INTERNET Freecycle lets users give, get at no cost

Groups are arranged geographically, and no money changes hands.
KNIGHT RIDDER NEWSPAPERS
Psssst. Yeah, you.
Interested in getting some great stuff for free? As in gratis? No money down, no payments?
What kind of stuff? How about a 16-foot catamaran?
Not the sailing type? I understand. How about a self-cleaning gas range? A Star Trek board game? A guinea pig or two?
The catch? There ain't one.
The owners just want to get rid of these things, pronto -- spring cleaning and whatnot.
Interested? OK, all you need to know is this: Freecycle.org.
It began a year ago as one do-gooder's bright idea, a way of getting another life out of office furniture and equipment that would otherwise land in a landfill.
From its first days in Tucson, Ariz., Freecycle has become a worldwide movement, with chapters in all 50 states and 17 other countries.
Think of it as an online junkyard. Or eBay, except there's no bidding and no money changes hands. Here's how it works:
Area message groups
A person signs up for a Freecycle message group in their area through Yahoo.com (at no charge). Members then post messages, offering their wares to the first taker ("OFFERED: Patio furniture") or seeking wares of their own ("WANTED: 1970 Chevelle parts").
If you want something that's posted, or have something that's wanted, you respond to the person who posted the message. The giver and taker arrange to meet somewhere for the handoff, and the deal is done.
"I listed that I wanted a boat. Somebody contacted me six days later with a boat," said Sean Kinney, a 27-year-old, underemployed graphic designer from Woodbridge, N.J., who is soon to become owner of the aforementioned catamaran. "I was shocked. They said it needs a little bit of repair work, but other than that, it's fine. I asked them if they wanted money for it, and they said, 'No, we're just looking to get it off our property.""
The groups are geographically based because, as founder Deron Beal explains, "How far are you willing to drive for a pile of dirt, or an old mattress, or a desk? A half-hour, maybe? One city of, say 40,000, is enough to carry a group. Bigger is not better."
Reasons for joining
Some see the venture as a fun way to reduce landfill waste, and to build a community in a society where no one seems to have time to connect.
For others, however, it's all about the stuff.
"I'm one of those people who picks up things by the side of the road, and I thought this was a nicer way," said Judith Cohen, a stay-at-home mom who started Morris County, N.J.'s chapter this month.
Freecycle has been a boon for nonprofit groups, which often need a computer and aren't picky about its memory or speed. Teachers also take advantage of it, scooping up free art supplies.
But much of the stuff offered or sought falls into the realm of the ambitious, peculiar, or just plain wacky:
WANTED: A piano. Stuffed deer or moose heads. Old GI Joe dolls and vehicles.
OFFERED: A sleep apnea oxygen concentrator ("My insurance upgraded me and I want someone to be able to use this.") Three airplane headsets. Old rotting wood.
Someone offered up tickets to an off-Broadway show. "I bought them months ago, but now my theater-buddy can't go," the offerer wrote. "Anyone interested?"