An LSN reader has responded to an article that enumerated potential problems in seeking to mount library applications software on the same computer as other applications. This person wrote that their library is sharing a system and with good results. The name of the library applications package used was not identified, but it apparently is not a supported one. The library can, therefore, make changes in the software without jeopardizing its eligibility for the vendor's maintenance program. The reader cited control over software development as one of the major benefits of the approach that their library had taken. There is a tradeoff here, however. The institution gains control over software maintenance and enhancement at the cost of losing the services of a vendor's programming staff. For example, each of the top ten vendors of library turnkey systems and supported software packages has at least ten persons committed to software maintenance and enhancement.
https://librarytechnology.org/document/7335/