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Message: <blockquote data-quote="wingsandsword" data-source="post: 2682295" data-attributes="member: 14159">I like shopping at my FLGS.  I like the experience of browsing the shelves, I like meeting new gamers and running across old friends and talking to them.  I like encountering books I never would have looked at before, I like browsing through the used bin and finding discounts on old books.  I like paying cash for things.  I don't like using plastic unless I must, and I never use checks.  I like actually physically taking my purchase with me when I buy it, and I don't like ordering things to recieve them in the mail.  To be honest, I just like the experience of shopping for things at an actual "Brick & Mortar" store, and shopping online is never as satisfying.  There are so many intangibles I miss, and when online stores emulate them, they are never quite as well.  Yes, you can meet other gamers on a message board, but they aren't neccesarily anywhere near you for finding people to game with and an actual face-to-face conversation is generally preferable IMO to a message board one, and yes some .pdf stores have "browse" features, but it's just not the same as being able to leaf through a book at your leisure.  While I can see the utility of shopping online for some people, like those who don't have a store near them, I can't see myself (or those who have ready access to such a store) really moving over to online .pdf sales (or ordering POD books) in most cases.Now, I've certainly seen a few products in .pdf that I've thought were neat, and wanted to buy if they were ever in hardcopy on my FLGS shelf, and one time I did buy it and enjoy it when that happened (The Modern Players Companion).  So I've put my money where my mouth is on "if these things I really like come to my FLGS I'll buy them".Also, perhaps I spoke imprecisely when I said the the FLGS is the heart of the Industry, but I do believe it is the heart of Gaming.  Tabletop gaming is at heart a social activity, and a place for gamers to meet and talk, and recruit for their games, and wander across a demo of a new game, go to in a group when they are out hanging out together and look at things together and share the experience.As I said, I do hope the ENWorld Store goes well, but in my eyes I see it as a suppliment for those who cannot shop easily by other means.</blockquote>

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