Still cleaning out the reader mail:

Question:How much is my old computer worth?

Answer: As the price of new computers has dropped, so has the value of used boxes. The value is really dependent on what kind of PC it is. Interestingly, the value curve is more like a "U" shape. Really old machines now are worth more than middle-of-the-road ones. For example, a good, used Commodore 64 is worth far more than a normal 486, even though the 486 is 50 times more powerful.

Head to the Google search engine www.google.com and type in "used computer prices" and you will see several Web sites that will give you a good guess. My best advice is to donate your old stuff to a school, day care or a charity. You get the tax write-off, and they get some good stuff.

Question: I see software sold on eBay for a fraction of the retail cost. Is this legal software or stolen?

Answer: Probably some of both. There are tremendous values on eBay and also counterfeit goods. It's just like any other marketplace. Just watch your wallet. Read the fine print. Check the user's feedback (not just the rating but read recent comments).

E-mail some past buyers from that person to see if the stuff they got was legit.

Question:I saw a color printer on sale for $43 at a local discount store. What's the catch?

Answer: None. We've reached what I have called the "Barbie Doll" phase of printer retailing — that is, give the doll away and sell the clothes for 15 bucks.

What's happening is, the printermakers have realized that the money is not in selling printers but in selling refill cartridges. So they have patented the designs of their refills so no one else can make them and basically give the printers away. In your example, the printer includes a color cartridge, which sells for $35 separately. So you are getting the printer for 8 bucks.

A good friend of mine is using this to his advantage.

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Every time his printer runs out of ink, he buys a new printer. He takes the color cartridge out of the new printer's box, then donates the brand-new printer to a school. He takes the tax write-off for the printer's value and outfits a local school in the process. Very slick.

The only thing to be wary of when buying a cheap printer is printing in black and white. Good color printers have more than one cartridge. When you print a text page, it uses black ink. On a cheap printer, the cartridge mixes all the colors together to make black, so you run out of ink much faster. They sell more cartridges and the process starts again. They are fine for occasional printing, though.

WEEKLY WEB WONDER: The excellent search engine Google now allows browsing by category, too. Head to directory.google.com/.


James Derk is new media editor for The Evansville Courier & Press. His e-mail address is jderk@evansville.net.

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