I am a professional classical pianist, and would like to record my
performances without using a lot of bulky recording equipment.  I have
looked at minidisc recorders, and these seem to be the best option,
but it seems that it is very difficult to transfer recorded music from
a minidisc recorder to a computer except by analog means, which I
assume would lower the quality of the original recording.  I have a
two-part question:

A:If I purchase a minidisc recorder, is there a software program that
would allow me to transfer my recordings digitally to my computer?

B:Are there any alternative recorders of comparable size and price
available (not bigger than a lunch box and not costing over $300.00)? 
Mp3 format is not practical, as this considerably lowers the quality
of the recording (although minidiscs use compression as well, the rate
is lesser).  Perhaps there is an Mp3 recorder that can record in WAV
format as well as Mp3?

Check out www.Transom.org for a review of portable digital recording
options.  The Marantz PMD 660 uses a flash media card and records
audio files in 16-bit wav. files.  The price tag of $500, however, is
more than you asked for.

The newer Sony MD's will transfer to a computer digitally now. Look
for one that has the Hi-MD format. Also keep in mind that not all MD's
have a mic input, so be certain to look for one.