Past YOIS Columns

Missed a column? New to YOIS? These past columns contain all sorts of useful collector's information. If you're a long-time Shoppe visitor and have any going back earlier than what I've listed here, please forward me a copy. I didn't save some of the early columns and am just kicking myself for it now. (Special thanks to Paul David Doherty for salvaging the earliest ones included here.)


April 01, 2014
Introducing "BetterThanTheBay", YOIS's new auction feature. Also, "Game Hoardaz", which is quite possibly the funniest thing I've ever written. Final Shoppe column? Who can say?

April 01, 2006
Uh-oh, C.E.'s at it again! The third and final column on auction cheaters, and why they should be afraid of pulling this crap anymore.

July 23, 2005
"Ill-Gotten Games", detailing my notorious undercover work to root out backdoor bidding on eBay.

June 05, 2004
"Every game has a story" contest, summer reading, bags and storage for games, Avalon Hill company profile, and a rant about people who trick auction sellers into making private sales off eBay.

February 01, 2004
A look inside the new Shoppe (the house I bought), protecting your collection investment, Ultima: Escape from Mt Drash, "Games Aren't Readable"... and a little something about T-shirts.

August 27, 2003
Paul Sanders ("Timmon") exposed as the unresponsive, suspiciously secretive, own-package-printing, others'-games-without-permission-selling little sneak he is.

May 14, 2003
PhillyClassic 4 coverage, shrinks in airports revisited, a humorous (but true) look at game-hunting in thrift stores, and the absolute last article ever about Dysan Infocoms, I promise.

March 22, 2003
Eli Tomlinson interview, a professional printer's analysis of the Eyal Katz Sierra fakes, and the "Cornerstone Database Database".

November 08, 2002
Eyal Katz exposed as the dirty, rotten, lying, cheating, stealing, shill-bidding, lying some more, counterfeit game making bastard he is.

September 03, 2002
Classic Gaming Expo 2002 reprise, and "The Story of D'OH!".

June 08, 2002
Overview of new YOIS features (PHP/MySQL codebase), George Alec Effinger obituary, meeting of the I-F minds, Detroit Suck City revisited, warning about carrying shrinkwraps through airports, reminting the zorkmid coin, Dysan Infocom packaging, why "it's gotta be the label".

September 10, 2001
A look at early controversial computer games. Me getting pissed off at anything and everything, specifically: a cheating Canadian bastard, and Detroit (self-censored slightly, following the terrible atrocity the next day).

June 17, 2001
"Death of a Shoppekeeper" (planning for your demise in the online world), "You know you're addicted to game collecting when...", DataSoft company profile and package details, Infocom folio variations, advantages of buying in lots.

February 22, 2001
Types of collectors, abandonware versus collectorware, new postal rates, new eBay policies, PC Quarterstaff.

November 04, 2000
MobyScale, InvisiClues restoration, new for-sale pages layout, Scott Adams' Return to Pirate's Island 2, Activision's Zork Collection.

June 12, 2000
"The Vintage Game Mafia" (a scathing satire of deadbeat auction bidders and Shoppe customers), Angelsoft titles and package details.

March 18, 2000
Where I get all this stuff, yet another shrinkwrap discussion, new Shoppe waiting list / mailing list / payment options / survey, Douglas Adams' Starship Titanic.

December 18, 1999
New Shoppe website, Garry Marsh's Beatle Quest, Zork III package variation, overview of major European adventure publishers.

September 25, 1999
Humorous look at calling up stores asking about old software, New Zork Times / Status Line collector's checklist, Trillium / Telarium package contents, Sierra Hi-Res Adventures list, notice of cancellation for Activision's Planetfall 2, explanation of the never-found pink Suspect cover art.

April 02, 1999
Apology for my priceless April Fool's column, apology to Software and More (lots of apologizing this month), unreleased Telarium titles Starman Jones and The Grand Adventure, Infocom Mastertronic notes.

April 01, 1999
My priceless April Fool's column!

November 20, 1998
YOIS 2nd Anniversary Spectacular (TM), back issues announcement, eBay overview, Infocom Mastertronic packages, Software Selection Services Moonmist package, shrinkwrap theory / identifying original wrap.

October 08, 1998
My trip to Berlin / collecting European-style, Manuel Schulz's I-F collector's guide announcement, price gouging revisited, another rant about items being reserved but then not paid for, Michael Berlyn's Blight novel, shrinkwrap theory and observations from Software and More, Infocom Dysan package description, Infocom prop variations - folio vs. grey box.

May 25, 1998
New apartment / new YOIS snail-mail address, Infocom Dysan repackages, price gouging.

January 25, 1998
The importance of looking in the game box when browsing in thrift stores, techniques for removing stickers / marker from packages, unreleased Synapse text adventures, Trillium / Telarium overview, Wishbringer no-stone package variation.

November 18, 1997
Rants about duplicate mailings, international money orders, labels stuck on games by resellers, etc.

October 04, 1997
Not a whole lot of interest. (Many of the columns prior to this one were like this; it wasn't until mid-1998 or so that they started getting good.)

Some old Usenet posts announcing Shoppe updates.

An advertisement from the Shoppe's early days.

And, best of all, the YOIS Secret Column!


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