43 POD Publishers
. . . What is a POD publisher? It stands for Print on Demand. The first POD publisher started in the 1930s and printed books from microfilm but since the 1990s computer technology has made POD printing very affordable. The industry has been mushrooming ever since.
Below I list 43 POD publisher names that I have seen on used books. There are plenty more POD publishers out there, but they are not listed here unless I have seen one of their actual books either in person or listed on a used-book website.
For some of these companies I have shown what standard publisher they are owned by or affiliated with. For some I have shown the earliest date found on one of their books, or the date they were founded. I have also indicated what country they are located in, if not the US.
This is not an exhaustive list because more and more POD publishers seem to spring up daily.
1. AuthorHouse, US and UK branches, owned by Author Solutions
2. Bertrams Print on Demand
3. BiblioBazaar, 2007
4. BiblioLife, 2010
5. Blitzprint, Canada
6. Blurb, affiliated with Chronicle Books
7. Book Locker
8. The Book Pub
9. BookMobile, 1996
10. BookSurge, affiliated with R.R. Bowker
11. CafePress
12. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2010
13. Cold Tree Press
14. Coral Hub Online Services, 2010
15. CreateSpace, owned by Amazon
16. Digital Impressions
17. Digitz.net, owned by BookSurge
18. Dodo Press, 2008
19. eBookStand, 1996
20. Echo Library, 2007
21. Ex Libris
22. 1stBooks Library, 2007
23. First Choice Books, Canada
24. General Books, 2010
25. GreatUnpublished, owned by BookSurge
26. Impressions Unlimited
27. IndyPublish, 2004
28. Infinity Publishing
29. iUniverse, owned by Author Solutions
30. Kessinger Publishing Company, 2004
31. Lightning Source, owned by new-book distributor Ingram
32. Lulu, 2007
33. NetPublications
34. Outskirts Press
35. Page Free Publishing
36. Read Books, 2008
37. Replica Books, owned by new-book distributor Baker & Taylor
38. Scribd, 2009, affiliated with Simon & Schuster
39. Sovereign Grace Publishers, owned by IndyPublish
40. Trafford Publishing, Canada, owned by Author Solutions
41. Tutis Digital Publishing, 2008
42. University Microfilms International, affiliated with University of Michigan, c.1938
43. Xlibris, 2008, owned by Author Solutions, affiliated with Random House
---0---
Find books on Publishing or any other topic at TomFolio.com
Visit my online bookstore
---0---
Showing posts with label business. Show all posts
Showing posts with label business. Show all posts
26 May 2010
09 January 2010
4 More Reasons Why ATT Sucks
. . . More on how AT&T slammed my DSL and made my email cease to function.
My DSL (high-speed internet connection) was slammed by AT&T (taken over without my permission) on or about November 23, 2009. The minute it was slammed I had no internet connection. Two days later ATT's robot said my "new service" was "up" and it wasn't. That day I spent two hours on the phone with ATT pinheads getting my connection back up, but my email still did not work.
(See my post on November 28, 2009 for more on this 2-hour phone call.)
Well, time passed, the holidays came and went, and I tackled the problem again on January 7, 2010.
This time I was on the phone with them for over four hours (well, in a chat room for half an hour, then on the phone for three and a half hours).
And guess what? It still does not work. Not only that, but the workaround that the Level 3 tech set up for me does not work, either.
Date: January 7, 2010
Start Time: 6:54 pm
I went to the online tech support chatroom that was emailed to me by AT&T to talk to an AT&T tech person to try to solve my email problem again.
Talked to Ryan. I said: "Hello, Ryan. I am a DSL customer and I was told I would be able to use the email address I have had for seven years, but can't get it to send."
He said, "Ms. Foss, I am sorry you are experiencing this issue and will be happy to assist you. Do not worry, I will provide you all the information. Do you have AT&T provided e-mail address?"
I said, "yes, I do, and I have already tried to set it up, but missing something in the settings."
He said, "Ms. Foss, what is your e-mail address?" I gave him the ATT email address I had just set up, that I never had any intention of using, which I shall refer to as "P~".
He said, "I will provide you all the information" and asked me for the answer to my security questions. I answered.
He sent me to a website and told me to log in. I said, "Okay, but it wants my yahoo ID. Am I giving it my yahoo name or my ATT name?"
He said, "No, please use your AT&T provided e-mail address." I did so.
"Are you able to login there?" Yes.
"Now try to send a test e-mail to your own e-mail address and let me know the result."
I said, "okay, where is the email feature on this page?"
He said "click on the mail tab."
I said, "sorry, i don't see a mail tab. which corner is it in?"
He said, "What options do you see there?" I listed a bunch of them.
He told me to sign out, then sent me to a new website
I asked, "Do i log in as P~ again?" Yes.
I got an "Invalid password" message.
He said, "Please use P~ there and password of this account."
This time I got "Invalid email" message. Tried again and it worked, must have typed it wrong.
He said, "check your email folders."
I said, "it says i have no emails in my inbox" and added: "well this is a new email address i have not ever used. it was kind of forced upon me. what i want to use is the email i have had for the past 7 years, which is gwenfoss@netrek.net. currently it will receive but can't send. this need to be configured to send."
He said, what email client am I using? (Boy, if I were a computer newbie that would be too much freakin' jargon.)
I said Eudora. (Part of me knew that at this point I knew he would say that he can't help me with Eudora).
He said, "I need to inform you that we do not have any tools to configure your e-mail client in Eudora, However I will provide you all the settings to configure the e-mail account."
He then said, "You need to use the SMTP server of AT&T and POP server of your "gwenfoss@netrek.net""
I said, "not good enough. i was promised that my old email would still work after you took over my DSL account. I did not sign up for ATT. this has to be fixed."
He came back with, "Please note down the SMTP server address: smtp.att.yahoo.com"
I said, "yes, that is the setting i have."
He said, "And for further information we have a dedicated department for this Support+. Please call us at: 877-831-2880. They will provide you all the information and help you out."
I said, "no, i was already on the phone for 2 hours with them." (After this conversation I realized this is the heavenly "fee-based" Level 3 support that I had not yet tried.)
He said, "I apologize for the inconvenience caused to you. I am sorry, we do not have any tools to provide you all the information on this. Please contact them, they will help you out."
I said, "okay, i guess i'll try them again. Expletive deleted. bye for now."
Talked to this guy over half an hour. No effin' help.
7:30pm
ATT's customer service survey popped up on my screen, which I filled out. It was only two questions and a comment. I gave both questions a NO, then put in comments: "Ongoing problem. Changing settings in email software so it can send and receive. I did not sign up for DSL from ATT. You took over my DSL without my consent. Now email will receive but not send."
I tried to type more into the comments field but it would only erase my text after that, so I assume the box had a character limit in force.
7:35 pm
I called the tech support number that Ryan had given me, 877-831-2880, got the same stinking a phone maze, and it said, for DSL support, hang up and dial 1-800-288-2020, but I just ignored that and pressed 1 for "advanced technical support." Got put on hold.
7:45 pm
I heard sound of a phone ringing and got a live human after about 10 rings. I could not understand her name, India accent. I gave her my name, phone, zip code, and so forth, and we discussed the problem, and she said it would be a $99 fee. (I'll admit, I was expecting $30 or $40, not $100!) but get this: she promised their techs could fix it. She actually used the word "promise."
I argued about the fee and lost. She took my cc info. Back on hold.
7:53 pm
She said we had to wait for a ticket number. While waiting for a ticket number, she read me the list of rules that she said she was required to read to me. I did not jot them all down, but these two stood out:
1) I am liable for any lost data, etc, if I proceed to this service.
2) Even if they can't fix it they will still bill me $99 for this service.
(First she promised they could fix it, then said it would be $99, then said if they can't fix it, it's still $99?? If this is not illegal it should be.)
Well, this is when I hit the roof and started yelling. Problem ongoing for weeks, I did not sign up for this, I was promised my email would work, ATT slammed my DSL, been on the phone already for hours trying to get it fixed, and so on. I also said that I know it's not her fault, she's not a supervisor, and so on. She said she is required to say all the rules. I pointed out again that she just promised me they could fix it, then said, maybe we can't, but it's $99 either way (!).
Well, since I can't fix this mess myself, I said let's go ahead, and she gave me a ticket number and said to give that to the technician when they come on the line. She added that if I need to call her back, the number is 888-930-3330. She then said, please stay on the line and put me on hold.
7:58 pm
On hold. Wow, but they have some really crappy primitive on-hold music!
8:42 pm
After being on hold for 44 minutes (!) I finally got to the $99-tech, whom I shall call A~. She asked for my ticket number, asked me the problem, and by now I had it down to three words: "Eudora won't send."
Tech A~ had me launch Internet Explorer, go to a specific website, put in a code number, and download a utility called "Premium Support" that allowed her to see my desktop on her desktop and take control of my mouse, etc.
I watched as she looked at Eudora, tried to send email, no go, looked at the browser, checked some settings under Windows Device Manager and Intel Network Connector, which were all normal, I assume, since she changed nothing.
8:48 pm
Tech A~ again looked at Eudora, spent a few minutes looking at all the settings, said she was not familiar with Eudora but would try to figure the problem out, put me on hold, said she was going to find a tech who understands Eudora, came back and said she thinks it's a port problem, and I watched as she checked the port settings in Eudora, making all the changes I had already tried, then trying new settings.
9:02 pm
Tech still "looking around" my computer, made changes to the SSL settings (Secure Socket Layer, a security wall), still no go, changed it back, still no go. She then said she has just learned that a lot of other people have had the same problem.
9:06pm
A~ said another customer who also uses Eudora tried all sorts of instructions but never found a solution, said Eudora "does not like" the SSL that ATT uses. She continued to try possible solutions, kept trying to send an email with Eudora but just got error messages. She then said she was going to write down and investigate the error message more closely. She checked the SSL Certificate Information Manager, clicked on a certificate, tried several times to solve the problem that the certificate was not being authenticated, and so on.
9:16 pm
Tech A~ imported a certificate, tried many other settings, tried changes to certificates and SSL and a slew of other settings. Still no go.
9:23 pm
More attempts to fix, then she tried logging in to yahoo mail using my Netrek name and password, no go, she changed the port settings again, no go.
9:32 pm
Tech A~ started explaining to me why the incoming mail still worked but the outgoing mail did not work, but stopped herself in the middle as if she had a new idea, and made more changes to the settings. Next she theorized that the problem was with the web-based part (Yahoo), in that she did not know how to "connect" Yahoo to 2020comm (my old internet service provider) or Netrek (my old email domain name). I said I also have an ATT email handle and why don't we try that. She entered that into the Eudora settings, and also the password for that, then put me back on hold.
9:40 pm
I saw my mouse moving around by itself again, and watched as she checked all the settings, tried to send an email, no go, she pinged the ATT server, looks like that worked, continued to try different settings.
9:46 pm
As I watched her move my mouse around I asked about the old router / new router, and she said the router is not the issue; the problem she's currently trying to solve is getting the SSL settings in Eudora to update or recognize or something like that. Eudora doesn't seem to have standard SSL but something called TSL, perhaps it's an old version of SSL that is too old to function, or something like that.
9:52 pm
I watched as tech A~ followed links from Eudora to OpenSSL online, I assume in an attempt to find upgrade info or a fix, no go, she then said that I have a 10 year old version of Eudora and she could set up Outlook for me. (Oh, yes, I knew she was going to tell me to use Outlook!!) I explained that I have used Outlook in the past and really hated it, it was very hard to use, but told her to go ahead and set it up for me, let's see if it works.
9:58 pm
I watched as she set up my ATT email with my "real name" and it worked fine, then she set up the Netrek email to see if it would work, put in my old ISP server name, no go, I looked through my old notes from when I set up Eudora, found a different email server, she put that in and by golly it worked! She then set up Outlook to handle my ATT email and my Netrek email and put them all into the same inbox, or at least that's what I expected would happen.
