We didn't have a record store nearby, so I ordered catalogs from labels and distributors. They usually had album covers, but most of them were black smudges because they were crappy xeroxes. Then they'd take forever, because the label was actually just one dude and he'd been on vacation or used your order form as a bookmark or something. Finally getting albums from Annihilvs was like Christmas, because it took so long that by the time they arrived I'd forgotten I'd ordered something.In High School, if I wanted to buy an album, I had to order it out of a catalog and hope it was good, based purely on what the cover looked like. Assuming the cover was in the catalog at the music store. Now? Now it's easier to refine your tastes down to the nine other people on the planet who listen to and play music like you do.