Vendor Whitelist

i'm compiling my own vendor whitelist

on this list are the vendors who i deem to be selling software that does what is says on the tin.

software has an excellent instruction manual.

the software is not released full of bugs but is PROPERLY tested.

the software plays nicely with the rest of the system - doesn't cause conflicts, performance degradation and crashes.

the vendor offers a 30 day free trial of the full product - all features enabled.

vendor offers excellent support if need be - not just FOBBING the user off with some vague email advice - and treat their paying customers with the utmost respect (and their non paying too) - and offer a NO QUIBBLE money back guarantee if the customer isn't satisfied.

for me to consider buying a vendor's product they have to pass ALL those criteria.

needless to say there are very few on this whitelist at the moment - i have three provisionals - i read their customer responses and reviews to gauge whether i feel they have achieved true whitelist status.

if i do select one i will email them these criteria and wait to see how they respond - any vague, petulant or patronising responses go straight in the bin - i only do business with professionals who behave like adults and not some guy who thinks you owe him a living for producing such a wonderful product.

do you have a set of standards that the vendor must reach before buying the product? or do you buy in the hope that the software doesn't screw the system and the vendor doesn't screw you?