10:16 pm
I told tech A~ that I had been promised a solution, not only prior to today, but earlier today, by ATT personnel, and that after I was told of the $99 fee, I was then told, by the same ATT person, that even if they can't fix it, it's still $99. A~ said she would be happy to transfer me to sales so I could let them know that their own personnel are making impossible promises because Eudora is simply incompatible with ATT email, and they can't support Eudora or fix the problem, the problem (apparently) lies with the SSL in Eudora.
10:36 pm
Tech A~ said, "Sorry it took so long, nothing else I can do for you." I thanked her for trying her best. She transferred me to sales. I went on hold at 10:37 pm.
10:44 pm
I got to a live human (India accent) who asked for my ticket number, which I gave, he said he was a sales rep for "Connect-Tech," then I explained the problem, in that ATT continued to promise me they would fix my email and they simply are unable to, and that they should not be making this promise, especially to Eudora users.
He said he can't give me a refund of my $99 but he would ask the supervisor for permission to give me a refund. I also asked what to do with the duplicate modem, he said he can't help me with that, put me on hold, 10:51 pm.
10:53 pm
When he came back to the phone I told him that, legally speaking, if a company is liable, the fact that they say they're not liable doesn't make them not liable, they're still liable. He said the best he can do is give me full credit for the $99 fee, then charge me a $29 fee instead, thus giving me a $70 reduction on the fee, which he termed a "partial refund." That still stinks, but I agreed to take the partial refund.
He then gave me a transaction number (order reference number) for the current charge, and also gave me the transaction number (order reference number) for the original $99 charge.
10:59 pm
Call ended. Counting from my first contact today with ATT via the chat line, that makes four hours and five minutes total time spent on this today.
---0---
Date: January 8, 2010
The next morning, after the day I spent four hours on the phone with ATT, during which they supposedly set up Outlook for me, guess what? Outlook is not sending or receiving my Netrek mail.
Expletives!
---0---
Date: January 9, 2010
A moment of silence for my dead email, thank you.
It is no wonder that consumers like myself who are treated like dirt by these giant, faceless, multi-national, evil corporations (with the exception of Tech A~ who was super) are taking their business elsewhere.
---0---
Please help a starving bookdealer.
Sincerely yours,
Gwen Foss
---0---
. . . More on how AT&T slammed my DSL and made my email cease to function.
My DSL (high-speed internet connection) was slammed by AT&T (taken over without my permission) on or about November 23, 2009. The minute it was slammed I had no internet connection. Two days later ATT's robot said my "new service" was "up" and it wasn't. That day I spent two hours on the phone with ATT pinheads getting my connection back up, but my email still did not work.
(See my post on November 28, 2009 for more on this 2-hour phone call.)
Well, time passed, the holidays came and went, and I tackled the problem again on January 7, 2010.
This time I was on the phone with them for over four hours (well, in a chat room for half an hour, then on the phone for three and a half hours).
And guess what? It still does not work. Not only that, but the workaround that the Level 3 tech set up for me does not work, either.
Date: January 7, 2010
Start Time: 6:54 pm
I went to the online tech support chatroom that was emailed to me by AT&T to talk to an AT&T tech person to try to solve my email problem again.
Talked to Ryan. I said: "Hello, Ryan. I am a DSL customer and I was told I would be able to use the email address I have had for seven years, but can't get it to send."
He said, "Ms. Foss, I am sorry you are experiencing this issue and will be happy to assist you. Do not worry, I will provide you all the information. Do you have AT&T provided e-mail address?"
I said, "yes, I do, and I have already tried to set it up, but missing something in the settings."
He said, "Ms. Foss, what is your e-mail address?" I gave him the ATT email address I had just set up, that I never had any intention of using, which I shall refer to as "P~".
He said, "I will provide you all the information" and asked me for the answer to my security questions. I answered.
He sent me to a website and told me to log in. I said, "Okay, but it wants my yahoo ID. Am I giving it my yahoo name or my ATT name?"
He said, "No, please use your AT&T provided e-mail address." I did so.
"Are you able to login there?" Yes.
"Now try to send a test e-mail to your own e-mail address and let me know the result."
I said, "okay, where is the email feature on this page?"
He said "click on the mail tab."
I said, "sorry, i don't see a mail tab. which corner is it in?"
He said, "What options do you see there?" I listed a bunch of them.
He told me to sign out, then sent me to a new website
I asked, "Do i log in as P~ again?" Yes.
I got an "Invalid password" message.
He said, "Please use P~ there and password of this account."
This time I got "Invalid email" message. Tried again and it worked, must have typed it wrong.
He said, "check your email folders."
I said, "it says i have no emails in my inbox" and added: "well this is a new email address i have not ever used. it was kind of forced upon me. what i want to use is the email i have had for the past 7 years, which is gwenfoss@netrek.net. currently it will receive but can't send. this need to be configured to send."
He said, what email client am I using? (Boy, if I were a computer newbie that would be too much freakin' jargon.)
I said Eudora. (Part of me knew that at this point I knew he would say that he can't help me with Eudora).
He said, "I need to inform you that we do not have any tools to configure your e-mail client in Eudora, However I will provide you all the settings to configure the e-mail account."
He then said, "You need to use the SMTP server of AT&T and POP server of your "gwenfoss@netrek.net""
I said, "not good enough. i was promised that my old email would still work after you took over my DSL account. I did not sign up for ATT. this has to be fixed."
He came back with, "Please note down the SMTP server address: smtp.att.yahoo.com"
I said, "yes, that is the setting i have."
He said, "And for further information we have a dedicated department for this Support+. Please call us at: 877-831-2880. They will provide you all the information and help you out."
I said, "no, i was already on the phone for 2 hours with them." (After this conversation I realized this is the heavenly "fee-based" Level 3 support that I had not yet tried.)
He said, "I apologize for the inconvenience caused to you. I am sorry, we do not have any tools to provide you all the information on this. Please contact them, they will help you out."
I said, "okay, i guess i'll try them again. Expletive deleted. bye for now."
Talked to this guy over half an hour. No effin' help.
7:30pm
ATT's customer service survey popped up on my screen, which I filled out. It was only two questions and a comment. I gave both questions a NO, then put in comments: "Ongoing problem. Changing settings in email software so it can send and receive. I did not sign up for DSL from ATT. You took over my DSL without my consent. Now email will receive but not send."
I tried to type more into the comments field but it would only erase my text after that, so I assume the box had a character limit in force.
7:35 pm
I called the tech support number that Ryan had given me, 877-831-2880, got the same stinking a phone maze, and it said, for DSL support, hang up and dial 1-800-288-2020, but I just ignored that and pressed 1 for "advanced technical support." Got put on hold.
7:45 pm
I heard sound of a phone ringing and got a live human after about 10 rings. I could not understand her name, India accent. I gave her my name, phone, zip code, and so forth, and we discussed the problem, and she said it would be a $99 fee. (I'll admit, I was expecting $30 or $40, not $100!) but get this: she promised their techs could fix it. She actually used the word "promise."
I argued about the fee and lost. She took my cc info. Back on hold.
7:53 pm
She said we had to wait for a ticket number. While waiting for a ticket number, she read me the list of rules that she said she was required to read to me. I did not jot them all down, but these two stood out:
1) I am liable for any lost data, etc, if I proceed to this service.
2) Even if they can't fix it they will still bill me $99 for this service.
(First she promised they could fix it, then said it would be $99, then said if they can't fix it, it's still $99?? If this is not illegal it should be.)
Well, this is when I hit the roof and started yelling. Problem ongoing for weeks, I did not sign up for this, I was promised my email would work, ATT slammed my DSL, been on the phone already for hours trying to get it fixed, and so on. I also said that I know it's not her fault, she's not a supervisor, and so on. She said she is required to say all the rules. I pointed out again that she just promised me they could fix it, then said, maybe we can't, but it's $99 either way (!).
Well, since I can't fix this mess myself, I said let's go ahead, and she gave me a ticket number and said to give that to the technician when they come on the line. She added that if I need to call her back, the number is 888-930-3330. She then said, please stay on the line and put me on hold.
7:58 pm
On hold. Wow, but they have some really crappy primitive on-hold music!
8:42 pm
After being on hold for 44 minutes (!) I finally got to the $99-tech, whom I shall call A~. She asked for my ticket number, asked me the problem, and by now I had it down to three words: "Eudora won't send."
Tech A~ had me launch Internet Explorer, go to a specific website, put in a code number, and download a utility called "Premium Support" that allowed her to see my desktop on her desktop and take control of my mouse, etc.
I watched as she looked at Eudora, tried to send email, no go, looked at the browser, checked some settings under Windows Device Manager and Intel Network Connector, which were all normal, I assume, since she changed nothing.
8:48 pm
Tech A~ again looked at Eudora, spent a few minutes looking at all the settings, said she was not familiar with Eudora but would try to figure the problem out, put me on hold, said she was going to find a tech who understands Eudora, came back and said she thinks it's a port problem, and I watched as she checked the port settings in Eudora, making all the changes I had already tried, then trying new settings.
9:02 pm
Tech still "looking around" my computer, made changes to the SSL settings (Secure Socket Layer, a security wall), still no go, changed it back, still no go. She then said she has just learned that a lot of other people have had the same problem.
9:06pm
A~ said another customer who also uses Eudora tried all sorts of instructions but never found a solution, said Eudora "does not like" the SSL that ATT uses. She continued to try possible solutions, kept trying to send an email with Eudora but just got error messages. She then said she was going to write down and investigate the error message more closely. She checked the SSL Certificate Information Manager, clicked on a certificate, tried several times to solve the problem that the certificate was not being authenticated, and so on.
9:16 pm
Tech A~ imported a certificate, tried many other settings, tried changes to certificates and SSL and a slew of other settings. Still no go.
9:23 pm
More attempts to fix, then she tried logging in to yahoo mail using my Netrek name and password, no go, she changed the port settings again, no go.
9:32 pm
Tech A~ started explaining to me why the incoming mail still worked but the outgoing mail did not work, but stopped herself in the middle as if she had a new idea, and made more changes to the settings. Next she theorized that the problem was with the web-based part (Yahoo), in that she did not know how to "connect" Yahoo to 2020comm (my old internet service provider) or Netrek (my old email domain name). I said I also have an ATT email handle and why don't we try that. She entered that into the Eudora settings, and also the password for that, then put me back on hold.
9:40 pm
I saw my mouse moving around by itself again, and watched as she checked all the settings, tried to send an email, no go, she pinged the ATT server, looks like that worked, continued to try different settings.
9:46 pm
As I watched her move my mouse around I asked about the old router / new router, and she said the router is not the issue; the problem she's currently trying to solve is getting the SSL settings in Eudora to update or recognize or something like that. Eudora doesn't seem to have standard SSL but something called TSL, perhaps it's an old version of SSL that is too old to function, or something like that.
9:52 pm
I watched as tech A~ followed links from Eudora to OpenSSL online, I assume in an attempt to find upgrade info or a fix, no go, she then said that I have a 10 year old version of Eudora and she could set up Outlook for me. (Oh, yes, I knew she was going to tell me to use Outlook!!) I explained that I have used Outlook in the past and really hated it, it was very hard to use, but told her to go ahead and set it up for me, let's see if it works.
9:58 pm
I watched as she set up my ATT email with my "real name" and it worked fine, then she set up the Netrek email to see if it would work, put in my old ISP server name, no go, I looked through my old notes from when I set up Eudora, found a different email server, she put that in and by golly it worked! She then set up Outlook to handle my ATT email and my Netrek email and put them all into the same inbox, or at least that's what I expected would happen.
