Different people play different levels of DIY. There are a few purists out there, ITAM on this site and another more accomplished one on Zybez (name escapes me). They won't ever trade. Some people just DIY certain things or to a certain point. If your a new player, I certainly recommend you try it. You'll learn the game better and it keeps it new when your constantly figuring out new ways to get things done. I DIY when I'm unhappy with the gp/xp & willing to sacrifice to some level the xp/hr. I have never cared for making gp in rs, so the time spent doing something I like is greater than gp production. I DIY'ed alot pre 07 pre-godwars pre-coinshare inflation fest that trashed stand alone skilling. In that bigone era you could have high ranks in skills as a DIY and be respected. Now the cheaters, misfits (stakers/pkers), nonplayers (merchants), and efficiency trolls just harass you with their sad sack way of "playing" (if you want to call it that).