if you click on a book to order you have the option to look at their shelf.  write down their name and initial and see if you can find them in the member directory.

you can also order the book, go to your main page and send them a PM from there and then cancel the order.  It puts them back in 1st in the FIFO line and you can get their information.

When you order a book and click on order more from member before confirmign the order-you can get the name of the person.  If they have a public profile, I believe you can click on that to get a PM button.  Then you just cancel the order before it goes through. 

Just an FYI: some people get really irritated when asked out of the blue for a deal.  Especially if they aren't regular forum posters.  Some people just trade books and never visit the forums and don't know about the Book bazaar and 2 for 1 deals.  So if you ask for deals on a regular basis: be prepared for some responses that might sound a bit rude. I do offer deals sometimes. But I'm not sure I'd be happy to see PMS asking me for deals on a regular basis.  I guess it would depend on the deal. If you PM'd me asking for 3 or 4 for 1 I might get ticked off.  Especially if they were hardcovers or tradesize books.  If you PM'd me asking for 2 for 1 on some run of the mill mmps-then I would probably be ok with that.  Especially if they were highly posted books.

I would not ask for a freebie if someone was sending me a WL book.  When people are posting WL books they are hoping to send that 1 book for 1 credit. 

I would never ask for a deal on a hardback or a WL book, these are just simple, tons in the system books.  I don't really read popular books, lol.  And I would never ask for more than 2-1 either. 

I just thought maybe there was an easy way to PM the bookshelf owner without having to search through 500 Amy's or whatever.

Amee--

It is wirth mentioning that the policies in the Book Bazaar state:

"If a member asks you for a deal and you haven't offered one, this is not considered rude; it is also not considered rude to refuse. This kind of thing should be handled politely, without hard feelings on either side."

So, ask politely; just don't be offended if the answer is "no" :-)

If you have a particular area of interest (i.e. John Grisham books, paranormal romance, whatever) consider posting in the Book Bazaar that you're interested in a deal on XYZ -- some members find success that way too.  And, of course, you'll find plenty of postings there of folks already offering deals from their shelves.

Cheers,

Catt

I've had people PM me out of the blue and ask for a deal.  I've done a couple and refused a couple.  I don't take it as personal.  There are so many books and so many PBS members that if I don't accept - someone else probably will so no harm no foul.  If someone asks for a deal from me I prefer (of course) to take the 3 books for 2 credits type of deal.  If it's a WL book,then they must have been contacted through the FIFO since there's no other way they'd know I have a WL book in my possession. And if it's their WL book then when they ask I say that I will accept a credit for the WL (of course) and if they want others we can negotiate.  Some people have posed ridiculous deals and I've refused.  Frequently, new members get hit by these inquiries (and they tend to smack of taking advantage of the new member), and I always hope the new members are on top of what the WL books are.  Or even how many of the books on their booksshelf are low in inventory within the PBS system.  If there are only 1 or 2 of the book - then I'd want a better deal than 1 credit for 3 or 4 books!  One thing about it - take a friendly tone when asking what they would consider in a deal.  Nothing ventured nothing gained.  I turned one deal proposal for 2 books for 1 credit into 19 books and 1 unpostable for 13 credits.  It certainly cleared off my bookshelf.  I considered it a decent deal.

Ruth

Thanks for the replies.  I would never consider being rude to someone just to get a deal, but I figured it couldn't hurt to ask politely.  If they don't want to it doesn't hurt my feelings.  I have gotten so many great deals from the Bazaar, I LOVE PBS!

I just wanted you to be aware that some people get really offended by PMs asking for a deal. Not to say that you shouldn't ask. Just to be prepared for a not so nice PM from someone who may not frequent the boards and know that this is sometimes done.

Aimee,

Something you may want to look into is Box O Books. It is a great way to search and find members shelves and trade books with folks who have similar tastes in books. It is a paid service here at PBS, $8 for a yearly subscription. It has been a great way for me to receive books that have a lot of copies posted without using credits. This is the second year I have subscribed and I have gotten many books through BOB. It has been well worth it.

Cheryl

I don't think there is anything wrong with asking, but I think it is terribly rude to rude to ask for 3-for-1 or 4-for-1 out of the blue if you haven't advertised in the BB. That is trying to take advantage, in my opinion. I am sometimes willing to do to a 3-for-2 deal, but it depends on the books involvd. I don't have a problem with someone saying "I'm interested in X, Y, and Z. Would you consider a deal?"

Box-o-Boks is a great way to get some of the more commonly posted books without using credits!

Thanks for the tips!

Amee... go ahead and ask... just don't be bummed if you get a snarky response. 

Also, if you can find a boxer (i.e. searching the boxer lists)... those folks would probably be more "deal" minded.

I did this once and asked for  5/3 (Five books for 3 credits) on Mass Market Paperbacks and the person was very gracious and said "Yes".

Good Luck!

I definitely 2nd (3rd?) the reccomendation for Box of Books.  I got so many books during my first few weeks here that I've had to turn it off until I can catch up.  Also, even if you don't want to do boxes if you go to Box o Books you can search for the book you want and find people that have it and look at their shelves.  I've found people offering deals on their shelves that way as well.