Doug : forum comments they have written

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re: Followup to points discussion I guess I would like to say that I completely agree with a point that Celeste above made. I'm not on PBS, but as a "resident" with Bookmooch for the last year or two, I know that what made me decide to use this site was the fact that I could generate a point or two right off the bat by putting my books on. It's really a sales tool of sorts. Without that little incentive, I might not be on Bookmooch, but happily (or unhappily!)swapping elsewhere..:0) That would be too bad too, because I have really learned to like the people on Bookmooch! Doug 13 years ago

re: Followup 2: intl mooch ratio change At the risk of being unpopular for a moment, I feel very strongly that we need to remember that John is the owner, operator and tech support for this site. Criticism of his personal character or motivation is wholly inappropriate. He has asked for feedback, and we as loyal bookmoochers have been given a gift in that. I have seen over the last few days a number of folks who seem to have forgotten the incredible investment of time, energy and goodwill that John has put into this site. I wonder how many people have done something similar, and realize exactly how much investment it takes to run something like this site, financially, emotionally, and physically. We are beneficiaries of John's good will expressed to people he does not know. What an incredible man this is. While we may not like decisions made, and even take advantage of John's more than kind offer to allow us to provide feedback, let's remember that criticisms are best delivered with a measure of kindness and forethought. John's investment in each of you has been tremendous. I am not speaking to those of you who have remembered to address John with respect. However, I am very disturbed by some who seem to need to make personal attacks on John's character and motives. Remember the gifts John has given when you speak to him, even via this blog, maybe especially in the blog. To do anything else is reprehensible given the sacrifices John has made for us. Thanks for hearing me. Doug 13 years ago

re: Mooch ratio change for international I need to comment here, as this change totally surprises me. I don't generally mooch or send internationally due to the costs, something at this juncture in my life I cannot afford to do, so this change does not directly affect me. What DOES affect me directly is that the question was asked, feedback was taken and I assume looked at, and then a decision such as this was made. I read through the entire string of original comments, it was quite a lively discussion. OVERWHELMINGLY, the comments regarding mooching internationally by your user base were please do not change the basic mechanism of the international mooching process. Yet here, not only is a change made, but made in a way that actually penalizes mooching or sending internationally by making it less attractive to those who would have been likely to do so. What this shows me is that you have entirely different reasons for making these changes, and that those are more important than the wishes of your user base. The stated reasons for the change originally were that you wanted to improve bookmooch. In my mind, regardless of intent, you just took a huge step backward. Anytime you make the site less attractive to your user base, there is less reason for them to participate. That seems to be the opposite of your original stated purpose. This makes me wonder what else is coming. Its an interesting decision in light of the fact that this entire concept is based upon the goodwill and interest of those using the site. I'm just sayin. Doug 13 years ago

re: Points policy change thoughts I echo earlier comments...why "fix" what isn't broken. The real issue with decrease of mooching I think can be traced entirely to three factors. 1) aging inventory 2) the current economy (take a look at comments on many pages, related to slow mailings due to lack of funds for mooched books) and 3) Inactive accounts (finding a book you want, and then finding that the user hasn't visited their account for 500 days is a big disappointment!) Even searching for books, while it can be a bit frustrating, I don't think really keeps very many people from mooching the ones they do find. However, knowing that I will not get a book for 3 plus months due to folks who aren't willing to commit to a timeframe (likely due to economic factors) does keep me from mooching. I want a reasonable assurance that I will eventually receive a book before I commit the points to it. I do think adjusting the point system to encourage multiple mooches from the same individuals would be a positive move however! Doug 13 years ago

re: Health of BookMooch Something I would love to see is the ability to pull back and/or replace books that are not moving without losing the points associated. I have about 40 books listed, that since no one is mooching, I would really like to just send them off as a donation, but because I listed them, and tend to use my points (I have about 1030 wishlisted!), I don't feel I can pull them off, as that would put me in the negative, (I don't know if I can even go negative!). At the very least, I'd like the ability to "remove and replace" books that have aged in the inventory. To add to that, I think that this would keep the inventory "fresh". One thing I notice is that I am constantly passing up the same book that is either not moochable due to an inactive account, or in my case from a location outside of the U.S. since I have not been mooching books outside of country. Keeping the inventory fresh seems to me to be important in regard to maintaining "mooch interest". In regard to general health, my biggest issue has been those who list books, and then 1) go on vacation forever, 2) never reply to mooch requests 3) abandon accounts with books still listed. I love the bookmooch site, but find the above situations all very frustrating. I have a book on my list that I requested in June and it has still not been sent, though it was accepted. Reminders net no response. I don't know whether to abandon the request, or to cancel it, or just be patient. Overall, however, I need to say... this is a wonderful site, and I want to thank you John for putting it together and maintaining it. You bring a lot of joy to a lot of people through this effort. Doug 13 years ago