ebay price of 31 (no reserve auction price).

My website (see my ME page) also has a list of the complete Bunnykins range from DB1-DB458 (note to Ebay, I do not sell Bunnykins from this site!).

What should you look out for?

For the cheaper Bunnykins any major damage renders them almost valueless. For the rare Bunnykins, it will reduce the value but not to the point of no value. If buying make sure the listing states no damage (or similar), if in doubt ask the seller to clarify.

Is it a second? Seconds are those items the factory does not feel meet their own quality standards. Royal Doulton sells them but it is possible to identify as there will be a scratch or drill mark through the Royal Doulton mark on the base. Occasionally the piece may also not carry the Royal Doulton mark.

Example of second marked with drill:

Example of second marked with scratch (not a bunnykins backstamp)

Boxed? If a listing does not state that the item has a box it probably hasnt. Quite often you will find the box is not original. If it is important to you that the box is original make sure you confirm this with the seller.

Certificate of Authenticity? Most of the recent Bunnykins have these but they were not issued with the earlier models (DB1-100 approx did not have certificates). Again, if it is not stated on the listing, check with the seller if this is important to you.

Made In China - a lot of the newer bunnykins are made in China. Often they are not marked as such on the base and will say 'Designed in England'. All bunnykins made in England have 'Made in England' on the base. Check the listing for a photo of the base or ask the seller if in doubt.

Seller terms and conditions. All good Ebay sellers should be able to guarantee delivery of the item and offer a no quibble refund. Avoid the sellers that do not offer this.

Finally, I have seen a few listings claiming that most of the bunnykins on Ebay are fakes. This is rubbish, the only fake bunnykins items I have seen are the bunnykins thimbles set (not Royal Doulton), and Dracula and Nelson Bunnykins produced by Little Acorns Pottery (fake but rare and valuable!).

Happy Collecting!

Why is ebay biting the hand that feeds them?

I saw it on the news a few days ago that ebay are going to stop allowing sellers to leave negative feedback for buyers!One feels that this is going to lead to big trouble out there on the trading floor. Firstly it gives dishonest buyers the chance to make false PayPal dispute claims with no risk of comeback and warning to other sellers, Those same dishonest group will Hold sellers to ransom, Threaten them with neg if they don't do what they are told, Cause disruption by not making payment for items and much more..What a ridiculous move by ebay, the very idea of it is just utterly ludicrous. I just cannot understand the logic behind it! if a seller has a bad experience with a buyer, why should they not be able to alert other sellers? For years PayPal have been favouring the Buyer, the buyer who incidentally is not the one paying the fees. The buyer who can say the item they ordered did not arrive even though it did. I personally know someone who thinks it is a big joke to slap a dispute on someone who sends him an item he wins on ebay without a proof of delivery! every time PayPal gives him his money back so he sits there with the item he got for free! And Now this, ebay starting to favour the buyer too. The buyer who will buy from ebay anyway because they get a good deal, The buyer who can now complain about the smallest of issues and threaten the seller with negative feedback safe in the knowledge that the seller will not have a fair chance to respond. Personally, I sell a lot of stuff on ebay and although the majority of customers are honest and kind, there are a number who are just out to cause trouble, The ones who will use any excuse to complain and try to get a freebie or a refund. Until now those who would not actually leave the neg in fear of receiving neg back will just dish it out like candy... This will also lead to situations such as competitors signing up for fake buyers accounts, purchasing from their rivals and negging them. I hope ebay are putting in safeguards against this type of activity!!Another point to note, If for example, there is a delay in the post and an item is late, Where as in the past the buyer has been reluctant to leave negative feedback because they could receive it back, they will not bother waiting a few more days for delivery, they will Just go ahead and leave neg. I doesn't matter, the seller cant return it so even if the item does arrive tomorrow, it wont bother them. They don't know who the seller is, just some bloke they bought something off on ebay and it didn't arrive within 12 hours of them buying it!!Ebay will lose a lot of customer loyalty through this, The customers being the Sellers. Why favour buyers who will not be there to buy if there is no sellers to sell? See the Twisted Logic here??A LOT OF LOYALTY LOST.. People chose to sell on ebay because they know the chances of their stuff selling is high and they are prepared to pay the fees to sell that stuff, Until now, ebay have also been fair to buyers and sellers equally but it seems the classic PayPal mentality of "We are doing you a favour allowing you to be our customer" is creeping in. A RISK THAT HAS PROBABLY NOT EVEN BEEN CONSIDERED IS: There was talk of fraudsters from places like Nigeria buying stuff with dodgy cheques a few years back. I imagine that those buyers receiving negative feedback was something that protected a lot of unsuspecting Sellers who otherwise would have been fooled.. A scenario that does not take a crime boss to imagine:Big organized gangs of 20 people say, They all setup accounts on ebay and buy imaginary goods off each other over a period, building up a positive feedback score as a highly reliable buyers.They then start ripping sellers off left right and centre with no comeback where negative feedback is concerned, Nothing to alert any other seller not to send the items before they too realize they have been conned.If sellers lose the ability to spot a dodgy buyer, and also lose the ability to leave negative comments about a particularly bad experience with a buyer, it will cause ebay to become an unsafe place to trade as the lack of asset security will be a serious risk. it will also cause a lot of conflict and possibly Bad publicity. A lot more than I suspect this new rules has been designed to resolve.SELLERS WILL NOT THANK EBAY FOR THIS.ebay, YOUR CUSTOMERS will not be happy and will start to look for alternatives!ebay, remember that it is not the buyers who are your customers, it is the sellers, surely it is in your interest to look after your customers and listen to their needs, Do Not dictate to them, the buyers are the sellers customers and ebay you do not make any money from people who just buy. The money you make comes out of the pocket of us sellers. For years ebay have stated that they consider Feedback represents members opinions and they do not get involved. Yet from May onwards that will be one sided, UNFAIR and ebay will be biting the very hand that feeds them!If you are a seller and you are reading this, I hope you found it helpful especially if you did not know it was going to happen. If you are a buyer reading this, chances are you are one of the honest and genuine buyers out there and understand why I personally and many other sellers would see problems with this. I would hope that buy marking this post as helpful, it might get noticed by ebay and realized to be a mistake that need not occur.

