Burned on my snipe by an ebay "system error"

[RockMyAmadeus]

Just another reason to sell on C-link over ebay

Or track the book until the end and don't over-depend on applications to do the work 100% effectively.

 

Not the first time I am hearing about one of these services failing. The last was a Comico Primer 2 CGC 9.8 that only sold for $555 because the potential high bidder asked one of these services to bid $800. They had an "eBay log-in error" too.

 

 

If I had to guess which service failed me, I would guess it was ebay that failed, not Gavelsnipe. What's the difference if I can't log into ebay in the last few minutes manually to get my bid in?

 

Also, the seller reported to me they got low prices for "all" of their auctions ending last night.

 

Coincidence?

 

 

Might I suggest going with a more reliable sniper, like esnipe.com? "You get what you pay for" applies here.

 

Also, to protect yourself from an outage, put in a manual lowball bid when you set your snipe. It also lines you up for a second chance offer.

 

i meant that if you have the patience to wait and snipe you deserve the comic at a good price, sniping programs are those with low morale fibre !

 

I'll assume that was meant to say "sniping programs are FOR those with low moral fiber." I'm afraid I have to take exception to a blanket statement like that. Also, this thread is not about the ethical or moral question behind sniping.

 

Sniping has also become so prevalent that many times, RECORD prices are realized through snipes. The use of sniping doesn't always diminish the sale; in many cases, it helps the seller to realize fantastic figures.

 

Furthermore, a bid is a bid is a bid. If you put in a manual bid of $900, then guess what? My snipe of $800 isn't going to win me squat. Sniping is never a guarantee of a win, regardless of the fact that it is placed in the last few seconds. It is a service that is out there and is, IMO, well worth the small fee to use.

 

As to the OP, I've never had that situation happen to me, but I use bidnip.com. Has always done right by me. (thumbs u

 

Beautiful logic. Spot on.

[RockMyAmadeus]

Just another reason to sell on C-link over ebay

Or track the book until the end and don't over-depend on applications to do the work 100% effectively.

 

Not the first time I am hearing about one of these services failing. The last was a Comico Primer 2 CGC 9.8 that only sold for $555 because the potential high bidder asked one of these services to bid $800. They had an "eBay log-in error" too.

 

 

If I had to guess which service failed me, I would guess it was ebay that failed, not Gavelsnipe. What's the difference if I can't log into ebay in the last few minutes manually to get my bid in?

 

Also, the seller reported to me they got low prices for "all" of their auctions ending last night.

 

Coincidence?

 

 

Might I suggest going with a more reliable sniper, like esnipe.com? "You get what you pay for" applies here.

 

Also, to protect yourself from an outage, put in a manual lowball bid when you set your snipe. It also lines you up for a second chance offer.

 

i meant that if you have the patience to wait and snipe you deserve the comic at a good price, sniping programs are those with low morale fibre !

 

It's "moral" not "morale". Perhaps you should learn the difference before passing judgment on all of us dirty little snipers that are of such low moral fiber. There is absolutely nothing wrong with sniping or sniping services for that matter. If people don't like sniping, that is your prerogative and you are certainly entitled to your opinion. But please get off your high horse and don't call me unethical for something that is a perfectly acceptable and legitimate bidding strategy.

 

me, someone broke your rattle ? We are on the internet and we are talking about buying comics !

Some people are wound tighter than a duck's arse

 

Heh heh heh...someone makes a ridiculous statement, someone else corrects them (quite properly), and the first person is offended?

 

Classic.

[Lebowski]

Just another reason to sell on C-link over ebay

Or track the book until the end and don't over-depend on applications to do the work 100% effectively.

 

Not the first time I am hearing about one of these services failing. The last was a Comico Primer 2 CGC 9.8 that only sold for $555 because the potential high bidder asked one of these services to bid $800. They had an "eBay log-in error" too.

 

 

If I had to guess which service failed me, I would guess it was ebay that failed, not Gavelsnipe. What's the difference if I can't log into ebay in the last few minutes manually to get my bid in?

 

Also, the seller reported to me they got low prices for "all" of their auctions ending last night.

 

Coincidence?

 

 

Might I suggest going with a more reliable sniper, like esnipe.com? "You get what you pay for" applies here.

 

Also, to protect yourself from an outage, put in a manual lowball bid when you set your snipe. It also lines you up for a second chance offer.

 

i meant that if you have the patience to wait and snipe you deserve the comic at a good price, sniping programs are those with low morale fibre !

 

I'll assume that was meant to say "sniping programs are FOR those with low moral fiber." I'm afraid I have to take exception to a blanket statement like that. Also, this thread is not about the ethical or moral question behind sniping.