10:16 pm
I told tech A~ that I had been promised a solution, not only prior to today, but earlier today, by ATT personnel, and that after I was told of the $99 fee, I was then told, by the same ATT person, that even if they can't fix it, it's still $99. A~ said she would be happy to transfer me to sales so I could let them know that their own personnel are making impossible promises because Eudora is simply incompatible with ATT email, and they can't support Eudora or fix the problem, the problem (apparently) lies with the SSL in Eudora.
10:36 pm
Tech A~ said, "Sorry it took so long, nothing else I can do for you." I thanked her for trying her best. She transferred me to sales. I went on hold at 10:37 pm.
10:44 pm
I got to a live human (India accent) who asked for my ticket number, which I gave, he said he was a sales rep for "Connect-Tech," then I explained the problem, in that ATT continued to promise me they would fix my email and they simply are unable to, and that they should not be making this promise, especially to Eudora users.
He said he can't give me a refund of my $99 but he would ask the supervisor for permission to give me a refund. I also asked what to do with the duplicate modem, he said he can't help me with that, put me on hold, 10:51 pm.
10:53 pm
When he came back to the phone I told him that, legally speaking, if a company is liable, the fact that they say they're not liable doesn't make them not liable, they're still liable. He said the best he can do is give me full credit for the $99 fee, then charge me a $29 fee instead, thus giving me a $70 reduction on the fee, which he termed a "partial refund." That still stinks, but I agreed to take the partial refund.
He then gave me a transaction number (order reference number) for the current charge, and also gave me the transaction number (order reference number) for the original $99 charge.
10:59 pm
Call ended. Counting from my first contact today with ATT via the chat line, that makes four hours and five minutes total time spent on this today.
---0---
Date: January 8, 2010
The next morning, after the day I spent four hours on the phone with ATT, during which they supposedly set up Outlook for me, guess what? Outlook is not sending or receiving my Netrek mail.
Expletives!
---0---
Date: January 9, 2010
A moment of silence for my dead email, thank you.
It is no wonder that consumers like myself who are treated like dirt by these giant, faceless, multi-national, evil corporations (with the exception of Tech A~ who was super) are taking their business elsewhere.
---0---
Please help a starving bookdealer.
Sincerely yours,
Gwen Foss
---0---
21 December 2009
9 Stupid Customer Stories
. . . Sent in by your cheerful, anonymous used-book dealers from around the world.
1. Customer ordered via Amazon. Spelled his own last name two different ways. Gave the wrong city in his address. Gave the wrong phone number. Title of book ordered: The Story of Stupidity.
2. I was in a friend's bookshop one day when a customer came in and asked for a specific title, which was available, brand new, for £3 or some such. The customer exuded great delight and said he had been looking for that book for years, but that he would buy it next time round.
3. From the chief of sales at a music publishing company: "I had a customer once who wanted some flute parts, but wasn't sure to what. So she suggested that I read off our entire catalog one at a time for her to then decide if she wanted that title or not. I was flabbergasted and responded that we had over 10,000 titles."
4. Customer wrote to say, "So far I have not received the book. I guess it is still within 14 day window. But it ranks as one of the slower shipments from an Amazon bookseller. I bought a book last Thursday night that was shipped on Friday. I got the book on Tuesday from Florida." Oh, by the way, the book he ordered was Shut Up, Stop Whining, and Get a Life. I hope it helps.
5. Customer ordered a book, received it, returned it and said it was "the wrong book." This customer had all the following initials after his name, which he put on his order form: M.S., Ph.D., M.P.H., M.A., M.S.B.S. The book he ordered by mistake: Scientific Blunders: A Brief History of How Wrong Scientists Can Sometimes Be.
6. Customer in India, ordered the book to be sent from the US by Economy Rate Shipping (via the slow boat, known to take from 1 to 3 months or longer). After seven days, he emailed anxiously: "I ordered my book on 9/7. When is my book due to arrive?????????" Title ordered: Behavior Modification: What It Is and How to Do It. Think he needs that book?
7. Dealer joked: "We are thinking about putting in a link to Literacy Volunteers for those people who seem to be unable to read our data entries. The latest example is 'a 1/2" x 2" light brown stain on the front free endpaper.' The question is, 'How large is the stain?'"
8. I had a field guide to butterflies returned because the customer complained the pictures were too small. Only problem, all the butterflies were pictured life-size.
9. Customer on Amazon, left 2 out of 5 feedback for the dealer, saying, "My order was for a hard cover I received a soft cover." The dealer replied: "You may still return an item for any reason to [address deleted]. This buyer did neither, and wants both the book and the refund. It is somewhat entertaining, as the book's subject is 'forgiveness.'"
---0---
Browse used books, periodicals and paper ephemera from reputable, independent dealers at TomFolio.com
---0---
. . . Sent in by your cheerful, anonymous used-book dealers from around the world.
1. Customer ordered via Amazon. Spelled his own last name two different ways. Gave the wrong city in his address. Gave the wrong phone number. Title of book ordered: The Story of Stupidity.
2. I was in a friend's bookshop one day when a customer came in and asked for a specific title, which was available, brand new, for £3 or some such. The customer exuded great delight and said he had been looking for that book for years, but that he would buy it next time round.
3. From the chief of sales at a music publishing company: "I had a customer once who wanted some flute parts, but wasn't sure to what. So she suggested that I read off our entire catalog one at a time for her to then decide if she wanted that title or not. I was flabbergasted and responded that we had over 10,000 titles."
4. Customer wrote to say, "So far I have not received the book. I guess it is still within 14 day window. But it ranks as one of the slower shipments from an Amazon bookseller. I bought a book last Thursday night that was shipped on Friday. I got the book on Tuesday from Florida." Oh, by the way, the book he ordered was Shut Up, Stop Whining, and Get a Life. I hope it helps.
5. Customer ordered a book, received it, returned it and said it was "the wrong book." This customer had all the following initials after his name, which he put on his order form: M.S., Ph.D., M.P.H., M.A., M.S.B.S. The book he ordered by mistake: Scientific Blunders: A Brief History of How Wrong Scientists Can Sometimes Be.
6. Customer in India, ordered the book to be sent from the US by Economy Rate Shipping (via the slow boat, known to take from 1 to 3 months or longer). After seven days, he emailed anxiously: "I ordered my book on 9/7. When is my book due to arrive?????????" Title ordered: Behavior Modification: What It Is and How to Do It. Think he needs that book?
7. Dealer joked: "We are thinking about putting in a link to Literacy Volunteers for those people who seem to be unable to read our data entries. The latest example is 'a 1/2" x 2" light brown stain on the front free endpaper.' The question is, 'How large is the stain?'"
8. I had a field guide to butterflies returned because the customer complained the pictures were too small. Only problem, all the butterflies were pictured life-size.
9. Customer on Amazon, left 2 out of 5 feedback for the dealer, saying, "My order was for a hard cover I received a soft cover." The dealer replied: "You may still return an item for any reason to [address deleted]. This buyer did neither, and wants both the book and the refund. It is somewhat entertaining, as the book's subject is 'forgiveness.'"
---0---
Browse used books, periodicals and paper ephemera from reputable, independent dealers at TomFolio.com
---0---
22 November 2009
92 Types of Payment
. . . "First, I charge a retainer; then I charge a reminder; next I charge a refresher; and then I charge a finisher." — attorney Judah P. Benjamin (1811–1884)
Who knows why we have special words for all these different things? They are all payments. English is strange and fun.
1. account. a pool of money, such as that belonging to one person and held by a bank on that person's behalf.
2. ad valorem or advalorem duty. an import duty proportional to the value assessed by customs.
3. agio. fee for currency exchange.
4. allowance. a small amount of spending money given weekly by parents to their children.
5. alms. money given to the poor.
6. amercement. a legal fine or penalty. Feudal era.
7. auction scrip. Originated in the 1930s by Donald F. Cochrane of Hartford, Michigan as a "newspaper stunt" in which the scrip was given out by merchants to customers who made purchases, then it was announced that the scrip would be the only legal tender for a public auction on Christmas Eve of merchandise from participating merchants. A successful scheme which was then copied elsewhere.
8. balance. amount remaining in a specific fund, or amount of a debt yet to be paid off.
9. banalities. fees paid to a lord for use of his gristmill, winepress, or similar equipment. Feudal era.
10. bribe. money paid secretly or illegally, often involving a government official, for secret or illegal services.
11. capital gains tax. percentage paid to government on profit made by buying and selling stocks or other valuables.
12. charge card. similar to a credit card but the bearer is not allowed to have a balance and must pay the full amount due each month. For example, American Express is a charge card, not a credit card.
13. check card. similar to a credit card but the money is deducted immediately from the bearer's checking account rather than being loaned to the bearer.
14. chevage. tax collected by the lord of a manor from peasants who lived outside the manor. Feudal era.
15. chit. general term for a piece of paper or card holding some value for exchange.
16. collection. term in the Roman Catholic church for money taken up by the church from worshipers during a worship service.
17. commission. 1) fee for services rendered, taken out of money gained. 2) euphemism for bribe.
18. contribution. 1) donation. 2) euphemism for bribe paid by a company to a government official.
19. coordinated deductible. deductible that is not paid until a separate company ponies up some of the money.
20. corrody. payment in the form of food and drink, and sometimes a room or other goods, paid by an abbot (church official) for services rendered.
21. credit card. card used in a system by which the bearer borrows money from a credit company in order to make purchases. Credit companies issue cards to consumers, set their interest rates, and charge fees to merchants who accept credit card payments.
22. damages. fee paid by person found guilty of a crime.
23. Danegeld. tax levied to fight off Danish invasion of England. Anglo-Saxon era.
24. deductible. a term in the insurance business; it is the amount of money the customer must first pay on a claim before the insurance company will pay.
25. deposit. 1) amount of money one puts into one's bank account. 2) amount of money less than the price of the item, paid to a merchant in order for the merchant to hold the item for the customer.
26. ding. slang term for any fee, deductible, surcharge, etc, forced on an innocent consumer by a corporation such as a bank, credit card company, or merchant account service. (Example: The bank dinged me for two overdraft fees.)
27. distraint. seizure of goods for nonpayment of rent (UK); also called forfeiture.
28. distress. another word for distraint.
29. dividend. a percentage of money invested paid to the investor.
30. donation. money given freely to an organization that performs public services or good works. Also called a charitable donation.
31. duty. fee paid on an item when moving it across the border from one country into another; it supposedly takes the place of the tax you would have paid if you had purchased the item within the country.
32. entry fee. payment by a tenant for admission to a holding. Feudal era.
33. expense or expenses. general term for money that must be paid out to keep the company running: expenses include office rent, worker salaries, cost of paper clips, etc.
34. farm bureau issue. a highly successful form of emergency currency issued and hand signed by the president and secretary of the farm bureau of Millington, Michigan, in 1933.
35. fee. general term for any additional payment required by a government, a merchant, an organizations, etc.
36. forfeiture. seizure of goods for nonpayment of rent (US); also called distraint.
37. fund. general term for an amount of money held for a specific purpose.
38. geldum. another term for tax. Pre-Norman England.
39. gersuma. fee paid to a lord on entering a holding. Feudal era.
40. guerdon. reward.
41. heriot. payment, usually in the form of the best specimen of livestock, made to a manor-lord at the time of death of a tenant, paid by the family of the tenant. Compare mortuary. Feudal era.
42. income tax. taxes paid to the government based on a person's income. Became part of the US Constitution with the 16th Amendment.
43. interest. 1) additional amount paid on a loan, over and above the value of the loan. 2) money earned on an investment.
44. jeton (French: jeter = to push). a small coin-like item used as a counter in making calculations. Called Rechenpfennig (REKH-en-pfen-ikh, reckoning pennies) in Germany. Made of bone, glass, metal, etc. In olden days, metal ones were struck like coins, usually decorated with an ownership mark, coat of arms, religious symbol, etc, but never with a denomination (value) or date. They were large and flat enough to stack well.
