The Playground Story

What is the eBay Playground?

The eBay Playground is a separate eBay site that lets you experiment with new features we've come up with, before we consider introducing them on the regular eBay site. Although a few features you're used to are not available on the Playground, bidding and buying are real. The main difference right now is how you find items. We'd like you to take a look around, run on the Playground, and give us feedback.

How do I get into the Playground?

Just type http://playground.ebay.com in your browser, click "Enter Playground" and either type your search into the search box or select a category to browse.

How do I leave?

Click the "Go to the regular eBay site" link to return to our customary way to search for items, or close your browser, reopen it, and visit www.ebay.com. If you simply go to www.ebay.com while you're visiting the Playground, you'll stay on the Playground. To get out, just click "Go to the regular eBay site."

How is the Playground different from the regular eBay site?

Almost everything you can do on the regular eBay site, you can do on the Playground! This means that the bidding and buying processes are exactly the same.

However, our new search engine gets more information from listings to give you better matching results for your search terms. Not only does the engine search titles of listings, it also checks categories, item specifics, and common spelling errors, abbreviations, and similar words.

When you get a list of search results, you can:

• refine your search with navigation options on the left side of the page
• click a "More choices" link to select multiple options
• narrow your search by adding terms to the "Narrow this search" box near the bottom of the left side of the page
• change the values in the boxes at the top of the search results list to narrow or expand your results

Are you going to make the entire site like the Playground?

Well, we built all this new stuff hoping to go in that direction. But the Playground, together with many other tests we're running, is designed to make sure that these changes improve your buying experience. By testing first, we can incorporate your ideas and make adjustments before we introduce the changes to everyone.

Using the Site

Is this the real eBay?

Yes! All of the items on the regular eBay site are on this site too. The only difference is the way you find items.

Can I buy on this site? Can I sell on this site?

Absolutely! If you bid on an item or buy an item right away (with Buy It Now), it's a binding contract, just as it is on the regular site.

If you list an item on the Playground, it will be listed for everyone to see, no matter how they access eBay (and you'll owe your regular fees).

What are the boxes at the top of the search results page?

When you click a value on the left side of the page (the refinement section) to narrow your search, we'll show the refinements you've applied in those boxes.

Want to remove the boxes? Click the "X" in the upper-right corner of the box.

Why we built the Playground

Why did you create the Playground?

We wanted to invite everyone in the community to try out new ideas before possibly introducing them on the regular eBay site, and we're excited to share Playground with you.

You may have heard about tests we've run on the site where people were "opted in" to changes we're trying out. Those tests are useful and necessary, but we also wanted to create a place where anyone could check out the new things we're working on.

Why a separate site?

We wanted to make sure that eBay members who weren't shown the tests that we've run could still try out the new way of finding items. However, we didn't want to make those changes to the main site quite yet. Additionally, we may make small changes to the ways you find items from time to time, and we wanted to give everyone the ability to try out those changes whenever they wanted.

Comments and opinions

How can I tell you what I think?

First, use the site. Try some of your normal searches, use the new tools to narrow your results, and see what you think of the changes. When you've tried it for a while, please visit our survey and fill it out.

There's a bug! How do I tell you about it?

See if the same problem keeps happening. Sometimes, it's an error with your browser or Internet connection that's causing the problem. Still seeing the same thing? Let us know and we'll look into it right away. Visit the "Give us your opinion" section of this site to report problems.

Please provide as much detail as possible, including your operating system (Apple, Windows XP, etc.), your browser (Firefox 2.0, Internet Explorer 7, Safari, etc.), and your Internet connection type (dial-up, DSL, cable, etc.). When you tell us about a problem, we won't be able to respond to your message personally, but we do look at all the messages.

About the Team

Who are you?

We are the Finding team, one of the largest groups at eBay. People on the team include developers, product managers, quality assurance engineers, user interface designers, and content specialists. We range from brand-new eBay employees to 10-year company veterans.

When you see someone from the Finding team posting on the Discussion Boards, speaking at eBay Live, or appearing in an Announcement Board post, they're always a part of this team. It's a big group, and we all have our areas of specialization. But we coordinate our efforts -- sharing information, discovery, and fun!

Who's running the Playground?

The Finding team runs the Playground for now, but other teams may be invited to come play as well. There are many new ideas running around eBay, and the Playground is a great place for them to run around in! Nothing's definite yet, but stay tuned for more exciting developments.

Are all new ideas going to go on the Playground?

We're going to decide on a case-by-case basis. Each project is different, and in some cases, putting new ideas on the Playground may not make sense. However, we're hoping to bring all sorts of neat new stuff to the Playground over time.