I have been disappointed by the record stores, such as Borders, which have replaced, or more likely driven out the independents which were around for decades. As a result I generally buy CDs online because they are unavailable locally. The Baltimore ares has an independent store called Bibelot which is in 3 different location in the city and tailors their selections to the population they serve. As a result they are doing very well. Next year they will open their 4th store in Columbia, MD and it should be as successful as the other 3. I will then most likely purchase most of my CDs in the store. Sami [log in to unmask]