At 13:58 1/14/01, George S. wrote:
Thanks a lot John! My coffee almost came out my nose/ears. I was expecting
something a little different, but this was even better. I hope we don't
recognize any list members in those questions!
My German is a bit rusty; my three years in Germany ended 20 years
ago. Had to read it several times phrase by phrase (he is erudite). I
just about choked on my coffee too!
It gave me visions of questions non-OM-saavy sellers might be asked about
other OM items, and what they might think about the questions:
1. OM-2: Can you make a digital photo of the shutter curtain pattern and
send it to me?
[With complete instructions for how to perform this macro feat . . . What
on Earth is this for, the TOPE Abstract Gallery? Make your own abstract!]
2. OM-2S: With a T-Series flash attached and turned on, is the LED in the
viewfinder red or green?
[What's it for, replacing Christmas tree lights; does he want a blinking
one too? If a seller was wondering the sanity of a possible buyer at that
point, a follow-on question asking about flying shutter strings . . . with
instructions on how to look for them . . . would clinch it.]
3. OM-3/4: With the switch held in the battery check position, does the
beeping turn itself off after 30 seconds or so?
[What's he want, new cells too? I'll give him new cells. The high pitched
beep makes some people ready for the "rubber room" after the first 10
seconds. 30 seconds of it would put them into a frustrated "ursa reefer
rage."]
4. 50/1.4: Does it have a silver nose? Is the lens ring marked with
"G.Zuiko," "Zuiko MC" or just "Zuiko?" Do *all* its elements have green
reflections? Is the serial number under 1,000,000? Is it over 1,000,000
but less than 1,100,000? Is it over 1,100,000?
[Nope, no silver nose; doesn't have Rudolph's red one either. With the
rest of this I'm wondering if the buyer has W.C. Field's nose. Maybe he
hung out with Timothy Leary a little too long, and wants it for the pretty
colors its glass reflects.]
5. 50/1.8: Is the lens ring marked with "F.Zuiko?" Is it marked with
"Zuiko?" Does it say "Made in Japan" on it?
[What, is there some other "Olympus" camera company in Elbonia nobody else
knows about?]
I think it is exasperation from lengthy questions about minutia with
instructions for how to look for it. Yes, I forgot to include the parens
with the reference to being worse than Leica-philes, and it was good too.
I've no personal experience with them, but have heard stories about some of
the "glass case collectors" storing items in hermetically sealed plastic
and handling everything with lint-free gloves, as one would do with
valuable museum pieces. It doesn't just afflict the Leica-philes, there
are parallels with early Rollei TLR and Nikon RF collectors too . . .
looking for perfect, "uncirculated," mint samples of everything ever made
for the entire system, in every variation and formulation.
-- John
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