Scavenger

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Just spotted this newly relaunched recycling/reuse network for Hackney on Twitter (via @Steverstrange): http://www.scavenger.ws Scavenger’s aims: To create a live inventory of all the surplus unwanted or un-used items that exist within homes and businessesTo promote the reuse of things.To reduce the quantity of things that are being thrown away and taken to landfill sites.To create links between people and businesses to enable them to easily give away their unwanted things to others who do want them. Why get involved: The benifits of getting involved are huge. If you’ve got something that you need to get rid of then most likely someone else will want it and will come and collect it from you! Therefore you won’t need to spend your time and effort driving to the tip or local charity centre. If you’re on the look out for something then you might well find it within the inventory. You will have to put the effort in to arrange to collect it but since your’re getting it for free there’s no room for complaining! Who can get involved? We want everyone to get involved. Whether your a small or big business or just an ordinary individual we would like you to take part.”

12 Comments

  1. Cool, it’s a bit like freecycle but easier to use and a scoring system that means the most active people get more access to stuff – and people who don’t show up get reduced points.

  2. I dont see why this exists when freecycle is a pretty good system with a large user base.

  3. Below are Scavengers top 12 offers with the distance from E8 plus the number of days the offer has been made. By the way, there are less than 12 sign-ups indicated in hackney. As lead moderator of Hackney Freecycle, with all its inherent faults of being hosted via Yahoo, I think I would agree with andrewdfda. White Converse Trainers0.4 miles84d 6h 57mBetween the Assassinations – A. Adiga 1 miles15d 5h 57mTwo Spotty Mugs0.4 miles99d 6h 57mOff-White large wooden coffee table0.4 miles99d 6h 57mLadies Blue North Face Fleece0.4 miles92d 6h 57mPretty Wooden Napkin Rings0.4 miles99d 6h 57mTwo Mugs0.4 miles93d 6h 57mThe Hopeless Case of Charlie Summers1 miles22d 5h 57mLong handled soft brush0.4 miles “

  4. They have just gone live with their new site – so I guess they have been down for a little while. I’m willing to give them a go, I like the fact that if someone doesn’t show up their points are reduced, that has to be the most frustrating thing with freecycle

  5. That is very frustrating, however I find the lack of heirachy that freecycle has quite refreshing. I dont think that people who are ‘freecycle nerds’ should get all the best stuff – its surely not a good way to encourage more people to participate. I also find it to be much more personal, making you pay attention to what people write rather than a little green number (or whatever the feedback system is). Although I shouldnt put this newer site down before ive read it properly, im all for giving and receiving free stuff.

  6. I think the point system is an interesting concept, in my opinion it’s less about rewarding \freecycle nerds” and more about encouraging positive behaviour on a community website – something that interests me as a community manager. It may create an unwanted heirachy or it may make for a great self moderating community – or then again maybe no one will use it anyway as they are all of Freecycle! There is room for more than one website like this out there and if the ethos of both is to keep usable items out of landfills then that can’t be a bad thing. “

  7. Thank you so much for the positive feedback @ewebber We’ve put alot of time developing Scavenger into something that we felt would be useful to everyone. One of our key ideas was to create an ‘Inventory’ of everything that was unwanted. We felt that using a forum posting system means that unwanted items that are not taken straight away might just get lost once they are no longer current. Therefore we felt that posting to a searchable database would solve this issue and allow an ‘Inventory’ to be built up.As for the scoring system the idea was to create some form of structure to push out the time wasters and allow those who contribute the most to the community to have a greater option of who they give their things to. The intention is definitely not to create an elite group. Those with more points than others automatically post to everyone unless they specifically state otherwise.In essence we are trying to build something that is driven by the needs of everyone. We are keen to get feedback and to keep developing the site to make to process of giving and taking as easy as possible.Scavenger is not meant to be in competition with the likes of freecycle and all the other similar organisations. We simply trying to encourage more giving and taking to take place by offering another option.@lesmoore please do get in touch to discuss how we can co-operate and help each other promote a good cause.@ewebber if you have anymore feedback please do get in touch. As I said we are keen to hear from people using to site so that we can work out what we are doing wrong and what we are doing right, and keep improving.

  8. I liked the idea of scavenger, but basic usability bugs mean that I’m out for now. As a programmer myself I understand that sometimes a project can be a work in progress, but the core features of a site should work when you introduce it to the world. Examples:- the link to remove an item leads to a 404 page, so I’m getting emails from people for an item that’s no longer available and can’t do anything about it.- the email that says someone has taken my item includes a broken link to view it:  href=\http://http://www.scavenger.ws/Profile/Messages…I’d suggest reading some books such as designing with progressive enchancement and something around agile development as a process. Good luck!”

