Sometimes a book is requested with a condition, and you need to PM the member with a question about that condition.

I haven't found any way to do that other than to first say that the book meets the condition, and that I can mail it.

Is there a way to send a PM without accepting first?

no.

you have to accept and then pm the requestor.  you can always go back and cancel the request and everybody stays in the FIFO line.

Unfortunately not.  I wish this was different, as my conditions request a PM from some people depending on what they are sending me, and I know from the forum discussions that a LOT of people here don't want to PM someone regarding requestor conditions.

But unless something has changed recently, you can't find out member info until after you accept.  Then, if there is a problem, someone has to cancel the request and lose their place in line.  Usually, it's the person posting the book that is the one who should cancel the request.

Wendy, I believe if Al cancels the request after he has originally accepted it, he loses his place in the FIFO line. 

From the Help Center:

• If the sender cancels, he or she will have to repost the book, and it will go back to the "back of the line" for book requests

Generally, it is considered better that the book sender lose their place in FIFO sendout order than to make the recipient lose their  WL FIFO place in line.    I think that sender would only keep his place in FIFO sendout order if he canceled due to requestor conditions in the very beginning, but then he would never get the member's PM and contact info.

Yes, if Al cancels, he will lose his position in the FIFO line.  Unless this is a WL book, the requestor should be the one to cancel if it is necessary. 

If I'm asked by the requestor to PM them before I send the book, I don't accept.  I'd rather wait until it gets requested again then go back and forth and not be sure about sending the book.  You are not required to PM someone about a books condition unless it's a cookbook or a textbook. Because those are allowed to have some writing or stains.

Now if it says "pm if you're not sure" then I'll accept if my book meets their conditions. But I'm not going to PM with a detailed description of the book or it's provenance.

ETA: I've always wondered why it gives you a PM option while a book is on WL hold but not when a request comes through.  That would save a lot of problems I think. If the little PM button was there and you had a question about their conditons, you could just PM them before hitting send or decline.

Al,

I just deny the request.  If the requestor's conditions are so vague they ask that you PM them, I simply don't want to fuss with it.  Chances are, even if they approve the book, they still may mark it as "doesn't meet conditions."

In the case of an ordinary order thru the FIFO for a book that has multiple copies (ie NOT WL'd), if the requestor has RCs and the sender accepts but the requestor then does not want the book due to whatever conditions are truly not being met, the requestor can cancel and nobody loses anything, but if the sender were to cancel, they would lose their book's place in the FIFO. So since the requestor loses nothing, they should cancel, after all, the sender was going the extra effort to try to honor their RCs and still get them a copy of the book. They could have just declined without bothering to PM.

In the case of a WL, if the requestor would rather pass. The sender should cancel. They aren't really going to be hurt that much, even if there is only one person wishing. They were number one in the FIFO when they posted, and if they cancel and repost it, they will still be number one. The requestor, would lose their place in the WL line, so only the sender should cancel here.

But, in my opinion, if a person's RCs are not exact and specific and they want to stand a chance on getting that book that is questionable, they should make sure they have a profile and put their name and nickname in their RCs or not expect people to ever offer a book that might well be within their RCs but the sender just isn't quite sure. It is true when people put RCs they expect to lose out on some books because they have those RCs, but there are books that probably meet their RCs that they could have had, had they included their name and nickname in the RCs so that the sender could ask them rather than just having to decline. Just a thought I have everytime I get RCs :)

The HC actually states that PMs should not be required in a RC:

Type your text into the text box: 

• Please be very clear
• Your conditions should be easily interpretable and should NOT require (or ask for!) further clarification in Personal Messages
  • If a sender is confused, she or he may decline
  • Once a sender has declined, you will not be able to get that copy of the book, even if you remove your Requestor Conditions and re-request it.

What happens if the sender just lets the request time out? I saw a thread recently on one of the other forums that some people don't respond at all. (Mostly newbies who don't bother coming back.) Will this person lose their place in the FIFO line?

