Small update, Corel has announced a 10 year commitment to continue offering both in the box (perpetual license) versions of its products as well as subscription versions.  So while I have GIMP installed and am looking at it as I have time, I'm also going to be looking at Corel's software.  

Switching to Corel would be a bit ironic for me, since I started out many years ago using Paint Shop Pro which Corel now owns.  Life's funny sometimes.

From what I have seen so far, there are apps (including GIMP surprisingly to me) that offer many of the tools Photoshop does.  One of the main areas not duplicated were the 3D tools in Photoshop Extended, which was really useful for editing textures and eliminating seams.   However, that should continue to work in my copy of CS5 Ext regardless.

Also, I can continue using PS CS5 for some time to come, so there's not a rush in finding a replacement.

Thanks for all the links, and thanks for the blog lings Megalodon, interesting reading.