  9. @goodlegs thanks for the comments. A while has passed and we have done a fair bit of testing and development since your post, so hopefully we have addressed most of the site’s issues now. But all the same do let use know if you find any more bugs with the site. We have now teamed up with some developers from hackspace in Shoreditch who are beginning work on a mobile app for Scavenger..very exciting indeed! @lesmoore we are still keen to talk with hackney freecycle if you are willing to give us an ear?

  10. Below is a list of some items currently listed on the Scavenger Network. The distance shown is the approximate distance from E8 (Dalston Lane) plus the number of days before the offer is removed from the website. If anyone can take and make use of any of these things that would be excellent! Scavenger Network website address is http://scavenger.org.uk Plywood sheeting0.7 miles47d 0h 34m Wood and metal hand saws0.7 miles47d 0h 34m 4ft6 double mattress0.6 miles14d 0h 34m old Bernina domestic sewing machine.4.4 miles17d 21h 34m coat hangers0.3 miles8d 0h 34m 9856329outdooroutdoor patio heater0.6 miles14d 0h 34m 72402884x4x Epson ink cartridges R800 R18006.5 miles108d 0h 34m Pair of Scatter Cushions0.7 miles140d 1h 34m 2953656bamboobamboo skewers1.6 miles329d 0h 34m Dance lessons2.1 miles48d 0h 34m single mattress1.1 miles33m 58s Photocopier0.7 miles106d 0h 33m”

  11. Wanted – Green minded organisations (and everyone else) The Scavenger Network project is calling out for organisations to get on board and join the project. Every year huge amounts of resources are wasted because throwing stuff straight into the bin is the easiest thing to do. The Scavenger Network is trying to build up a database of all the resource needs and waste outputs of organisations across the UK. Using this data we are matching up all of the resource needs with useful ‘waste’ products that are being produced in other organisations and homes. Developing these links will benefit both the planet (less waste to landfill) and the organisations (free waste disposal and free resources). Therefore we encourage all members of the network to list as many wanted posts (their resource needs) as they need as well as their waste outputs. The more wanted posts there are the quicker a suitable new home can be found for waste outputs, saving them from the bin! The network already has almost 1700 members across the UK and is growing steadily. We are beginning to hit the critical mass where things really start to work well, so it would be great to see even more organisations and people join up so that the links we are trying to build really start to fuse together! It doesn’t matter what type of organisation you are; a community group, a non-profit, a registered charity or even a commercial business. We are keen for you to join us! (Individuals are welcome to join too!) Everyone produces waste and everybody needs resources so it makes a lot of sense no to exclude anyone! The Scavenger Network’s website address is http://scavenger.org.uk The website is free (donations pay for our server costs) and the project is run and developed entirely by volunteers. If you would like any more information or are keen to play a part in the project please do get in touch! Thanks Tom(On behalf of the Scavenger Team)http://scavenger.org.ukinfo@scavenger.org.uk“

  12. The Scavenger Reuse & Recycle Network project is a resource hub for everyone to use (organisations, businesses, domestic individuals, community groups, charities). Every year huge amounts of resources are wasted because throwing stuff straight into the bin is the easiest thing to do. The Scavenger Network is trying to build up a national database of all the resource needs and waste outputs of organisations across the UK. Using this data we are matching up all of the resource needs with useful ‘waste’ products that are being produced in other organisations and homes. Developing these links will benefit both the planet (less waste to landfill) and the organisations (free waste disposal and free resources). Therefore we encourage all members of the network to list as many wanted posts (their resource needs) as they need as well as their waste outputs. The more wanted posts there are the quicker a suitable new home can be found for waste outputs, saving them from the bin! The network is growing steadily and currently have all sorts of interesting organisations and people on board but do come and visit us and help the network grow! We are beginning to hit the critical mass where things really start to work well, so it would be great to see even more organisations and people join up so that the links we are trying to build really start to fuse together! It doesn’t matter who you are or what type of organisation you are; a community group, a non-profit, a registered charity or even a commercial business. We are keen for you to join us! (Individuals are welcome to join too!) Everyone produces waste and everybody needs resources so it makes a lot of sense no to exclude anyone! The Scavenger Network’s website address is http://scavenger.org.ukThe website is free (donations pay for our server costs) and the project is run and developed entirely by volunteers. If you would like any more information or are keen to play a part in the project please do get in touch! A bit about the network’s aims and uses:- A living inventory of all the surplus, unwanted or un-used, items that exist within homes and businesses across the UK.- Promoting the reuse of all things and reducing the quantity of things that are being thrown away and taken to landfill sites.- Creating links between people and businesses to enable them to easily give away their unwanted things to others who do want them.- The Scavenger Network will do all of the hard work for you (well some of it) by continually searching for things matching your saved searches/wanted items, then instantly emailing you when it finds a match! To find us you can either google ‘Scavenger Network’ or use this web address http://www.scavenger.org.uk If you would like a bit more information please do contact us at info@scavenger.org.uk. Thanks The Scavenger Team  🙂

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