45. kola. bribe.
46. levy. 1) a tax. 2) a seizure of property taken to recover back taxes.
47. loan. money given from an individual or lending institution, to another individual or organization, who agrees to pay it back over time, with or without interest.
48. medkniche. fee paid by the haymaker to the lord of the manor, determined by how much hay the hayward (official in charge of haying) can lift to his knees with his middle finger. Feudal era.
49. millage. a type of property tax increase that goes to pay for schools, libraries, or other public services. A "mill" is one-thousandth of a dollar, or one-tenth of a penny; a "millage" is usually an increase of a very small percentage.
50. mortuary. gift given to the parish priest from the estate of a deceased parishioner, usually being the second best specimen of livestock. Compare heriot. Feudal era.
51. minimum order fee. amount added to your order to meet the minimum order amount.
52. mita. payment in the form of public service. Inca empire.
53. multure. gristmill tax. Scotland and feudal England.
54. offering or offertory. term used in most Protestant churches for money taken up by the church from worshipers during a worship service.
55. overhead. euphemism for business expenses.
56. overplus. extra amount over the base or balance.
57. pannage. payment made to a lord for the right of feeding livestock in the lord's forest. Feudal era.
58. payoff. 1) bribe. 2) payment.
59. payola. bribe paid to DJs for playing certain bands or songs on their radio programs. 1960s-1970s term.
60. payout. money spent from a fund.
61. pension. monthly amount paid by a company to retired workers who completed certain qualifications, such as 20 years with the company.
62. pittance. 1) donation to a religious community that has taken vows of poverty. 2) any amount so small it is useless.
63. presentations. payment for fishing rights. Pre-Norman England.
64. profit. general term for any amount of money achieved by buying low and selling high: for example, buying a used LP record for $1 and selling it for $5 results in a net profit of $4. (Gross profit is total profit regardless of expenses; net profit is profit after subtracting expenses.)
65. promissory note. a card or slip of paper written by one individual to the person s/he has borrowed money from, promising to pay the amount back. Also called an I.O.U.
66. prosperity certificate or prosperity scrip. a form of scrip issued by the federal treasury, similar to the trade dollars issued in Howell, Michigan.
67. protection. a type of bribe in which the victim pays a bully, gangster, or thug an amount of money rather than getting beaten up.
68. rate. general term for an amount.
69. reimbursement. money paid after the fact when an amount is necessarily paid out to obtain a specific item or service.
70. relief. a type of death tax: a fee paid by the heir of a vassal to his lord for the privilege of inheriting the vassal's estate. Feudal era.
71. rent. amount paid to a landlord for the privilege of living in his/her property.
72. replevin. recovery by legal mean of goods unlawfully taken from a person.
73. revenue. income; often refers to money collected via taxes.
74. salary. amount earned by a worker regardless of hours worked. Most executive jobs are salaried jobs. The opposite is a wage.
75. scale. general term for wage and/or salary amounts designated by a union. To be paid scale means to be paid the lowest possible amount on the scale according to the job you are doing.
76. scrip. a certificate representing currency, issued in lieu of government currency. Most often used in emergency situations for temporary payment.
77. scutage. fee paid by a knight in order to be excused from military service. Also called a shield tax.
78. settlement. general term for the end result of a lawsuit or legal proceeding; some settlements involve payment of some form.
79. shield tax. another name for scutage.
80. simony. amount paid for the purchase of a religious benefice or indulgence.
81. surcharge. general term for a fee added onto an existing fee.
82. surtax. 1) general term for a tax added onto an existing tax. 2) income tax.
83. tallage. tax paid by serfs to their manorial lord. Feudal era.
84. tariff. a tax paid by merchants who import goods.
85. tax. general term for any money required by the government, usually relating to specific goods or services, and usually determined by a percentage. Types include sales tax, income tax, property tax, television tax, estate tax, and capital gains tax.
86. toll. 1) fee for the privilege of using a private road. 2) fee paid to one's lord for the privilege of selling one's livestock. Feudal era.
87. trade dollar / trade scrip / stamp scrip / stamp money / prosperity scrip. a form of emergency currency invented by the Chamber of Commerce of Howell, Michigan in 1933. The unique feature was that the scrip lost value if it was not spent. Dollars were given away free at first, by participating merchants, who gave out one trade dollar for every $5 worth of goods purchased. If the individual who received it did not spend it within 3 days, s/he had to purchase a 2-cent stamp (also issued by the Chamber of Commerce) and affix it to the scrip. After one trade dollar had been spent 52 times, it had collected $1.04 in stamps and was redeemed for $1.00 in cash. The scheme doubled commerce in Howell and was soon copied by small towns all over Michigan.
88. tranche. a portion of something, usually money. Example: "We're lowering the lowest tranche fee (i.e. for items with a starting price of $0.01 to $0.99) from a quarter to twenty cents." -- eBay, Feb 2006
89. wage. amount earned by a worker who gets paid by the hour. Most jobs requiring little specialized knowledge or skills are wage jobs. The opposite is salary.
90. windfall. government term for any amount of money that comes into one's possession unexpectedly, such as from winning the lottery or having a rich relative die and leave you piles of money.
91. withdrawal. amount of money one takes out of one's bank account.
92. writ of replevin. see replevin.
(Information on auction scrip, farm bureau scrip, prosperity certificates and trade dollars came from Michigan Depression Scrip of the 1930s, by James J. Curto. Reprinted from 'The Numismatist,' copyright 1949. Published by the author, Grosse Pointe, Mich., no date (circa 1960-1970).
---0---
Visit my used book store and get 25% off any order of $50.00 or more (just type 25% in the comments field when you order; your discount will be calculated by me before payment is charged)
Find used books on business, banking, coin collecting or any other topic at TomFolio.com
---0---
. . . "First, I charge a retainer; then I charge a reminder; next I charge a refresher; and then I charge a finisher." — attorney Judah P. Benjamin (1811–1884)
Who knows why we have special words for all these different things? They are all payments. English is strange and fun.
1. account. a pool of money, such as that belonging to one person and held by a bank on that person's behalf.
2. ad valorem or advalorem duty. an import duty proportional to the value assessed by customs.
3. agio. fee for currency exchange.
4. allowance. a small amount of spending money given weekly by parents to their children.
5. alms. money given to the poor.
6. amercement. a legal fine or penalty. Feudal era.
7. auction scrip. Originated in the 1930s by Donald F. Cochrane of Hartford, Michigan as a "newspaper stunt" in which the scrip was given out by merchants to customers who made purchases, then it was announced that the scrip would be the only legal tender for a public auction on Christmas Eve of merchandise from participating merchants. A successful scheme which was then copied elsewhere.
8. balance. amount remaining in a specific fund, or amount of a debt yet to be paid off.
9. banalities. fees paid to a lord for use of his gristmill, winepress, or similar equipment. Feudal era.
10. bribe. money paid secretly or illegally, often involving a government official, for secret or illegal services.
11. capital gains tax. percentage paid to government on profit made by buying and selling stocks or other valuables.
12. charge card. similar to a credit card but the bearer is not allowed to have a balance and must pay the full amount due each month. For example, American Express is a charge card, not a credit card.
13. check card. similar to a credit card but the money is deducted immediately from the bearer's checking account rather than being loaned to the bearer.
14. chevage. tax collected by the lord of a manor from peasants who lived outside the manor. Feudal era.
15. chit. general term for a piece of paper or card holding some value for exchange.
16. collection. term in the Roman Catholic church for money taken up by the church from worshipers during a worship service.
17. commission. 1) fee for services rendered, taken out of money gained. 2) euphemism for bribe.
18. contribution. 1) donation. 2) euphemism for bribe paid by a company to a government official.
19. coordinated deductible. deductible that is not paid until a separate company ponies up some of the money.
20. corrody. payment in the form of food and drink, and sometimes a room or other goods, paid by an abbot (church official) for services rendered.
21. credit card. card used in a system by which the bearer borrows money from a credit company in order to make purchases. Credit companies issue cards to consumers, set their interest rates, and charge fees to merchants who accept credit card payments.
22. damages. fee paid by person found guilty of a crime.
23. Danegeld. tax levied to fight off Danish invasion of England. Anglo-Saxon era.
24. deductible. a term in the insurance business; it is the amount of money the customer must first pay on a claim before the insurance company will pay.
25. deposit. 1) amount of money one puts into one's bank account. 2) amount of money less than the price of the item, paid to a merchant in order for the merchant to hold the item for the customer.
26. ding. slang term for any fee, deductible, surcharge, etc, forced on an innocent consumer by a corporation such as a bank, credit card company, or merchant account service. (Example: The bank dinged me for two overdraft fees.)
27. distraint. seizure of goods for nonpayment of rent (UK); also called forfeiture.
28. distress. another word for distraint.
29. dividend. a percentage of money invested paid to the investor.
30. donation. money given freely to an organization that performs public services or good works. Also called a charitable donation.
31. duty. fee paid on an item when moving it across the border from one country into another; it supposedly takes the place of the tax you would have paid if you had purchased the item within the country.
32. entry fee. payment by a tenant for admission to a holding. Feudal era.
33. expense or expenses. general term for money that must be paid out to keep the company running: expenses include office rent, worker salaries, cost of paper clips, etc.
34. farm bureau issue. a highly successful form of emergency currency issued and hand signed by the president and secretary of the farm bureau of Millington, Michigan, in 1933.
35. fee. general term for any additional payment required by a government, a merchant, an organizations, etc.
36. forfeiture. seizure of goods for nonpayment of rent (US); also called distraint.
37. fund. general term for an amount of money held for a specific purpose.
38. geldum. another term for tax. Pre-Norman England.
39. gersuma. fee paid to a lord on entering a holding. Feudal era.
40. guerdon. reward.
41. heriot. payment, usually in the form of the best specimen of livestock, made to a manor-lord at the time of death of a tenant, paid by the family of the tenant. Compare mortuary. Feudal era.
42. income tax. taxes paid to the government based on a person's income. Became part of the US Constitution with the 16th Amendment.
43. interest. 1) additional amount paid on a loan, over and above the value of the loan. 2) money earned on an investment.
44. jeton (French: jeter = to push). a small coin-like item used as a counter in making calculations. Called Rechenpfennig (REKH-en-pfen-ikh, reckoning pennies) in Germany. Made of bone, glass, metal, etc. In olden days, metal ones were struck like coins, usually decorated with an ownership mark, coat of arms, religious symbol, etc, but never with a denomination (value) or date. They were large and flat enough to stack well.
45. kola. bribe.
46. levy. 1) a tax. 2) a seizure of property taken to recover back taxes.
47. loan. money given from an individual or lending institution, to another individual or organization, who agrees to pay it back over time, with or without interest.
48. medkniche. fee paid by the haymaker to the lord of the manor, determined by how much hay the hayward (official in charge of haying) can lift to his knees with his middle finger. Feudal era.
49. millage. a type of property tax increase that goes to pay for schools, libraries, or other public services. A "mill" is one-thousandth of a dollar, or one-tenth of a penny; a "millage" is usually an increase of a very small percentage.
50. mortuary. gift given to the parish priest from the estate of a deceased parishioner, usually being the second best specimen of livestock. Compare heriot. Feudal era.
51. minimum order fee. amount added to your order to meet the minimum order amount.
52. mita. payment in the form of public service. Inca empire.
53. multure. gristmill tax. Scotland and feudal England.
54. offering or offertory. term used in most Protestant churches for money taken up by the church from worshipers during a worship service.
55. overhead. euphemism for business expenses.
56. overplus. extra amount over the base or balance.
57. pannage. payment made to a lord for the right of feeding livestock in the lord's forest. Feudal era.