 

Sniping has also become so prevalent that many times, RECORD prices are realized through snipes. The use of sniping doesn't always diminish the sale; in many cases, it helps the seller to realize fantastic figures.

 

Furthermore, a bid is a bid is a bid. If you put in a manual bid of $900, then guess what? My snipe of $800 isn't going to win me squat. Sniping is never a guarantee of a win, regardless of the fact that it is placed in the last few seconds. It is a service that is out there and is, IMO, well worth the small fee to use.

 

As to the OP, I've never had that situation happen to me, but I use bidnip.com. Has always done right by me. (thumbs u

 

Beautiful logic. Spot on.

 

 

And I apologize for overestimating your verbosity!

[RockMyAmadeus]

I have to admit, that Primer #2 that sold for $550+- was verrrry tempting...considering I sold mine for $1125. But, alas, twas not to be.

[RockMyAmadeus]

Hey, is there a "+/-" alt code?

[whisp]

 

Ha you are not even reading my post properly hahahahah comical.

 

 

Ok, I'll humor you and give you the benefit of the doubt. What...exactly...did I "not read properly".....?

 

And instead of answering like a 13 year old with "hahahahah", can we have an adult conversation?

 

Ok

 

1. I never said buyers where whining about snipe programs in the first place. That was a general comment about the fact that goldlust said the system was fine in which I was commenting the system isnt fine due to the buyers where complaining about whatever and then ebay changed some rules and now the sellers are complaining more about things. This comment was not about sniping.

 

2. I stated earlier in an other comment that I understand that some items are not as common when I was talking about buy it now vs bidding and how some items would alwasy be most likely on a bidding auction style.

 

3. A seller 100% could shill snipe his own accounts as an other method of a reserve and you could argue it and have your opinion about it but any seller could use a snipe program to set reserves. For example a seller doesn't want to let a item go less then $25 so he sets his snipe to $25. Hopefully a buyer sets his snipe or bids with a higher offer. This is just a way to get around ebay reserve costs. So this is 100% possible and most likely done and I understand your point that the seller wants people to win but some sellers don't want to let items go for less then a certain amount.

 

4. see above for how shill bidding has to do with sniping

 

 

[Boozad]

The fact of the matter is there is nothing underhanded about snipes. You either like them or you don't, arguing the ethics is pointless as there are none.

 

I just happen not to like them.

[t3quila]

[whisp]

The fact of the matter is there is nothing underhanded about snipes. You either like them or you don't, arguing the ethics is pointless as there are none.

 

I just happen not to like them.

 

Yep I don't like them and why as I stated earlier I use Buy It Now for the most part.

[RockMyAmadeus]

 

Ha you are not even reading my post properly hahahahah comical.

 

 

Ok, I'll humor you and give you the benefit of the doubt. What...exactly...did I "not read properly".....?

 

And instead of answering like a 13 year old with "hahahahah", can we have an adult conversation?

 

Ok

 

1. I never said buyers where whining about snipe programs in the first place. That was a general comment about the fact that goldlust said the system was fine in which I was commenting the system isnt fine due to the buyers where complaining about whatever and then ebay changed some rules and now the sellers are complaining more about things. This comment was not about sniping.

 

 

Fair enough.

 

Here's where your argument falls apart: Goldlust's comment (if I may) was specifically about bidding and sniping, not "the system in general." He didn't say "all of eBay in general is fine." Therefore, for you to reply to him as if he WERE speaking of eBay in general is where your argument failed. You went off on an unrelated tangent, based on a misunderstanding of what Goldlust actually said (which prompted the correction from me.)

 

(This is very common around here, for some odd reason.)

 

2. I stated earlier in an other comment that I understand that some items are not as common when I was talking about buy it now vs bidding and how some items would alwasy be most likely on a bidding auction style.

 

How this proves that I "didn't read your post properly", I have no idea.

 

3. A seller 100% could shill snipe his own accounts as an other method of a reserve and you could argue it and have your opinion about it but any seller could use a snipe program to set reserves. For example a seller doesn't want to let a item go less then $25 so he sets his snipe to $25. Hopefully a buyer sets his snipe or bids with a higher offer. This is just a way to get around ebay reserve costs. So this is 100% possible and most likely done and I understand your point that the seller wants people to win but some sellers don't want to let items go for less then a certain amount.

 

Again, you're not understanding. Any seller can "snipe shill" as it's called. Very few sellers are willing to do this (if they are going to shill in the first place) because it does nothing but increase their chances of winning the item, which they don't want to do.

 

If you're a seller who shills your own auctions, you WANT to have that shill bid up sooner, so people have a chance to react to it, rather than later. It is the OPPOSITE mentality of the sniper.

