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Posts Tagged ‘Discussion Forums’

Forum Moderators Now In Place: Newsletter – December 2005

Saturday, December 3rd, 2005

You now have a new friend in the Discussion Forums. Due to the large volume of Discussion Forum topics as well as the increasing amount of feedback, we have empowered anonymous Forum Moderators to answer many of the questions and to clarify issues that may arise in forum topics. These moderators are seasoned members, dedicated to the success of the club. They have been selected based on their knowledge and ability of the club and are in direct contact with the Founders. We are very grateful that they are willing to volunteer their time and efforts to help us bring you better services for all of our members.

Because the task of a moderator can sometimes involve conflict, we have asked these members to pledge their anonymity. This will help to keep emotion and personality factors to a minimum. Please do not speculate who they are nor attack them for serving the club. Should conflict arise, they will be asked to make recommendations to the Founders for any actions that need to be taken.

As members, let’s continue to assist each other in providing the best book swapping experience on the internet.

Book Wrapping Reminders

* Use the wrapper whenever possible.
* You may want to use Saran Wrap to protect your books (to keep them from getting wet) before wrapping. Plastic bags, wax paper or plastic grocery bags also work well. But please do not use Press and Seal.
* Be sure to include the Request ID. If it isn’t on the package, you will not receive credit.
* Be sure Media Mail is prominently displayed on your package.
* If your package is one pound or more, it MUST go to the post office due to USPS regulations.
* Use packing tape to wrap the wrapper. Do not put tape on the book. If you must use tape to hold it to the cover, please use scotch tape.
* Do not place tape over stamps.

Postal Forums Provide Expert Information: Newsletter – October 2005

Sunday, October 9th, 2005

Many times we go to the forums to get opinions and ideas. However, when it comes to the Postal Forums, you can count on the real deal. Postal worker and dedicated PBS member Steve L. has been working with the founders to provide accurate and up-to-date information to all club members. Steve reads these forums daily and addresses postal concerns and questions. Please take the time to read and review all the postal forums, as this information is invaluable to those members wanting to send and receive books in a timely and efficient manner. Thanks Steve for all you do to keep us in line with the USPS.

A few gentle reminders regarding mailing:
– Please don’t use tape over stamps. USPS must be able to ‘cancel’ stamps.
– Please don’t use tape on covers when mailing books. Use of tape causes covers to tear and receiving members to be disappointed.
– Saran Wrap makes an excellent ‘weather proof’ cover under the book wrappers. However, the Cling Plus or Press-n-Seal products leave a gluey residue on the covers, so please don’t use them.
– Media Mail packages over one pound should be taken to the post office instead of dropping them in a box. This is due to post 9/11 security restrictions at the USPS.

New Discussion Forum Policy: Newsletter – October 2005

Friday, October 7th, 2005

A topic we’d rather never have to discuss – member behavior in the Discussion Forums. Let us just be short and to the point … we have a policy in place. If you break the rules, you will lose your membership. No discussion necessary. Please review the policy, often.

Bigger Isn’t Always Better: Newsletter – August 2005

Friday, August 12th, 2005

As founders of the club, we have enjoyed every minute of watching the personalities of members take shape and help to make the club more interesting. When we do have the occasional spare moment, we truly enjoy perusing the Discussion Forums and getting in touch with our members’ thoughts.

However, there have been occasions where the signature lines of some members ‘overshadow’ the thoughts of other members. Therefore, we are asking all members to please be considerate as to the size and content of your signature lines. When placing a large signature line in a Discussion Forum, this causes the need for multiple paging to read the forums. Also, when decorative and graphic content of a signature line is questionable as to the acceptance for the majority, please refrain from including it. Thanks in advance for being considerate of other members’ desires and expectations.

More Books = More Credits = More Books. Newsletter – July 2005

Saturday, July 2nd, 2005

It’s just that simple. The more books you post, the more books requested from you. The more books requested from you, the more credits you earn. Recently, a member posted in a forum about the way he increases his bookshelf with books of no real interest to him – yet these books earned him credits for books he really wanted. The forum is from Tony H. from Cordova, TN, and reads:

When I joined PBS, I had few books on my shelf that I was willing to part with. I just didn’t keep a lot of extras around. I posted what I had, some Stephen King books, and for weeks I received no requests. I wondered why. Maybe everyone had already read them. Maybe there were too many of them already listed. I wasn’t sure, but I knew that there were lots of books listed that I wanted to get. So I thought, “How can I get more credits without buying them and help the club at the same time?” The answer was simple. Garage sales! I got up one Saturday morning and hit a few garage sales. Around mid-day I came across a large box of books with a sign that said, “$1.00 each” in someone’s driveway. There were about 100 books in the box. Since it was getting on to noon I thought I’d help the poor garage seller out by taking the box off of her hands. I offered her $10 for the whole box. She was ecstatic. She told me that she thought she’d never get rid of them and that she’d have to throw them away. That, by the way, is a mortal sin in my book.

So I got around 100 books for about 10 cents a piece. Since then, I get requests for books almost daily. Most of the time, I get multiple requests for books. These books are finding good homes and are being used for their intended purpose: Reading! My credits are growing and I’m in Paperback Heaven! Imagine if we all “rescued” books from the certain doom of becoming garage sale leftovers. Imagine how much more we could grow our ever expanding library.
-Tony

Thanks Tony for sharing such a creative idea for earning credits. Be sure to view additional posts on this forum topic for more ideas.

Discussion Forums – the forums offer an opportunity for members to get to know you and to see your name on the site. As you post your thoughts, others become more interested in you and want to know more about you and what books you have on your bookshelf. As interest peeks, so do book requests.

Public Profile – This is fast becoming THE way to get known in the club. And, the more visibility you have, the more chances you have to receive book requests. Be sure to reserve your profile name before all the good ones get taken. You’ll be glad you did.

“I’ve Got Something To Say About . . . “ Newsletter – June 2005

Friday, June 10th, 2005

If you have something you’d like to talk about in the club, then our Discussion Forums are for you. Check out this feature that is sure to help you get to know your fellow club members. In the Discussion Forum section, you’ll find topics such as Chic Lit, Club Member’s Thoughts and Hidden Gems (all of those undiscovered authors and books that deserve special attention and have been selected by our members). With forums available for each genre, there is sure to be something for everyone.

Now YOU Can Have the Last Word: Newsletter – June 2005

Thursday, June 9th, 2005

NEW – We feature three topics and members focus on them for the entire month. Starting in July, every month PBS will select a Genre of the Month, Author of the Month and a Current Event of the Month. These selections will appear at the top of the Discussion Forum page and are available for comments for that particular month. We challenge each member to “put in their 2 cents” on these monthly topics. Come on and join in the fun. Share your viewpoint and explore other members’ views too.