If that's true, then I definitely want to go with Intel. Not to mention the very bad experiences I've had with non-Intel chipsets. Feel free to tell me that my experiences are currently invalid.

I think these days you can get lucky with VIA kit or with Nvidia kit, but IMO stability still equals Intel chipset on Intel motherboard. (Plus branded RAM and branded PSU.)

Also, while researching it just now, I notice that Intel has out a 3.0GHz CPU priced much higher than their 3.06GHz CPU. The big difference I notice is that the 3.0 CPU has an 800MHz bus, whereas the 3.06'er has a 533MHz bus. What sort of real-world difference will this make (especially given that 60MHz at these speeds is bound to be irrelevant)? And what bus is being referred to? A memory bus?

It's the bus between the CPU itself and the "North Bridge" chip -- the memory, PCI and AGP controller. This means that all memory and PCI accesses (except direct PCI-to-RAM DMA) go over this bus. So you need to worry about 533 vs 800 if you've got a fast memory subsystem (e.g. dual channel DDR400) and intend to use it hard (i.e. intend often to have a working set larger than the CPU's cache).

In other words, the difference between 533 and 800 is very unlikely to affect you. For almost all usage patterns the extra money would be better spent on more RAM or a faster winchester.

I guess the latest 800-capable motherboards will be newer than the 533 ones, and maybe have more modern features such as Firewire or SATA -- but I think all the 800-capable motherboards can run at 533 too.

Peter