We have setup a petition regarding this matter atwww . powersellersuk.com/fbp

please feel free to sign it and we will send it to ebay shortly before this new rule comes into place

Sizing and fitting for Birkenstock

It is important that you get the right size and fit of Birkenstocks by selecting the right size and following our tips on how they should fit. This will also prolong the life of your sandals and you will ejoy them much more.

ALWAYS try on, and break in your shoes on carpet. We cannot out accept shoes back that show signs of being worn. Check out our returns policy for further information.

Trying your shoes on

When Buying Birkenstock footwear, please ensure that you are getting the correct length as well as the correct width. To check that you ahve the right size, place your heel within the foot cup (the lower part of the footbed); your foot should fit inside the edges of the shoe with a few millimetres at the front and back of your foot. This allows for movement while walking.

Your toes and heel should NOT touch the rim of your sandals while you are standing in them. The extra room is needed to perform the natural rolling motion of the foot without restrictions - just as if you were barefoot.

The contours of the footbead should follow the curves of your foot. The raised arch might feel unusual at first, but the arch support will feel less pronounced as the cork/latex footbed moulds to your foot.

Regular or narrow?

Even with foot health sandals the right fit is important. Therefore the Original Birkenstocks footbed is manufactured in two widths. When purchasing your Birkenstock sandals, ensure that you get the correct width.

Birkenstocks are designed to be roomy. When you first try your sandals and shoes on, they might feel big. Most people are fine with a regular fitting, but if your foot moces from side to side when you walk and adjusting the straps does not help, then a narrow fitting might be more suitable.

How can I tell if a shoe is narrow or regular?

Birkensotck uses a footprint symbol to determine width. If it is filled in it's a narrow width,if it is an outline, then it's a regular shoe. Product codes for narrow shoes end in 3, while regular sizes end in 1.

How do I decide if my feet are narrow or regular?

It's really an individual thing. Generally, if you always wear narrow shoes, your feet are not wide across the toes and you consistently hear comments about your slender feet, then you're best off with a narrow shoe.

Tips for sandals

When fitting sandals, the strap closest to your toes should fit comfortably, but not tight. The other straps should be more loosely fitting to allow your heel to lift slightly off the footbed while walking. Birkenstocks should not be tightly fitting.

Tips for shoes and clogs

Slip the removebale footbed from the shoe. To check with whether your shoe is the correct length and width, stand on the footbed and inspect the fit. Toes should not hang over the edge and the aches should folllow the contours of your feet, as described above. Reinsert the footbed into the shoe.

Tips for children's footwear

We find that most kid's feet are best suited to the narrow widths. Birkenstock footwear may not be suitable for children under 3 years old.

towing laws trailers dollys etc post 97 licence info

heres the basic rules according to all info i can find:-

all trailers need suspension (this included tow dollys etc and cars become a trialer when used with a A frame)

all trailers capable of carrying over 750kg must be braked so if someone says its will carry 2 ton but it has no brakes it cant it.

