[rescue] "My city had been torn down, replaced by online auctions. Hey, ho , way to go - eBay" (with apologies to Chrissy Hynde...

[Ken Hansen]

See below...

--- koyote at koyote.cx wrote:
> I dunno. I think there will always be sources for
> stuff in tiny lots. I see it a lot out here in
> silicon land. Comdisco isn't going to go out and buy
> 3 u2's. Nor a single u5 (which would be nice to
> have.....)

Comdisco is selling *their* surplus, not reselling
someone elses... You do know what Comdisco does,
right?

> The smaller reseller has actually got a new leas on
> life with ebay, because people- even knowing market
> values, will bid up the "few extra bucks" to get the
> auction.

An ignorant market works to the benefit of the seller,
an educated market works to the benefit of the buyer.

An ignorant market paid $300 for an IPX base that I
bought from a vendor for $50. In the later
transaction, the vendor was ignorant of the untapped
market willing ot pay $300 for an IPX base.
 
> And if people were that well informed, we'd have a
> better guvmint, among other things.

I don't discuss politics on email lists, esp. ones
about technical matters.

> I think trend
> will stay pretty much the same for a bit. If I had
> the money for some of the really small auctin out
> here, I could be picking up u2's loaded for $350.
> and anyone who *knows* is going to take a u2 over a
> u5 any day :)

Yes, and you could turn around and maybe get $750-800
*reliably*. But, when your area runs out of dot-flops,
the your source of systems is gone.
 
> The other issue is the rising period. I can't give
> away ss1/2/670 ram now. in another 5 years, I'll be
> getting a dollar a meg for it, and in 10, $2. 

Well, that's great - if storage space is *free* for
the next 5 or 10 years... Most of us need to justify
the space requirement.

> THe market for REALLY old stuff isn't big, but it is
> there. I still kick myself for having passed up a
> box of IDI drives a few months back. and Weird stuff
> has a $5k bounty out for a couple of winchesters!

Anomolies... My Vic 20 will always be worth something
between $0 and $5.
 
> It's tough all around- predicting what will drop in
> price next week- and for how long. (10 u30's don't a
> market flood make)

Well, this is one wave of Ultra 30s - she had about 3
dozenb in July, and they sold out. Then they got 10
more off lease, so they are for sale. I fully suspect
more Ultra 30s will come to market from them in the
next few weeks. And then there is Electrorent, GE
Capital, and others - these machines are approaching
the end of their useful life (for these vendors) as
they become harder to rent out and accumulate in their
warehouse (space = $$).
  
Ken

=====
Ken
n2vip at yahoo.com

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