 

"Snipe shilling" is certainly possible, but not a smart way to shill your auctions.

 

4. see above for how shill bidding has to do with sniping

 

 

No. When someone asks you to explain, you don't say "see above." That's a 9th grade copout.

[RockMyAmadeus]

The fact of the matter is there is nothing underhanded about snipes. You either like them or you don't, arguing the ethics is pointless as there are none.

 

I just happen not to like them.

 

Quite correct.

 

The problem comes when people try to PUT ethics on sniping, by implying or outright stating that it is UNethical to snipe.

 

(thumbs u

[whisp]

 

Ha you are not even reading my post properly hahahahah comical.

 

 

Ok, I'll humor you and give you the benefit of the doubt. What...exactly...did I "not read properly".....?

 

And instead of answering like a 13 year old with "hahahahah", can we have an adult conversation?

 

Ok

 

1. I never said buyers where whining about snipe programs in the first place. That was a general comment about the fact that goldlust said the system was fine in which I was commenting the system isnt fine due to the buyers where complaining about whatever and then ebay changed some rules and now the sellers are complaining more about things. This comment was not about sniping.

 

 

Fair enough.

 

Here's where your argument falls apart: Goldlust's comment (if I may) was specifically about bidding and sniping, not "the system in general." He didn't say "all of eBay in general is fine." Therefore, for you to reply to him as if he WERE speaking of eBay in general is where your argument failed. You went off on an unrelated tangent, based on a misunderstanding of what Goldlust actually said (which prompted the correction from me.)

 

(This is very common around here, for some odd reason.)

 

2. I stated earlier in an other comment that I understand that some items are not as common when I was talking about buy it now vs bidding and how some items would alwasy be most likely on a bidding auction style.

 

How this proves that I "didn't read your post properly", I have no idea.

 

3. A seller 100% could shill snipe his own accounts as an other method of a reserve and you could argue it and have your opinion about it but any seller could use a snipe program to set reserves. For example a seller doesn't want to let a item go less then $25 so he sets his snipe to $25. Hopefully a buyer sets his snipe or bids with a higher offer. This is just a way to get around ebay reserve costs. So this is 100% possible and most likely done and I understand your point that the seller wants people to win but some sellers don't want to let items go for less then a certain amount.

 

Again, you're not understanding. Any seller can "snipe shill" as it's called. Very few sellers are willing to do this (if they are going to shill in the first place) because it does nothing but increase their chances of winning the item, which they don't want to do.

 

If you're a seller who shills your own auctions, you WANT to have that shill bid up sooner, so people have a chance to react to it, rather than later. It is the OPPOSITE mentality of the sniper.

 

"Snipe shilling" is certainly possible, but not a smart way to shill your auctions.

 

4. see above for how shill bidding has to do with sniping

 

 

No. When someone asks you to explain, you don't say "see above." That's a 9th grade copout.

 

3 and 4 where enterchangable and people always complain about people repeating themselves so I just said see above since you had 4 comments in your quote of me so I made 4 points. Number 4. wasn't necesary but was to acknowledged your 4th comment and that my answer was in 3.

 

stop nitpicking.

 

and fair enough on goldlust comment because that was my interpretation and I was looking at it as whole entity.

[everlongcomics]

once I thought I was being a smart arse by watching my snipe while the snipe site was still open. As I watched the seconds tick by to wards the end the comic I wanted went up by pennies but nowhere near what I had set up to snipe at. Felt like a right clever-, smiling to myself . It came up auction ended & the item was won for $80, it was only then I discovered my snipe of near $150 didn't go through. by watching the snipe site it slowed it down so was not working on 'real time' & when it tried to place the bid it said 'item finished'. boy I was miffed about that one. oh well lesson leaned. never leave the snipe site open it could bugger it up.

[Boozad]

once I thought I was being a smart arse by watching my snipe while the snipe site was still open. As I watched the seconds tick by to wards the end the comic I wanted went up by pennies but nowhere near what I had set up to snipe at. Felt like a right clever-, smiling to myself . It came up auction ended & the item was won for $80, it was only then I discovered my snipe of near $150 didn't go through. by watching the snipe site it slowed it down so was not working on 'real time' & when it tried to place the bid it said 'item finished'. boy I was miffed about that one. oh well lesson leaned. never leave the snipe site open it could bugger it up.

 

 

You never told me that one...

[RockMyAmadeus]

 

3 and 4 where enterchangable and people always complain about people repeating themselves so I just said see above since you had 4 comments in your quote of me so I made 4 points. Number 4. wasn't necesary but was to acknowledged your 4th comment and that my answer was in 3.