58. payoff. 1) bribe. 2) payment.
59. payola. bribe paid to DJs for playing certain bands or songs on their radio programs. 1960s-1970s term.
60. payout. money spent from a fund.
61. pension. monthly amount paid by a company to retired workers who completed certain qualifications, such as 20 years with the company.
62. pittance. 1) donation to a religious community that has taken vows of poverty. 2) any amount so small it is useless.
63. presentations. payment for fishing rights. Pre-Norman England.
64. profit. general term for any amount of money achieved by buying low and selling high: for example, buying a used LP record for $1 and selling it for $5 results in a net profit of $4. (Gross profit is total profit regardless of expenses; net profit is profit after subtracting expenses.)
65. promissory note. a card or slip of paper written by one individual to the person s/he has borrowed money from, promising to pay the amount back. Also called an I.O.U.
66. prosperity certificate or prosperity scrip. a form of scrip issued by the federal treasury, similar to the trade dollars issued in Howell, Michigan.
67. protection. a type of bribe in which the victim pays a bully, gangster, or thug an amount of money rather than getting beaten up.
68. rate. general term for an amount.
69. reimbursement. money paid after the fact when an amount is necessarily paid out to obtain a specific item or service.
70. relief. a type of death tax: a fee paid by the heir of a vassal to his lord for the privilege of inheriting the vassal's estate. Feudal era.
71. rent. amount paid to a landlord for the privilege of living in his/her property.
72. replevin. recovery by legal mean of goods unlawfully taken from a person.
73. revenue. income; often refers to money collected via taxes.
74. salary. amount earned by a worker regardless of hours worked. Most executive jobs are salaried jobs. The opposite is a wage.
75. scale. general term for wage and/or salary amounts designated by a union. To be paid scale means to be paid the lowest possible amount on the scale according to the job you are doing.
76. scrip. a certificate representing currency, issued in lieu of government currency. Most often used in emergency situations for temporary payment.
77. scutage. fee paid by a knight in order to be excused from military service. Also called a shield tax.
78. settlement. general term for the end result of a lawsuit or legal proceeding; some settlements involve payment of some form.
79. shield tax. another name for scutage.
80. simony. amount paid for the purchase of a religious benefice or indulgence.
81. surcharge. general term for a fee added onto an existing fee.
82. surtax. 1) general term for a tax added onto an existing tax. 2) income tax.
83. tallage. tax paid by serfs to their manorial lord. Feudal era.
84. tariff. a tax paid by merchants who import goods.
85. tax. general term for any money required by the government, usually relating to specific goods or services, and usually determined by a percentage. Types include sales tax, income tax, property tax, television tax, estate tax, and capital gains tax.
86. toll. 1) fee for the privilege of using a private road. 2) fee paid to one's lord for the privilege of selling one's livestock. Feudal era.
87. trade dollar / trade scrip / stamp scrip / stamp money / prosperity scrip. a form of emergency currency invented by the Chamber of Commerce of Howell, Michigan in 1933. The unique feature was that the scrip lost value if it was not spent. Dollars were given away free at first, by participating merchants, who gave out one trade dollar for every $5 worth of goods purchased. If the individual who received it did not spend it within 3 days, s/he had to purchase a 2-cent stamp (also issued by the Chamber of Commerce) and affix it to the scrip. After one trade dollar had been spent 52 times, it had collected $1.04 in stamps and was redeemed for $1.00 in cash. The scheme doubled commerce in Howell and was soon copied by small towns all over Michigan.
88. tranche. a portion of something, usually money. Example: "We're lowering the lowest tranche fee (i.e. for items with a starting price of $0.01 to $0.99) from a quarter to twenty cents." -- eBay, Feb 2006
89. wage. amount earned by a worker who gets paid by the hour. Most jobs requiring little specialized knowledge or skills are wage jobs. The opposite is salary.
90. windfall. government term for any amount of money that comes into one's possession unexpectedly, such as from winning the lottery or having a rich relative die and leave you piles of money.
91. withdrawal. amount of money one takes out of one's bank account.
92. writ of replevin. see replevin.
(Information on auction scrip, farm bureau scrip, prosperity certificates and trade dollars came from Michigan Depression Scrip of the 1930s, by James J. Curto. Reprinted from 'The Numismatist,' copyright 1949. Published by the author, Grosse Pointe, Mich., no date (circa 1960-1970).
---0---
Visit my used book store and get 25% off any order of $50.00 or more (just type 25% in the comments field when you order; your discount will be calculated by me before payment is charged)
Find used books on business, banking, coin collecting or any other topic at TomFolio.com
---0---
12 October 2009
Chronology of Used Book Portals on the Internet
I present below a comprehensive list of the many used-book websites that have come and gone since the early days of the internet. That's right, some of these are gone. In other words, there are some dead websites on this list.
Anyway, this list focuses on portals: websites where many used-book dealers list their books in one big database, and where members of the general public can search for and purchase them.
As one who has been selling books on the internet since 1997, I find myself continuously marvelling at how fast these websites spring up, change, grow or die, and all too often get taken over by major corporations that shut them down or transform them from friendly places into venues that I would not even recommend to someone I don't like.
Each portal is listed in chronological order under the year they were launched, revamped, or closed. Under each year the sites are listed alphabetically.
Please note: The earliest multi-dealer used-book portals listed below were not websites as such, since the used-book business on the world wide web (the commercial part of the internet) did not really take off until about 1994.
Also please note: This is an ongoing collection. A few portals are missing from this list. If I do not have the year in which a portal was launched, revamped, or folded, it is not listed here. Further information will be gratefully accepted and added to this page, so please email me if you have it.
See the bottom for definitions.
---0---
1988
ADI (Antiquarian Databases International, bulletin-board-based service, launched, folded soon after)
---0---
1989
booknet (fax-based service, launched and folded)
bookquest (launched)
---0---
1991
muze (launched, description-generating software)
---0---
1992
bookbytes (bulletin-board-based service, based in US, launched, folded soon after)
---0---
1993
bookquest (bought out and shut down by interloc)
interloc (launched, pre-web dealer-to-dealer service only, based in US) Interloc, from interlocutor (middleman) was the first major successful portal. It is now called Alibris.
---0---
1994
gemm.com (Global E-commerce Mega Marketplace, launched) Gemm began as a charming portal for sellers of used and collectible LPs, CDs, 45s; now it has no charm and sells everything.
---0---
1995
amazon.com (launched)
ebay.com (launched)
virtualbookshop.com (launched, folded by 2002)
---0---
1996
abebooks (Advanced Book Exchange, based in Canada, launched)
antiqbook.com (based in Netherlands, launched)
bibliocity.com (based in Australia, launched)
bibliofind.com (based in US, launched) Bibliofind was the best engineered site. Its all-word search was an invaluable tool for research and selling.
biblioworld.com (launched)
bookmatch.com (launched and folded)
collectorz.com (description-generating software, launched)
interloc.com (launched their first truly web-based service)
maremagnum.com (based in Italy, launched)
virtualbooks.com (launched, folded by 2002)
zvab.com (Zentrales Verzeichnis Antiquarischer Buecher, Central Catalog of Antiquarian Books, based in Germany, launched)
---0---
1997
In 1997, Abebooks and Bibliofind vied for supremacy as the top two used-book portals on the internet; Interloc was a close third.
booklovers.co.uk (based in UK, launched)
buy.com (launched, selling everything including books)
half.com (launched, selling everything including books)
mxbf.com (based in US, first meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched, name soon changed to bookfinder)
---0---
1998
addall.com (launched, meta-search of used bookstore portals)
antikvariat.net (launched, based in Scandinavia)
bookfinder.com (formerly mxbf, revamped with new name)
bn.com (Barnes and Noble website launched, new books only, with a used-book search engine that searched only abe)
exchange.com (launched)
half.com (bought out by ebay, but continued to operate separately)
popula.com (auction portal, similar to ebay but independent and fairly run)
rarebooknet.com (launched, folded by 2002)
usedbooks.com (launched)
x.com (payment transfer service, soon to be revamped as paypal)
---0---
1999
abaa.org (Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America, website launched)
backissuefinder.com (used periodicals only, launched)
bibliocity.com (bought out and shut down by alibris)
bibliofind.com (bought out by exchange)
bibliophile.net (based in Switzerland, launched)
biblioworld.com (revamped as 21northmain)
bookavenue.com (based in US, launched)
bookgraveyard.com (based in US, launched)
bookopoly.com (launched)
bookradar.com (meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched)
digibib (Digital Bibliophile Community, based in US, launched, folded soon after)
exchange.com (bought out and shut down by amazon)
gbmbooks.com (Global Book Mart, based in US, launched)
iberlibro.com (based in Spain, launched)
justbooks.de (based in Germany, launched)
paypal.com (formerly x, revamped with new name)
21northmain.com (revamped, formerly biblioworld)
---0---
2000
Amazon Marketplace (seller platform for isbn books, launched)
Amazon zShops (seller platform for pre-isbn and antiquarian books, launched)
biblio.com (launched)
bibliofind.com (bought out and shut down by amazon)
biblion.com (launched)
bibliopoly.com (based in UK, launched)
biblioz.com (based in Australia, launched)
ephemeranet.com (based in US, launched)
eurobuch.com (meta-search of used bookstore portals, based in Austria, launched)
half.com (merged into ebay)
ibooknet.co.uk (based in UK, cooperatively owned, launched)
muze.com (now being used by half and ebay to generate product descriptions)
tomfolio.com (based in US, cooperatively owned, launched)
wantedbooks.com (revamped, formerly bookquarters)
---0---
2001
abebooks.com (bought out by justbooks, but kept the name)
bibliology.com (based in UK, launched)
bookradar.com (folded)
booksandcollectibles.com.au (based in Australia, launched)
borders.com (revamped, made into a redirect to amazon)
classicforum.com (formerly clik-books.com, bought out and shut down by alibris)
gbmbooks.com (folded but was revived in 2002)
ioba.org (Independent Online Booksellers Association, booksearch launched, linked to abe)
searchbiblio.com (launched, meta-search of used bookstore portals, now a redirect to biblio)
titlesdirect.com (launched, soon revamped as myownbookshop)
21northmain (folded)
usedbookcentral.com (launched)
---0---
2002
Amazon Seller Central (selling platform launched for large retailers, launched)
bibliodirect.com (announced, possibly never launched)
bookgraveyard.com (revamped as bookquarters)
bookopoly.com (bought out by biblio)
bookquarters.com (formerly bookgraveyard, revamped as wantedbooks)
choosebooks.com (launched)
fetchbook.info (meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched)
gbmbooks.com (revived but folded in 2006)
giaq.de (Genossenschaft der Internet-Antiquariate, Cooperative of Internet Antiquarian Booksellers, based in Germany, launched)
half.com (feedback system merged into ebay feedback system)
interloc.com (bought out and revamped as alibris)
goindaba.com (description-generating software, launched)
librarybooksales.org (portal for nonprofit friends-of-the-library sellers only, launched)
liquidatedirect.com (description-generating software, launched)
monsoonworks.com (description-generating software, launched)
myownbookshop.com (formerly titlesdirect) MyOwnBookshop was launched by an independent bookdealer and had the best search engine hands down. For example, a search for first editions returned only true firsts, and a search excluding book clubs actually excluded book clubs.
paypal.com (bought out by ebay)
Pondview Books (cover name used by alibris to sell on bn) This is only one example of a corporate-owned portal selling through another corporate-owned portal, thus setting up multiple layers between bookseller and bookbuyer. They apparently dropped this name when it became public knowledge.
