All that and more reflect 80 years of progress.

It's the "We're Moving" signs out front that reflect the cold, hard fact that Sam Weller's, in many ways, has morphed into what it once was: an antique shop.

No one knows this better than Tony, a book-lover who these days hates to read his own books — at least the ones given him by his accountant.

"We are experiencing pretty severe financial duress," says Tony, a literary way of saying he's going broke.

He hates the thought of moving but the building is for sale — and thank goodness Sam bought it back in the 1980s; the real estate is proving more valuable than the books — and they will be moving as soon as the building sells.

Three serious buyers are looking right now, says Tony.

His plan is twofold: downsize and revolutionize.

He doesn't see any reason why bookstores can't survive and thrive in the computerized world. But they do have to adapt and change.

He cites something that happened 150 years ago as a parallel.

"In the 1860s, the new invention of the camera, most people believed, meant the death of painters," he says. "Suddenly, people realized cameras could take a picture of the king and do it far better and far cheaper. Painters were doomed. But they weren't. Out of that we got impressionism, expressionism, surrealism and all sorts of other forms of amazing artistic expression. Painters didn't do what they had been doing, they did new things they never would have gone to if the camera hadn't given them the opportunity."

Now books, and booksellers, are sitting on a similar threshold.

"I'm rather excited," says Tony. But he readily admits he'll be even more excited when he finds a new home for those 750,000 books. Progress, it can be such a pain.

Lee Benson's column runs Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday. Please send e-mail to benson@desnews.com