Am I obligated to let a member know that one of the books they requested from me does not have a dust jacket?

I do it as a simple courtesy. 

But obligated, no. Carlene is definitely doing the courteous thing, but also consider:

if dust jackets were that important  to the recipient, then (s)he needs an RC. It could also lead to a cancelled order (unless you've printed out the wrapper already), you sitting in limbo if you ask whether it's okay, or lead to the expectation that every possible flaw be disclosed prior to sending.

You can, but you have no obligation to. Personally, I wouldn't. If they want dust jackets, they should have an RC stating that.

I agree, they are important to me so I have an RC regarding dust covers.    But I have a friend who throws them away before reading the book. Says they bug her!   So some people really don't mind not having one.

I'm also in the "no PM" camp. A book without a DJ is postable by PBS guidelines, and anyone wanting something "above and beyond" that needs to set a Requestor Condition stating such.

Cheryl

I don't PM for books with no dust jacket.  Then you have to decide what to do if they don't respond. Some people don't come on PBS everyday  or they  ignore PMs.  What if they ordered it right before going on vacation?  What do you do if there's no response?  If it's a WL book then it'll just go back to them when you repost it-if it's not a WL book and you cancel then you lose your place in the FIFO line.  What if you give up waiting for them to respond, send the book anyway and then they PM saying they don't want it without the dust jacket-then you've sent the book and already have an unhappy requestor. 

If a dust jacket is important to someone they need to have an RC asking for one.

Pm-img for something that is acceptable  by PBS quidelines is unnecessary and sets people up with expectations of being PM-ed in the future.   While it is "nice", it is a trap that can lead to trouble.  Let the system work so that it's an equal playing field for everyone.

Ruth

I'm also in the no PM camp for all the reasons already stated.  Like Ruth said it sets up expectations. If a book meets PBS guidelines and Member RC No PM is necessary.

Thank you all for your responses! 

I' m new to PBS and I really wanted to be clear on that rule.  I did PM one particular person who requested a book with a missing dust cover and sure enough she wanted to cancel the order. I cancelled the order per her request.

Oh well, we live and we learn....Thanks again for all your input!

Kat :-)

See, Kat--that's one reason why PMing ahead leads to problems. Say you'd had that book on your shelf for 6 months or a year and the person asked you to cancel the order. You were nice enough to do so, but that then removed the book from your bookshelf and when you re-list it, you're back at the end of the FIFO line. If that person had simply had an RC in place to begin with, you could have declined the request for conditions and then maintained your place in line and your copy would be the next one chosen by someone else.

If it's a wishlisted book, and you cancel, when you post it again it will go right back to that same person as she would be put back at #1 in the WL line...again, if she'd had an RC, it could be declined for conditions and offered to the next person in line. Just sets up whole bunches of potentially problematic situations.

Cheryl

I agree about the "No PM."  I feel the same about ex-library books - a lot of people will send a pm just to check if the other person still wants one, but again, it's not necessary! 

I prefer dust jackets (mainly because it makes it easier to find a book in my massive TBR!) but if I get a book without one, I'm fine with it!

I agree, if someone does not want a HB w/o a dust jacket, they need to do a RC stating so.

When I 1st became a member, I p.m.'d the requester because the requested book had no Dust Cover.  Then they never replied back.  So by the mailing date,  I didn't know what to do, but the request was still pending.  I sent it.

So now, I don't p.m.  I send it unless they have a RC for no DC.  (But since I have joined the site,  I now just put the DC on my shelf so it doesn't get messed up or lost). 

I don't PM about dust jackets...or anything else either.  I prefer paperbck books and the  few times I was reading a hardcover books that had a dust jacket, I took it off, put it in a safe place and t hen replaced it when i was through reading it.