Tough economic times have some people turning to an old bygone -- trading.

What if when getting gas, you trade a few tomatoes for a gallon of unleaded? While filling up at a station off East 10th Street in Sioux Falls, Suzanne Potrataz liked that idea. She said, "People have less money than they used to have, you know? And if they could trade for something that they have an abundance of, why not do that?"

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Of course, KSFY didn't find any gas stations offering such a trade, but there are a growing number of websites promoting barter. Here are a few examples:

• At Swaptree.com, users can trade those books, music, movies, or video games that you don't want any longer for those you now desire. Aside from shipping costs, Swaptree.com is completely free.
• Zwaggle.com targets parents. On Zwaggle, users find everything from Halloween costumes to cribs. Instead of cash or other kinds of government currency, the site uses virtual currency called Zoints. Members must agree on how many points an item is worth before making the trade. Zwaggle is free to use, but you do have to pay for shipping.
• Peerflix.com is all about trading DVDs. Start by selling Peerflix those movies you want to get rid of  and then browse it's selection to buy the DVDs you want.

As for Suzanne Potrataz, she hopes trading takes off. She said, "I'm all for it. It's old school. It's the way they started it back in the day and I'm old school."

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