Reader's Notes - Barnes and Noble for Sale

One finds reports today in the New York Times, The Guardian, and elsewhere that Barnes and Noble is up for sale, after seeing in-store sales continue to slump and a 45% decline in its share price.  The sale of books online, of e-books, and the general migration of the written word from the page to the web is killing those industries associated with printing in one way or another.  From personal experience, I can tell you that many of my friends who used to work in newspapers and publishing have themselves left the business or moved to electronic media. Likewise, as a freelance writer, it's harder and harder to find paying print work.  I'm not complaining, mind you, just pointing out what now appears to be an inevitable trend.  With Borders going out of business in Britain and BN being sold, where will one go for that bookstore experience?  Did one ever really have a bookstore experience in Barnes and Noble?  Thank goodness for independent booksellers like Coral Gables' Books and Books, who have turned themselves into cultural institutions as much as they are retail stores.