Discussion Forums - Questions about SwapaCD

I haven't had any response to any of my wish list requests in months and months. I currently have 6 or seven that I am #1 on the list, but I haven't gotten any notices of any of these being available for ages. This, on top of the fact that if I "order" a cd off of the stuff that's just come in today, I get it. Is it possible for other people to get on the daily lists and snatch a cd before people who have been waiting months to get it? I have some requests from January, and I can't remember the last time I was contacted about having one of my wish list selections being available. I understand that the higher you have it on your wish list, the better chance you have. But when I"ve had a half dozen of mine showing me as the next person in line to get them, somethings got to be wrong. Anybody know anything about this kind of thing?

If you are in position #1 in the wait list for a cd that is on your wish list you will get it as soon as someone posts it - nobody can snatch it before you on the daily list.

The cds you have on your in position #1 are probably rarely posted, you just have to be patient.  I have several in the same situation, in position #1, and have had them there for a very long time, more than a year, and I am still waiting.  Every now and then, somebody posts some goodies and your wish comes through.

Edit: I forgot - it is possible that someone else can get a posted cd before you, even if you are in position #1.  It can happen if you have your preference for the cd on your wishlist set to e.g. "Disc w/ front & back covers" and someone posts the cd without the covers.  Then the posted cd doesn't meet your requirements and will not be sent your way.  But, if you have the preference for the cd set to "Disc only" and you are in position #1 then you should always get the first cd that is posted, whether it is posted next week or 3 months from now.

Thanks, Lars. I appreciate the quick answer to my question. I haven't found anyplace where I can actually contact the site itself for answers (maybe I'm looking in the wrong place), but I remembered the forums the other day, and you've come through for me. I will now check YOUR wish list and see if I can help you out for your courtesy. At least now I know I haven't pushed the wrong button somewhere that basically says "Lee is passing on all requests!" :)   Thanks again, Lars.     Lee Butcher

OK, I found the "contact us" button. (Doh!) Glad it wasn't a snake.

Hi Lee, 

Even though I know you have your answer -- just wanted to chime and say something like, "I hear ya" -- not because I think there's anything "broken", but man, it's been a while since i saw a wish come true, too!  

I think it's summer, honestly.  I have never seen stats, but I am going to guess things will pick up once people are back from summer vacations, back in school, etc.  My take, anyhow.

Take care -- ICBERRY

being on the wishlist is basically playing a waiting game it is even worse to be like 54 of 91 like i am on some of mine so basically my taste in music will change before i ever get that cd . being no.1 is great ride that pony!

The frustrating thing was discovering I was out of money and had my WL on AR.  My WL is no longer on AR and if I go on vacation again I will just put it on hold.  Less likely to miss something being gone for a few days than I am to not notice I'm running low on credits/money afterwards.

Add me to the "I hear ya" bandwagon.  I have been at WL#1 on 45+ jazz CD's for over two years with no wishes granted.  I just attributed it to the fact that these are rarely (if ever!) posted.  It's a good exercise in patience.

In the last 2 weeks I had 2 WL CDs post to me...only to be cancelled (unable to send).  I think I would rather have had them not posted at all than be so happy just to have that happiness snatched away.

Yow, that stinks Sheryl! I agree with you; would rather have had them not posted at all.

Oh, grrrrrrrrrrrr -- that is a pet peeve of mine.  I have my suspicions why that happens as often as it does, but never mind.  Let's just assume the CD magically disappeared in the hour since it was posted, shall we?  Yes, let's shall.

IC -- I'm curious, what's your suspicion? I've had a couple of accepted requests cancelled and didn't think anything of it, but they were not from the "CDs posted today" selection and I thought it was reasonable that someone lost a CD they'd posted months ago. I know that happened to me once (It turned out my husband took it). The only time I wondered was once when I requested a CD from the posted today list and got the response that the poster apologized, but he didn't have any extra cash to send the CD. I had to wonder why you'd post if you couldn't send immediately. But then I remembered that it took me quite a while to realize there's a CDs posted today list. Up until then I kept wondering how people so quickly requested the CDs I had just posted when I knew they weren't on anyone's wish list. 

IC -- I'm curious, what's your suspicion? I've had a couple of accepted requests cancelled and didn't think anything of it, but they were not from the "CDs posted today" selection and I thought it was reasonable that someone lost a CD they'd posted months ago. I know that happened to me once (It turned out my husband took it). The only time I wondered was once when I requested a CD from the posted today list and got the response that the poster apologized, but he didn't have any extra cash to send the CD. I had to wonder why you'd post if you couldn't send immediately. But then I remembered that it took me quite a while to realize there's a CDs posted today list. Up until then I kept wondering how people so quickly requested the CDs I had just posted when I knew they weren't on anyone's wish list. 

Hi Robyn,

No-- don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that never happens... CDs do go missing, for all kinds of perfectly good reasons.  I myself have had to write a few of those mea-culpa messages, and I am pretty organized about keeping my SACDs all in one place.

