The Laminator I'm borrowing for a friend via facebook, Collaboration/ Co-operation and user feedback

I don't think it's helpful for me to pretend that freelender.org is the best thing since sliced bread.

(By the way, the history of sliced bread is that -just like freelender.org- it took many years to catch on. That's another story though, and if you can find me the link to the source of the story about sliced bread I'd be grateful. It sounds like something Malcolm Gladwell would talk about on Ted.com :


 ).

So, to cut the hype, so far I haven't received more than one successful response to the 6 wanted requests I've put on that site. (By the way, if you are logged in to freelender, the top request I have is currently this one).

As I say, freelender.org is not where I've had the highest success rate in asking for items. Where I have had 100% success in requesting items which I want to borrow is via my news updates on my facebook page. (NB A social networking look-alike version of freelender.org would look like this.)

What amazes  me is that not only did a new friend called Richard look through my old news feed and find that a friend of mine wanted to borrow a laminator. What he did that was far beyond expectations was that he was also willing to put it on freelender.org:

• to log the transaction in the way that works best for me 
• and that makes one of his possessions available to the wider community after my friend has finished with it. 

Richard even went one step beyond, and agreed to test two other sites in the 'sharing and gift economics sector' to provide me with his take on them.

Hi Richard
People who provide feedback about websites I'm interested in are few and far between!

I gained a lot from your site testing of our two main collaborators/competitors :-letsallshare.com- and justfortheloveofit.org.

We haven't quite worked out in the 'sharing & gift economy' how we do the optimum combination of sharing our databases/code etc; that's some way down the line I imagine, though freelender is Open Source and does want to put it's code into a suitable forum soon, along with an organised set of suggestions we can get on improvements to be made to the site, and how it could also be integrated with freegle UK and freecycle UK.

Best wishes
Paul

If you have any time to try sharing more in your life and to try any of the sites in this blog posting please then send your feedback to Edmund and I, directors of  Freelending CIC via this link or join in the editing of the collective information in the wider freelender community site.