Hi, all: Does anyone know is there is a way to "refresh" all the books on one's bookshelf. It seems like after your books have been listed for a while, there is absolutely NO ACTIVITY for older listings.

Thanks in advance,

Dennis B. (author-wwIInovel)

No, you cannot 'refresh' your shelf. That's actually because bookshelves are FIFO. First In First Out, see below from the Help Docs. The longer a book sits on your shelf, the closer to the top of the list the book is and the opportunity that the book will be offered to members searching for books. People can bypass this of course by ordering directly from you and there is also the 'Directed Delivery' feature (see below). So if you want activity on your shelf you can offer deals on books in the Bazaar. Also, just by participating and posting here in the forums members will click on your shelf to see what you've got.

For what it's worth, I have had some books sit on my shelves for many years and eventually make it to the top and be ordered. It's a matter of patience and storage space. If you were to take your books off your shelf and 'repost' them, they each would end up back at the bottom of the FIFO for their respective ISBN.

What is FIFO?

FIFO stands for "first-in, first-out". It is a basic principle of swapping at PBS. 

FIFO as it applies to requests:

• The copy of any ISBN Posted into the system earliest will receive the first request.
• Books "go into line" for requests at PBS as they are posted.
• As copies are mailed out, your book moves forward in the queue
• Any copies posted after your copy will go "in line" behind it.
• Does FIFO mean that titles that are very numerous in PBS aren't worth listing? Definitely not! Some titles are requested very often, and the queues for those books move very fast.

FIFO as it applies to the Wish List:

• The member who put an ISBN on her Wish List first is the first member to whom the book will be offered first when a copy becomes available.
• Wish List queues can move fast, even long ones. It depends on how many copies of that book enter the system, and how quickly they are read and re-posted.

Is the FIFO rule unbreakable?

No. Here are some exceptions:

• If copies "ahead of yours" are declined by the senders (say, because of Requestor Conditions), your copy may be mailed out before those posted earlier.
• You can circumvent FIFO and order a book directly from a member
  • This can only be done by clicking on on her bookshelf
  • this will ONLY WORK if the button actually on the member's bookshelf is the one that is clicked to request the book.
• If you click  during the process of requesting a book:
  • FIFO will apply to the first book requested, but does not apply to any additional books you request from that member.
• You can also Post a Wish List book directly to another member's Wish List
  • This can be done only by clicking  on her Wish List (and nowhere else).
• If you have Annual Membership with Directed Delivery and you are requesting a book for which numerous copies are available in the system: if there is a "standout swapper" (one who responds quickly to requests and mails promptly, and whose books arrive reliably) geographically near to you, your request will go to that person.

As with Linda, I've had numerous occasions when books which have sat on my Bookshelf for months, or even years, are requested by members.

Me too....I regularly get orders for books that were posted 2 or 3 years ago.