- What is a genre?
- What is a group?
- Are the acronyms and abbreviations listed here site specific?
- Should the acronyms and abbreviations listed here be considered 'standard'?
- What advice would the site give buyers and sellers on acronyms and abbreviations?
- Why do sellers use acronyms and abbreviations anyway?
- Are there any acronyms and abbreviations that the site will not accept or consider?
- Does the use of acronyms and abbreviations constitute keyword spamming?
- Where do you get your information?
- How often and when is the site and database updated?
- What does it take for an entry to qualify for the 'Beware' icon?
- May seller's 'Refer' its buyer's to the site?
- Which browser works best with the site?
| Q. |
What is a genre? |
| A. |
A kind or style of something (of books, movies, games etc.) |
| Q. |
What is a group? |
| A. |
A group is a bunch of individual designers or SRA's (Self-Representing Artists) joining together with other like minded designers. Since exposure is the key to any business they use there group name (abbreviated) as a search term so that buyers can easily find there listings. These designers have formed my groups in many areas. See category 'artist groups' under art and 'groups' under clothing. |
| Q. |
Are the acronyms and abbreviations listed here site specific? |
| A. |
Only where noted. The category system this site uses is designed around eBay's category structure as they have the most categories, users, and listings. However, this database is designed to cover titles, subtitles, and item descriptions for products on other auction sites including uBid, Amazon, and other smaller less known auction sites. See category 'Site Specific' under other. |
| Q. |
Should the acronyms and abbreviations listed here be considered 'standard'? |
| A. |
The entries listed here are not necessarily standard to a particular site but rather to a product, class of products, a category, or a hobby and have been found to used by sellers in their listings. All of them have been found to be used on one or more of the various auction sites. Some go in and out of use (due to product availability), some are more widely used than others and the site will leave it up to you to decide what's standard and what's not and whether to use them in a listing. All entries have been extensively researched to verify their authenticity and meaning. The site would encourage its users to research an entry on the site they use to determine how 'standard' an entry is before considering using it in a listing. Please read the sites Terms of Use and Disclaimer. |
| Q. |
What advice would the site give buyers and sellers on acronyms and abbreviations? |
| A. |
For buyers ...
- ALLWAYS ask your seller what there acronyms and abbreviations mean if they don't spell them out in their descriptions (even if you find a meaning listed here. Do not assume the meaning(s) listed here is the intended meaning - other possibilities/variations may exist).
- See #1.
- Review the sellers feedbacks and check their feedback rating, if they have one. Avoid sellers with a bad feedback ratings and those that don't respond to your questions via email.
For Sellers ...
- If you choose to use acronyms or abbreviations in your titles, spell them out in your descriptions.
- If you have an 'About Me' or 'About Seller' page, place them there. This will avoid a bombardment of emails from buyer's.
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| Q. |
Why do sellers use acronyms and abbreviations anyway? |
| A. |
- Human laziness.
- There is only so much space allowed in an auction title to begin with. Since sellers want to give as much information as possible they resort to using acronyms and abbreviations to describe their items.
- Some acronyms and abbreviations are used as 'tags' to make certain items easier to find by others in a sea of millions of listings. This is especially the case in the art and clothing categories where you have groups of SRAs (Self-Representing Arts) selling stuff.
- Many are used by collectors in certain hobbies like coin and stamp collecting.
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| Q. |
Are there any acronyms and abbreviations that the site will not accept or consider? |
| A. |
Yes, the site does not accept or consider any acronym or abbreviation that would point perspective buyers to an individuals listing(s) for the sole purpose of making it easier to find their listings, ie. those that would serve as a 'tag'. This includes, but not limited to, the initials of a seller or initials of a sellers 'store' name. The only exception to this policy is 'groups' of individual sellers such as groups of self-representing artists (SRAs). We also do not accept or consider acronyms or abbreviations that contain foul language. The site does not post or utilize 'single seller' acronyms and abbreviations nor does it allow 'creative' ones. All submissions must be related to a product, class of products, a category, or a hobby (examples include abbreviations and acronyms of model names, brand names, and manufacturers). For complete information see the sites submissions guidelines. |
| Q. |
Does the use of acronyms and abbreviations constitute keyword spamming? |
| A. |
Usually not, as long as they pertain to the item being listed. Read your auction sites policy if unsure. |
| Q. |
Where do you get your information? |
| A. |
This database is a compilation from many different sources which include members of the online auction community via the sites submissions form, scouring the web (see the Other Resources & Links page), looking through manufacturers and company's websites, and thousands of hours have been spent looking through the listings themselves and seeing which acronyms and abbreviations are common to each category. |
| Q. |
How often and when is the site and database updated? |
| A. |
The site usually tries to make updates to the site and database every two weeks or so, during this time new submissions are incorporated. Site updates are conducted on Mondays between 8:00 am and 12:00 pm (EST). During this time certain site functions may be slow or temporarily unavailable. |
| Q. |
What does it take for an entry to qualify for the 'Beware' icon? |
| A. |
In order for an acronym or abbreviation to qualify for the  icon (see meanings help) users will need to submit the name of the auction site and the item number for the listing so that we can verify it is being used in the context you claim. (Multiple instances are required for this icon). |
| Q. |
May seller's 'Refer' its buyer's to the site? |
| A. |
This site does not offer 'Approved By' or 'Endorsed By' status to any of its users or to individual sellers. If you choose to 'Refer' your buyers to the site as a reference please make certain that ALL of the acronyms and abbreviations you use are included in the database AND that the meanings and definitions given match what you intended to convey. |
| Q. |
Which browser works best with the site? |
| A. |
This site should work fine with all browsers, however Firefox works better because it cache's the webpages insteaded of waiting for the entire page to come back before displaying it like Internet Explorer does. It is recommended that you view the site with a JavaScript enable browser with Text Size set to Medium on a 17 inch or larger monitor. A high speed connection is recommended but not required. |
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