>> The main theories are that people buy books:
>>
>> * Because they NEED them to solve an immediate problem
>
>Theories are good, but data is better.
This may be anecdotal, but I think it backs up the theory pretty well: an
immediate need for a book often means that you don't have to spend you own
money on it ("hey boss, O'Reilly has a book on this, if I pick it up can I
expense it?") so you're even more likely to buy it. If $30 out of the
department's budget is going to make the new project start up faster, no
sensible boss says no. $30 on a book covering some technology that may
someday be useful to your department is a different story, as is $30 out of
your own pocket.
Bob
