Well welcome back 1999 must make you a founder member!!  I tend to agree with the guys on getting DSLR to sart with as if you buy a prosumer now you will have lost at least $250 by next year in its resale value You could get a 300D 2nd hand right now  with something like a 28-200 Zoom and any money you spend on that like on Compact flash cards will then be not wasted if you upgrade later, and have a secound body to use as well...

Danny O'Byrne  http://www.digitalartzone.co.uk/

"All the technique in the world doesn't compensate for the inability to notice" Eliott Erwitt