Hi

I am considering returning to active use of bookmooch. I have found a good local alternative.

Here's the catch: shipping stuff abroad is really expensive for Swiss residents. Often, most of the time, actually, it's cheaper to buy a used book online (say, on amazon.com) and have it delivered directly to the moocher.

I remember doing this once or twice, but I think I asked the moochers for permission.

For clarification, here's how it worked: Someone from the US mooched a book from me. The cost of shipping from Switzerland was about 12$. The cost of the same book on amazon.com was 5$, shipping included. So I ordered the book and had it delivered to the person in US. It worked just fine. I selected one of the better maintained copies and paid a few extra ¢ to make sure the quality matched the one I had.

What do you think of that?
Would you mind if I did that to you?

I have stated something along those lines in my profile so anyone who mooches from me is forewarned that I might resort to this option.

QUOTEwhen the price to mail the book has exceeded the cost of the book new/QUOTE
The benefit here, IMHO, is that this would actually increase the volume of available books via third parties. It's a pity that many books are never traded because of high shipping cost. And it would be a boon to moochers in exotic destinations.

It's a bit like integrating amazon.com or BetterWorld used books into bookmooch.

A quick scan of the TOS did not reveal any clause that requires me to actually own a book. Though it may say so otherwise. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

I am aware that because of the potentially business-like nature of this proposal this might be regarded as a violation of the bookmooch spirit. However, if it means that the number of available books increases, how could one object? That's just me being pragmatic.

But then, what about BookDepository for instance?
I think John mentioned this some time ago... does anybody remember what was said then?

I've thought about this but at the same time I'm hesitant because of the Domestic/International aspect. When you buy a book from Amazon you are usually sending the book domestically and I feel that it wouldn't be right to get more than 1 point from it (because the higher point cost for international mooches is supposed to be to cover shipping).

However, in this case you are also paying for the book + postage rather than just the postage, so I think it's a valid thing to do.

I wouldn't be at all bothered if someone purchased a book from a local online dealer and had it shipped to me directly. As long as the condition is ok, what difference does it make to the receiver? They have paid their points, they have got their book.

Rob

I personally think that it should be the same for a giver inside the US or outside it to use this system (buying a used book from Amazon marketplace directly to a US moocher), as the costs would be the same for either person... Now if the moocher wants to send the giver a couple of extra points for the book that would be up to him/her.

I think that there should be some guidelines regarding this as it could be an interesting way of getting more books in the system.

The whole idea of buying v. shipping myself is only interesting as long as there are books available for mooching that I actually want. Why should I accumulate points if I cannot spend them?

I have also considered the fairness issue. It does seem a bit extreme that one should get three points for a book that costs 4$ to ship from amazon. That would be 1.33$ per point. If you do this kind of thing domestically, it means 4$ per point. This is not fair.

However, if you compare it per book, the picture looks different: Since I'm in Switzerland, if I get three points, I'll most likely have to spend three points to get a new book.

There is a real issue here that will influence whether bookmooch will gain in popularity as a platform for trading books. Like it or not, but bm is a marketplace, the attractiveness of which depends on the quality of supply. If there is insufficient supply, lots of folks will shop elsewhere.

But of course, here the whole bm pricing system is in question. Currently, there is a strong bias towards adding lighter and thinner books to inventory in the arrangement, where all books cost the same. I'm not a fan of this system at all. I think it severely limits the number of available books.

John also launched a debate on whether to include books from commercial vendors in his post "A Dangerous Idea". I am not sure what the best course of action is. I like the idea of international mooching a lot. That's why I'm here. I would like this wonderful platform for much longer.

I think it's an interesting idea. You might just give it a try and see. The thing is, you might find it's not worth it to go with the books everybody wants...when I calculate my point value, I include the cost of the book, which you are not doing. So, for me, an older book from Amazon costs about $4. Which means if I am sending things overseas, they can be worth up to $12 for me to be "even" if you will. I like to keep my value down, as you say, BM is a marketplace, and looking at that functionality, I like to think that my books are costing no more than $5.

But perhaps you could try this and see if it works out. There are tons of copies of some mysteries out there, that I suspect are on people's wishlists. The problem is, of course, that the wishlists are even less accurate than the inventories, because when an Inventory is vacationed, its corresponding wish list is not. (See the Library Thing discussion about that..it's fascinating.)

But a careful trial of 10 or so books you think might be desirable and appropriately priced would be worthwhile. And really, who *cares* where the book comes from. If the moocher wants a book, and they're willing to spend a point or three to get it, they know they had the option to buy it, and are not doing so...