I have read posts where folks attribute timed out Wish List requests and unmailed accepted requests to the mythical “overwhelmed new member�. But has anyone ever run into this?

I received a Wish List offer that was confirmed at the last minute with the last possible mailing date and then marked mailed at the last possible second (the member used the full 2 day grace period).  She used DC.

2 days later, the same member (by now I had checked her account, and she had been a member for almost 3 weeks) requested a book from me. Coincidence? It could have been through FIFO or maybe she was checking out my bookshelf, who knows.

So I sent the book (I also used DC) and it was scanned as “Delivered� 5 days later but never marked “Received�.

In the meantime, the status of the book I requested remains at the dreaded “Electronic Shipping Info Received�.

Now, 3 weeks later, both transactions are days from going “Lost in the Mail�.

I’m not worried because I should get the credit for the book I sent, and I should get my credit back for the book that was never sent since it was not scanned. However, I did send a quick PM (only about the book I sent) simply asking the receiver to let me know if it was not actually delivered so that I can file the paperwork with USPS if necessary. That was 3 days ago – no response, and the message status is “Unread�.

I am feeling rather unlucky but very glad that I used DC or I would be out a credit too. I really wanted to read that WL book though, and it’s probably been posted a dozen times in the last month <sigh>. I hope I get a reliable member when my request rolls over…

It happens.  I wouldn't worry too much about the other person.  She probably ordered when she checked out your bookshelf.  I just mailed out 2 books both with PBS postage and DC.  Absolutely no scans on one at all even when delivered to the requester.  She marked it received and that's all there is.  The other took 2 weeks before it got scanned anywhere at all.  Very strange.  Media Maul has its moments.

Ruth

ETA - Welcome to PBS!!

 

ETA - PBS will know your book was mailed because of the scan.  But if it bothers you - go PM them through the Contact Us link at the bottom of any page.  Just watch that the book coming to you doesn't go to another sender if it's marked Lost.   You might end up with 2 copies.

I've never run into it, but that doesn't mean that it doesn't happen.  And I think that while you can't really say that every new member is overwhelmed, I do think some may start to think that it's a larger responsibility than they realized it would be.  It's not unheard of for a new member to post a bunch of WL books without realizing there were people waiting in line for them, & they end up with a boatload of requests to deal with before they've had a chance to learn much.  This happened to me starting up & while I wasn't overhwhelmed, I was doing a lot of packaging & mailing - in the days before I started using DC - and immediately had the credits to show for the books I was sending & the money I spent on postage.  I ordered books with my start up credits right away, but I had to mail out several before mine showed up, so I did have to put a little faith in the club working the way it was supposed to.  I think if someone who is unsure if PBS is going to work as advertised gets a lot of requests right after joining, several things can happen.  They can certainly get overwhelmed, they can become wary because they're investing time & postage money into it & aren't seeing any return yet, or they can be unaware of the rules (if they don't carefully read the help docs before swapping), and end up making mistakes that can make it an unpleasant experience for them.  And then, of course, there are those people you hear about who join for the startup credits and never mail a single book.  I say "hear about" because I have yet to actually see any of them either:P

I'm a newbie, and I for one am glad that I took the time after I signed up to do some reading here in the forum to learn something.  And waited three days after signing in before I even posted my books. 

I  had posted my 10 books (really 11) and the next day almost all of them were requested.  I was shocked to say the least, as I had read lots posting of how long they have/were waiting for books to be requested.

I  put them in a ziplock bag and wrapped them up using heavy brown paper (it is really raining here so I didn't want someone to get a wet book, not FUN).  Then took five or more of them to the post office.  YIKES! !

I didn't think about the DC, so I had to wait the few days for them to clear, but everyone who received them was great to note it immediately.  DC'd the others and mailed them out, but didn't know about the 19 cents until after I had mailed them.  But had added extra postage so hoped it was enough.  Everyone has marked them received, so I guess there wasn't any problems.

I had PM then all and let them know I was mailing them, as it is still all so new.

I posted some more and they were taken up within two days.  Mailed them out within two days.

Stupidly posted more and boy, am I going to wait a couple of weeks before I post any more.  I have spent over $40 in postage, and then bought a postal scale to help with the weight.  And had to explain to the postal clerk what DC was; she had to call someone higher up to ask about the 19 cents charge. 

It has been interesting, I will admit.  And also admit that at time overwhelming, but I think that if the newbies takes the time to read the forums and the help areas they can figure it out.  Plus, several of the ones who got (or are sending me) books from/to me were helpful in what to do, especially when I ordered a book from one and then ordered another and messed up (forgot to click on a button). 

I have 6 packages to mail out and one left in my posted books, then no more.  Two of the packages have two books in them and two are bigger books so will have to go media mail.  I found a site postal scale calculator that lets me put in the weight of the books (all wrapped up) and let me know how much I need in stamps. 

