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I am a bit of a tightarse when it comes to rulebooks. I flatly refuse to pay good money for anything! I have found that with some searching a lot of rulebooks can be found for free on the interweb.
Something I dislike about some modern systems is the plethora of supplemental rulebooks that are needed. I see some games advertised on rpol where they list he dozen or so rulebooks that they will allow. To me, that just seems like to much admin. I prefer a simple system where I can get on with playing, not being a rules monkey.
My RPG library mostly consists of the core books for any given system. I very rarely buy supplements, particularly if it is primarily focused on mechanics-based material, but I do sometimes buy campaign-setting specific stuff.
The key thing to keep in mind is most of the time the supplements are not needed, even in modern game systems, but they are offered for players interested in adding elements to their game. I have no issue with that. Variety is the spice of life, or so they say, and nobody is forced to buy new supplements.
It really comes down to having fun. If using supplemental material brings fun to the table, then by all means, knock yourself out!