Marketplace Rules

Before you post

• One listing per item (or logical group of items — a bundle of 1541 disks is fine as one listing, and multi-unit listings are allowed when it's the same item). Don't spread a single system across five listings to game the index.
• Every listing needs: at least one photo, a title, a description, a category, a price, and a location (city, state/region, country). Pick at least one of ship / local pickup.
• "PM for price" is not allowed. Price it in public, even a rough "best offer over $X" is better than making buyers send a DM to get a number.
• Real photos. Stock images from eBay or Google are not real photos. Buyers want to see YOUR item, not what it looked like new in 1984.
• Honest condition. "Tested" means you powered it on and ran software; "untested" means you didn't. "For parts" means you don't expect it to work. Don't list "like new" on a 40-year-old capacitor.

What can be listed

• Vintage computers, peripherals, parts, and software (see the category list on the new-listing form for the full taxonomy).
• Modern retro hardware: flash carts, FPGA replicas, 3D-printed cases, upgrades, Wi-Fi adapters.
• Vintage electronics: calculators, test equipment, audio gear, video/TV gear, ham radio, electronic toys.
• Related documentation, magazines, books, ephemera.
• Merchandise: retro-computing shirts, stickers, prints, collectibles.

What is NOT allowed

• Unlicensed commercial ROMs, cracked software, or pirated game images — same rule as the Community Guidelines.
• Items you don't actually have in hand. No "dropshipping" placeholder listings.
• Items unrelated to retro / vintage computing + electronics. This isn't a general classifieds site.
• Bulk inventory-style listings without individual descriptions ("huge lot of random vintage stuff").
• External-site listings (eBay / Craigslist / FB Marketplace) as their own thing. If you want to drive traffic to an off-site auction, link to it from a thread in a relevant forum instead.
• Anything the site-wide Community Guidelines already prohibit.

How the process works

1. Seller posts the listing with photos, description, and a price.
2. Buyers message the seller (via Message seller on the listing) or reply publicly with questions.
3. When a deal is agreed, buyer + seller arrange payment + shipping off-site.
4. Seller marks the listing Sold (with the buyer's username); this unlocks trade feedback for both sides.
5. After the item arrives (or pickup happens), both parties leave trade feedback on each other.

Payment + shipping

• Transactions happen off-site. We don't hold escrow, we don't process payments, we don't ship anything.
• Use a payment method with buyer protection. PayPal Goods & Services, Stripe, credit card. "Friends & Family" removes your protection — don't use it unless you know the seller personally.
• Ship tracked. Always. Communication while the package is in transit prevents a lot of problems.
• Local pickup happens in public / visible places when practical.

Moderation

• Every listing is public from the moment it's posted; super-admins can review, edit, or remove any listing at any time (see Privilege Use for the audit trail).
• Use the Report listing button on any listing that violates these rules.
• Listings auto-expire after 30 days; sellers can Re-list to refresh them.
• Scamming or attempting to scam is grounds for a site-wide ban, not just a marketplace ban.

Trade feedback

• Feedback is only available after a listing has been marked Sold with a named buyer. That gates feedback to actual transactions — no drive-by negative reviews.
• Each party leaves one rating (+1 / 0 / -1) and an optional note on the other.
• Feedback aggregates on user profiles. Reputation accrues across listings.
• Retaliatory feedback happens; admins will review and remove feedback that's clearly not about the transaction.