Bidding For Tsunami Relief

Some strange items and services have been auctioned off on eBay in recent years. But in the wake of the tsunami disaster in South Asia and East Africa, some peculiar entries have made it on the world's biggest online auction house.

For example, 30 Microsoft .Net consultants and developers are auctioning their services to raise money for a charity group in Aceh Province, Sumatra, called Aceh Aid at IDEP. The consultants and developers come from various software vendors and solution providers across several countries, including the United States, Canada, Germany, Turkey and Australia. The auction, dubbed "The .Net Celebrity Auction for Aceh Aid at IDEP," offers the services of each .Net expert at a starting bid of $100, with all proceeds going to the Indonesian charity. There will be 30 winners for the auction, and each winner will get one hour of consulting time with one of the .Net gurus. The highest bidder will have his or her choice of the 30 consultants or developers, and each winner can spend time with a consultant on the phone, IM or even in person. In addition, all eBay-related fees will be paid by Thinktecture, a European IT consulting firm.

At press time, the auction had attracted nearly 20 different bidders after being online for less than two days. The group was formed by several regional directors within the Microsoft Developer Network and represents such ISVs and integrators as ObjectSharp, Gregory Consulting and Citigate Hudson.

It's good to see the technology community getting creative in the name of charity.