I've been reading stuff about how there is no stock of the iPod Touch 16GB version anywhere.

I have a friend who will be visiting the Americas soon (Orlando I think) ... any idea if stocks are available anyplace around that area?

If I get an iPod Touch from a non-Apple store, will the price remain the same ($399 excl. tax)?

Look at the web sites for some of the big electronics sellers. A lot of them will tell you which stores have what in stock. For example, if you look at the iPod page for Best Buy and click the link that says 'Preferred store availability' for that 16 GB model you can search for a city. For Orlando, it says they have it at 2 locations in Orlando itself plus a number of other locations within some distance. CompUSA has a similar system. For the record, it's the 8 GB model that they are having trouble keeping in stock in my area.