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| From | "Stewart Mason" <craigtorso@verizon.net> |
| Subject | Re: www.lala.com |
| Date | Thu, 06 Apr 2006 14:29:26 -0400 |
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Combining replies for concision:
----- Original Message -----
From: "Michael" <mkropp@comcast.net>
>I must have missed the beginning of this topic - would someone mind
>re-stating what www.lala.com is all about?
It's a site that facilitates the trading of used CDs, for a nominal
per-disc charge.
----- Original Message -----
From: "Holmes Online" <bholmes_fm@msn.com>
> After reading the thread, I'll take a plunk. Curious how this works
> since
> the info isn't really on the site...they mention that cds are sent
> in
> prepaid envelopes provided by lala...so what does it cost to send or
> receive
> a cd? And how do you pay/receive credit?
Basically, it works like this (this is pretty simplified): you sign up
for the service, and you're shipped a package of five pre-stamped
envelopes that look almost exactly like the envelopes that Netflix
sends DVDs in, plus five thin clamshell CD protectors.
Meanwhile, you start making a list at the site of the CDs you have
that you're willing to trade. (The one frustrating aspect about this
is that if they don't have a CD in their database, you can't add it to
your list, but this is less of a problem than you might think: for
example, they have the R. Stevie Moore CD that I put out several years
ago, which is well obscure. I think this is something they're working
on fixing.) At the same time, you start making a different list of
CDs that you'd like to receive.
Then, other users request your CDs, which you see on your list as a
button by the disc title that says "Ship it." You're not required to
ship any discs, even if it's on your list. If you decide to get rid
of a disc, you press that button and get the name and address of the
person you're shipping the disc to. You put the CD in the clamshell
and put it, the booklet and the tray card in the envelope. If the
booklet consists of more than one piece of paper folded over, you put
a 24-cent second-ounce stamp (available at any post office) on the
envelope next to the stamp that's already there. Then you put the
envelope in the mail. Other than the possibility of putting on an
extra stamp, it's free to ship the disc.
(As for shipping CD in Digipaks: if you put the whole thing in the
envelope minus the clamshell, it *just* fits, but you'll have to tape
the envelope closed, and it will likely take at least a couple of
extra stamps. Because I bake a lot, I have a digital scale down in
the kitchen, so I just use that and the USPS website to figure out
what to add in extra postage, or you can do that at the post office
until you get an idea of how much extra postage a Digipak takes.)
Meanwhile, if other people have CDs from your want list available to
trade, they're in the same position with you: they press a button, get
your address and mail you the disc. In other words, these aren't
closed-dyad trades: you don't get a disc back from the person you
shipped a disc to. (Although as it happens, I just got Kate Bush's
THE SENSUAL WORLD from someone who I shipped The Chameleons' STRANGE
TIMES to last week.) You're billed $1.49 for this disc. Billing
works like this: you have a credit card number on file, as you do with
Netflix or Amazon or whatever, and at the end of the month, based on
whatever day of the month you joined, you're billed once, in
aggregate, for however many discs you received that month. As I said,
I've gotten 18 CDs this month, so at the end of this month, I'll be
billed $26.82. Total bargain.
Now, as has been discussed, you're not required to send the cover art,
and that does mean that it's entirely likely that the first several
discs you receive will not have the cover art. There are also
apparently people who ditch their tray cards and keep their CDs in
sleeves, which puzzles me no end, but whatever. So yes, there is
always some chance that you're going to get discs missing the tray
cards and/or the booklets, but as I said yesterday, the system takes
note of those who ship with cover art, and it attempts to match these
people together. This is probably the main thing they're going to be
changing as it shifts out of beta testing.
Me, I really don't care if I get the cover art or not, because
frankly, these days I do about 80% at least of my music listening
either out of my iPod or out of iTunes on my desktop computer. If the
lack of cover art just completely galls you, I don't recommend La La,
at least until the beta test is over and we see what they do about
that. Otherwise, it's a can't miss.
The reason why this is better than, as Gary suggested, setting up an
intra-Audities wiki trade list is that Audities is a closed system of
what, about 500 people? There's a limit to what could be traded here.
With La La, there are potentially thousands of people interested in
your CDs, and with CDs of their own, which leads to much greater
variety.
S
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