 

Um. Yeah, ok.

 

stop nitpicking.

 

If you don't care about details, don't mockingly complain when you think people "didn't read what you wrote." I read everything that people in a discussion I'm part of have to say....I'm polite like that.

 

and fair enough on goldlust comment because that was my interpretation and I was looking at it as whole entity.

 

Understanding has been achieved.

[CKB]

Thats what you get for using a lame program to do your bidding instead of actually manually doing it. Personally I wished Ebay would block all sniping programs.

 

Sniping programs are good for buyers, good for sellers, and good for eBay. Not only would it be beyond ridiculous to "block" sniping programs, it wouldn't be possible. The eBay servers read the bids the same way they read manual bids. Sure, eBay can block bids that come from "www.esnipe.com", but what about www.esnipe6.com and www.esnipe8726.com, and www.e-s8322.tlo.com...?

 

Then, you'd get into situations where people can only bid from certain pre-approved computers (which these insufficiently_thoughtful_persons at eBay already have in place for sellers), and people won't tolerate that.

 

The more they try to "control" people, the more will slip out of their hands.

 

The sniping sites claim that eBay is using a random manual verification which will defeat any sniping engine. I have never seen the manual verification when logging in, so I can't confirm it is true.

 

http://www.gavelsnipe.com/faq.php?anchor=2#2

 

eBay has security measures in place to detect weak passwords. This security measure can cause your snipe to fail because the eBay log in process is interrupted by the weak password notification. Click here for tips on creating a secure eBay password.

 

eBay randomly uses captcha verification codes. These codes require human intervention to proceed with the sign-in/bidding process. Captcha verification codes will cause a snipe to fail because GavelSnipe is unable to sign in and bid.

 

I know esnipe tries to mitigate this (and the dangers of eBay downtime or overloading) by doing a 10-minute checkup on the listing.

 

If I try to conceive of a system that made manual verification effective at detecting or slowing attempts at brute-force password cracking, I would use some characteristics of the history of the IP addresses of successful logins. So if an account has a history of logging in from one address, and then you get an attempt from another, I might choose to put up the manual verification. Then, once deciding to issue that challenge, it stays on until the challenge is met or a non-trivial amount of time has passed, so repeated attempts will not defeat it. Sniper Engine Epic Fail.

 

If anyone knows of a sniping program or website an iron clad "we pay you if we fail" guarantee, let me know.

 

[Rabidcamel]

I always do the sniping myself. Forget some program to do it for me...but I can see if your not at home or anything but still proxy ahead of time.

[dekeuk]

 

how true

 

 

[RockMyAmadeus]

 

how true

 

 

yes, glib cliches often do cover up one's own embarrassement at being correctly called out. And the irony of that picture posted by that poster in this thread is especially delish.

 

(thumbs u

[goldust40]

They should add a timer so that any bids done in the last minute adds an additional 2 minutes to the auction.

 

Absolutely. This is the fairest way for people that want the item and the seller of the item. It wouldn't be as good for people that are trying to get low-priced items at the last minute.

 

The system is just fine as it is. If "the people that want the item" (as opposed to those dirty little snipers) want to win the item, I suggest they bid higher.

 

If the system was fine you wouldn't of heard all the buyers whining in which things changed and now all the sellers are whining. Snipe programs should not be allowed and if you are going to snipe you should be sitting at your computer to do it yourself so I don't feel sorry for any of these individuals that get screwed and don't win because the program or whatever failed. If they wanted the item bad enough they should have sat their and bid manually. You also have to note that sellers that shill their own accounts could set up snipes instead of setting reserves to save fees too. This is why I rarely bid on items because I myself have watched people shill items I am bidding on. I now wait patiently for sellers that have high or reasonable feedback, have the item priced reasonable with the buy it now option along with cheap shipping. I can understand that some items will probbaly always be auction style but a real auction works by individuals bidding to no one bids no more in my opinion. The only reason this won't work is because of shill bidding so don't tell me the system isn't broken when it is!!!!!!!!! Ebay is broken when it comes to auctions when bids are required. So NO the system is not fine.

 

I never said the system was fine, nor did I say that using a snipe service is foolproof. If it fails, thems the breaks.

 

I find it completely implausible that sellers would use a snipe service to shill their own auctions, when they don't know how things will pan out at the end.

 

I have also never heard of sellers whining about sniping or snipe services.

 

Furthermore, ebay was and has always been predicated on bidding, despite the recent trend towards BINS. By claiming that the site is "broken" due to the existence of this core activity is absurd. The system will never please everyone, so to claim that your dissatisfaction with bidding and snipers is equable to its complete breakdown is barmy.