I ALSO DISAPROVE OF THIS HIDDEN BIDDER POLICY AS IT MAKES IT EASIER FOR A CROOKED SELLER TO SHILL BID ON HIS OWN ITEMS. PERHAPS EBAY DID IT BECAUSE SOME SELLERS KEPT GETTING NEW EBAY NAMES TO PLACE SHILL BIDS AND IT WAS TAKEING UP EBAYS SPACE FOR BUYERS. IT ALSO MAKES IT IMPOSSIBLE TO RECOGNIZE A FRIEND AND POSSIBLY BOW OUT WITHOUT RUNNING UP THE PRICE ON HIM OR TO SEND HIM A CONGRADULATION IF HE WINS.
I DON'T KNOW IF IT IS STILL POSSIBLE TO SEARCH FOR ALL ITEMS A BUYER IS BIDDING ON ,THAT WAS A PROBLEM IN THE EARLY DAYS OF EBAY FOR ME UNTILL I CAUGHT ON TO WHY SOME PEOPLE WERE FINDING EVERYTHING THAT I HAD JUST FOUND BY HOURS OF SEARCHING AND LOTS OF LUCK AND TAKEING IT ALL AT THE LAST MINUTE . THIS CAUSED PEOPLE TO START WAITING UNTILL THE LAST MINUTE TO BID, FREQUENTLY CHANGEING THEIR EBAY NAME OR GETTING SNIPER SOFTWARE. IT IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE REASONS FOR THE NEWER PROGRAM FOR WATCHING ITEMS WITHOUT BIDDING, I DON'T THINK YOU CAN STILL SEE ALL THE BIDS A PERSON HAS MADE OR WHAT HE IS WATCHING NOW, AT LEAST I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO IT.
RECENTLY I HAD PLACED THE FIRST BID ON CHARLES NAGA SWORD AND COULD SEE WHO WAS BIDDING AND THEN WHEN I LOOKED AFTER THE AUCTION HAD ENDED ALL THE BIDDERS WERE THEN SECRET
THAT WAS A NEW ONE ON ME.
IT WENT FOR MORE THAN I EXPECTED BUT THEN MY SENSE OF WHAT SOMETHING IS WORTH TODAY AND THE AMOUNT I CAN AFFORD HAS PRETTY MUCH REMOVED ME FROM TODAYS LEVEL OF COMPETICIAN, I USUALLY ONLY GET WHAT NO ONE ELSE WANTS . SO I HAVE MOSTLY WANDERED OFF TO OTHER THINGS AND DON'T SPEND MUCH TIME SEARCHING FOR ETHINOGRAPHIC WEAPONS THESE DAYS.
I WONDER IF THE SELLER CAN STILL SEE WHO THE BIDDERS ARE SO HE CAN CANCEL A BID BY SOMEONE HE HAS HAD PROBLEMS WITH?