For Seniors: How to Bid on an eBay Auction

A unique sales event where the exact value of the item for sale is not known. (The sales price is determined by how much someone is willing to spend.)

A variation on the old sales technique of pretending to sell what you’re not really selling, and then tricking the buyer into shelling out for something pricier.

The amount of money by which a bid is raised.

An online journal.

A high-speed Internet connection. DSL and cable are two types.

The automatic-bid feature in eBay. It stands in for you so that your eBay bid rises incrementally in response to other bidders’ bids.

An Internet cable connection is a reliable and speedy method for Internet access if you have digital cable TV. Your Internet connection runs through your television cable and is regulated by your cable TV provider. Most cable accounts include several e-mail addresses and space to store your images.

The very small, very high-tech semiconductor chip that acts as the brains of a computer. The CPU is stored in a computer tower.

Online areas full of people who are hanging out talking to each other, all at the same time.

To press and release the left mouse button.

To press and continue to hold down the left mouse button and then move (drag) the mouse to another location.

Predrawn generic artwork. Microsoft provides many clip art files for free with its Office products.

The red button with the X in the top-right corner of the window. Click the Close button when you are done with the window. Close is also called Quit and Exit.

An eBay acronym that means Certificate of Authenticity. This documentation vouches for the genuineness of an item, such as an autograph or painting.

When you roam the Internet, Web sites you visit download information, known as cookies, to your computer to temporarily allow you to access sites or services or to. Your browser stores these temporary Internet files on your hard drive.

A daily e-mail from eBay. Each day, eBay works with sellers to select four popular items and offer them for sale at low prices — with free shipping.

Typically have a large tower that contains the computer’s central processing unit (called a CPU). The keyboard, mouse, and monitor are separate. Desktop computers take up more space than laptops and are not portable, but they’re usually less expensive.

An Internet connection that uses the modem that resides in your computer and requires no additional equipment or connections. You typically load the freebie software that comes with a computer (or free at the computer store) into your CD drive and follow the registration steps that appear on your computer screen.

A message board where users go in, leave a message or ask a question, and pop out again. Also, to get an answer in a message board, you have to start a thread by asking a question.

Two rapid clicks of the left mouse button.

A high-speed Internet connection where you're always connected to the Internet. A DSL line can move data as fast as 6MB per second —140 times as fast as a 56K modem. At that speed, a DSL connection can greatly enhance your eBay and Internet experiences.

An online site where individuals and businesses can sell both old and new merchandise. Originally, the site grew — person by person — across the country (and soon around the world) as people peddled their own stuff from their homes and collections. Now, eBay is also a marketplace for new merchandise.

All kinds of online businesses, and eBay is the superstar.

Cute little smiley icons that show emotion. They appear next to eBay posts and can help indicate whether the writer is being (for example) sincere, ironic, or goofy about what he just wrote.

An option for your eBay listing. When you choose this option, your item listing appears at the top of its listing category when it is displayed in a Best Match sort. The charge for this option is $24.95 ($74.95 for a 30-day listing).

A law that prohibits deceptive or misleading transactions in commerce.

Adds more light to an item you’re photographing, filling in some of the shadowed spots.

A commission that eBay charges on the back end when you sell your item. The Final Value Fee is based on the final selling price of your item.

Loosely defined as nondelivery of an item or receipt of an item that’s significantly different from the way it was described.

All tangible computer equipment, such as the keyboard and mouse.

To place your mouse pointer over a link and let it sit there.

An eBay acronym that means Hard to Find. Scarce.

Small pictures that represent programs, which perform functions, or documents such as letters and photos. Icons provide a way to run a program or open a document.

A bar code printed either on labels or directly on an envelope. The IBI has both human- and machine-readable information about where it was printed and security-related elements. IBI provides you, and the post office, with a secure way of getting your valuable packages through the mail.

Also known as piracy. Infringement is the encroachment on another person’s legal ownership rights on an item, a trademark, or a copyright

Every item listed on eBay is charged an insertion fee. The insertion fee is calculated on a sliding scale based on the minimum bid, your fixed-sale price, or the reserve price for your item.

Lists details about the item being sold on eBay. The item description gives you a clear idea about whether this is an item you want to buy.

Similar to a typewriter keyboard. In addition to typing words, you can use a keyboard to give the computer commands.

Usually nouns (plus some adjectives) that you use to describe your eBay item.

A trick where eBay users who are selling an unfamiliar brand of item try to snag bidders by putting a more familiar brand in the title. For example, writing Designer Chanel purse — not really, but a lot like it! is a fake-out.

A portable computer, weighing anywhere from two to eight pounds. (The lowest weight ones are called netbooks.) The monitor, keyboard, and mouse are built into the laptop.

Requires sellers to ship merchandise in a timely manner or offer to refund a consumer’s money.

