I am not sure if this is really an exploit or not, or maybe even a bug. But, since you can't gain experience identifying things you purchase in other stores, here it is... In the lab area of the Scorn Potion shop you can buy alchemy ingredients. After the ingredients are in your inventory, you can use the skill alchemy to identify them and gain mental experience. You can also use the woodsman skill if you purchase water to gain mental experience. I am playing on v0.95.8-cvs from 02-Feb-01 - Rick Tanner leaf at real-time.com