This person solicits me out of thin air. Wants "X" number of books off of my shelf. In return she'll send me "X" number of books off of her shelf. 

I told her I'm not a member of BOB but if she wants a deal (involving credits) I can do that. I told her swapping books-for-books isn't allowed

She PMs me back and said she does this all time and we can if we do it "personally" .... "everyone" else does it, she said, or something to that effect. How is sending PMs doing it "personally." 

I've never even done this with my buddies .... I've sent freebies to my buddies, posted books to their WL and all done vice versa as well. But i've never arranged a book-for-book deal with them. 

I'm pondering on letting it go or sending a note to TPTB. I'm not much of a tattle tale but she apparently is fishing the back waters and casting out lines behind the scenes. I'm pretty sure that's frowned upon? 

Because she says she does it all the time, I'd suggest that you copy the PMs and forward them to the PBS Team.  They can explain the rules to her.  You are absolutely right that this kind of exchange belongs it Box of Books. 

Yep.  And there is no method of dealing with problems.   PBS offers us BOB.  And with credits, a way of reporting problems.  This person is clearly violating the rules that are there to protect us.

Susan, the Help Center clearly says that this is not allowed, books can only be swapped for other books using the Box O Books function.   It is not "tattling" to bring a site violation to the attention of the site administrators, that is only assisting the site to run properly.

Can we swap books for books?

Yup, it's not allowed and it can result in a time-out.   It's up to you whether to contact TPTB.  I understand not wanting to "tattle" on her, but in a way it's no different than someone posting unpostable books---both clearly are against the rules, however in this situation, not only can she land herself in trouble, anyone with whom she has "traded" is also risking a time-out, and at minimum a warning about it. 

Thank you. I guess I will let them know. I wouldn't want anyone else to inadvertently get in trouble.

I don't really understand why people would want to do this. There would be no back up for unpostables or if someone never sent out the books they promised. So I sort of doubt there is a whole underground system on PBS with members swapping books for books outside of BOB. Sounds a little fishy to me.

I wonder how many other people this person has sent PM's to?

I'd rather deal with people on the up and up instead of something that is underhanded.  Trust your instincts.  You could get the raw end of a deal if you sent her books and then she decides to send you nothing. 

The classic 'I do this all the time' line always makes me suspicious. If she wants an even number of books for an even number, then there shouldn't be a problem with her wanting to use credits, unless she has none.

I'd probably send a note to TPTB about this.  They can look at her PMs sent and see if there's a pattern of this and explain to her why this is not allowed.

Even when I trade books with people I know, we always post to each other's WLs so we're not violating the rules.  I certainly wouldn't just send off books to someone who'd solicited me via a PM.

I don't really understand why people would want to do this. There would be no back up for unpostables or if someone never sent out the books they promised.

This actually happened to someone who was doing this sometime back (PMing about book-for-book trades).  That member posted on here complaining that she was ripped off b/c she sent her books but did not receive any in return from the other person per their "deal", IIRC.  She basically outed herself  here and ended up with a temp suspension for the illegal trading.  

What does IIRC mean?

If I Recall Correctly

"everyone" else does it...sounds kinda like my 11 year old!  If everyone else was burning their books, would she burn them too?  (lol)

If you haven't "tattled" to the team, please do.  They don't mind if we tattle when we need to

"everyone" else does it.

Ah yes, the classic excuse of those who know they are doing wrong but don't want to fess up to it.  It absolutely astounds me when a so-called adult actually uses it. 

Karen said: If everyone else was burning their books, would she burn them too?  (lol)

If everyone else were throwing their books off the Golden Gate Bridge...?

If everyone else were setting their TBR down in the middle of a freeway...?

That is worded just like one I got a while back. I didn't report it But I did tell her It can't be done here.

Something similar happend to me recently ,

I posted a wish list book FIFO , and I got a pm saying " Would you be willing to pick something off my shelf in a trade"?   Um...NO

I did tell her , I can cancel the order so she dont lose her place in line( which I did)  and then thought crap, I cant repost it because she's first in line.

I was totally taken off guard , didnt know what to do.

If she's not willing/able to use a credit to get her book per site rules, I'd say she deserves to lose her place in line.

Yeah, I'd go ahead and repost that book Lisa. 

As a Boxer who only occasionally does BoB trades lately since I have such a small shelf, I have to say this really bothers me.

Is the $8 yearly fee too much to spend if this member wants to swap books without using credits?!? It works out to 66 cents a month for a year's subscription!

And a way to generate funds to keep PBS membership free. If only this member would spend a bit of time thinking about the bigger picture instead of what is in it for them.

Yeah, I'd go ahead and repost that book Lisa.

But, if Lisa (the person posting the book) cancelled the transaction and then she posts it again, the person who wanted to trade will be offered the book again.  It's only when the requestor turns down the book (or cancels) that it goes to the next person in line.

I would post the book again and tell the person who offered the swap that she either cancels so that you can go to the next person in line, or you will just send her the book.  If she refuses to do this, cancel and send a PM to this site asking them to move you on to the next person waiting for the wish list book.  There's no reason for you to be held hostage by a member who doesn't want to follow the rules.

Yeah, I thought that went without saying. If she doesn't want to pay a credit for a book she has wishlisted than she needs to be the one to cancel, not Lisa. If she has a problem with that Lisa should report her to the team.

Especially since she isn't just holding Lisa's book "hostage" she is technically holding up the entire wishlist line. There is also a chance that it might not go to her at all because someone who was a head of this person in line has come off of vacation hold.

It's only when the requestor turns down the book (or cancels) that it goes to the next person in line.

Not true. If the person doesn't accept the request in 48 hrs. it will go to the next person in line.