but I'm still not likely to get one until it's about $20 plus film -- uh, memory.

I know you're exaggeratting, but even in the low price ranges, you're not going to get a good film camera.

As for that used Sony someone mentioned, honestly you can NOT go lower than 2 megapixels if you want a decent camera. I had a Mavica until this fall which was a ~1.2 MP camera, and I was lucky if I got a decent 4x6 print of any picture I wanted to frame for the folks.

As for the quality of digital cameras, I can see what you mean in many cases, but that will change. I think the only reason the cases are so cheapo is because the stuff inside is heavier, isn't it? Anyway, the G2 has a nice case.

As someone mentioned, the G2 can give you professional quality at much less than an SLR. 4 MP gives you one hell of an image, and sometime I'm going to see exactly how big a print I can get with it (when I have the money). The camera also has many features you'll find in pro cameras. Exchangeable lenses including a macro ring; a hot shoe for external flashes (there's about 5 of them); 4 selectable focus areas; adjustable white balance, aperature, and other exposure modes. I realize that it's expensive for just a camera, but it's not $2500.

As for your philosophy on photography, I think that's a bit odd. "I figure that if I can't remember it, it's not likely to be worth remembering." Is that all you take pictures of? Things that you deem worth remembering? Or is that an exaggeration? What about things worth remembering for friends who never saw it? What if it's a use like Tony's friend's install of his empeg?

Digital cameras give you the freedom of choice without fear of money. $700 is not much at all to spend after you factor in developing costs. I can discount the $5 or so that I might spend on prints in the next year. My parents went to Italy with a Kodak digital camera and a laptop. They took over 500 pictures! How much did it cost them for all those pictures? $0. How much would they have had to spend to get them developed? A heck of a lot.

You can talk about the quality of digital cameras, but if you don't NEED a true pro camera, it's a worthy purchase.