Dammit. Craigslist needs a spell checker!

[jmarkwolf]

I've been looking for a nice used flammables storage cabinet for my garage. The common "double-hull" yellow ones. Been using the search field for "cabinet" on Craigslist in my entire region for a couple weeks.

This morning I was scanning Craigslist without the search feature and up popped a nearly new 30 gallon one for $250 (nearly $900 retail), about an hour away.

I called the guy and told him I was on my way. He said another guy was arriving in a few minutes, but that he would call me to let me know if the sale went thru.

He did call and told me the other guy bought the item.

I wondered why I didn't see it earlier, since it had been on Craigslist awhile judging from the "depth" in the postings. Then I noticed the poster had miss-spelled "cabinet' as "cabnet", which is why my search criteria never found it!

 

[Dustball]

That's the downside of every search out there. You're assuming the other person spells like you do.

 

[bottom feeder]

Same problem on eBay. If there's something I really want to find I'll try searches with various misspellings for that very reason.

 

[Dick in Wisconsin]

Same problem on eBay. If there's something I really want to find I'll try searches with various misspellings for that very reason.

I agree with the Bottom Feeder. Been there, done that. Got some REALLY great deals. Sellers could not figure out why they weren't getting any calls!

If Craigslist had a spell checker running in the backqround, there isn't a server farm in the world with enough processors to power it. It should stall out in about 30 seconds.

 

[Pathfinders]

Found my Wilton Vise under Vice. I will always check the correct and incorrect spellings now.

 

[Pathfinders]

Found my Wilton Vise under Vice. I will always check the correct and incorrect spellings now.

 

[naturalgas]

So how can I get creative searching anvil?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[ford33]

Anval, anvel, anvyl, anvol, anville

English language is difficult to speak and write well. If searching you need to be creative. It is an advantage for you to search for the misspelled words as others will frequently miss the Craigslist advertisement.

Google the following for sites that list often misspelled words:

Alternative spelling for <word>

Wikipedia.org - "list of spelling variants"

 

[Strouty]

That is not a problem, you just need to search harder. I always use variations in the spelling. One of the best is to search for draw and draws, people spell drawer that way.

 

[cleason]

only in texas

 

[cleason]

why does everybody on craigs list text? sold most of my electrical tools (contractor). they will play text tag,when a phone call is faster. also i cant spell worth a ****. ive got 2 years of college and trade school. down here u get listings in spanish and spanglish.

 

[mike93lx]

every web browser today has built in spell checking, some people just choose to ignore it.

 

[hautpot]

-rench (wrench)
-vice (vise)
-cabnet (cabinet)
-kart (cart)
-torx wrench (torque)
-braker bar (breaker)
-boxe (box)

 

[Steevo]

Yeah, I got burned like that when I bought a 12,000# wench one time, sight unseen.
I just ASSumed he had mis-spelled "winch" . . .

 

[Shiftless]

Most of my best C/L vise finds were listed as "vices".
Another GJ member whose handle I can't remember scored a nice vise when he inquired about a C/L listing for a "huge clamp".

As far as Steveo's 6 ton wench goes...

 

[brownbagg]

there a search engine called 'fat fingers" that just searched craiglist and it checks every spelling possible for the item.

 

[David99]

Yeah, I got burned like that when I bought a 12,000# wench one time, sight unseen.
I just ASSumed he had mis-spelled "winch" . . .

Careful Steevo, you could end up like Tampa...

 

[jd_1138]

Vises are vices to some of you collectors.

If you think CL is bad, check out Offer Up (smart phone app). I like the app, but the posters usually only put 4 or 5 words in the description.

"Ford truck runs good 950 obo"

Gotta love the guys who own $30,000 worth of Snape-On or Mack Tools and are now selling them.

 

[thrifty bill]

Files listed today as "files good for wood or mental".

Using a search on C/L is risky. Better to look at all new postings. I see so many mistakes, mistakes are more common than correct.

I collect/refurbish vintage bikes, the best deals tend to be the very worst ads. I bought one where the title was one word bycicle. Thats right, the seller didn't even spell bicycle right. No brand, no size, no picture. Called the seller, only thing he could tell me was that "it is blue". No size, no type, nothing. Needless to say, I was the only response he got.

People who write good ads tend to ask more $$ and they get more response (the competition). Scoring on C/L is often all about lousy ads, no pictures, etc., and some wasting of time and gas.

The other problem with my C/L is it is full of people that list the same POS again and again and again. In the bicycle area, I have seen the same bikes listed for over two years.

 

[Dan in Pasadena]

AMERICA needs a spell checker.

When major publications can't manage to properly use "then" and "than" it's gotten completely out of control.

And for the um....challenged....that contend spelling doesn't matter, yes it does. It's the difference between being thought an intelligent person and taken seriously vs. being thought an imbecile.

 

[Steevo]

Careful Steevo, you could end up like Tampa...

Oh, I didn't bring her home. I told her my truck wasn't able to carry her, so she'd have to walk alongside and I'd drive real slow. . . . . not sure where she fell behind, but I never saw her again.

 

[Farmall 1066]

2x per day, I drive by this wreck of a house...junk, trash and all sorts of just wasted lawn mowers scattered everywhere.
For the last 10 years or more, there has been a sign, made of a 4x8 sheet of OSB, with this spray painted on it: "Lon more for sell"
Guy parks whatever shitheap he's flipping in front of it.

