do you prefer to research tech or buy it?

[NukemRico]

Just curious here. In my current painfully slow paced AAR (I should have built more Fab facilities right off the bat), I have chosen to only research tech, but buying designs I have the tech for is ok. What do you guys prefer most of the time, research or buy? On a related note, when buying unit designs do you: only buy ones you have tech for already or will you buy a unit plus its required tech if you don't already have it? I don't tech broker at all, but would love to play a more aggressive pace particularly for small/low tech countries.

[GIJoe597]

Depends on the country I am playing and my own rule set.

Be careful purchasing tech as some of it has a completion bonus and when you buy it it will not increase your national tech level, (see other threads were this is explained.)

I am patient and have started with very, very poor countries to build up and this routinely causes me to play many years. Many of my games tend to reach into 2050 and in some cases even further.