B!KE began using MyTurn.com in April and we are very happy with it. We
started a small bicycle tool library
https://communitybikeshop.myturn.com/library/ and are also using my turn
to very successfully manage our membership database.
We chose MyTurn over other platforms because it is a company that is deeply
invested in the sharing economy. It has flexibility (like sliding scale
fees) that really reflects the needs of a more grass roots organizational
approach. I think it could easily be configured to have check-out fees and
partial refunds with a return. The lead developer Gene is great. I would
suggest folks take a look at it if you are looking for either a library
system or need affordable support with member management.
On Sun, Nov 8, 2020 at 4:03 PM <
thethinktank-request@lists.bikecollectives.org> wrote:
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Today's Topics:
- Re: 6 month Bike "Checkout" System w/ the option to buy
(Bill Leddy)
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Bill Leddy bill@williesworkshop.net
To: thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
Cc:
Bcc:
Date: Sun, 8 Nov 2020 10:39:07 -0800
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] 6 month Bike "Checkout" System w/ the option
to buy
Hi All,
Before I begin, I apologize in advance for the length of this post…
I’m new to this list. I’ve been a volunteer with Sacramento Area Bicycle
Advocates (SABA) for a number of years. As part of my work at SABA I’ve
created a few on-line systems that we have been using.
Commenting on Jonathan’s post, though I’m not fluent in PHP, assuming the
source code is available (very likely) that sounds like a good way to get
your system back on line quickly. As a next step, finding someone to
upgrade the code to a modern version of PHP would surly be quicker and
easier than starting from scratch. On the other hand, sometimes with
experience gained, a substantial re-write may make the app a lot better.
As a kinda-sorta response to Audrey’s question about other systems, I’d
like to share something I’m currently working on for SABA which I hope may
be relevant.
When “the thing” started in March, a number of bike organizations began
“Bike Match” programs with a focus on getting under used bikes into the
hands of essential workers who were having trouble commuting to their jobs
etc. It stated in NY and DC, I believe, as a one on one match making scheme
where the donor and recipient would make their own arrangements to meet and
hand off the bike. SABA tried setting up a similar program but in a
smaller, far less dense city, the logistics simply did not work. The
distances between the donors and recipients are too great. There was a lot
of bike schlepping on our part so it just didn’t scale.
We are on the verge of relaunching SABA BikeMatch with a very different
approach which, after viewing the Bike Library site, sounds an awful lot
like what Audrey’s organization is doing but with a bit of an on-line
shopping element. Rather than scheduling people to come in and find a bike,
we plan to post the available bikes on line. Bikes are reserved for a very
limited time with a specific appointment date and time. At the appointed
time, the recipient comes to pickup their bike. If they don’t show, the
bike automatically becomes available for someone else.
You can play around with the development site here:
https://bikematch.williesworkshop.net Feel free to “reserve” a bike and
check it out.
The site is still in development but should all work, as far as it goes. I
would love to hear feed back and any suggestions or questions you have.
Getting back to Audrey’s question, I could imagine this system expanding
to include a Library functionality. I think all the major pieces are there.
I look forward to hearing your comments.
In case there is anyone still reading this, I have another system which
I’ve created that other organizations may be interested in...
What with “the thing” this year SABA has not been doing too many public
events but we used to do a lot of Valet Bike Parking and a community bike
repair program we call Bike MD. After using another system for years, I was
finally fed up enough with what I thought were short comings and created a
system for publicizing events and allowing volunteers and staff to schedule
themselves for shifts. You can check it out here:
https://events.sacbike.org
For those of a technical frame of mind, it’s open source written in Python
and is available at: http://github.com/wleddy/staffing
The site is not entirely customizable at this time, but if anyone is
interested in making use of it, it might be just the push I need to clean
it up.
Regards,
Bill Leddy
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Jonathan Rosenbaum gnuser@gmail.com
To: The Think Tank thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org
Cc:
Bcc:
Date: Fri, 6 Nov 2020 23:05:04 -0500
Subject: Re: [TheThinkTank] 6 month Bike "Checkout" System w/ the option
to buy
Hi Audrey,
Is the code for the Bike Library Checkout App available anywhere?
Regardless, I should be able to provide a resolution for this issue. The
easiest solution would be to run the app in a virtualized container that
has the correct libraries. Exactly like with the reuse of bikes, you can
reuse code.
-Jonathan
On Fri, Nov 6, 2020 at 11:17 AM Audrey Wiedemeier <
audrey@bikelibrary.org> wrote:
Hello Friends:
Yesterday the Bike Library Checkout App that is custom built html failed
to load. It won't be an easy fix as the Bike Lib. app was running on a
really old version of php; a version that is no longer supported. The code
is at least ten years old and likely will need to be completely rewritten.
That being said, we need to decide to rewrite the code or query other
operations out there.
The order of operation for the Checkout System is:
- find a bike, put down a deposit of $100-$300, sign the liability
waiver, patron takes bike
- on our end each bike has a 4-digit number that gets entered into our
system with bike specs and the 6 month "due date" is recorded with that
number
- six months go by and the patron can return the bike for a refund of
their deposit minus $50 OR they simply keep the bike and we keep their
deposit $.
- if they return it we make sure we have an updated mailing address, and
the app lets us know how much we need to write the check out for to send
via snail mail
My questions to y'all are:
1 Do other shops operate in a similar fashion? If so, what POS system
are you using?
2 Are there other shops out there who would want to replicate this
checkout system? We have always wanted to make it easier to share and now
would be the time to do it.
3 Have you heard of any new tech solutions that we should research? I've
heard it's easier than ever to build your own app and I've fallen behind so
maybe is a simple solution.
Peace & grease,
Audrey Wiedemeier (She/her/hers)
Iowa City Bike Library, Director
700 S. Dubuque St, Iowa City
COVID Hours: Tues. - Thurs. 10 AM - 5 PM; Sat. 10 - 3 PM
Need something? Set up an appointment by email.
Want to donate? Drop off anytime during these hours. Thank you!
BikeLibrary.org
C: (515) 450-1651
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Executive Director
B!KE: The Peterborough Community Bike Shop
293 George St, Peterborough ON
(705) 775-7227
communitybikeshop.org
she/her
Tegan Moss [B!KE]