Final answer:
The alphabetic characters in the serial number that are not considered for matching purposes are usually the last ones.
Step-by-step explanation:
The alphabetic characters in a serial number that are not considered for matching purposes depend on the specific rules of the system. However, in general, the first and last alphabetic characters are usually considered significant for matching purposes, while the middle alphabetic characters may or may not be significant. Therefore, the correct answer to the question is 2) Last.