Ebay madness

Well, I haven't watched the szene until april/may this year, but I'm not too confident that prices are dropping. Actually I think we ought to keep a low profile in order to keep this classic computer stuff from becoming a fad. Things like newspaper features will eventually hurt us, because the one main issue with classic computer stuff is that it's rare. As Chuck mentioned the VAX 4000/300s on ebay their prices are up by now. I would be surprized if they sold for less than $150 this time. It isn't over until it's over, as they say. The only reason for prices may be moderate right now is it's vacation time. Have you watched the PDP-8's. It's now the 3rd in the last 3 weeks or so, the first two have not sold under $500 and this one is at $200 last time I looked. The PDP-11s sold for same amount almost. Watch how the UNIBUS and QBUS SCSI cards trade. Over $200 minimum. Who are the buyers? Some have so high feedback numbers that I'm afraid those are traders who try to make money out of this. In conclusion, I really think that newspaper features about vintage computing and conferences with lots of publicity do hurt the vintage computer hobbyist because they invite people who merely have money to spend on a fad. regards -Gunther Steve Robertson wrote: -- Gunther Schadow, M.D., Ph.D. gschadow(a)regenstrief.org Medical Information Scientist Regenstrief Institute for Health Care Adjunct Assistant Professor Indiana University School of Medicine tel:1(317)630-7960 http://aurora.regenstrief.org