Hi Roy,

Not sure how to make this succinct enough to be elegant (i.e. a bullet
point) but...

We have a large enough staff to "break into" software when necessary. A
typical scenario is:

We need a feature added (or bug removed) to make workflow tenable
We request the feature (bug fix)
We hear "ok, thanks for mentioning it" or "known problem" but have
absolutely no idea the extent of the need, where it will be prioritized
We wait a long while, give up, and develop a work around
Two weeks after our success the company releases the feature/fix

Essentially, I'd like to know the extent of the issue. If 90% of their
customers have reported/requested I would like to know this. To avoid
doing the devlopment locally to replicate something that will be coming
(soon?).

Many times the local devlopment makes life possible for a year or two,
so it isn't fruitless. It's only when it turns out the whole world has
been screaming, but the company doesn't want to acknowledge where it is
on the list o'priorities.

Maybe:

- I have a right to access a prioritized list of what the developers are working toward. (except more elegantly phrased)

Tim





Roy Tennant wrote:

>I have a presentation coming up and I'm considering doing what I'm calling a
>"Library Software Manifesto". Some of the following may not be completely
>understandable on the face of it, and I would be explaining the meaning
>during the presentation, but this is what I have so far and I'd be
>interested in other ideas this group has or comments on this. Thanks,
>Roy
>
>Consumer Rights
>
>- I have a right to use what I buy
>- I have a right to the API if I've bought the product
>- I have a right to accurate, complete documentation
>- I have a right to my data
>- I have a right to not have simple things needlessly complicated
>
>Consumer Responsibilities
>
>- I have a responsibility to communicate my needs clearly and specifically
>- I have a responsibility to report reproducible bugs in a way as to
>facilitate reproducing it
>- I have a responsibility to report irreproducible bugs with as much detail
>as I can provide
>- I have a responsibility to request new features responsibly
>- I have a responsibility to view any adjustments to default settings
>critically
>
>