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Topic: requestor conditions frustrations

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Subject: requestor conditions frustrations
Date Posted: 1/17/2008 5:32 PM ET
Member Since: 10/9/2005
Posts: 2
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I am legally blind and have had a couple of cases where I have requested a book that was posted in the system as large print, but the book I received was not large print. This is extremely frustrating for me. I also  sometimes request books that I know are not large print because I have a CCTV magnifier that allows me to read them. I have tried to write out concise, clear instructions in my requestor conditions to ensure that if I request a book that I believe to be large print, I will receive a large print book, but if I request a book that isn't posted in the system as large print, I won't get my request rejected for not being large print even though I still want the book. In additon to a visual impairment I also have a learning disability so I have trouble expressing myself clearly. These are my requestor conditions as they now stand:

"Please read this carefully, I have had people reject books that I still wanted!

If your book is posted in the system as large print, and I request it, it MUST be large print! I have requested several books that were supposed to be large print and the books sent to me were not large print. I am legally blind and if I request a book that is large print, I only want that book if it is large print. If your book is not large print, please PM me to confirm that I actually want it before accepting the request, because there are some titles that I will accept in regular print to be read on my magnifier. PLEASE DO NOT REJECT MY REQUESTS AUTOMATICALLY WITHOUT CHECKING WITH ME FIRST"

Any help with modifying these conditions so they are easier to understand would be greatly appreciated!

Date Posted: 1/17/2008 5:39 PM ET
Member Since: 4/6/2007
Posts: 729
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People cannot PM you first before they accept or reject your request.  They have to accept the request, and then they will be able to PM you, and some people will not want to do that.  If a book arrives to you that is not larpg print, but was posted as large print, then the sender should refund the credit. 

Date Posted: 1/17/2008 5:54 PM ET
Member Since: 1/8/2007
Posts: 8,139
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Well, my gut reaction is that people will instinctively react negatively to the ALL CAPS WORDS... because in internet lingo it's shouting at somebody. They also seem a bit long. Maybe something a little more friendly tone, such as:

If the book I have requested is listed as Large Print, please confirm that it is a large print version before accepting my request. (Publishers often use the same ISBN for both large and standard-print books.) If it is not large print, please select "Does not meet conditions". I really hate to mark RWAP when this is something that is so easily checked for. 

If the book ordered is not listed as large print, please send it along! I have no conditions for a standard book listing.

Thank you for your consideration!

Don't request people to PM you to confirm. That alone will cause a lot of people to decline your request. (If they have to cancel their request because you reject the confirmation, they'll lose FIFO. And then if you cancel the request, then you'll end up ordering from the same person again, who will have to mark it DNMC, inconveniencing the sender.) I think that a shorter request in a more friendly tone might help you out here.

ETA: You really shouldn't have to have a condition for this. If you request a book that is titled "LARGE PRINT" and the book you received isn't, you should mark it RWAP - WRONG BOOK.

The large-print problem is a common one, though, and I don't think it hurts to ask someone to double-check before accepting.



Last Edited on: 1/17/08 9:15 PM ET - Total times edited: 3
Date Posted: 1/17/2008 6:44 PM ET
Member Since: 6/5/2007
Posts: 2,507
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<i>The large-print problem is a common one, though, and I don't think it hurts to ask someone to double-check before accepting.</i>

It seems to me there was a bit in a recent newsletter about Large Print books as it seems to be a continuing problem.

I agree with Jane's revisions, she did a nice job.

Date Posted: 1/17/2008 8:23 PM ET
Member Since: 10/9/2005
Posts: 2
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I appreciate everyone's thoughts and suggestions, but I've decided that for my own mental health it's probably best that I do away with trying to make my requestor conditions work :) I'm just going to hope that people are careful when they post and not order anything unless I'd still want it even if it wasn't large print. Thanks!

Date Posted: 1/17/2008 9:30 PM ET
Member Since: 3/13/2006
Posts: 2,024
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Elisabeth, hopefully the reminder in one of the recent PBS newsletters will raise people's awareness of this issue.  I'm know it must be extremely frustrating to get books that you can't read.

Date Posted: 1/17/2008 10:37 PM ET
Member Since: 8/16/2007
Posts: 15,177
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On the ones you really need to be large print, maybe you could PM the people after you order to ask them to make sure they only send the large print as ordered. It stinks that you cannot get the books you are ordering, regardless of whether the credits are required to be returned or not, you want those books to read! Maybe R&R could put in a big warning screen on the large print books that the sender has to so through verifying it is actually a large print book.

Date Posted: 1/17/2008 11:42 PM ET
Member Since: 11/14/2005
Posts: 6,421
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Melanie, there is a big warning screen when posting a book listed as Large Print, but somehow people that supposedly can read (since they are posting and ordering books on an Internet site) can't seem to read the large warning, in red, that comes up when they post a non-LP to an LP listing. I don't get how people can post a book that the ISBN doesn't match either when there is a warning for that too, but they do it all the time!
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