Craig's List goes cosmic

Postings on Craig's List soon will be beamed into outer space at no additional charge. Come to think if it, most of its terrestrial listings are free, too.

The out-of-this world opportunity became possible when Jim Buckmaster, the CEO of Craig's List, paid $1,225 in an eBay auction for the right to transmit the first private communication into deep space. Deep Space Communications Network will do the honors on or about May 15.

Accompanying the used-car listings and missed-connections sagas will be a video message from founder Craig Newmark and a clip from the documentary "24 Hours on Craig's List."

To send your listing heavenward, check the box on the site that says "OK to transmit this posting into outer space."

Craig, who is marking the 10th anniversary of the founding of the site where he styles himself as chief customer service rep, reminded readers of his blog today that "we can NOT retrieve or cancel Craig's List ads beamed into extrasolar space."

So, choose your words carefully.