Access to the system as a seller is through a secure, authenticated portal. A seller can list books on the system through a special Internet form. The form asks for all the pertinent information about the book: its category, its general condition, and the asking price. A seller may list as many books as desired. The system maintains an index of all books in the system so buyers can use the search engine to search for books. The search engine allows searches by title, author, category, and keyword.

People who want to buy books come to the site and search for the books they want. When they decide to buy, they must open an account with a credit card to pay for the books. The system maintains all this information on secure servers.

When a purchase is made, the website sends an e-mail notice to the seller of the book that was chosen as well as payment information. It also marks the book as sold. The system maintains an open order until it receives notice that the book has been shipped. After the seller receives notice that is listed book has been sold, the seller must notify the buyer via e-mail within 48 hours that the purchase is noted. Shipment of the order must be made within 24 hours after the seller sends the notification e-mail. The seller sends a notification to the buyer and website when the shipment is made.

After receiving the notice of shipment, the website maintains the order in a shipped status. At the end of each month, a check is mailed to each seller for the book orders that have remained in a shipped status for 30 days. The 30-day waiting period exists to allow the buyer to notify website if the shipment doesnt arrive for some reason or if the book isnt in the same condition as advertised. If they want, buyers can rate the seller. The rating is an indication of how well the seller is servicing book purchases. Thus, the rating is an important indicator to potential buyers.