A frames and dollys are illegal for transporting vehicles BUT are perfectly legal when recovering a broken down vehicle unless they are braked (dollys) or have the brake appling attachment ( a frames )

any one who passed there test after jan 97 can only tow a combination of the tow car and trailer gross weights up to 3500kg and the gross weight of trailer must be less than the kerb weight of tow car but you can drive a 3500kg vehicle and tow up to 750kg as well

these are only the basics and i would suggest a quick google search and you will find all the info you need

HOW (NOT) TO LEAVE FEEDBACK i.e. HOW TO COMMUNICATE

I received my first negative feedback as a seller. I could have asked the buyer to have it mutually withdrawn. I didn't. I didn't because I have not done anything wrong. I didn't because I believe the buyer had put himself or herself in a worse light than what they have done to my feedback score. So this red mark has been left there, tainting my previously 100% positive feedback. Left there to remind me how I can (possibly) better myself as a seller and buyer on eBay. To remind me that unfortunately, there are uncommunicative and unreasonable eBayers out there. And finally to remind me that you should never judge an eBayer just by his or her feedback score.


Communicate! Communicate! Communicate!

Some eBayers jump to conclusions and leave feedback without first considering communicating with the seller, or buyer. A lot of issues are usually due to misunderstandings, miscommunication or just simple mistakes. In this age of ultra-fast electronic communication, we have actually forgotten to communicate effectively. If in doubt, ASK! If unhappy, get a refund! If all else fails, then leave your negative feedback.



My negative feedback: Product much smaller than expected. Trial sizes?

The same buyer left similar feedback for 2 other sellers. It is annoying that this buyer had failed miserably to firstly read the listings and secondly to communicate with the sellers. All three listings clearly stated product volume and that they were all travel or sample sizes. So this buyer, in his/her ignorance and inability to grasp what 5ml might look like, decided not to communicate their self-inflicted dissatisfaction and left negative feedback without further concern for the consequences to the seller.



If you bought an item in a retail shop and upon returning home, realise that there is a problem. What do you do? Sue the shop? Report them to the police or set fire to their business? None of the above. You call and let them know that there is a problem. The retailer should in turn try to sort it out. So why is it that some eBayers take the first opportunity to shoot the seller down?



First neutral feedback: buyer mistaken the product number as use-by-date!

Again, no communication, but neutral feedback at the first chance. My second neutral feedback didn't make sense as the feedback reads positively. The third was based on individual preference the buyer didn't like the smell of Molton Brown Celestial Maracuja Body Souffl. Unfortunately I don't make the stuff. If you don't like the fragrance, don't blame me for it. Most recently, I had a neutral because the package sent through Royal Mail was ripped open and the product was stolen. The buyer received the padded envelope and my note enclosed. However, since the buyer had chosen not to pay the recorded mail option (including insurance), I was somehow expected to refund or replace the stolen item. The buyer was obviously unhappy, but was I to blame for it?



So the state of my feedback score is 99.6% with 4 neutrals and 1 negative. Does that make me a bad eBayer? Based on my other positive feedback, I let you be the judge of it.



Feedback Etiquette? Use Common Etiquette instead.

There are as many bad sellers on eBay as there are buyers. I've come across scams, dodgy items inaccurately decribed, fake products, you name it. At the same time, I've also come across unsavoury buyers: Fake bidders who don't pay, buyers who don't even read the listing (due to panic bidding), etc. However, these are a minority. The majority are people just like you and me.



Instead of talking (and/or obsessively counting) feedback scores, try talking to the other eBayer. Don't panic buy read eBay listings properly. If in doubt or unclear about the item listed, email the seller. Ask for further description or pictures. If that doesn't work, DON'T BID. If you do, you're gambling, taking a risk. If you've won an item, but you're unhappy with it, try contacting the seller and work it out. Most sellers have a refund policy. However, if you don't like your winnings or purchase based on your personal preference, then don't blame the seller because they didn't force you to bid.



Sellers should list items clearly and concisely. Be as honest with your description as possible. A sharp picture of the item is always appreciated. Blurry images (in this day and age) are not an excuse! If you are prepared to sell on eBay, then be prepared to help buyers with their questions, even if you have been asked a thousand times. If you have been asked the same question a thousand times, then perhaps you should have placed the information in your listing.



Feedback is not be all and end all

If a buyer or seller has a feedback of 95%, give them the benefit of a doubt. If it is 55%, then perhaps I'll avoid them like the plaque. Feedback can be faked, feedback can be left in retaliation, feedback can also be left in revenge. So before you judge an eBayer by their feedback score, perhaps you should take time to read the feedback and find out what happened. And next time, before you decide to leave a neutral or negative feedback, try communicating with your fellow eBayer instead. If it doesn't work out, you can always leave the negative feedback later.

And finally, enjoy your eBaying.

Playstation 3 SCAMS, WATCH OUT!