usedbooks.com (folded)
wantedbooks.com (launched, formerly bookquarters)
Yahoo Warehouse (selling platform, folded)
---0---
2003
abebooks.com (bought out by Hubert Burda Media, based in Germany)
backissuefinder.com (folded)
bookopoly.com (bought out by biblio)
FillZ.com (launched, description-generating software)
iobabooks.com (formerly ioba.org, formerly hosted by abe, now hosted by choosebooks)
previouslypublished.com (meta-search, launched)
worldbookdealers.com (folded)
---0---
2004
bookpursuit.com (based in Netherlands, launched)
booksatpbfa.com (based in UK, launched)
booksku.com (description-generating software, launched)
choosebooks.com (bought out by zvab)
findbookprices.com (meta-search, launched)
half.com (nearly shut down by ebay, then they decided to keep it)
iberlibro.com (bought out by abe)
myownbookshop.com (folded)
myremainders.com (meta-search for remainder sellers only, launched)
worldbookmarket.com (based in Australia, launched)
---0---
2005
abbookmart.com (launched and folded)
bibliology.com (folded)
bookfinder.com (bought out by abe, but kept in operation)
ilab-lila.com (International League of Antiquarian Booksellers / Ligue Internationale de la Librarie Ancienne, portal launched)
iobabooks.com (formerly hosted by choosebooks, now hosted by biblio)
theartofbooks.com (description-generating and order management software, launched)
---0---
2006
FillZ.com (bought out by abe)
Amazon zShops (folded)
bn.com (portal for used-book dealers, launched)
biblion.com (bought out by biblio)
bookavenue.com (folded)
gbmbooks.com (folded)
myremainders.com (folded)
vialibri.net (meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched)
wantedbooks.com (folded)
yahoo.com (selling platform, partnered with ebay)
---0---
2007
booklovers.co.uk (bought out by worldbookmarket)
marelibri.com (meta-search / meta-portal formed by five European portals -- antiqbook, livre-rare-book, maremagnum, prolibri, and uniliber -- each portal is owned by professional, independent, new and antiquarian bookdealers)
Yahoo Auctions (selling platform, folded)
---0---
2008
abebooks.com (bought out by amazon, but kept in operation)
gojaba.com (aimed at buyers in Sweden, Russia, Brazil, Poland, owned by abe, launched)
---0---
2009
marelibri.com (new members joined: antikvariat, booksatpbfa, biblio)
usedbookcentral.com (folded)
---0---
Definitions
portal. A website where many bookdealers list and sell their books. Every entity listed above is a portal unless otherwise stated.
antiquarian. General term for old, rare, high-end used books.
description-generating software. A software product that supplies ready-made data, and sometimes also stock photos, for sellers of books, CDs, DVDs, video games, etc, based on International Standard Book Numbers.
launched. The year in which the entity began operation online.
meta-search. A website that searches several portals at once; the meta-search website itself sells no books.
redirect. A website that does nothing but take you to another website. (Example: searchbiblio.com is just a redirect to biblio.com) Redirects result when a website buys out another website but wants to keep the name to gather in customers.
remainders. General term for new books that have not sold fast enough and have been drastically reduced in price by the publisher or distributor. Some bookstores sell only remainders.
selling platform. A term used by website owners to refer to a system whereby independent dealers can join the website and sell through it. Some websites have more than one selling platform; for example, ebay has auctions and stores.
---0---
Visit my bookstore www.gwenfoss.com
Check out the cooperatively-owned bookdealers' portal www.tomfolio.com
Marvel at the largest glossary of used-book terminology on the web http://tomfolio.pbworks.com/glossary
---0---
I present below a comprehensive list of the many used-book websites that have come and gone since the early days of the internet. That's right, some of these are gone. In other words, there are some dead websites on this list.
Anyway, this list focuses on portals: websites where many used-book dealers list their books in one big database, and where members of the general public can search for and purchase them.
As one who has been selling books on the internet since 1997, I find myself continuously marvelling at how fast these websites spring up, change, grow or die, and all too often get taken over by major corporations that shut them down or transform them from friendly places into venues that I would not even recommend to someone I don't like.
Each portal is listed in chronological order under the year they were launched, revamped, or closed. Under each year the sites are listed alphabetically.
Please note: The earliest multi-dealer used-book portals listed below were not websites as such, since the used-book business on the world wide web (the commercial part of the internet) did not really take off until about 1994.
Also please note: This is an ongoing collection. A few portals are missing from this list. If I do not have the year in which a portal was launched, revamped, or folded, it is not listed here. Further information will be gratefully accepted and added to this page, so please email me if you have it.
See the bottom for definitions.
---0---
1988
ADI (Antiquarian Databases International, bulletin-board-based service, launched, folded soon after)
---0---
1989
booknet (fax-based service, launched and folded)
bookquest (launched)
---0---
1991
muze (launched, description-generating software)
---0---
1992
bookbytes (bulletin-board-based service, based in US, launched, folded soon after)
---0---
1993
bookquest (bought out and shut down by interloc)
interloc (launched, pre-web dealer-to-dealer service only, based in US) Interloc, from interlocutor (middleman) was the first major successful portal. It is now called Alibris.
---0---
1994
gemm.com (Global E-commerce Mega Marketplace, launched) Gemm began as a charming portal for sellers of used and collectible LPs, CDs, 45s; now it has no charm and sells everything.
---0---
1995
amazon.com (launched)
ebay.com (launched)
virtualbookshop.com (launched, folded by 2002)
---0---
1996
abebooks (Advanced Book Exchange, based in Canada, launched)
antiqbook.com (based in Netherlands, launched)
bibliocity.com (based in Australia, launched)
bibliofind.com (based in US, launched) Bibliofind was the best engineered site. Its all-word search was an invaluable tool for research and selling.
biblioworld.com (launched)
bookmatch.com (launched and folded)
collectorz.com (description-generating software, launched)
interloc.com (launched their first truly web-based service)
maremagnum.com (based in Italy, launched)
virtualbooks.com (launched, folded by 2002)
zvab.com (Zentrales Verzeichnis Antiquarischer Buecher, Central Catalog of Antiquarian Books, based in Germany, launched)
---0---
1997
In 1997, Abebooks and Bibliofind vied for supremacy as the top two used-book portals on the internet; Interloc was a close third.
booklovers.co.uk (based in UK, launched)
buy.com (launched, selling everything including books)
half.com (launched, selling everything including books)
mxbf.com (based in US, first meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched, name soon changed to bookfinder)
---0---
1998
addall.com (launched, meta-search of used bookstore portals)
antikvariat.net (launched, based in Scandinavia)
bookfinder.com (formerly mxbf, revamped with new name)
bn.com (Barnes and Noble website launched, new books only, with a used-book search engine that searched only abe)
exchange.com (launched)
half.com (bought out by ebay, but continued to operate separately)
popula.com (auction portal, similar to ebay but independent and fairly run)
rarebooknet.com (launched, folded by 2002)
usedbooks.com (launched)
x.com (payment transfer service, soon to be revamped as paypal)
---0---
1999
abaa.org (Antiquarian Booksellers' Association of America, website launched)
backissuefinder.com (used periodicals only, launched)
bibliocity.com (bought out and shut down by alibris)
bibliofind.com (bought out by exchange)
bibliophile.net (based in Switzerland, launched)
biblioworld.com (revamped as 21northmain)
bookavenue.com (based in US, launched)
bookgraveyard.com (based in US, launched)
bookopoly.com (launched)
bookradar.com (meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched)
digibib (Digital Bibliophile Community, based in US, launched, folded soon after)
exchange.com (bought out and shut down by amazon)
gbmbooks.com (Global Book Mart, based in US, launched)
iberlibro.com (based in Spain, launched)
justbooks.de (based in Germany, launched)
paypal.com (formerly x, revamped with new name)
21northmain.com (revamped, formerly biblioworld)
---0---
2000
Amazon Marketplace (seller platform for isbn books, launched)
Amazon zShops (seller platform for pre-isbn and antiquarian books, launched)
biblio.com (launched)
bibliofind.com (bought out and shut down by amazon)
biblion.com (launched)
bibliopoly.com (based in UK, launched)
biblioz.com (based in Australia, launched)
ephemeranet.com (based in US, launched)
eurobuch.com (meta-search of used bookstore portals, based in Austria, launched)
half.com (merged into ebay)
ibooknet.co.uk (based in UK, cooperatively owned, launched)
muze.com (now being used by half and ebay to generate product descriptions)
tomfolio.com (based in US, cooperatively owned, launched)
wantedbooks.com (revamped, formerly bookquarters)
---0---
2001
abebooks.com (bought out by justbooks, but kept the name)
bibliology.com (based in UK, launched)
bookradar.com (folded)
booksandcollectibles.com.au (based in Australia, launched)
borders.com (revamped, made into a redirect to amazon)
classicforum.com (formerly clik-books.com, bought out and shut down by alibris)
gbmbooks.com (folded but was revived in 2002)
ioba.org (Independent Online Booksellers Association, booksearch launched, linked to abe)
searchbiblio.com (launched, meta-search of used bookstore portals, now a redirect to biblio)
titlesdirect.com (launched, soon revamped as myownbookshop)
21northmain (folded)
usedbookcentral.com (launched)
---0---
2002
Amazon Seller Central (selling platform launched for large retailers, launched)
bibliodirect.com (announced, possibly never launched)
bookgraveyard.com (revamped as bookquarters)
bookopoly.com (bought out by biblio)
bookquarters.com (formerly bookgraveyard, revamped as wantedbooks)
choosebooks.com (launched)
fetchbook.info (meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched)
gbmbooks.com (revived but folded in 2006)
giaq.de (Genossenschaft der Internet-Antiquariate, Cooperative of Internet Antiquarian Booksellers, based in Germany, launched)
half.com (feedback system merged into ebay feedback system)
interloc.com (bought out and revamped as alibris)
goindaba.com (description-generating software, launched)
librarybooksales.org (portal for nonprofit friends-of-the-library sellers only, launched)
liquidatedirect.com (description-generating software, launched)
monsoonworks.com (description-generating software, launched)
myownbookshop.com (formerly titlesdirect) MyOwnBookshop was launched by an independent bookdealer and had the best search engine hands down. For example, a search for first editions returned only true firsts, and a search excluding book clubs actually excluded book clubs.
paypal.com (bought out by ebay)
Pondview Books (cover name used by alibris to sell on bn) This is only one example of a corporate-owned portal selling through another corporate-owned portal, thus setting up multiple layers between bookseller and bookbuyer. They apparently dropped this name when it became public knowledge.
usedbooks.com (folded)
wantedbooks.com (launched, formerly bookquarters)
Yahoo Warehouse (selling platform, folded)
---0---
2003
abebooks.com (bought out by Hubert Burda Media, based in Germany)
backissuefinder.com (folded)
bookopoly.com (bought out by biblio)
FillZ.com (launched, description-generating software)
iobabooks.com (formerly ioba.org, formerly hosted by abe, now hosted by choosebooks)
previouslypublished.com (meta-search, launched)
worldbookdealers.com (folded)
---0---
2004
bookpursuit.com (based in Netherlands, launched)
booksatpbfa.com (based in UK, launched)
booksku.com (description-generating software, launched)
choosebooks.com (bought out by zvab)
findbookprices.com (meta-search, launched)
half.com (nearly shut down by ebay, then they decided to keep it)
iberlibro.com (bought out by abe)
myownbookshop.com (folded)
myremainders.com (meta-search for remainder sellers only, launched)
worldbookmarket.com (based in Australia, launched)
---0---
2005
abbookmart.com (launched and folded)
bibliology.com (folded)
bookfinder.com (bought out by abe, but kept in operation)
ilab-lila.com (International League of Antiquarian Booksellers / Ligue Internationale de la Librarie Ancienne, portal launched)
iobabooks.com (formerly hosted by choosebooks, now hosted by biblio)
theartofbooks.com (description-generating and order management software, launched)
---0---
2006
FillZ.com (bought out by abe)
Amazon zShops (folded)
bn.com (portal for used-book dealers, launched)
biblion.com (bought out by biblio)
bookavenue.com (folded)
gbmbooks.com (folded)
myremainders.com (folded)
vialibri.net (meta-search of used bookstore portals, launched)
wantedbooks.com (folded)
yahoo.com (selling platform, partnered with ebay)
---0---
2007
booklovers.co.uk (bought out by worldbookmarket)
marelibri.com (meta-search / meta-portal formed by five European portals -- antiqbook, livre-rare-book, maremagnum, prolibri, and uniliber -- each portal is owned by professional, independent, new and antiquarian bookdealers)
Yahoo Auctions (selling platform, folded)
---0---
2008
abebooks.com (bought out by amazon, but kept in operation)
gojaba.com (aimed at buyers in Sweden, Russia, Brazil, Poland, owned by abe, launched)
---0---
2009
marelibri.com (new members joined: antikvariat, booksatpbfa, biblio)
usedbookcentral.com (folded)
---0---
Definitions
portal. A website where many bookdealers list and sell their books. Every entity listed above is a portal unless otherwise stated.
