Crisco is probably the easiest to find but there are many other brands still out there. the spread of your cookies will be different than using butter. somewhere there is a chart that shows the difference. Margarine has the most spread, then butter, with shortening having the least. as someone else mentioned it has to do with the temp. they melt. Also, you can change the amount of spread with the amount of baking soda you use. Check out King Arthur Flour, they have alot of good tips/explanations for baking issues