[WEB4LIB] RE: marketing, lobbying, and vendors

[Jesse Ephraim]

"I don't see advocating for libraries and bargaining for lower prices to
be clearly related."

They are both areas in which libraries do not tend to excel - I wasn't
implying any deeper connection than that.

"We nickle and dime our vendors to an amazing degree, and then we end up
settling for poorly designed products more often than not. I'd rather
see libraries pay full price and insist on quality."

The products (for the most part) are both poorly designed and vastly
overpriced (library automation software, in particular).  I was a
professional programmer for about a decade, and I know what goes into
making that sort of software (I did corporate systems that were similar)
- it really isn't that difficult to build.  Even with a healthy profit
added, most are still grossly overpriced.  I don't think we are "nickled
and dime"-ing vendors when we ask for price breaks on products that cost
double or triple what they should.

- Jesse