antiquarian. General term for old, rare, high-end used books.
description-generating software. A software product that supplies ready-made data, and sometimes also stock photos, for sellers of books, CDs, DVDs, video games, etc, based on International Standard Book Numbers.
launched. The year in which the entity began operation online.
meta-search. A website that searches several portals at once; the meta-search website itself sells no books.
redirect. A website that does nothing but take you to another website. (Example: searchbiblio.com is just a redirect to biblio.com) Redirects result when a website buys out another website but wants to keep the name to gather in customers.
remainders. General term for new books that have not sold fast enough and have been drastically reduced in price by the publisher or distributor. Some bookstores sell only remainders.
selling platform. A term used by website owners to refer to a system whereby independent dealers can join the website and sell through it. Some websites have more than one selling platform; for example, ebay has auctions and stores.
---0---
Visit my bookstore www.gwenfoss.com
Check out the cooperatively-owned bookdealers' portal www.tomfolio.com
Marvel at the largest glossary of used-book terminology on the web http://tomfolio.pbworks.com/glossary
---0---
11 October 2009
The Demming List
. . . 22 aliases used by the notorious internet scammer Margaret Demming, 191 27th Ave, Brooklyn NY 11214, between 2002 to 2006.
Her ploy was simple. She would contact a used bookdealer, be very friendly and chatty, tell the bookdealer all about herself and her many children, order a few inexpensive books and send cash in the mail. Soon she would contact the same bookdealer again, order a few more inexpensive books and again send cash. Then she would place a large order, sometimes for as many as 20 or 30 books, but never send payment. Often she would still get the books because of a longstanding tradition among used bookdealers of sending the books immediately, rather than waiting for the money to arrive, if the customer is known to the dealer.
Online bookdealers began privately sharing this scammer's address and her multiple false names some time prior to January 2005. An intrepid bookdealer reported her to the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office in early 2005 but, as far as I know, no action was taken to prosecute her. In April 2006 she was banned from ordering through Abebooks, and the security division of Abe even sent out a general alert about her. I have not heard about her trying to scam any used bookstores since July 2006.
So, without further ado, the 22 fake names (plus fake emails and fake charities) she invented to scam innocent used bookdealers, as seen by me or reported by other bookdealers:
1. Margaret Demming or Deming
2. brooklynkid7@juno.com, brooklynkid14@juno.com
3. Margrette Delning
4. astroaquarious7@hotmail.com
5. ConeyIslandRules@netscape.net
6. Mellfantler FM, Library and Tutoring Advisor, Avis Teaching, propergander714@yahoo.com
7. E. Douing, Assistant of Department for Elder Care, WindWood Hospice Home for Elder Care
8. E. Douing, Library Assistant
9. Margaret Melander or M.F. Melander, Director, Brooklyn Study Center, silenceofmind7@yahoo.com
10. Sister Margretta Dewing, Hospice Home Care for the Aged
11. Miranda Mecklander, Fairpoint Rehabilation Care Center, Brooklyn, dewung77@yahoo.com (note the misspelling of Rehabilitation)
12. Miranda Mergrander, Mercy Cares Charity of Brooklyn
13. Michael Cervisio, Veteran's Advisor, Harway Veterans Group
14. Dewung
15. Donning
16. Meadlaner
17. Meadlender
18. Mejarnder
19. Melrandra
20. Melwandler
21. Merklender
22. Nermandler
END
My bookstore http://www.gwenfoss.com/
My colleagues http://www.tomfolio.com/
My collection of Dumb Questions Too Often Asked in Used Book Stores http://tomfolio.pbworks.com/Dumb-Questions
---0---
. . . 22 aliases used by the notorious internet scammer Margaret Demming, 191 27th Ave, Brooklyn NY 11214, between 2002 to 2006.
Her ploy was simple. She would contact a used bookdealer, be very friendly and chatty, tell the bookdealer all about herself and her many children, order a few inexpensive books and send cash in the mail. Soon she would contact the same bookdealer again, order a few more inexpensive books and again send cash. Then she would place a large order, sometimes for as many as 20 or 30 books, but never send payment. Often she would still get the books because of a longstanding tradition among used bookdealers of sending the books immediately, rather than waiting for the money to arrive, if the customer is known to the dealer.
Online bookdealers began privately sharing this scammer's address and her multiple false names some time prior to January 2005. An intrepid bookdealer reported her to the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office in early 2005 but, as far as I know, no action was taken to prosecute her. In April 2006 she was banned from ordering through Abebooks, and the security division of Abe even sent out a general alert about her. I have not heard about her trying to scam any used bookstores since July 2006.
So, without further ado, the 22 fake names (plus fake emails and fake charities) she invented to scam innocent used bookdealers, as seen by me or reported by other bookdealers:
1. Margaret Demming or Deming
2. brooklynkid7@juno.com, brooklynkid14@juno.com
3. Margrette Delning
4. astroaquarious7@hotmail.com
5. ConeyIslandRules@netscape.net
6. Mellfantler FM, Library and Tutoring Advisor, Avis Teaching, propergander714@yahoo.com
7. E. Douing, Assistant of Department for Elder Care, WindWood Hospice Home for Elder Care
8. E. Douing, Library Assistant
9. Margaret Melander or M.F. Melander, Director, Brooklyn Study Center, silenceofmind7@yahoo.com
10. Sister Margretta Dewing, Hospice Home Care for the Aged
11. Miranda Mecklander, Fairpoint Rehabilation Care Center, Brooklyn, dewung77@yahoo.com (note the misspelling of Rehabilitation)
12. Miranda Mergrander, Mercy Cares Charity of Brooklyn
13. Michael Cervisio, Veteran's Advisor, Harway Veterans Group
14. Dewung
15. Donning
16. Meadlaner
17. Meadlender
18. Mejarnder
19. Melrandra
20. Melwandler
21. Merklender
22. Nermandler
END
My bookstore http://www.gwenfoss.com/
My colleagues http://www.tomfolio.com/
My collection of Dumb Questions Too Often Asked in Used Book Stores http://tomfolio.pbworks.com/Dumb-Questions
---0---
06 October 2009
40 Snotty Names for Annoying Customers in Used Bookstores
. . . and a few other terms thrown in for fun. Some of these terms have been around for years and are of uncertain origin, some came from other dealers, and some I invented just to vent. (Mine are marked bdg). Many thanks to bookdealer Joyce Godsey and others who contributed their terms. All characters are fictitious and no similarity to real people should be assumed.
1. Agent 99. person who comes into the shop and receives cell phone calls with louder-than-hell ringtones and who proceeds to gab on in loud tones as if we all want to hear their inane conversation. I then take off my shoe and blather into it to amuse myself until they make like a tree and leaf. (Term is based on a character codename on the old spy sitcom "Get Smart," where the shoe-phone was a running gag.) coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books dot com.
2. anti-handling-buyer. buyer, usually encountered on eBay, who thinks that sellers should only charge the actual cost of shipping, regardless of seller's handling costs. They like to justify it by saying, "Well, other eBay sellers ship books for $xyz." coined by anonymous dealer.
3. baron / baroness. a customer who requires extensive waiting on and the answering of multiple questions asked in imperial fashion. Stops short of asking for a complimentary ass-wipe in the restroom. No resultant sales, of course. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
4. bone-to-pick twit. someone who emails you because she/he has beef with the author or the book's contents. Example: "How can you be selling a book on xyz?!" coined by anonymous dealer.
5. cheapskate. someone who asks something like, "Why the hell are you asking over $200 for a used book?!?" because they are completely ignorant of the book's scarcity, value, condition, or other important factors. coined by anonymous dealer.
6. crazy glue. a borderline insane customer who "sticks to you like glue." Term from my tech guy R.F. Johnson who has often encountered such types. Compare Mr. Sincere.
7. credit card neurosis. condition of customer who is afraid to give you cc info over the net; usually they telephone instead. There are many different manifestations of this condition. bdg
8. customs scammer. overseas customer who asks you to mark the item as a "gift" so they won't have to pay fees or import duties on it. (Falsifying a customs form is against the law.) bdg
9. demming. sending an email reminder to a customer who keeps promising to send a check but never does. See also spaz. (Term comes from the fake surname of a notorious scammer in Brooklyn who used numerous false names and pretended to be buying books for a hospice, nursing home, or charity, who always promised to send a check or money order immediately, but never did. Sometimes a dealer would believe her and send the books before the payment arrived.) bdg
10. ditz. customer who uses the query button and thinks they have completed an order for the book.
11. doofus. customer who emails to ask a question about a specific book, and in doing so, copies your description in their email, and right there in the description is the answer to their question. Example: "You mention a few inconsequential dings to covers, how bad are they?" (They're inconsequential, doofus!)
12. dung beetle. someone who only looks at the crappiest, cheapest books on the bargain table and spends their dollar (paid in small coins, of course). Then they roll the crap out of the store to their lair. Dung beetles almost exclusively come from the upper income insect species. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
13. entitled buyer. someone, usually found on eBay, who emails about shipping/handling before committing to buy because for some reason they think they're entitled to a discount or a break on s/h fees. coined by anonymous dealer.
14. eyeball killer. another name for a screamer: someone who types everything in ALL CAPS. (Can't remember where I heard this term but it has been around awhile.)
15. flake. customer who inquires about priority mail but delays payment for several days, thus negating any time saved by ordering priority mail.
16. fly-by. customer who emails to ask a question about a book in your inventory but after you reply you never hear from them again. coined by bookdealer Lee Kirk. Another term for this type of customer, which I heard from a guy in the furniture business, is a be-back, because they say they'll be back but they never come back.
17. fraudite. a species of scammer, mostly seen on eBay, who claims to have some ridiculously valuable or impossible treasure for sale, such as a copy of Huckleberry Finn printed in 1978 and signed by Mark Twain. bdg
18. gomer. a scammer who purposefully gives you the wrong country name in his address, hoping you won't notice. For example, Beijing, Greece (Beijing is in China), or Surulere, Finland (Surulere is in Nigeria). Term comes from medical slang for an especially difficult elderly patient with mental problems, filthy habits, and an inability to communicate.
19. gusher. customer who announces on entering the bookstore that she just loves, loves, loves books, and on, on, and on, but does not purchase anything. Also called a sh*tkicker. coined by anonymous dealer.
20. halfwit. epithet for Half.com and the people who sell there. A longstanding slur.
21. homeward. descriptive of customer, item, and transaction, when the item is purchased by someone who is the author's son, the publisher's daughter, the illustrator's grand-niece, or any similar relationship. So called because the item is "going home." (This is a sweet term, not an insult; bookdealers are usually pretty cheerful when they get a homeward order.) bdg
22. ignoramiana. general term for books pushing ignorant ideas such as crop circles, pyramid power, or UFOs. coined by bookdealer Gary L. Wallin.
