Idle thoughts

So in the past couple of days I’ve ordered Showcase Presents the Challengers of the Unknown (Vol.2) and Picnic at Hanging Rock (the novel, not the movie) online. Last week I ordered a 1960s book, Asylum Earth.
I’ve always patronized used-book stores, but in the 20th century it was all about what books they had on the shelves that I liked. It was rare I wouldn’t find something, and I often stumbled across things I wouldn’t otherwise have picked up.
Now I’m much less likely to browse. If I want a particular title, as in the cases above, I can find it online on one site or another. Some out-of-print books are way out of my price range (or at least, priced more than I value them), but usually I go looking for specific books, and I find them.
I wonder how much this affects book sales of new editions? If it’s a current book that I want, sure, I’ll usually buy a new copy. But the access to so many older books makes it easier for them to eat up my reading time and my spare change.
Of course, I read a lot of nonfiction. If I were someone who read more heavily in fantasy, I suspect I’d buy a lot more new books and rely on used-book services to fill gaps in my collection. So maybe I’m more an outlier than a typical reader. Or maybe I’m part of a big trend. I have no clue.
Speaking of used books, here’s Abebooks’ list of the 100 most searched-for out-of-print books from last year.