But I think I will definitely wait a couple (or three maybe even four)  weeks to give my checking account time to recover from the expense and hubby to settle down from the cost of stamps.  Especially since he has to mail off six books for me as my car has decided to break down.  That is probably going to be around $10 I think (the post office, not my car, I wish it would be just that for my car). 

I can it be overwhelming, at times.  Especially if you happen to have books that are in demand and get swamped with books requests. I am just glad that I read the forums before I mailed anything, I learned a lot of tips to help me out.   

Janette

Welcome to PBS Janette, can we clone you?!? We love new members who browse and read the site to get the hang of things right away.

Looking at the couple of books on your shelf and wish list, I can see why you've been mailing like crazy, paranormal moves quite well on here. Make sure to get that Wish List built up! Browsing the Paranormal genre forum is a great way to see a lot of books to add to your Wish List and you can also check out all of the WL of the posters in there to find good suggestions.

I didn't know that I could check out the wish list of others, definitely learning new things every day. 

I think that PBS is both simple and complex.  It seems simple, post a book, when it is requested wrap it up and mail it.  Wait for them to say they have it and use the credits to get books you want.

It is the WHAT IF?   that throws everyone off, gets lost, arrives in bad shape, you thought it met postable standards but didn't (or maybe not the ones of the requestor, who didn't bother to have an RC).  What do all these acronyms mean?

I don't know why newbie don't read forums, you can find the answers to a lot of questions, sometimes the Help doc area just doesn't provide what is needed, or creates even more questions. 

I had looked at some of the books I want; I put most of them in my reminder list.  I will have a long wait for some of them so probably break down and buy from Amazon.

I think what I will use most of my credits for books I might trade back, romance, westerns and others.  I am picky, I like my keepers to be new when I get them.   I have found some good reviews of books and authors I wanted to check out, and new authors to  me. 

I do wish that people, if they are going to review, say more than "I really liked the book", or "it was horrible".  That doesn't tell me or others reading the reviews anything to go on. 

Wonder if there is a way to state, "this is what you should put in a review if you are going to post one" somewhere for members to read. 

Anyhow, enjoying meeting other people who like books, enjoy talking about them and at the same time I can check out books to see if I want to buy them new.  And trade books I have bought and didn't like for another book.

Janette

Lots of members feel the same way about those  "I  didn't like/I loved this book" reviews.  There is a group that tries to clean them up.  Many people don't know what to write in a review.  But having reviews gets your bookshelf out there to be checked out by people interested in the same books.

Ruth

I've been cleaning up some of the reviews, and my favorite is "creases on spine, cover bent".

Okay, that is definitely worth a big grin. 

I will go through books I have read and write reviews, especially if there aren't any or they don't give any info. 

Janette

I have managed to put nearly 75 reviews in the database over the last couple of years and it does take some effort.  I try to put at least one paragraph into them, and some are significantly more detailed.  And since I'm always looking at different titles, I do go ahead and mark the ones that are book condition & should have been in tags or notes as unhelpful.  I have no idea how or why people got the idea to do that, but you do see them like that on Amazon occasionally as well.  I saw one the other day where someone put a complaint about the condition of a book they bought from a reseller in as a book review, and that's actually not the first one of those I've seen:P  I mark them as not helpful there too.

It is the WHAT IF? that throws everyone off, gets lost, arrives in bad shape, you thought it met postable standards but didn't (or maybe not the ones of the requestor, who didn't bother to have an RC). What do all these acronyms mean?

That can be intimidating, but just remember that the vast majority of swaps come off without a hitch & try not to worry too much.  And there's always moral support & good advice to be had on this forum when you run into problems.  If you're unsure how to handle something, don't mark the book received or respond to a PM until you ask for advice or check with a tour guide.  Use the live help feature while you're learning the ropes - that's my best advice.  The TGs were immeasurably helpful to me in my first few months here.  On the acronyms, ask when you don't know, but you'll know all of them in no time.

Janette wrote:  I'm a newbie, and I for one am glad that I took the time after I signed up to do some reading here in the forum to learn something.  And waited three days after signing in before I even posted my books.

And bless your heart for doing so!! It is so very frustrating when people sign up, immediately post a whole box of books they got from their mom/grandma/the local library sale or off their bookshelves, and only AFTER posting a couple dozen, realize that 1) they need to send the ones that are requested to other people and pay for the postage within a limited timeframe, 2) they aren't out on loan--they are sending these to people who will keep them or repost them to someone else and 3) the books can't be ratty, water-damaged with pages falling out, etc.

It can be overwhelming at first, to be sure, but you get the hang of it quickly. Welcome, and may all your trades be happy ones!

Cheryl

  What do all these acronyms mean?

http://www.paperbackswap.com/help/search.php?terms=acronyms

This is where you'll find the meanings.

Ruth