 

[Dick in Wisconsin]

-rench (wrench)
-vice (vise)
-cabnet (cabinet)
-kart (cart)
-torx wrench (torque)
-braker bar (breaker)
-boxe (box)

acquarium (aquarium)

 

[MushCreek]

OK, some people simply aren't good at spelling. For others, English may not be their first language. But how can you spell something wrong when the name of it is in the picture?!? It's right there, on the item you are selling! Just copy it! I'm sorry, but even if you don't speak English at all, if you can't copy the spelling of a word, you are a *****.

I've gotten some good deals using alternate spellings to find things. Sometimes, the spelling is so bad I click on the item just to see WTF they are selling. Do you suppose some people do that on purpose?

 

[Cyberbear]

When I see people who use the wrong word for vise/vice, there/their, our/hour, rite/right/ wright, gray/grey, your/you're, etc., I often reply with "Ewe knead two mined yore homophones."

 

[confederatemule]

Anval, anvel, anvyl, anvol, anville

English language is difficult to speak and write well.

I agree with you, ford33.

I am a firm believer that the only correct "English language" is spoken by older people from the deep southern United States. And, yes, it is hard to spell correctly when spoken as it should be.

Mule

 

[05r50]

OK, some people simply aren't good at spelling. For others, English may not be their first language. But how can you spell something wrong when the name of it is in the picture?!? It's right there, on the item you are selling! Just copy it! I'm sorry, but even if you don't speak English at all, if you can't copy the spelling of a word, you are a *****.

I've gotten some good deals using alternate spellings to find things. Sometimes, the spelling is so bad I click on the item just to see WTF they are selling. Do you suppose some people do that on purpose?

Exactly.

I have a friend that was a exec for a fast food chain. He told me a story of being in a franchise and asking the manager what was wrong with the menu signboard above the register. She couldn't find it.

The word hamburger was spelled wrong with the little letters that you can use. All they had to do was look at company logo on the same board. The word hamburger is in the name.

 

[Yarz]

They say grammar, but I feel like they're applicable here:

 

[Pluribus]

Count me in on the group that uses alternatives on spelling of search words.

It's not as big of a problem, but capitalization sometimes affects things...

 

[51cub]

Lord knows I'm the last person that should ever be a grammar nazi, but the one that gets me for reasons I don't know yet myself, is when somebody writes, Should of, could of, would of. I don't know why, but that one makes my blood boil

 

[Dick in Wisconsin]

Lord knows I'm the last person that should ever be a grammar nazi, but the one that gets me for reasons I don't know yet myself, is when somebody writes, Should of, could of, would of. I don't know why, but that one makes my blood boil

Would you be more comfortable with shoulda, coulda, and woulda?

Exactly.

I have a friend that was a exec for a fast food chain. He told me a story of being in a franchise and asking the manager what was wrong with the menu signboard above the register. She couldn't find it.

The word hamburger was spelled wrong with the little letters that you can use. All they had to do was look at company logo on the same board. The word hamburger is in the name.

Remember though what Forest Gump's Mother said ... "You can't fix stupid!"

 

[freudianfloyd]

You'd be surprised how many Camero parts are on Craigslist. But Camaro parts are usually picked clean. It's a treasure trove.

 

[MushCreek]

Shouldn't that be, 'helping your Uncle ******** OF a horse?'

 

[stimpy]

one of my friends who came here when Poland was still communist controlled said American English is one of the hardest languages to learn, as we have many meanings for the same words unlike Queens English which have different words for different things , and Mexican Spanish was one of the easiest ..

and being I live near a large Mexican speaking town , you should see the killed English in Craigslist ads

 

[Mitheral]

why does everybody on craigs list text? sold most of my electrical tools (contractor). they will play text tag,when a phone call is faster.

For me texting is free; voice costs 50 cents a minute.

 

[djones1a]

Caigslist needs a idiot checker,if you don't have common since,or you don't put your phone number in the add,don't post it.I just don't understand why someone would take the time to write the add then jack people around that want to buy their junk.

 

[bgarrett]

Caigslist needs a idiot checker,if you don't have common since,or you don't put your phone number in the add,don't post it.I just don't understand why someone would take the time to write the add then jack people around that want to buy their junk.

OOPS!
Caigslist
common since,
add,

 

[03fan]

Looks like there are a few sites out there for ebay, possibly craigslist too if you google it.

https://www.google.com/search?q=site+that+checks+for+misspelled+adds+ebay&sourceid=ie7&rls=com.microsoft:en-US:IE-Address&ie=&oe=&gws_rd=ssl

 

[StingRay]

You'd be surprised how many Camero parts are on Craigslist. But Camaro parts are usually picked clean. It's a treasure trove.

This one bugs me to no end. You are selling your Camero but can't read the emblem on the side the of the car or perhaps your registration that says Camaro. Kijiji is the site for used stuff up here and it's every bit as bad.

 

[bwringer]

Hush -- you're letting the secret out.

Moronic misspellings are the key to scoring "moder sickel" parts cheap on fleaBay and CrackList. FleaBay's search engine is getting better at dealing with these, but if you can develop the talent of spelling like a complete imbecile, you can find stuff no one else can find.

For example, almost no one can spell "stator". Search for stater, stattor, strarter, etc. and you can get lucky. If you're looking for Suzuki parts, search for "Zook". If you're looking for a stator cover (which is on the left on most Japanese bikes), search for the part on the opposite side, the "cluth cover".

There is a delicate balancing act, though -- you need someone dumb enough to misspell the name of the part but with enough residual intelligence to actually get the thing somewhat correctly addressed and in the mail.