On Mon, 22 Sep 1997, James Willing wrote:
Now on the other hand, the Salvation Army store could
not sell gear to Bill
Gates based on the way they price stuff. An Apple IIgs for $495?!? Really
now...
Here (in Chicago), the Salvation Army store that carries computer
equipment tends to price everything computer-related at $45, regardless of
what it is. There was (until it recently closed) a Salvation Army "as-is"
store in the building with one of their warehouses that had some great
deals, primarily on items that they couldn't easily classify. It may be
worth looking for these in other cities, since the one here had items such
as oscilloscopes and Nixie tube DMMs that never made it into the normal
stores.
Sometimes, thrift store pricing and procedures are hard to understand. I
once saw a thrift store employee deliberately damaging items with a hammer
before marking them down. I guess the theory is that you don't deserve
all of the keys if you're paying $2 for a computer instead of $20.
Is anyone else here recognized as "the computer guy" at thrift stores? At
one store (admittedly only a block from my apartment, so I visit it
regularly), they save documentation for me and often mark down computer
equipment the day after I've passed it up. Prices have risen slightly
since they've realized that there is demand, but they seem to be stocking
more old computer equipment now, and if something is too expensive, it's
easy to wait a day or two!
--
Scott Ware s-ware(a)nwu.edu