What I was twitching over was what you mentioned: when a wish-list item happily comes up AT LAST, then suddenly "can't be mailed".  It happened again to me just yesterday, without explanation -- so who knows the reason: maybe the poster just changed his or her mind.  That's okay.   Any reason is okay, really... so please consider this just me, grumbling:

I think -- without getting into this is "Okay" or not -- that sometimes our place in the queue *here* is functionally compromised if CDs posted here (with the first in first out rule/wish list, etc.) are also simultaneously posted elsewhere.  When that happens, you are not simply waiting your turn for a real CD, but are just herded into someone else's ever-expanding potential-audience for their stuff.  If that wishlisted CD is posted in several places, you're  subject to "sniping" from members at other sites, and >poof<  Whoops, no more wishlisted CD.

If i hadn't had someone offer that as an "explanation", recently, for a newly-posted item they could no longer send,  I wouldn't grumble, but... okay, I'm done now.  

Public Confession:

I recently posted a disc at another CD trading site at the same time I posted it here.  The request for the CD came through from the other site first and I agreed to ship it there.  When I informed the trader here that the disc was no longer available, he took me to task.  I hope he won't mind if I quote part of his message to me:

"SWAPACD is a community. A community built on trust. You're breaking that trust. ...  Members who stab other members in the back don't deserve to be part of the club."

HE WAS RIGHT!

I apologized and sent the disc to him.  (I handled the trade at the other site so that all parties were happy.)

In the future, I will be much more careful about how I post discs for trade at multiple sites.

Daniel, we still like you.  ;^)

Such a tough one, really.  You were awfully kind to take the time to work that one out, because it'd be easy to spin it either way, especially if the wishlist wasn't involved.  

I don't know that anyone would seriously insist on "loyalty" to this one place, though I can understand your trader being bent out of shape over losing out to someone not even "paying into the system",  here.  There is sort of a de facto understanding that CDs posted here are expected to be traded here.  To me the problem is when we post something people have been waiting for in good faith, then we're courting hard feelings, and probably deserve a verbal poke with a sharp stick. 

There's something in the Bazaar that says, "Fraudulent offerings will not be tolerated and will result in expulsion from the club as well as possible legal action." - seems like overdoing the interpretation a little to call it that, but I wonder what the Team means by that?  Could just be a cover-all-bases statement.   

I always go back to the idea of good faith: trying to do the right thing.. and usually it serves pretty well...but this is a tough one.   

One problem that arose in the situation I cited above is the fact that once a CD has been assigned to the 48 hour wait for a trader to accept or reject, there is no way for the posting trader to cancel.  I have asked SwapaCD support about this, but have received no response.

[Edit:]  "but have received no response"  Let me clarify that.  Yes, they did send an e-mail acknowledging my suggestion.  They have not responded about whether they will make a change or not.

Good point -- and that does put you in a bind; all I can think of is -- if someone here accepts the disk with that dreaded 48 hour thing attached, you could say at that point you're sort of honor bound to un-list elsewhere..? 

Some of the features of the site, you have to think, are not going to be un-done lightly: the 48 hour lock is probably one of them lest they get inundated with annoyed emails citing every reason in the world why that 48 hour cushion was legitimately needed....

The long wait for wish list albums can make some members hesitant to post too.

We just inherited from my late brother-in-law two big boxes of jazz and blues cds, I mean old stuff like Cannonball Adderley, Count Basie, Big Bill Boonzy, Chet Baker, Louis Armstrong. Stuff I never heard about,  I am not a fan of either jazz or blues.

But not only are most of those CDs not in the system with a UPC, even if they were posted and actually requested, I still wouldn't get the CDs I wishlisted. So why post a lot of stuff, if you can't use the credits anyways, because my WL is just sitting there doing nothing for the most part.

Angelika, hi -- too bad about the lack of UPCs (though you don't need them if an identical disk IS in the system) -- I was just thinking that your "windfall" of Blues and Jazz --  things you don't necessary like all that much is exactly the reason wishes DO get filled -- !  Just not yours..and just not this time.  My point is...someone, somewhere is inheriting a box of the very things that you'd want.  It's just the luck of the draw, really...

Me, I like posting things I pick up cheap at garage sales just for the fun of being the Wish-Fairy sometimes.  So hey: don't give up...Hope you do get a few wishes granted, and soon!

Thanks Iceberry for the encouraging words.

I am patient about the WL, but my dear husband is not.  So he is the one who says no more posting any CDs until we get some wishes granted. He really wants that Bachman-Turner-Overdrive Gold CD (like right now!!)

In the meantime I do get to listen to my inheritance of jazz and blues and maybe by the time I listened to them all I may actually like some of it ( wishful thinking!)

Angelika,

Your mention of boxes of jazz/blues discs is tantalizing. I personally have over 1,000 jazz discs on my wish list, mostly modern stuff that is not extremely well known, so if even a few of those wishes could come true it would make me very happy.  Just a reminder that if you don't want to save any credits you accumulate, you can sell them in the Bazaar for cash (via PayPal, check, money order). You can also transfer the credits to PaperbackSwap or SwapaDVD if you're a member there. I get wishes granted only once in awhile on all three sites, and being able to move credits around from one to the other is one of the main things that's made this whole thing viable for me.

Hi Gregory,

I just went to your wishlist and I don't know most of the albums on it, but then again jazz/blues is not my forte.

I recognized a few names that I have in my boxes ie. Count Basie, Crusaders, Louis Armstrong, Manynard Ferguson, Duke Ellington, Harris Stitt and Wynton Marsalis.  But..., the albums don't seem to match.

so what I will do this week-end is sit down with my boxes at the computer and see if I can find your WL items in my box.

I will PM you with the results.