So i've been waiting 3 years now for the Playstation 3 to hit the shelfs in stores but found out ebay sellers was even cheaper than stores as i found out, so i purchased a Playstation 3 console from a seller, looked a nice genuine seller, even talked to him over the phone and he sounded like he knew what he was doing, infact in his Playstation 3 listing he also had receipts from Currys which looked real with his name on, i was guarenteed it by 24/3/07 before 1pm.

So i was waiting all day waiting for item that i had been waiting 3 years for, finally the day had come for me to recieve it, only to realise it never came, so i emailed him.. nothing..phoned his mobile..discontinued..infact i had messages from other sellers who bought Playstation 3 consoles and never recieved them too, we finally came to the conclusion we had been scammed, his ebay and paypal account got froze, he isn't allowed to recieve or withdraw funds from his paypal account until he prooves that he sent out the consoles, the stupid guy left his postcode on the receipt and got his real address. (evil)

What was so convincing we gave 400 of our money to a guy with 100% feedback, maybe because he had 100% feedback and he had sold items which was priced 200 and over with positive feedback recieved for that, giving out mobile details.

I used to think the only sellers who scammed people, was the people with 0 - 10 feedback, registered 10 days ago and had negative feedback BUT OHHH NO, now here stops the moaning and comes the advice in this review.

When sending out lots of cash, even if the seller has 100% feedback, make sure the seller has had more than one postive feedback in the last year, don't be fooled by a few positive feedbacks where he has spent 10 to get a few feedback to make him look genuine, infact now i come to think about it, even if they have listings that he sold something for a large sum of money and he has positive feedback don't automatically think hes genuine (just like i did.. maybe i'm just thick?) because they are not, just because you havn't been scammed like i wasn't before, it can happen to you at the most unlikely of times.

Just looking out for you, as this is a sensitive subject for me and i don't like to see it happen to you.

Paypal protection - Load of Rubbish

Purchased a PHD waxing machine on Ebay for 165 plus 15 postage, it arrived a week later, damamged and full of wax, which was not useable at all, contacted seller immedaitely who sent me a "polite" email telling me how to clean it and that it was my problem if it got broke inpost- said I should have took out insurance - non offered on listing!!!! Reported item to Paypal as i had paid by Paypal and they asked me to get a third party report on the item, did this at a further cost and faxed it to them.Received an email saying case was closed, they said item was as described. Lodged a complaint asking how the hell this could be if it was described as "as new" and had arrived badly damaged and unusable, They said they had not received report and if I resent it they would review the case. 2 week later they have decided item was "not as described"but still recon i did not send report in time- which I did !!! So they have sent an email to seller to ask him to pay me back, Like he is going to!!!! so Paypal so not pay you back they get you to contact seller for refund and it is still your problem!!! I have lost 180 and under paypal protection thought it was safe to use paypal, but it is not!!!!!

