Originally Posted By: Dignan
we'd like to learn more

Then don't waste your time on the Olympus. Their P&S cameras have very few manual controls. Want a specific shutter speed or aperture? Forget it. Their "P" mode lets your pick white balance, ISO, and spot metering. Whee. Instead, they have "special scenes" settings. On top of that, they also disable features if you aren't using their brand of memory cards.

At the time I got my Olympus, they were the only ones doing a waterproof/shockproof camera, and my primary goal was to have something small to take on the river while whitewater kayaking. Canon is also now making a waterproof/shockproof camera, and although their form factor isn't quite as nice as the Olympus, I'd go that route, if I were making my purchase today.