I hope you like the new brighter and faster version of my online bookshop. Over the last few weeks you might have notice quite a few additions to the site, including the eBay feed and some interesting links in the book photosphere: - and there are more to come.

John Birchall, my contact at Digit Prosfessionals, had been hinting for some months that it was time for a change, but I was dubious. A while before I left my shop in Cecil Court I referred, in passing, to ‘my new carpet’, but the bookseller I was talking to pointed out that it was at least five years old; so I am not one who is greatly aware of time passing; or, frankly, enthusiastic about change.

But, a couple of Saturdays ago, I went over for dinner with John B., who lives near Regent’s Park. We took a walk up to St. John’s Wood and it was just about warm enough to sit outside a caféé for one last time this summer. I think the recession is biting now; I only saw one new Rolls Royce in half an hour and several people were driving the same sports cars as last time I saw them. We all have to make sacrifices.

Anyway, after we were back indoors and had had a couple of glasses of excellent red wine, John said to me;-

“Take a look at this,” putting a laptop on the table in front of me.

“You’ve changed it,” I said accusingly.

“Yes,” John said, his teeth slightly gritted.

I gazed at the screen for a while and fiddled with a few keys to be polite.

Dinner was announced and I sprung up from the settee I had sprawled on, my appetite sharpened by our walk.

After the first course I felt more mellow; the main course was my old favourite, steak and fried potatoes. By the time we reached the coffee stage, and had had another glass of wine, I felt positively chilled.

In the main room I took out a the new jacket I had brought while we were out and tried it on, blue leather and sharply cut, it looked cool.

The computer was still on the occasional table; I could see the new look website out of my eye, walking over I put hiltonbooks.co.uk up on the screen, and the old version looked well, so old.

John walked into the room: I knew I had to make my mind up, because the skiing season is at hand and in a week or two John will be off to his base in the Austrian alps.

We walked through the double doors, outside. The Regent’s Park cannel runs along the edge of John’s property, and I looked down into the water hurrying past;-

“Go for it,” I said.