Notes requests fail in two directions. They are so vague that a classmate would have to donate a semester. Or they are so loaded with apology that saying no feels cruel, so the person says nothing.
Ask for a specific slice. Offer a specific return. Make no cheap to write.
Name the slice
The lecture date, the chapter, or the page range. What format you can actually use. Write for a cold reader — they have their own midterm and will not reconstruct your absences.
One slice per message. "Everything since the break" is a second job. If you missed more than one lecture, pick the one that unlocks tonight's problem set.
Do not send the story of why you missed unless a policy requires it. The trade should stand without the diary.
Reciprocal, not extractive
Say what you will give back: your notes from the lab they missed, a problem-set walkthrough you already wrote, the reading notes from last week. If you have nothing yet, say you will cover the next lecture they name. A request with an empty return is a favour. Call it a favour. Do not dress it as teamwork.
Tell them no is a complete answer and needs no explanation. People sit on these messages because declining feels like kicking someone who is already down. Remove that tax.
A sufficient reply is "yes, I'll share Thursday's pages in the course folder" or "no." You did not ask for a pep talk.
Agree the trade; move the files elsewhere
RelayLink carries no files. The briefing is the ask. The photos of the board live in the shared place the course already has.
You draft. You read the tone. You confirm the send. A classmate should not get a guilt paragraph the model warmed up.
If they have no account, they get email and a link. If they already have RelayLink, you need an accepted contact. If this will be a standing trade, invite them once.
Nicknames stay private unless you share them. Use the name on the roster.
If they block you, the block is silent. That is the end of this channel. Ask someone else, or go to the lecture.
When the slice is small enough to trade in a line, connect your assistant and ask for that slice — not a semester, and not a confession.