RULES FOR SELLERS

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daniel_reetz
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Joined: 03 Jun 2009, 13:56
E-book readers owned: Used to have a PRS-500
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RULES FOR SELLERS

Post by daniel_reetz »

[Updated 8/28/2012]
Hi all,

Since there is a lot of interest in buying and selling on these forums, it's time to establish some rules.

0. This is a community. Respect the community, the people that came before you, the huge number of freely shared ideas, and the incredible amount of work that has been done. Share and share alike. If your business activities disrupt the community, you will be banned.

1. Only Open Hardware designs can be sold here. That means your design files must be publicly made available under an Open Hardware license from the time you post your advertisement. All of my book scanner designs are under an Open Hardware license. If you use any of them, or any part of them, your product must also be Open Hardware. Anyone trying to sell without posting their design files will be banned. The only exception is selling handmade or one-off goods, in which case clear photos should be posted.

2. Your prices must be publicly posted. No exceptions and no working around this rule. Post your prices publicly or do not sell here. This is a public, open market and your pricing system should reflect that.

3. Do not talk badly about other sellers or other book scanner designs. You are welcome to speak about your own product, but do not badmouth others. Do not show up in other seller's threads and push your own product. Buyers, however, are encouraged to give sellers honest feedback in a public way.

4. Do not PM members to advertise your product. Public only. The only advertising you can do for your product is a "Sale Thread" here in the Agora section. Any spammy activity and you will be banned with prejudice.

5. Be good, deliver, and don't make any false promises. Treat people with respect and remember, this site and these designs are the work of an entire community. If you choose to profit off them, that is allowed under an Open Hardware license. But it does not give you license to damage the community and bad behavior will not be tolerated.

6. Please also follow the rules below, as outlined by Rob when he first sold kits (and later, edited by me).

7. Please support your buyers, ideally here on the forum (email is OK too). By this, I mean that if you sell a hardware kit, help them get through building the kit you sold them. You do not need to support the kit forever, or support software you didn't write, etc.
rob wrote:Any makers who want to offer their services can post in Agora. The post must include the following:
  • The region they are willing to work within.
  • The price for the service (shipping not included).
  • The specific wood that the parts will be cut from. Note that the "baltic birch plywood" from big-box stores is not the same as real baltic birch, so beware.
  • Any hardware that the maker is willing to sell along with the wooden parts (these being the bolts, screws, nuts, washers, glass, bearings, bicycle brake cables, handle, and so on, and optionally even lights and cameras).
  • Any restrictions on the maker's schedule.
  • Any other information. More information is better.
  • Anything else I forgot (hey, I'm not perfect).
Buyers should remember that this design is always in flux, and is not guaranteed to work right out of the box. This is not a professionally-produced slick corporate product. Makers should guarantee that their work is faithful to the design files posted, and that items are not broken in transit (i.e. insure your packages, people!)

To start the process, a buyer should contact the maker via Private Message. If you receive the parts, and something goes wrong, please follow up with the maker to come to an agreement.

Makers, please don't begrudge having to cut a few extra pieces. These things happen. Keep it friendly and makerish. The goal is to to get scanners out there. Also, if you're planning to "close shop" for a while, please let an admin (i.e. me or Daniel Reetz) know. We'll edit your post to indicate that you're currently unavailable.

Buyers, please follow up by sharing your experiences with each seller.
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