Incremental Bidding after already placing 1 bid

I have never done an incremental bidding but just read about it today. Think I have lost things because of someone else on incremental bidding. Not certain I understand the rules. I have already bid on an item. Can I still do an incremental bidding? If for example not....and I have to start from scratch on something, how do I place my first bid which will show as my maximum bid....and how do I know it's working as incremental? How do I win with incremental bids? Quite new to this. ALSO..........how do I hide my membership id when bidding????|||Your membership ID is autmatically hidden when you bid - you and the seller are the only ones who can see it. If you bid more than the next bid increment, you are participating in proxy bidding, which is the same as incremental bidding. If you are the current high bidder, your maximum bid will show only enough to beat the 2nd bidder by one bid increment. If the 2nd bidder or a new bidder places a new bid that is lower than your maximum, it will push your visible bid up higher, either to the next bid increment or to your maximum amount, whichever is lower. If the 2nd bidder or a new bidder places a bid that is higher than your maximum, he will then become the high bidder over you. I hope I haven't confused you! This is not all that easy to explain! Just so you know, many bidders wait until the last few seconds of an auction to bid, so as not to allow others to have time to think about raising their own bids higher. These late bidders are called snipers. They bid only once, and they bid the highest amount they are willing to pay for the item. If they win, they are happy. If they lose, they know the other bidder was willing to pay more than they were, and they still have their money to pursue another item they may want. So you should realize that there is the possibility that someone will come in and bid on "your" item at the last moment.|||Ebays system does the incremental bidding for you.When you bid bid the max you are willing to pay,ebay insreases the amount of your showing bid by increments based on the other bidders actionsIt may not be your fault but it is your responsibility Silver rule "do not do to others what you would not like to be done to you"|||Please don't be a "nibbler" who bids and bids and bids an extra dollar at a time =D|||