> Of course we all know now that CDs must be treated with essentially the same care as vinyl records Not really. There is really a magnitude of improvement her

> Of course we all know now that CDs must be treated with essentially the same care as vinyl records Not really. There is really a magnitude of improvement here. It doesn't matter how many fingerprints you leave on the CD, just wipe them off with cloth (and particularly almost any cloth, since I don't know of many cloth types than can scratch plastic -- unless they are full of dirt+sand to begin with). If you put your fingers on a vinyl, the oil in your fingers is already degrading the data permanently. And if you try to wipe it off with cloth, likely you will only mess it even further. And if you ever have a real problem with tape, good luck. With all due respect, for a medium that has no fixed protective case, CD is almost indestructible. (For nitpickers: In comparison to everything else. It is obviously not truly indestructible. )