Strictly just my 2 cents - this certainly is an attractive and appealing idea, however, I think the more geographically spread out everyone is, the more difficult it would be to implement, and if LQ were to take on the role of a middleman, then I'm afraid it would be only a matter of time before a dispute would arise between 2 members which could soon become more trouble than it was worth. Example: "A" offers free soundcard, agrees to give it to "B", but then "C" offers $20 for it. "A" takes the $20, "B" gets the cold shoulder, "C" gets the card, and LQ gets to hear "B" complain about "A" for the next 3 weeks. Similarly, using the same example, if "B" sent "A" a few bucks to cover shipping but the soundcard never arrived, again there would be more hassles. Don't get me wrong, I do think this is a worthwhile idea, however, I think the practical considerations complicate it immensely, particularly considering that the LQ membership spans the globe. At least for me, if I had spare equipment to give away and someone in, say, Finland expressed interest in it, I wouldn't even know where to start in terms of how to get it overseas.
As an alternative however, if you live reasonably close to any of the cities that are covered by
Craigslist, you might want to check out the "Free" category in the "For Sale" section. Particularly in the larger cities, you would be amazed at what people are giving away, and if you have useful goods to donate, it might be a good outlet. Again, this is strictly my own 2 cents. -- J.W.