The space between the edge of the paper and where the text begins. Ideal margins depend on many factors, including the document type, the need to limit the number of pages, and the audience’s needs

Click the Maximize button to hide the desktop and other open windows, to concentrate on this one window, and to see as much of the window’s contents as you can.

A horizontal strip containing various menus, the menu bar appears below the title bar, starting at the left edge of the window. To use a menu, click its name and a vertical list of related items drops down. Then click the item you want to use.

An eBay acronym that means Mint in Box. The item is in the original box, in great shape, and just the way you’d expect to find it in a store

Shrinks or hides the window contents. The program that the window contains is still running and open, but the window is out of sight. You’ll still see the program’s icon in the taskbar. Click the Minimize button when you want to ignore a particular window but aren’t actually done with it.

The lowest amount of money that an eBay seller is willing to accept for the item.

An eBay acronym that means Mint. A never-used item or collectible in perfect condition

An eBay acronym that means Mint on Card. The item is mounted on its original display card, in store-new condition.

Connects your computer to the Internet using your telephone line. Even if you have a broadband connection, you should have a modem (usually built in to most computers) that can connect you on the off-chance that your high-speed service is down.

Displays images on its screen, such as the Microsoft Windows desktop or a document in a software program.

A tactile device that you use to give your computer commands. You move the mouse around your desk with your hand, which moves a pointer around on-screen. Using this pointer, you can click items like buttons that cause an action, or click the screen and drag the mouse to select text or an object to perform an action on it.

Your space to personalize and manage all your eBay activities. After you register, your personal My eBay page helps you track the items you’re watching and bidding on, as well as items you’ve already bought and sold. You can access your My eBay page at any time by clicking the My eBay link in the navigation bar at the top of every page.

eBay’s private e-mail service for members.

An eBay acronym that means No Reserve Price. If bids don’t meet the reserve price, the seller doesn’t have to sell the item.

An eBay acronym that means Never Removed from Box. Bought but never opened.

An eBay acronym that means One of a Kind. Only one is in existence.

An eBay acronym that means Out of Print.

Owned by eBay, PayPal is the largest Internet-wide payment network.

1. (noun) One point (pt) is 1/72 of an inch. 2. (verb) To move the mouse pointer to a specified location without clicking.

An item that may be in violation of copyrights, trademarks, or other rights. You cannot sell a Potentially Infringing item on eBay.

An eBay PowerSeller has to maintain certain monthly levels of gross merchandise sales (total dollar amount of eBay sales — GMS in eBay-speak), and they get there by providing good items for sale and excellent customer service. A PowerSeller has the PowerSeller icon on his My eBay and Accounts pages.

To offer an item for sale that the seller doesn’t yet have in stock but expects to

Your computer contains a processor contained on a computer chip. The speed at which your computer runs programs or completes tasks is determined in great measure by your computer’s processor speed.

A prohibited item on eBay may not be sold on eBay under any circumstances. You may not even offer to give away a prohibited or an infringing item.

Items that may be sold on eBay only under certain conditions.

The least amount of money that the seller will accept. A reserve price protects the seller from losing money on the deal.

Reserve-price auctions have an extra feature. In addition to a minimum bid, which is required in any eBay auction, a reserve price protects sellers from having to sell an item for less than the minimum amount they want for it.

A single press and release of the right mouse button.

If you have more than one of the item you sold and the item is lost or destroyed, you can send the backup item as a replacement.

Text that is highlighted is selected, meaning that any action you perform, such as pressing the Delete key on your keyboard or clicking a button for Bold formatting, is performed on the selected text.

Outbidding your competition in the very last seconds of the auction — without leaving them enough time to place a defensive bid. If you’re going to snipe, assume that the current high bidder has a very high-dollar proxy bid in the works.

An ongoing government battle. While the name may make it sound like the states will be charging state sales tax on all e-commerce purchases, the reality isn’t that simple. More than likely, eBay sellers with sales under $100,000 a year don’t have much to fear. However, do a Google search on the SSTA every once in a while to keep up to date.

A configuration file that governs the default settings for the documents that are based on it.

Controls how the text lines up within cells.

The very lowest amount you’re allowed to bid on eBay.

Below the menu bar, some programs display a toolbar of icons that you can click to perform various functions.

The main link available.

This eBay designation means that a seller upholds the highest standards of customer satisfaction based on the DSRs awarded by customers.

Essentially an upside-down mechanical mouse with its roller ball built into a mouse body or even into a keyboard. The ball rests loosely in a cavity, where sensors track horizontal and vertical movement.

The process of transferring digital photos to your computer.

If you own intellectual property that you think is being infringed upon on the eBay site, you should take advantage of the eBay Verified Rights Owner (VeRO) program. Owners of trademarked or copyrighted items and logos, as well as other forms of intellectual property, can become members of this program for free.