BookEx Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Book Exchange?A: It is the here. It is the now. It is better for you than vegetables. It is the zeitgeist. It is where it's at. It is the one, the only, the original, the often imitated, never duplicated, ΑΦΩ Book Exchange. You shall know it by the trail of textbooks.
Q: When is the Book Exchange open and where is it?
A: The ΑΦΩ Book Exchange has walk-in hours from 10am through 5pm in the Mezzanine Lounge (W20-307) every day from Monday 9/1/08 through Friday 9/5/08. You may purchase books online 24 hours a day from 10am on Monday 9/1/08 through 5pm on Friday 9/5/08.
Q: Can I buy books online?
A: Yes, the ΑΦΩ Book Exchange accepts online orders on this website 24 hours a day (starting 10am 9/1/08) from any customer who wishes to pay with TechCASH.
Q: How can I get a TechCASH account if I don't already have one?
A: You can visit http://mit.edu/mitcard/techcash/openaccount.html to open a TechCASH account. You will find links to lots of other information about TechCASH on that page.
Q: Do you accept any forms of payment besides TechCASH?
A: Yes, if you visit us in person during walk-in hours, we accept both cash and TechCASH. We only accept personal checks from members of ΑΦΩ. We do not accept credit cards, PayPal, etc. TechCASH is the only form of payment we are able to accept for online orders.
Q: How do online orders work?
A: Once you search through our available books and add the ones you'd like to purchase to your cart, you click the link to checkout beneath your shopping cart on the left side of the screen. We will verify that your TechCASH account has sufficient funds for your purchase and then locate each of the books you've selected and put them aside for you. When we have your books ready, we will charge your TechCASH account and send you e-mail to let you know that you may come pick up the books at your convenience. You may pick the books up during our walk-in hours from 10am-5pm 9/1/08-9/7/07 in W20-307. When you pick up your books, you will be asked to sign a receipt that lists the books you purchased and the price charged to your account. We will be happy to provide you with a copy of this receipt at that time.
Q: Am I guaranteed to get all the books I order online?
A: Not exactly. If you order a book online during walk-in hours, it is possible that a customer who is physically at the Book Exchange may bring your book to the checkout counter before your order is filled. If this happens and your order was placed very recently, the book may be sold to the in-person customer. If something like this happens, or if anything else goes wrong, we will set aside all the books you've ordered that we are able to, and will contact you by e-mail to explain what went wrong and ask whether you'd still like to purchase the other books. Your TechCASH account will not be charged unless we either fill your entire order or receive confirmation from you that it's okay to proceed without the books we were unable to reserve. Once you receive e-mail from us indicating that your order was filled, the books are reserved for you and cannot be purchased by anyone else.
Q: Why are there two prices listed for the books?
A: Sellers are allowed to set two prices for their books: one is the normal price, and the other (shown in brackets) is the price that the book will be sold for on the last day of the Exchange if it hasn't already been bought. You can sometimes find great deals on the last day of the Exchange, but beware that a book may be bought before Friday.
Q: How long does it take for an online order to be processed?
A: If you place an online order during our walk-in hours, we aim to fill your order within about fifteen minutes. If you place your order overnight (between the hours of 5pm and 10am), we will work on filling your order as soon as the Book Exchange opens at 10am. If you do not hear from us within a reasonable amount of time, please feel free to contact us by sending e-mail to "book-exchange (at) mit (dot) edu".
Q: Why do you need my MIT ID number for an online order?
A: Your MIT ID number is linked to your TechCASH account, and we need it to charge your account. There are plans to make this unnecessary in the future, but we are stuck with this limitation for the moment. ΑΦΩ will not use your ID number for any purpose other than to charge your TechCASH account for the Book Exchange orders you place online. We will take reasonable measures to safeguard this information, and will only share it with the MIT TechCASH Office.
Q: What do the various book conditions you list online mean?
A: The conditions listed online are our attempt to give you some information about the state of books available through the Exchange. We've tried to make the best assessment we could of the books, but cannot guarantee the accuracy of these classifications. The guidelines we try to follow about each category can be found here.
Q: What if I want to see the books before I purchase them?
A: Please feel free to shop the ΑΦΩ Book Exchange in person during our walk-in hours (10am-5pm 9/1/08-9/5/08).
Q: What are the book IDs displayed in the book listing?
A: These are internal labels used by ΑΦΩ to identify the book and who sold it, so that when a purchase is made, the money goes to the right person.
Q: Do you have any books for sale that aren't listed online?
A: Yes, we have a selection of science fiction paperbacks that sell for $0.50 each, but have not been entered into the database. If you're interested, we invite you to visit us during our walk-in hours.
Q: This is great! Can I sell my books through the Book Exchange?
A: Absolutely! You can bring your used books to our walk-in hours, and we'll be happy to register them in our database, put them out on the tables, and make them available. We always hold drop-off hours at the end of a term and during the week prior to the Book Exchange as well.
Q: What is ΑΦΩ?
A: ΑΦΩ is a national co-ed nonresidential service fraternity. The Book Exchange is just one of many service projects we work on for the benefit of the MIT community and outside. If you'd like to find out more about us, please feel free to drop by our walk-in hours at the Book Exchange, to send e-mail to "apo (at) mit (dot) edu", come by our office (W20-415) when it's open, visit our website, or call us at x3-3788.
Q: My question isn't answered here. Where can I turn for further help?
A: You're invited to contact us via e-mail with any additional questions you have. Our address is "book-exchange (at) mit (dot) edu". Our schedules are like those of any MIT student, so we promise to watch mail to this address during our walk-in hours, but there's a very good chance that you'll get a speedy response if you send mail in the middle of the night as well. Questions you ask us will be added to this FAQ as appropriate and will help make the page more useful for other customers. Of course, you're also welcome to drop by our walk-in hours and ask questions in person.