One of the Few Real Dangers of the Forums

I've learned that coming to the forums can be a much more pleasant experience if you skip the threads where someone is whining about not getting what they want when they want it, and instead open the threads where there are questions being asked, and try to answer them when you can. Leaving the baiters and the haters alone has greatly enhanced my experiences here. (I did fall off the wagon once recently, but repented. Geeked )

One of the other things I've learned is that going to the forums can be like going to the mall. I wish I'd learned this truth earlier. I rarely go to malls any more, as I usually double the average age when I walk in. (Sometimes I think I double the average IQ as well, but that's because I carry some biases. That's another story.) But the main reason I don't go is because I see stuff that I didn't know existed, and suddenly can't seem to live without it.

How does this apply to Logos? Well, if I could trade back all the resources I bought because other people in the forums thought they were the best thing since, well, the Bible, I could buy a few resources that I would actually *use*, as well as some lunch money to boot.

What I'm saying is, be careful when folks on the forums are raging (in a good way) over some new resource. Don't buy it unless you'll use it. Even if it is on sale. Way on sale.

A great example of this is the recent Oxyrhynchus Papyri. It was on CP for a LOT less than it was going to sell for in pre-pub or even with academic pricing. Tempting, right? I mean, it closed on CP for $120, and it's now $249 on pre-pub! What a bargain it was!

But remember this: many Christians won't even read their Old Testament. What are they going to do with a collection of shopping lists and reminders from a well in an Egyptian city from a fifteen-hundred years ago? I grant that there are a few specialists for whom this resource is very valuable. But chances are, you are not him (or her). What if you saved that $120 and put it toward that commentary collection you keep wanting (and which you'll actually use)?

Buying something you don't need at 50% off isn't a method of saving money. It's a method of going broke more slowly. (That's also true about shoes, ladies, and tools, guys.)

I now have hundreds of resources that I'll never use (mostly from buying collections to get a single book I wanted, which is also dumb, now that I think about it). Some were because of the hype in the forums. I wish I'd not jumped on a few of those bandwagons. One good thing though: My heirs won't have to make a trip to the dumpster with all these silly books they don't want. Oksie rinkus what? Confused

Just my two euros worth and my activism for the week. HTH.

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Comments

Sakarias Ingolfsson

While I do not agree to all of what you have written, I do certainly agree about buying unecessary resources. I've had a few inner battles about this, especially about whether I was going to upgrade to the new bronze package (or higher) after the Logos 5 launch. I finally decided to stick with my OLL + SESB +++++. Well, almost! I did buy the crossgrade for the added software benefits. The only resources I really want to add at this point are a couple commentary series (as well as a few other minor items).

Recently I figured out that the marketing messages were not going to bring me those items that I want to add. So disliked Logos on facebook and Google plus (I do not use twitter), unsubscribed from all the marketing emails, removed all the RSS feeds and unchecked the marketing options on my Logos home page. I've even unsubscribed from the automatic updates, not only in order to reduce those downloads, but also to avoid indexing all the time. Those are an option after all, and not mandatory to using the software.

It is the fear of loosing out on a good deal that has kept me on the lists, and now it is the increasing intrusion that made me get rid of them. I will probably purchase those other items eventually, but it is likely that I will not be receiving the discount. In the end it is for the best - at least for me :-)

Matthew C Jones

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/536852#Comment_536852

One reason to build a big Logos library is for the benefit of the person you leave your library to when you can no longer use it. (How was that for avoidance of the "death" subject?)

Can you imagine how useful it would be to start the ministry with a large library, all paid for?

DMB

I've always felt good complaining about complainers. I'm not really sure why.

And reading regergitated material is always superior to original text.

John

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/536857#Comment_536857

One reason to build a big Logos library is for the benefit of the person you leave your library to when you can no longer use it. (How was that for avoidance of the "death" subject?)

Can you imagine how useful it would be to start the ministry with a large library, all paid for?

Is there a death tax on software?

Matthew C Jones

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/536982#Comment_536982

s there a death tax on software?

Gift tax: Up to $5,250,000 can be given by an individual, before and/or upon their death, without incurring federal gift or estate taxes

per Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Estate_tax_in_the_United_States

Bruce Dunning

Buying something you don't need at 50% off isn't a method of saving money. It's a method of going broke more slowly. (That's also true about shoes, ladies, and tools, guys.)

My dad lived through the Great Depression and that impacted his spending patterns the rest of his life. He was always very careful when it came to spending money and yet very generous when it came to giving it away. He would often buy day-old (sometimes several days old) bread that was a great deal but was not always eaten.

Certainly I agree with you that a deal is not a deal if you never end up using it but I have often been pleasantly surprised in a good way by discovering a resource that I didn't even realize was part of a package that was a real gem.

James Milne Smith

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/536996#Comment_536996

I agree with Bruce. One of my favourite pastimes is just browsing through my Logos library, looking at stuff that my normal studies would not lead me to. That way, I have found some real pearls of wisdom. Sometimes I get so engrossed that my wife has to remind me to eat and sleep!

ChelseaFC

What I'm saying is, be careful when folks on the forums are raging (in a good way) over some new resource. Don't buy it unless you'll use it. Even if it is on sale. Way on sale.

Good advice. And good advice especially for impulse buyers. [:)]

Cheers,

ChelseaFC