23. jerk. customer who orders Media Mail then complains about the long delivery time. There are many names for this species, most of them far more colorful. See also wheresmybook.
24. lowball scammer. customer who sees your eBay auction for an item worth, for example, $200, and offers you $80 for it if you'll end the auction right now. (This is against eBay rules.) Lowball scammers are sometimes also snipers. bdg
25. merrick. customer who writes glowing feedback about you but then rates you less than 5 out of 5. (Refers only to Amazon customers: the Amazon feedback system has both a number function and a comment line.) Named after a customer who did just what the definition says. bdg
26. Mr. Sincere. an individual who comes into your store too often, makes a point of taking your hand and acting like you were his bestest friend, all the while the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Of course he never actually buys anything. coined by bookdealer Joyce Godsey. Compare crazy glue.
27. mushpup. someone with a bratty toddler in tow who abandons them in the kid's section of your store, where they promptly tornado through the shelves while the adult goes off into the ether. Usually also spends nothing or less than $1. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
28. paypal scammer. customer who insists on paying via PayPal, even though you don't list that as an option, but you agree to it and ship the book, then the customer puts in a non-delivery claim with PayPal two weeks later. (PayPal routinely honors these customer claims even when the dealer provides proof of delivery.) See also naidoo. bdg
29. naidoo. customer who pays directly with a credit card but, like a paypal scammer, disputes the charge soon after. In nearly every case, a credit card company will reimburse the customer and debit the merchant, so the naidoo walks away with a free book. (Pronounced NY-doo. Named for someone who pulled this trick on innocent bookdealers.) bdg
30. pub-twit. customer who thinks you have a warehouse full of identical new copies of the book they want. So named because these twits address you as if they think you're the actual publisher. bdg
31. scanner scammer. customer who pretends to be a prospective buyer, asks you for a scan of your book, then uses the image to try to sell your book on eBay. (Thankfully eBay boots fraudsters who are caught pulling this kind of theft.) bdg
32. screamer. customer who types everything in ALL CAPS. This is considered to be screaming and is an internet no-no. Also called an eyeball killer.
33. sharecropper. term used pointedly by one bookdealer to describe himself and other bookdealers who sell through the large portals, on the grounds that, as their vendors, we store all their inventory and pay them to do so.
34. sh*tkicker. a person who comes into your shop and admires the shop profusely and thanks you for "being here" and then does not spend a dime on anything. Also called a gusher. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
35. sniffer. one who is overly concerned about a book's smell before they buy it. coined by bookdealer Joyce Godsey.
36. sniper. customer who wants your eBay auction but bids nothing until the last 10 seconds of the auction, then bids just one $1 (or one bidding increment) above the current bid. This is an old term. Sniping is within eBay rules but is seen by many eBayers as extremely unfair behavior.
37. spaz. customer who promises to send a check, and continues to promise to do so after every polite reminder you email, but you never actually get the check. See demming.
38. sobber. type of scammer who claims to be dirt poor and can only pay, for example, $10 for your $70 book. bdg
39. swag method. a pricing method used when a bookdealer can find no history or other helpful information on the item in hand. An old term based on the acronym "scientific wild-assed guess."
40. wheresmybook. customer who orders the economy shipping service (Media Mail in the US) and two days later begins demanding to know where their item is. Term can refer to both query and customer and should be pronounced as shown, as if it is all one word. bdg
Visit my bookstore http://www.gwenfoss.com/
Visit my colleagues' bookstores http://www.tomfolio.com/
Visit my page on the evils of mega-listers http://tomfolio.pbworks.com/Mega-Listers
END
. . . and a few other terms thrown in for fun. Some of these terms have been around for years and are of uncertain origin, some came from other dealers, and some I invented just to vent. (Mine are marked bdg). Many thanks to bookdealer Joyce Godsey and others who contributed their terms. All characters are fictitious and no similarity to real people should be assumed.
1. Agent 99. person who comes into the shop and receives cell phone calls with louder-than-hell ringtones and who proceeds to gab on in loud tones as if we all want to hear their inane conversation. I then take off my shoe and blather into it to amuse myself until they make like a tree and leaf. (Term is based on a character codename on the old spy sitcom "Get Smart," where the shoe-phone was a running gag.) coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books dot com.
2. anti-handling-buyer. buyer, usually encountered on eBay, who thinks that sellers should only charge the actual cost of shipping, regardless of seller's handling costs. They like to justify it by saying, "Well, other eBay sellers ship books for $xyz." coined by anonymous dealer.
3. baron / baroness. a customer who requires extensive waiting on and the answering of multiple questions asked in imperial fashion. Stops short of asking for a complimentary ass-wipe in the restroom. No resultant sales, of course. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
4. bone-to-pick twit. someone who emails you because she/he has beef with the author or the book's contents. Example: "How can you be selling a book on xyz?!" coined by anonymous dealer.
5. cheapskate. someone who asks something like, "Why the hell are you asking over $200 for a used book?!?" because they are completely ignorant of the book's scarcity, value, condition, or other important factors. coined by anonymous dealer.
6. crazy glue. a borderline insane customer who "sticks to you like glue." Term from my tech guy R.F. Johnson who has often encountered such types. Compare Mr. Sincere.
7. credit card neurosis. condition of customer who is afraid to give you cc info over the net; usually they telephone instead. There are many different manifestations of this condition. bdg
8. customs scammer. overseas customer who asks you to mark the item as a "gift" so they won't have to pay fees or import duties on it. (Falsifying a customs form is against the law.) bdg
9. demming. sending an email reminder to a customer who keeps promising to send a check but never does. See also spaz. (Term comes from the fake surname of a notorious scammer in Brooklyn who used numerous false names and pretended to be buying books for a hospice, nursing home, or charity, who always promised to send a check or money order immediately, but never did. Sometimes a dealer would believe her and send the books before the payment arrived.) bdg
10. ditz. customer who uses the query button and thinks they have completed an order for the book.
11. doofus. customer who emails to ask a question about a specific book, and in doing so, copies your description in their email, and right there in the description is the answer to their question. Example: "You mention a few inconsequential dings to covers, how bad are they?" (They're inconsequential, doofus!)
12. dung beetle. someone who only looks at the crappiest, cheapest books on the bargain table and spends their dollar (paid in small coins, of course). Then they roll the crap out of the store to their lair. Dung beetles almost exclusively come from the upper income insect species. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
13. entitled buyer. someone, usually found on eBay, who emails about shipping/handling before committing to buy because for some reason they think they're entitled to a discount or a break on s/h fees. coined by anonymous dealer.
14. eyeball killer. another name for a screamer: someone who types everything in ALL CAPS. (Can't remember where I heard this term but it has been around awhile.)
15. flake. customer who inquires about priority mail but delays payment for several days, thus negating any time saved by ordering priority mail.
16. fly-by. customer who emails to ask a question about a book in your inventory but after you reply you never hear from them again. coined by bookdealer Lee Kirk. Another term for this type of customer, which I heard from a guy in the furniture business, is a be-back, because they say they'll be back but they never come back.
17. fraudite. a species of scammer, mostly seen on eBay, who claims to have some ridiculously valuable or impossible treasure for sale, such as a copy of Huckleberry Finn printed in 1978 and signed by Mark Twain. bdg
18. gomer. a scammer who purposefully gives you the wrong country name in his address, hoping you won't notice. For example, Beijing, Greece (Beijing is in China), or Surulere, Finland (Surulere is in Nigeria). Term comes from medical slang for an especially difficult elderly patient with mental problems, filthy habits, and an inability to communicate.
19. gusher. customer who announces on entering the bookstore that she just loves, loves, loves books, and on, on, and on, but does not purchase anything. Also called a sh*tkicker. coined by anonymous dealer.
20. halfwit. epithet for Half.com and the people who sell there. A longstanding slur.
21. homeward. descriptive of customer, item, and transaction, when the item is purchased by someone who is the author's son, the publisher's daughter, the illustrator's grand-niece, or any similar relationship. So called because the item is "going home." (This is a sweet term, not an insult; bookdealers are usually pretty cheerful when they get a homeward order.) bdg
22. ignoramiana. general term for books pushing ignorant ideas such as crop circles, pyramid power, or UFOs. coined by bookdealer Gary L. Wallin.
23. jerk. customer who orders Media Mail then complains about the long delivery time. There are many names for this species, most of them far more colorful. See also wheresmybook.
24. lowball scammer. customer who sees your eBay auction for an item worth, for example, $200, and offers you $80 for it if you'll end the auction right now. (This is against eBay rules.) Lowball scammers are sometimes also snipers. bdg
25. merrick. customer who writes glowing feedback about you but then rates you less than 5 out of 5. (Refers only to Amazon customers: the Amazon feedback system has both a number function and a comment line.) Named after a customer who did just what the definition says. bdg
26. Mr. Sincere. an individual who comes into your store too often, makes a point of taking your hand and acting like you were his bestest friend, all the while the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Of course he never actually buys anything. coined by bookdealer Joyce Godsey. Compare crazy glue.
27. mushpup. someone with a bratty toddler in tow who abandons them in the kid's section of your store, where they promptly tornado through the shelves while the adult goes off into the ether. Usually also spends nothing or less than $1. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
28. paypal scammer. customer who insists on paying via PayPal, even though you don't list that as an option, but you agree to it and ship the book, then the customer puts in a non-delivery claim with PayPal two weeks later. (PayPal routinely honors these customer claims even when the dealer provides proof of delivery.) See also naidoo. bdg
29. naidoo. customer who pays directly with a credit card but, like a paypal scammer, disputes the charge soon after. In nearly every case, a credit card company will reimburse the customer and debit the merchant, so the naidoo walks away with a free book. (Pronounced NY-doo. Named for someone who pulled this trick on innocent bookdealers.) bdg
30. pub-twit. customer who thinks you have a warehouse full of identical new copies of the book they want. So named because these twits address you as if they think you're the actual publisher. bdg
31. scanner scammer. customer who pretends to be a prospective buyer, asks you for a scan of your book, then uses the image to try to sell your book on eBay. (Thankfully eBay boots fraudsters who are caught pulling this kind of theft.) bdg
32. screamer. customer who types everything in ALL CAPS. This is considered to be screaming and is an internet no-no. Also called an eyeball killer.
33. sharecropper. term used pointedly by one bookdealer to describe himself and other bookdealers who sell through the large portals, on the grounds that, as their vendors, we store all their inventory and pay them to do so.
34. sh*tkicker. a person who comes into your shop and admires the shop profusely and thanks you for "being here" and then does not spend a dime on anything. Also called a gusher. coined by Rachel at Old Saratoga Books.
35. sniffer. one who is overly concerned about a book's smell before they buy it. coined by bookdealer Joyce Godsey.
36. sniper. customer who wants your eBay auction but bids nothing until the last 10 seconds of the auction, then bids just one $1 (or one bidding increment) above the current bid. This is an old term. Sniping is within eBay rules but is seen by many eBayers as extremely unfair behavior.
37. spaz. customer who promises to send a check, and continues to promise to do so after every polite reminder you email, but you never actually get the check. See demming.
38. sobber. type of scammer who claims to be dirt poor and can only pay, for example, $10 for your $70 book. bdg
39. swag method. a pricing method used when a bookdealer can find no history or other helpful information on the item in hand. An old term based on the acronym "scientific wild-assed guess."
40. wheresmybook. customer who orders the economy shipping service (Media Mail in the US) and two days later begins demanding to know where their item is. Term can refer to both query and customer and should be pronounced as shown, as if it is all one word. bdg
Visit my bookstore http://www.gwenfoss.com/
Visit my colleagues' bookstores http://www.tomfolio.com/
Visit my page on the evils of mega-listers http://tomfolio.pbworks.com/Mega-Listers
END
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
