CHAPTER SEVEN Managing Vendors

Everything is negotiable.

—ANONYMOUS

CHAPTER TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Dealing with Vendors 179
2. Key Evaluation Metrics 186
3. Getting Current Information 192
4. Purchasing Sources 195
5. Additional Resources 199

Purchasing IT equipment has become more complicated as time has passed. The players have changed (software salesmen now know something about their products), the metrics have changed (“Is it under $1000?” is no longer a very useful criteria), the information changes so quickly (new versions no longer come out only once a year), and the sources for purchasing items have changed (nobody sends you floppies in the mail anymore).

This chapter discusses how to deal with vendors, how to create useful matrices ...

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