vinyl is indeed alive! most shows I have been to this year have had vinyl at the merch table, and the free digital download which many include gives you infinite ways to listen to the music. In the past year we have seen a growth in record fairs and pop-up record shops and there are a good number of shops that are weathering the economic storm. When my husband and I started collecting as college students 7 years ago, you could get 5 records for a dollar at the salvation army, now they are $3 each. If that's not an economic indicator for the market, i don't know what is. we love vinyl for the reasons everyone else does - it's tactile, produces a warm sound, is fun to play, and there is nothing like flipping through your collection and re-discovering an album. The hunt is also exciting! in a world where everything is at our fingertips, it's satisfying hunt for, then find a rare gem of a record that you know no one else has... or even values. long live vinyl!