Racketboy '16 Charity Auction All Done - Check your PM's!

[PartridgeSenpai]

I got my package from JP yesterday, and everything is super spik and span! My mother was very confused about the return address though, which gave me a good laugh XD

[TSTR]

I've had pretty decent luck with Media Mail in the past, so it worked out perfectly. If I send anything out next year, I'll probably do the same thing.

inb4 Fragems lets y'all know about abuse of the Media Mail designation

[Flake]

Just want to apologize for everyone waiting on packages from me. I've been home sick the last few days and have not had a chance to get them out. I am going to try to get everything mailed out tomorrow.

[ElkinFencer10]

Just want to apologize for everyone waiting on packages from me. I've been home sick the last few days and have not had a chance to get them out. I am going to try to get everything mailed out tomorrow.

I guess we have proof that Flake is flaky.

[Fragems]

I've had pretty decent luck with Media Mail in the past, so it worked out perfectly. If I send anything out next year, I'll probably do the same thing.

inb4 Fragems lets y'all know about abuse of the Media Mail designation

Well I'll just say that about 9/10 media mail packages get inspected before they reach my office so use at your own risk . Media mail is pretty much textbooks/school media only at this point. People use it so infrequently anymore that unless someone gets lazy they almost all get inspected since fraud is so high.

If you do use it at minimum perform the shake test before leaving and make sure it at least feels/sounds like a book . If they hear a disc rattling around it's probably going to get opened.

[marurun]

I've had pretty decent luck with Media Mail in the past, so it worked out perfectly. If I send anything out next year, I'll probably do the same thing.

inb4 Fragems lets y'all know about abuse of the Media Mail designation

Well I'll just say that about 9/10 media mail packages get inspected before they reach my office so use at your own risk . Media mail is pretty much textbooks/school media only at this point. People use it so infrequently anymore that unless someone gets lazy they almost all get inspected since fraud is so high.

If you do use it at minimum perform the shake test before leaving and make sure it at least feels/sounds like a book . If they hear a disc rattling around it's probably going to get opened.

I read about media mail on the USPS web site. CD media is valid for media mail. That's why I used it for a bunch of heavy PC CDs. Totally legit! Not legit for cartridges.

[Fragems]

While the basic layout is this Media Mail® service has special eligibility requirements for permissible contents.

Basic Rules:

Media Mail rates are limited to the items listed below:
Books (at least 8 pages).
Sound recordings and video recordings, such as CDs and DVDs.
Playscripts and manuscripts for books, periodicals, and music.
Printed music.
Computer-readable media containing prerecorded information and guides or scripts prepared solely for use with such media.
Sixteen millimeter or narrower width films.
Printed objective test materials and their accessories.
Printed educational reference charts.
Loose-leaf pages and their binders consisting of medical information for distribution to doctors, hospitals, medical schools, and medical students.

But the much more detailed rules are pretty ridiculous. So basically if it isn't a book it better clearly look like educational material or they can reject it and even legit stuff gets returned for stupid reasons sometimes(bundled thanks you cards and etc.) . So really it's a worthless service outside of school materials unless you want to take a gamble on returns and/or getting charged postage due . I had to return multiple Christmas gifts to the senders because of this which was not a fun experience.

More detailed rules(But I think there is an even more in depth rule set somewhere that I can't find ). The language is pretty confusing at times as well so depending upon the clerk you get they might have a totally different interpretation of which types of CD/DVDs qualify.

3.1 Content Standards

Only these items may be mailed at the Media Mail prices:

a. Books, including books issued to supplement other books, of at least eight printed pages, consisting wholly of reading matter or scholarly bibliography, or reading matter with incidental blank spaces for notations and containing no advertising matter other than incidental announcements of books. Advertising includes paid advertising and the publishers' own advertising in display, classified, or editorial style.

b. 16-millimeter or narrower width films, which must be positive prints in final form for viewing, and catalogs of such films of 24 pages or more (at least 22 of which are printed). Films and film catalogs sent to or from commercial theaters do not qualify for the Media Mail price.

c. Printed music, in bound or sheet form.

d. Printed objective test materials and their accessories used by or on behalf of educational institutions to test ability, aptitude, achievement, interests, and other mental and personal qualities with or without answers, test scores, or identifying information recorded thereon in writing or by mark.

e. Sound recordings, including incidental announcements of recordings and guides or scripts prepared solely for use with such recordings. Video recordings and player piano rolls are classified as sound recordings.

f. Playscripts and manuscripts for books, periodicals, and music.

g. Printed educational reference charts designed to instruct or train individuals for improving or developing their capabilities. Each chart must be a single printed sheet of information designed for educational reference. The information on the chart, which may be printed on one or both sides of the sheet, must be conveyed primarily by graphs, diagrams, tables, or other nonnarrative matter. An educational reference chart is normally but not necessarily devoted to one subject. A chart on which the information is conveyed primarily by textual matter in a narrative form does not qualify as a printed educational reference chart for mailing at the Media Mail prices even if it includes graphs, diagrams, or tables. Examples of qualifying charts include maps produced primarily for educational reference, tables of mathematical or scientific equations, noun declensions or verb conjugations used in the study of languages, periodic table of elements, botanical or zoological tables, and other tables used in the study of science.

h. Loose-leaf pages and their binders consisting of medical information for distribution to doctors, hospitals, medical schools, and medical students.

i. Computer-readable media containing prerecorded information and guides or scripts prepared solely for use with such media.

[TSTR]

Lawyers of Racketboy: I wonder if video games could be permissible under rule i as listed above.

[marurun]

While the basic layout is this Media Mail® service has special eligibility requirements for permissible contents.

Basic Rules:

Computer-readable media containing prerecorded information and guides or scripts prepared solely for use with such media.

3.1 Content Standards

i. Computer-readable media containing prerecorded information and guides or scripts prepared solely for use with such media.

No educational requirement is specified for these items. Computer-readable media is any CD or DVD containing pre-recorded information. That "and guides or scripts" is included simply because many audio CDs also include a book with additional information. That said, apparently the higher-ups in the Post Office agree with you, because I found this Customer Service decision from 2014.

http://pe.usps.com/text/csr/ps-334.htm? ... &p=1&c=CSR

In conclusion, video games, whether on CD-ROM, diskettes, or similar software, regardless of form, or playable systems including computers, do not meet the standards for Media Mail.

My apologies, Sarge. I thought the text was pretty clear. I didn't think I was gambling when I sent those CDs to you.

[Sarge]

Ha, well, I did the same thing, and heck, even the person helping at the post office said to send 'em that way when I sent them. Go figure.

The gamble was just fine, I've got no problems with it.

Besides, I could argue that those video games are very educational. I mean, they're classics, after all, so I'm just experiencing the history of the medium!