Up to now, I have said little about money. To me, this is a hobby, not a sideline. Those who want to make the fast buck usually get stung by their own greed and this style of collecting becomes a subset of gambling. You recognize these sharpies because all they talk about are the listed prices and nothing else. I stay away from these walking catalogues.
Buyers determine the local pricing, which often has nothing to do with American books.
Sometimes, local conditions dictate that a purchase price exceeds what the catalogue says. On a social scale, we can thank the private collectors who are intercepting our technical heritage before it hits the landfill. We are now into a generation glued on the present, where everything is disposable without a second thought. A generation that also thinks the world didn't function before they were born. Computers don't stir up anything except the desire to toss them when the new model comes in.