Yes, Jan, if you never respond to a request at all, that title is removed from your shelf and you would have to repost it...thereby going to the end of the FIFO line.

They can also suspend an account if requests time out.  If the request times out they assume you cannot mail the book and it's removed from your shelf. 

I put my ID in my RC just in case someone needs to PM me first.  that way they know who I am and don't have to accept quite yet.  However, the only RC I have is about a current smoking environment.  The only time I ask someone to PM in my RC is if I have ordered a special through the bazaar and they are going to cancel because they smoke so I can cancel the order so it doesn't go into the FIFO line.  I learned the hard way on that one, got a book that I'm sure I'll enjoy but may or may not have ordered it as a stand alone.

Another question, so if the Requestor cancels because of RCs, does the book request simply move onto the next person in the FIFO line? Or would the Requestor have to request the book again & it skips that person in the system?

BTW, Beth, I love your Eliz Bennet avatar. I've been watching that version of  Pride & Prejudice here on PBS-TV. I had never seen it before. Colin Firth is yummy! However, there is just not enough of him in it! LOL

If your Requestor Conditions require a PM, they do not meet PBS guidelines.  (Thanks Melissa for posting that so I don't have to!)

If you still *really* want to do that, then I would suggest you include your nickname in your conditions, so that people can contact you before accepting.

Personally, if I got an RC that required a PM, I would decline it.  I would know that I'm still first in the FIFO, and I will likely get another order soon.

I deny those requests, and I don't want to deal with PMs back and forth.

If your Requestor Conditions require a PM, they do not meet PBS guidelines.  This is not correct. They highly discourage it, but they do not say that it not allowed. If you read more of that help document, they even explain how to word the RC to let people know how to that.

• Asking the sender to "PM me if you are unsure" is not a good idea
• There is no mechanism for the sender to PM the requestor from a request without accepting it
• If you want the sender to communicate with you about the book, you should phrase this "If you are unsure whether or not your book meets these conditions, please ACCEPT this request and then send me a Personal Message about the book."
• Ideally, your conditions should be clear enough not to require Personal Message clarification.

Jan - if the Requestor cancels the order, they will need to reorder the book. It will go to that same person and they will need to deny it on this go around and then it will move to the next person FIFO. 

I accepted and PM'd, and requestor didn't want it, so I cancelled and reposted.  Now I have two red X's in my transaction archives.  Why two?

There is no mechanism for the sender to PM the requestor from a request without accepting it

Actually, there is - the person writing the condtion can provide their nickname in the condition and make sure they have a public profile.  The RC could then say, "If you have any questions, please PM me (nickname), I'm listed in the member's directory"

Next time tell them to cancel the request so you don't lose your place in the FIFO line.  They can then request it again, it'll come to you again, hit decline for conditions and the request gets passed on to someone else. You'll have to repost the book it won't go back on your shelf automatically if you cancel after accepting a request.  It will if you decline for conditions.  If it was a WL book, when you repost it, the same person will get the WL offer.  You'll have to deny it because of conditions so it can go to the next WL person.  This is why I don't accept the one's with a PM me first.  Not sure why it shoes up with 2 red x's but I wouldn't worry about it unless you cancel a lot of transactions.

This is why I feel that everyone should do a profile as to what they will/not accept, i.e., withdrawn library books (WLB), which is my main source for 'stock'.  So far, most people are ok with that.  I have had a few who weren't.  Many times the WLB is in great shape, considering it's start. 

I always PM the requestor to ask if a WLB is ok; I'd rather ask in advance, then send the book and have the member request their credit returned.  Esp. when the book isn't returned to me.   If the book is damaged and I missed it, I have no problem with returning the credit.

Withdrawn library books are fine here, unless someone has requestor conditions saying they don't want them.

Sherry N. writes: "In the case of an ordinary order thru the FIFO for a book that has multiple copies (ie NOT WL'd), if the requestor has RCs and the sender accepts"

If the Sender, after reading the RCs, and does NOT ever accept the book, but declines right away, do they keep their place in the FIFO line?

And does the Requestor automatically get passed onto the next Sender in line?