agree completely. it dos encourage auction camping, and, in my point of view, encourages trolling auctions. someone sees something they want, then the sniper snipes it and tries to take advantage of the person by selling the  item they sniped from the person to that person for twice the bid in order to make quick money.

I probably worded that very confusing, but hopefully no confusing enough that the meaning isn't completely lost.

How are we supposed to get an item on the auction at the last second if someone bids more than you have on it before you can?

How are we supposed to get an item on the auction at the last second if someone bids more than you have on it before you can?

Isn't the whole purpose of an auction that the ones that are willing to pay the most for an item get it, regardless of who "wants" it most? If he bids more than you have on it before you can, he would've also bid more than you have after you can.

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Anyway, simple anti-sniping rule. Force people to set a buyout price. Do you really want an item that badly? Pay the buy-out. If not? Well too bad if you don't get it, it won't be the last time you don't get something you want. And realize that anytime you do manage to buy something you also take it away from other people that won't get it.

Yes, the sniping is annoying, but no one has suggested a way to actually control it.

Force a buy out price? Unfair to the seller. No buy-out price is a mixed bag with advantages to the seller and buyer. The whole point of the auction is for the seller to get the highest price while the buyer gets the lowest price possible. Sometimes the price is lower than the seller really expected (has happened to me). Sometimes the buyer gets more than expected (also has happened to me).

How can a reasonable price be set on something that is one of a kind (or one of a limited quantity). For example, how could a reasonable price be set on pet snowmen? You cannot craft it, so cost of materials cannot be used. It provides no benefit, such increased mining ability, to set value on. It is only worth what people bid in auction. Reasonable for rare pets could be said to be around one million (I think that's what an enderman went for.)

If you get out bid at the last second when you would have paid more, shame on you, you should have bid more, but as I said earlier, the goal of an auction is for the buyer to get a great deal so...

...to control the sniping, maybe something could be added into the auction so that a bid in the last minute adds 5 minutes to the time-this gives somebody a second chance to get what they want (and adds another 5 minutes) and gives the seller a better sale. The "fair value" everybody wants will be better reflected this way.

Of course, not matter what is done or not done, somebody will complain about the unfairness of it all.

Just my .01 noob.

Happy mining!

All im saying is if there is 10 seconds left and someone bids the timer goes to 1 minute and counts down. So this would kill sniping and make auctions less campy. So in a nut shell say i want to bid and there is 30 seconds left and i do bid the timer goes back to 1 minute and counts down so that gives the original bidder time to decide if he/she wants to bid.

Personally I think that the ebay thing would work better because not everyone can get on at the last minute