Soundware Guide to Cables, Leads and Connectors

Soundware Beginners Guide to......Cables, Leads and Connections.What's the difference between balanced and unbalanced cable? Types of Cable:UnbalancedBalancedShielded Types of Connector:XLRJacksPhonoMIDIUSBFireWireOptical Types of Cable:UnbalancedTraditional unbalanced audio cables are made up of four parts - a conductive core, an insulating layer known as a "dialectric", a shield made of foil or wire braid, and an outer insulating layer. The conductive parts of the wire are known as "lines" - so unbalanced cable uses two lines. The core is known as the "hot" line, since this is the part that transmits the current. The outer shield is the "earth" line.The earth line shields the core by intercepting unwanted electromagnetic interference and running it to ground, so that it cannot reach the core and affect the audio signal. However, this system is not perfect, so an audio signal will pick up noise caused by electromagnetic interference from other power sources when it is passed through an unbalanced cable. The longer the cable, the more noise will be picked up, so when working with unbalanced cables it's best to keep the lengths as short as possible.BalancedBalanced cables work differently - a balanced cable has a twin core with "hot" and "cold" lines. Both the hot and cold lines carry the audio signal, but the voltage on the cold line is inverted, such that when the hot line carries a positive voltage, the cold line carries a negative one. The cold line always carries the exact opposite charge to the hot line - it is in effect "turned upside-down". This allows for a form of noise reduction called "common mode noise rejection".Common mode noise rejection uses the idea of "phase inversion". This means that signals of exactly opposite voltages will cancel each other out. For example, a positive signal of 5V and a negative signal of -5V appearing together will create a total voltage of 5V - 5V = 0. The two opposing signals will cancel each other out, and neither will register. The two voltages are said to be "180 degrees out of phase".So, if the cold line of the cable is always carrying the exact opposite of the hot line, the two lines are 180 degrees out of phase and if the two signals are combined and played they will make no sound.The hot and cold lines are 180 degrees out of phaseBut if electromagnetic interference enters the cable as the signal is passing through, it will enter both cores at once, and the noise will have exactly the same voltage in both lines - it will not be inverted.When noise enters the cable, it is not out of phase.So, in the cable we have the desired signal 180 degrees out of phase across the two lines, and the noise "in phase", as it were. If we combine the signals at this point and play them, we will not hear the original signal because the phase inversion cancels it out, but because the noise is in phase, we will hear it. What's the point in that? We can hear nothing but the noise the signal has accrued along the way.This is the clever part. At the end of the cable, the cold line is inverted again. This turns it upside-down again and inverts the phase on both the original signal and the noise. So now the original signal, which was 180 degrees out of phase, is back in phase. But the noise, which was in phase, is now 180 degrees out of phase and will cancel itself out.When the cold signal is inverted, this brings the signal back into phase but puts the noise out of phase.In this way, noise picked up by the signal as it passes throught the lead is cancelled out. This makes balanced cables much better for long lengths, or where electrical interference is high.ShieldedAs described above, the shield is an earthed conductive layer wrapped around the core. This intercepts electrical interference and runs it to ground before it can reach the core. All unbalanced cables are shielded, and many balanced cables also have a shield as an extra layer of protection against interference.Types of Connector:XLRXLR connectors are mainly used for balanced signals - in particular with microphones and mixing desks. XLR plugs have three pins - Pin 1 carries the earth (or shield), pin 2 carries the hot (positive) signal and pin 3 carries the cold (negative) signal.View Cables and Leads in our Shop... JacksJack connectors come in two sizes - 1/4" and 1/8" (or "Minijack"). Both sizes are wired the same, and come in mono or stereo types. A mono jack is split into two sections - the tip (at the very end) and the sleeve (the rest of the plug). The tip is the hot (positive) line, and the sleeve is the cold line or the shield. Mono jacks are used for instrument cables like guitar or microphone leads.View Cables and Leads in our Shop... A stereo jack is split into three sections - a tip and sleeve like a mono jack, with a ring between the two. For this reason stereo jacks are also sometimes called TRS (tip, ring, sleeve) jacks. Stereo jacks can be used to carry balanced or stereo signals. In a stereo jack being used to carry a balanced signal, the tip is the hot line, the ring is the cold line and the sleeve is the shield. If the jack is used to carry a stereo signal, the tip is the left channel, the ring is the right channel and the sleeve is the shield. Stereo jacks can be used as speaker cables carrying balanced signals, or as headphone leads carrying stereo signals.View Cables and Leads in our Shop... PhonoAlso known as RCA connectors, Phono connectors can be used for audio or video signals, and are used a lot in hifi and home cinema systems. The centre pin is the hot line, and the outer ring is the shield.View Cables and Leads in our Shop... MIDIMIDI leads are used for communication between MIDI devices like keyboards and synthesizers. They use 5-pin DIN connectors - these are German standard audio connectors. The pins are numbered - 1 and 3 are the two outermost, 4 and 5 the next two in and 2 is the centre pin. only 2, 4 and 5 are wired specifically - pin 2 is the shield, pin 4 is the hot line and pin 5 the cold. Pins 1 and 3 have no specific use, but some MIDI equipment uses them for other functions.View Cables and Leads in our Shop... USBUSB cables are used to connect computers to peripheral devices like printers, external mixers and hard drives. USB cables have a different connector at each end - an "A" connector (the big one) connects to the computer, and a "B" connector (the small one) connects to the peripheral device.The USB protocol started as a relatively slow connection method - USB 1.0 was only capable of transfer rates of 12Megabits per second (1.5 Megabytes) - not nearly fast enough for audio recording. This has given rise to the impression that USB is too slow for use with audio interfaces. However, USB 2.0 (the most recent protocol used by newer computers) is capable of 480Mbps (60 Megabytes). The vast majority of USB audio or MIDI interfaces use USB 2.0, and this provides a fast enough data transfer for low-latency recording.View Cables and Leads in our Shop... FireWireFirewire is used in much the same way as USB - to connect computers to peripheral devices. It provides fast rates of data transfer (up to 800Mbps) for recording multiple tracks at once.Firewire (also known as IEEE 1394) cable connectors come in several different types depending on the type of Firewire port - using 4, 6 or 12 pins.View Cables and Leads in our Shop... OpticalOptical (or TOSlink) cables transfer digital data using optical fibre and pulses of light from an LED. Mostly used to transfer data between digital audio devices like CD and Minidisc players, optical connections can have very high data transfer rates. It is limited, however, by the quality of the cabling - the fibre optic material can have a huge difference on the quality of data transfer, so it's important to use the best-quality leads you can when using optical devices.View Cables and Leads in our Shop...

Kerbsidemotors early Mini alternator fitting guide

Converting from negative to positive earth and fitting an alternator.

