Wow, records 78's too! Fun. Great for the general user willing to drop upwards of $400 on such a device.

I recently purchased a Numark TTUSB turntable which connects directly to my computer and makes recording my vinyl really simple. (sells at turntablelab.com for a much cheaper $169.00.)

I preferred this option, because it not only gives me the flexibility to edit the records down to individual tracks, but I can also edit out some of the pops and cracks using sound editing software (which comes with the device). I've already put many of my records stright onto my iPod using this simple USB turntable.

As far as recording cassettes goes, a deck plugged into the microphone port of my computer works fine for me.