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List:       publib
Subject:    [PUBLIB] B&T Title Source - have you thought about other options?
From:       plib2 () webjunction ! org (PUBLIB)
Date:       2005-04-28 16:13:10
Message-ID: Pine.GSO.4.10.10504281313080.5855-100000 () webjunction ! org
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Sender: "Robin K. Blum" <info@inmybook.com>
Subject: B&T Title Source - have you thought about other options?

How about skipping the wholesaler altogether and ordering the book
directly from the publisher?  Small publishers in particular would bend
over backwards to get your business.  And your local independent
bookstore would do triple-somersaults to sell to their local library...I
bet you'd get a nice discount too.

B&T and Ingram have bookstores and libraries over a barrel, and that's
just the way they like it.  They're in control of inventory, returns,
discount schedules, backorders and they want to keep it that way.
They're perfectly happy returning more copies of the book than they
bought from a certain publisher (i.e., returning their own and others
returns too), and charging them for "warehousing" the stock til they get
around to returning them.  It's a racket and a profitable one too.
Ingram is even more guilty of this than B&T.  

I also wish folks would not automatically jump to the idea of purchasing
everything at Amazon.com (as we've been trained to do by the
corporation) and investigate how they can patronize and support small
and local businesses.  The local public library should patronize the
local independent bookstore.  

Robin K. Blum
www.inmybook.com

Date: Wed, 27 Apr 2005 12:55:17 -0700 (PDT)
From: "John" <jrichmond@alphapark.org>
To: publib <publib@webjunction.org>
Subject: B&T Title Source II
Message-ID:
<Pine.GSO.4.10.10504271255150.7832-100000@webjunction.org>

Hasn't been a discussion of this for awhile--I checked the
archives--so....  There has been muttering among library directors in
the Peoria area about a) the ridiculous cost of Title Source II, and b)
its technical problems.  Our bookkeeper, who does the actual B&T
ordering, hates the system, considers it user-unfriendly.  Lately TSII
has been soooo slooooowww, with lots of error messages after attempted
searches.  Our B&T rep essentially said to me, "Gee, it's a great
system, what's wrong with you, and here are a couple of techie fixes
which your IT guy can try, and they'll probably help."  (They didn't.)
Meanwhile, our regional system has a new contract with Brodart, with
better discounts--I used Brodart in TX and was quite happy with it--and
BIBZ is free.  Still developing, and not without its weirdnesses, but
FREE.

We're thinking about just saying NO to TSII, perhaps keeping some
standing orders (paperbacks, maybe) with B&T, moving mostly to Brodart,
and using amazon and other sites--which we do already, for lots of stuff
that is backordered on B&T (?until Jesus returns?)--for whatever we
can't get.  Oh--and Ingram, too--using them, I mean, though right now we
only buy A-V from Ingram.

I'm curious to know if there are others out there who a) dislike TSII,
b) dislike the price so much that they have jettisoned TSII, and c) have
gone on to other vendors.  Are you HAPPY?  Are you GLAD you did it?  Did
your budget MISS the Title Source II line devoted to it?  If you have
kept on ordering some stuff from B&T, how do you do it *without* TSII?

Please write an essay of no more than ten words and get it to me by
tomorrow--oh, wait, flashback to high school and/or college.  You may
respond directly to me, if you so choose.  Thanks. 

John D. Richmond, Director
Alpha Park Public Library District
3527 So. Airport Road
Bartonville, IL 61607-1799
Ph: 309-697-3822, x. 12
Fax: 309-697-9681
Email: jrichmond@alphapark.org
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"Today's rooster is tomorrow's feather duster."  -- Anon.




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End of PUBLIB Digest 3084
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