Customers play campout at entrances to stores

People waiting in line for PlayStation 3 hope to cash in on eBay.
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR
BOARDMAN -- Dreams of cash kept people warm Wednesday night as they waited in line for the release of Sony PlayStation 3.
They hope those same dreams will be keeping them warm tonight, too.
The latest video game console goes on sale nationwide Friday morning, but lines began to form Wednesday morning at stores.
Those lining up at Best Buy in Boardman don't plan to rush home Friday and play their games. Instead, they'll be headed to their computers, where they can list the games for sale on eBay's online auction site.
Pre-order receipts that some stores have issued in other parts of the country have been sold on eBay for more than 2,200.
"And they are just selling receipts. I'll have the actual game," said Everett Scott, 27, of Columbiana, who's taking two days off work to wait in line.
Others in line said they hope to sell their consoles for at least 2,000. The PS3 will retail for 600 for the top-of-the-line model, and 500 for one with less memory and features.
Roughing it
Some stores are allowing tents, but Best Buy only permits chairs -- and only during the night when the store is closed. Sleeping in a chair will be fine, the waiters said.
Despite the rule against tents, they came to Best Buy because it has advertised that it will have 26 machines. They heard other stores have fewer.
The first person in line was catching a nap in his van, so he wasn't available for an interview. The others called him "the president" or "the captain" because he developed a list with everyone's name and time of arrival.
That way, a person could take a break for a while or just meander around the line and not lose his place.
By 6 p.m., 30 names were on the list. Three people already had left for good.
Mike Whitaker, 23, of Boardman, said he took a break and left for awhile Wednesday afternoon but thinks he will stay in line for the rest of the time. He said he'd be too nervous that somehow he'd lose his place in line if he left again.
Besides, family members -- mostly mothers -- are doing their part by bringing blankets and warm clothes.
"One mother even brought some homemade beef stew," Whitaker said. He came with three friends.
Selling three
Their plan is to keep one machine, sell the other three and share the profits.
"We all hang out anyway so we'll all get to play it," he said.
A chilly rain fell most of the day Wednesday, but that didn't dampen the spirits of those in line.
"Hey, at least it's not snow," said Kevin Rolland, 26, of Poland.
He was among those who were cruising around Boardman on Wednesday morning, checking out the stores. They were waiting for the line to start. As soon as the first man started waiting about 8 a.m. about a dozen others got in behind him.
Most of those in line had waited for other video game Xbox 360, created lines all over the country. Before that, it was Sony's previous version, the PlayStation 2.
Nationwide, retailers expect to be overwhelmed by demand during the impending video game console launches, but say they're working to keep the spirit festive while trying to prevent chaos and confusion.
Nintendo's Wii
Stock of Nintendo Co.'s Wii will not be as constrained, but retailers are also expecting the inaugural batch to sell out quickly.
Sony promises 400,000 PS3 machines for the U.S. market on Friday and a U.S. total of about 1 million units by year's end -- down sharply from its original projections of 4 million. Nintendo expects to have 4 million Wiis ready worldwide when the console hits store shelves, with the bulk going to North America.
CONTRIBUTOR: The Associated Press.