[bksvol-discuss] Re: Hold for how long?
- From: "Monica Willyard" <rhyami@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Thu, 11 Sep 2008 17:21:08 -0400
Tracy and Roger, I think you may be underestimating the depth and
scope of the Bookshare member and volunteer grapevine that operates
outside of this list. This list doesn't even scratch the surface since
there are phone calls, Skype calls, MSN messages, face to face visits,
voice chat groups, other mailing lists, and online classes going on
between many members of Bookshare. Very few Bookshare volunteers
operate in a vacuum.
When I went to the hospital for emergency surgery this past May, I let
a friend know about my situation. She thoughtfully posted to this list
and asked people to take the books being held for me. Carrie
immediately removed the words "hold for" from the titles so people
would know that the books needed attention. When I got back home a
week later, all of the books had been taken and were in the
collection. I was able to relax and rest, knowing that others had
carried the ball for me. The same thing happened when I went into the
hospital with pneumonia, a definitely sudden event. I used a cell
phone from the hospital to let a fellow volunteer know, and she picked
up my work for me.
The hold for system works very well most of the time. Yes, as with any
system involving people, it has its flaws. It depends on our open
communication with each other, and that doesn't always happen. Still,
it doesn't take much time to send a two sentence email to the list
asking if anyone knows what's up with a book and do they mind if you
work on it. I can say with certainty that every Bookshare volunteer is
known by at least one other volunteer or staff member. Some of us even
know why certain books are lingering on step 1 and would gladly share
that information with you if you ask. Pavi is also a resource and has
asked people to contact her if they're having a problem with a book
from step 1. So if the list doesn't know what's going on, Pavi is able
to contact the person by phone and/or email.
Finally, I am curious about why the hold for books are bothering you
when we have over 40 books that have been on step 1 for 18 months or
longer. These books have no validater in mind, and the submitters are
waiting in limbo for their credits. It perplexes me that the hold for
issue keeps popping up when there is so much work that needs to be
done already. It's like having a huge Hershey's chocolate bar and
fighting over just one or 2 of the squares. There is plenty of work,
credits, and good books to go around. Some of us submitters are
holding back on adding more books because we see so many books needing
to be validated. We stop scanning to help get the books moving off
step 1. We could literally tripple the step 1 queue overnight if we
had more validaters. I'm talking about 900 books. Wouldn't that be a
sight?
--
Monica Willyard
Visit my blog at http://www.scannersguild.com
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