The following procedure is the way to carry out this conversion on a Mini. The procedure will be pretty much the same for all late 1960s and early 1970s British cars (I.E. Ford, MG, Morris Austin, Rootes)

Fitting an alternator will make the car more reliable as the AC current from the alternator is more stable than the DC from a dynamo. This conversion also makes the sometimes unreliable control box redundant.

Converting the car to negative earth will allow you to connect modern stereos, electronic ignition, modern fuel pumps etc. Also because of the way the electrons flow the car will not rust as fast!

Another point to consider is while fitting an alternator increases the reliability it removes some of the originality. This could affect the price of the car.

What you need:

An alternator. Lucas 16ACR (Or similar recon) is probably the most suitable. 18ACR and 20ACR will fit too but because they generate higher current they may cook the wiring!

Alternator terminals. Supplied with genuine new Lucas alternators (

Tips for posting on The Community Boards

This is a short introductionto the community boards,a whole universe that lurks under theunder the button labeled Community.

1. Choose the right board for the topic you wish to ask about


There are a number of different boards or forums

All of the boards have a brief explanation about their purpose at the entry point - best to read it

Some are eBay specific and some are not.

Probably best not to ask:


"Which are the best nightclubs in Benidorm?" on the Q

fake g-star 96 elwood jeans

item that i had bought, notice the 96 logo,

i just recently bought two pairs of g star jeans, one from a reputable seller, the other a seller with no feedback. the first pair i received firstly in a sealed plastic bag saying g-star on it. now i work for next in the stockroom and every item that we ever receive always comes in the same way; sealed in a bag saying 'next' on it. now, the secondpair had come in abag that didn't say g-star. the first impression i had was this was going to be a fake.

iopened thebag and inspected the jeans. now my brother is one that has has forked out the full price of these jeans in shops soi compared them to his. i found many differences, obvious ones. the stitching of the 96 logo was very messy with bits missing. the small rectangle logo saying 'g-star originals raw' on the back right hand pocket; the font waswell off and alsohad a 10 over it , never have i seen this before, and again, an original pair didnt. i inspected the care label and it was all written in chinese and english. the english grammer was poor for a start and i spotted a spelling mistake. the original pair was written in many languages and had about 5 labels in like a notebook form. The tag that had came with the jeans also easily confirmed this was a fake pair, the entire tag was written in chinese, however i did spot an email address in english saying evergreengmt at hutchcity. The buttons on the back pockets of the fake pair said 'g-star 5620 -96' wheras the original said 1996 g-star elwood. Furthermore the material was very hard, the originals are very soft and comfortable.

i hope this helps everyone out there!

Royal Mail Postal Order Scam.

I hope that this posting helps others to avoid this Royal Mail Postal Order scam.

Ex Ebay menber: galluswunmi966898696407 Bola D. Adekunle, 34, Governor Road, Ikoyi. Lagos 23401 Nigeria. Email address galluswunmi029 at yahoo dot comA few spam emails might keep him occupied and away from scamming other ebayers.

IS THERE ANYBODY THERE?

As with so many other members, I am finding thattrading on eBay, especially buying, is becoming inreasingly difficult, not to say risky. There appear to be more and more, frankly, dishonest traders, non-payers and time wasters using the system who do so apparently without any risk of being expelled. Very often, negative feedback is not left in many cases where it would be appropriate simply because of the likelyhood of a 'tit for tat' reaction. There are two major problems here; eBay does not police it's own rules and communication with ANYONE within eBay is virtually impossible. Ebay is very likely soon to become a victim of it's own success and I, for one, am considering whether I want, or can afford, to remain a member. Wake up eBay before it's too late!

Radley Walkies Handbags and others

Do not pay more than 25 for these bags. They only cost this amount in regular shops i.e. Debenhams, John Lewis. They are also available at this price via internet sites (regular small outlets) and with no postage to pay!

In general be informed of prices before you start bidding else your 'bargain' may turn out to be at an inflated price.

I am neither a dealer or shop but just a Radley devotee.

HOW TO INSTALL A MOBILE PHONE DATACABLE

This USB driver is supported on Windows 98/2000/ME/XP. Not supported on Windows 95/98 First Edition and Windows NT.Follow the steps below to install driver of USB Data Cable: INSTALLATION INSTRUCTION.1. Switch on your computer and make sure the USB port is in working condition2. Plug in the USB Data Cable to the USB port, the computer will auto-detect new hardware.3. A popup window "Add New Hardware Wizard" will show up on screen.4. The wizard advises you that window has found the new hardware "usb data cable".5. Click "Next" button for the wizard to auto-detect and install driver and copy necessary files to your hard disk.6. Click "Finish" button to complete the first driver installation.7. A new popup window will show up asking you to install new hardware "usb data cable" again.8. Follow the instruction and go through the whole process again.VERIFY9. When Windows has finished installing the driver, go to "Start" -

unreservred items not reaching sellers price relisted!

