eBay for Dummies

Rating:
Summary: big disappointment
Review: I was very disappointed in this book. It was rambling, covered subjects of little interest (example: how to ship, post office, UPS, FedEx, etc..) but DIDN'T say anything about how to post a picture of your auction item, how to link to a personal web page, or how to start an eBay store.
Less than one star in my book
Jeff Campbell
Houston, TX

Rating:
Summary: Very Helpful But Could Have Been More Visual
Review: I will admit that anytime I have to learn anything new with computers, I just cringe, since my talents are not in that direction. But setting up auctions for the sale of items on ebay mandated that I plunge into yet another round of reference books allied to computer use. The "Dummies" books seemed well titled for me and this was the first of them I've tried. I did glean a lot of information from reading this book. I ended up improving my listings on ebay so that they look better, for one. I'm still not as far along as I'd like though because I do even better with computer and allied computer books which are very heavily illustrated. So I still want to buy an ebay book which has profuse illustrations on every page, many in color, to further my ability with the ebay auctions. For example, showing a sample of a gallery page, alongside a page that is items with gallery previews, would have told me instantly what ebay was trying to accomplish with that distinction. Without seeing that illustrated, however, I just had to stumble around ebay and figure it out for myself. Reading about something that visual in this book didn't bring the concept home to me. Now I want to learn FrontPage 2000 for computers. This time, however, I ordered one of those visual books instead to see if I can learn how-to-do FP 2000 in one go.

Rating:
Summary: Useful for the novice, useless for the expert
Review: I'm a big fan of the "dummies" line of books. Generally, they offer both an extremly rapid and comprehensive introduction to a subject and a handy reference that you can use to look up things as you become more experienced. This one seems to be the exception, at least for the experienced user.
You should buy this book if you have never sold anything on ebay, but are fairly internet savvy, and are looking to try auctioning something(s) off. For you there is a brief look at many many concepts that you will have to understand before you can sell something successfully. You'll find hints, pitfalls, and a step-by-step explanation not only of the process of selling, but also of the rest of the sale: taking pictures of your product, describing it, pricing it, shipping it, and how to ensure you have a happy customer.
You should not buy this book if you have successfully sold something on ebay. Better than 80% of the book you will already know, the rest you can learn standing in the aisle of the local bookstore, skimming.
I'm a little suprised, since the "dummies" books almost always seem to have a lot to offer, even when you understand a subject fairly well. I guess this was just a painful exception.

Rating:
Summary: Typical for this dummies series books
Review: I'm not a big fan of the dummies books but I thought I would give this book a try. Although I did find some useful tidbits I prefer the Greg Holden book on eBay. His book was more informative and the writing style is much better. If your a fan of the dummy books you will probably like this book but if you prefer a more professional writing style look elsewhere.

Rating:
Summary: Finally on eBay
Review: I've always been a little intimidated by eBay. I got this book, read it, and finally made my first eBay purchase and am putting together materials for my first sale. This book made things easy and answered the questions no one else could answer. Overall, it's a good book to have when you're getting started on eBay.

Rating:
Summary: Simply put: Great Information!
Review: I've been on ebay for a year or so and have sold and bought many items. I bought this book and learned superior ways around the ebay service. Actually, I haven't lost an auction since I read the chapter on bidding. The book also helped me save money on shipping my items. Read this book whether you're a beginner or really into ebay. It'll fill in the blanks that you can't find in other books.

Rating:
Summary: Truly a beginner's book
Review: I've been selling on Ebay for a while and I picked up this book hoping to find some help with making my selling work better. That is really not the focus of this book so I can't fault it for not finding what I wanted. However, if you're a newbie to Ebay and want to find out what's going on without actually logging on and clicking all of the buttons, then this is a good starting place. Like all "Dummies" books it covers the basics but doesn't go very deeply into anything. And truthfully, you can learn 98% of what's in this book just by logging onto Ebay and clicking around. Ebay really is pretty easy to use. Oh yes, like most Dummies books they load it down with lame jokes. I just wish they'd leave that ... out. In summary, not an outstanding book but good at what it's designed to do.

Rating:
Summary: Makes buying online auction items simpler than ever!
Review: If there was such a thing as a self-improvement book for buying online auction items, this would be it! Not only did the authors devise a simple method of explaining the e-bay phenomenon, they have made it fun to read. What impressed me most about this book is its easy to understand format. No technical jargon, no complicated gobbly-goop, just plain talk with a splash of humor that makes buying from e-bay easier than ever. It included a lot of "insider tricks and tips" that increase the odds that you will get the item you want without overpaying. I recommend this book as a gift for anyone wanting to buy hard to find items. It's ideas for technophobics and seasoned computer users alike.

Rating:
Summary: *THE* manual for eBay buyers and sellers
Review: If you use eBay for buying or selling (or, more likely, for both), then you need a copy of "eBay For Dummies". Marsha Collier covers the basics for beginners, includes cool tips for intermediate users, and shares her incredible selling skills with the advanced eBayers out there. In short, if you eBay, you need "eBay For Dummies"!

Rating:
Summary: Embarrassing...
Review: If you'd like a 15-minute summary of every single tip in this book, give me a call:

[phone]

I can't even believe a book this obvious exists!

Thanks, Patrick