Most everybody else has said what needs to be said. If you're looking at SLRs, you can't go wrong with the Canon 20D or the Nikon D70. Both offer upgrade paths to fancier cameras and lenses and are quite good on their own. A Nikon D70 kit is a good bit cheaper than the Canon 20D with 17-85mm, but lacks many features that the Canon has. The Canon 300D / D-Rebel kit is much cheaper than the Nikon D70 kit, but they cut too many important things, such as adjustments for the flash output level. (If you want the Nikon, but feel like it's overdue time for a successor to the D100, then the rumor mill is saying there may be something announced in February. There's always something cool around the corner...)

In general, I'd recommend against the Nikon 8800. I figure a camera should either be small enough to fit in your pocket or big enough to do everything you could ever need. Since you're coming from a film SLR background, the transition to a D-SLR is pretty straightforward. It also makes a lot of sense to keep your pocket Pentax around for when the D-SLR is back in the car or whatnot.