i won an auction item for 99p inc p p no reserve.you can imagine how happy i was,paid immeadiately via paypal and eagerly awaited my item,after a week i contacted the seller who said he had posted the item so i waited after another week still nothing so i emailed the seller again who replied the item has been posted if i dont recieve it next day he would refund me my 99p via paypall.

then i looked for another item to replace the lost item only to find the seller re listing the same item again with a higher price!! He obviously never posted it the first time so i contacted him again and asked how if he sent the item he has still got it to sell??

his reply was new stock!! an unusuall item in an unusuall colour!!

i contacted ebay about this to be told they cannot make the sellers post items if they dont want to and to leave appropriate feedback!

i couldnt belive it that that was the only option i could take so i left feedback saying never recieved item only to find the item relisted after a refund then i recieved a stroppy email from the seller saying he cant understand my feelings of being mis treated and left me bad feedback saying im a menace to ebay!

surley if ebay is a contract to buy it is also a contract tosell!

How to Format External/Secondary Hard Drives with XP

1. How do I format a USB or second Hard Drive in Windows XP?

A. Use Disk Management

To start Disk Management:Log on as administrator or as a member of the Administrators group.
Click Start, click Run, type compmgmt.msc, and then click OK
Alternatively select Control Panel/Performance

i found the perfect pushchair

yes i know its hard to believe but i have found the perfect pushchair. I am an avid fan of Quinny (i have a Speedi) and i really liked the look of the Zapp but my child still sleeps in the pushchair and i needed something to recline, so i resisted purchasing a Zapp. But ive just discovered the Petite Star Zia (rrp 99) its basically a Zapp with a lie-flat reclining seat. I am so ecstatic. Not only is it cheaper than the Zapp, has a reclining seat and a shopping basket - when compared with my friends Zapp it actually folds up even smaller. so there - i now have my perfect pushchair. Be warned Quinny - this is definitely going to outsell your Zapp!!!! You can purchase a Petite Star Zia online from Mothercare or from independant retailers and eBay. It comes in 3 colours - Cranberry, Teal

16 Ways to Avoid Fraud

Fraud is an ongoing fight and is on the increase and eBay is no exception. More and more fraudsters are trying to exploit this online market. The golden rule here is to apply common sense. However, some of the tactics used can be pretty convincing, especially to the novice user. REMEMBER: IF SOMETHING SEEMS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE IT PROBABLY IS! I would also recommend a visit to eBays safety centre and reading through guides like this one, to gain a better insight into common fraud tactics used.

1 Dont depend on Feedback.

Whilst Feedback is a good indicators of a seller honesty, it is possible to fake feedback by having multiple IDs, and IDs can be stolen. Buying very cheap information only products is also a very quick way of building feedback, without doing any real trading.

2 Fake eBay webpages

Fake websites are easy to create and will often look just like the real thing. If you clicked a link in an email to reach the website, check that the web address is the same as the one shown in the mail. eBay provides a tool for detecting bogus websites in the eBay Toolbar called the Account Guard. The Account Guard turns green when you are on a genuine eBay or PayPal site and turns red if you are on a suspect site.

3 Stay inside eBay

Frequently both seller and buyers will approach other users directly and suggest a private deal away from eBays commission fees. As a seller it is very tempting to take them up on the offer as it avoid eBays commission fees, and buyers avoid the chance of loosing the auction.

However, trades outside eBay are not subject to any of the protection of the eBay marketplace and if something goes wrong there is little thant can be done. It is also a good idea to always pay with PayPal as it provides a level of payment protection. It is also a tracable payment which allows eBay to see that you have paid for an item.

4 Shill Bidding

Shill bidding is common on eBay and means bidding on your own items, either through a second ID or via a friend, in order to artificially raise their final value. Shill bidding is illegal in the UK. Here are some ways of spotting a shill bidder if you suspect foul play:

Examine Feedback Carefully. Shill bidders may bid exclusively on items offered by one seller. If a bidder has a long history of buying from one seller, it is quite possible they are in cahoots. Be suspicious of zero feedback. Buyers should be wary of a seller with zero feedback under all circumstances suspiciously quick feedback. Be alert if their feedback was left by a satisfied buyer within hours of an auction ending, before the item could possibly have been delivered. Feedback from no longer registered users is always something to be wary of, whether looking for shill bidders or vetting a seller before making a bid. Retracted bids, especially from the same seller, this could be a sign that shill bidding has been committed. If you are suspicious of any behaviour on eBay it can be reported using the Report this item link at the bottom of every listing page

5 Phishing or Spoof emails

Most people get several bogus emails reporting to be from eBay or PayPal every day most of which will be sent by fraudsters intent on extracting confidential information such as your PayPal login details. Delete any emails sent under the following circumstances:

If you get an email from eBay or PayPal, informing you that a bid you know nothing about has been successful. Reputable banks and organisation such as eBay or PayPal will never ask for your password, account details, or personal information via email. Phishing emails usually have some of the following characteristics

They will not be addressed to you, but usually start with a generic "Dear eBay member". They have an urgent tone, e.g. "Account Suspension - Urgent Auction Required". They have links to web pages that look like eBay pages but are not the real thing (see below). They ask for confidential information such as your PayPal password or credit card numbers. Remember: eBay will never ask people to provide account numbers, passwords or confidential information via email. Any genuine emails from eBay will be in the My Messages box in My eBay. If you are in doubt dont click on any links from an email.

A quick way to identify bogus emails is to hover your mouse cursor over a link which will display the links destination. If it is not the same as the links which is shown in the email, do not click it.

6 Avoid Use Instant Money Transfer services

Money transfer services such as Western Union are designed for people who trust each other to transfer money from one another and are not intended to carry out transactions between strangers. Once a transaction has been made the money is untraceable. For this reason eBay has banned the use of Western union on its site.

7 Fake Goods.

Unfortunately the sale of fake goods is common on eBay, so it is important to exercise caution when buying designer items such as Louis Vuitton, Channel and Paul Smith etc. I have also written a guide on how to spot memory card fakes, this is aimed at the Sony Memory Stick Duo Pro. However the distinguishing signs of a fake tend to apply across any product. It can be very difficult to spot fakes, but if something seems too good to be true it probably is. If you must buy these kinds of items on eBay always check a sellers feedback. It is also safer to buy from business sellers.

8 Items that dont exist

If a seller is peddling a non existent item often there will be no photograph, or a photography clearly lifted from elsewhere on the internet. If you are at all doubtful, ask to see a photo and get more information. Once again, checking feedback is important.

9 Excessive postage

eBay allows sellers to set their own postage. Whilst most give reasonable postage rates some sellers use excessive postage and packaging to increase their profits. Always check the postage cost of an item and compare with similar items.

10 Check your PayPal Account for Payments

Once you get a payment for a sale through PayPal, you will get an email telling you that the payment has gone through to your account. Fraudsters can send out fake emails telling you that you have been paid in the hope that you will send the goods without checking. Always check your PayPal account to make sure the funds have arrived before sending out the goods.

11 Second Chance Offer Fraud

Second Chance Offer emails are sent, via eBay, by sellers to unsuccessful bidders if they have additional items to sell or the winner fails to pay. Always check that it has come from a seller you have been dealing with for something you have previously bid on. Fraudsters use bogus Second Chance Offer to get people to send payments to them as opposed to the legitimate seller for items that do not exist, or as a way to get hold of personal data. If in doubt, view your emails in My eBay.

12 Dont assume eBay is the cheapest

eBay is not always the cheapest place to make a purchase. Sometimes sellers are trying their luck and so always check prices first on a shopping comparison engine like Kelkoo, Shopping and Pricerunner.

13 Dont buy information only products

Some sellers try to sell lists or links to information which is usually available elsewhere for free. They also sell a list of cheap products from a Police auction or a company that has gone into liquidation, avoid them like the plague.

14 Read the description carefully

When buying items on eBay it is very easy to read things into the description, bidding on what you want, and not what is described. Sometimes the seller is actually selling the box that an item was sold in and trying to pass this off as the real thing. Always read the whole description in detail before bidding. Sometimes sellers put that the item is faulty in the middle of a gargantuan description in the hope that you wont bother to read the whole thing.

15 Know your rights.

If you use the Buy It Now button, rather than a standard auction, to buy from a UK based trader on eBay, you have all the same statutory rights as buying from a shop. If you make a purchase on eBay from a business seller, this means that you have at least a 7 day cooling off period when the item can be returned for any reason.

When buying from an individual the usual rule is Caveat Emptor - buyer beware. Providing your purchase arrives as described theres little legal comeback and the standard seven day internet cooling-off period usually doesnt apply to auction purchases.

16 Beware of Strange Requests

Always be suspicious of people who ask for things out of the ordinary such as overpaying for an item and then getting a refund, or posting to another country from the one given as the user home country. Anyone requesting shipment to Nigeria or offering to pay you more than the item is worth you should exercise extreme caution. As a rule I do not sell to anyone in Nigeria. Neither will I post to a different address to one that is listed on eBay or to Nigeria. If youre questioning my reasoning on this, then please take a further few minutes to read my Nigerian 419 scams Guide. Lastly if you have some common sense, use it! Nothing in life is free and rarely will people sell a bargain, trust your judgement, if something seems a little odd there is probably something fishing going on. This is good advice for life in general as well as eBay trading.