Also, I do a lot of work with stuff like Flash and Photoshop, and have heard that Pentium is better for working with them, for some reason.
Was that $1200 for a whole computer, or just for the processor?!
That used to be the case but by all accounts, AMD has caught Intel in graphics and performance. Any advantage Intel had over AMD is now slight and getting smaller with each new CPU both produce.
I personally have a P700 laptop, & 1ghz pentium & AMD workstations, the laptop locks up a lot, but i figure that is because it is a laptop, the pentium locks up some, but the AMD almost never locks up.
All are running windows ME (yes, I know I need to change that), and are mostly used for web browsing, Microsoft Office apps, and Autocad 2000.
Interestingly, it seems that outlook is what locks any of them up most often, but the pentium chips act finnicky while running autocad, while I rarely have trouble with the AMD machine.
One major reason for buying AMD is that the AMD processor is faster than an Intel of the same clock speed and vastly faster than the Intel on 3D applications. Don't worry about compatibility either. I use Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Fireworks, Brice 3D and Corel Draw, often all at the same time and I have never had a problem with any of those apps relating to any of my AMD processors.
I currently have three AMD based systems - one running NT4.0 and the other two running XP-Pro. I work on client systems based on Intel chips all the time and I can assure you that the only system that I have seen that is any more stable than an AMD based PC is the G4 Mac that I use for my mission critical work.
In fact, the only reason that I have any PC's at all, is because that's how I make my living. After all, I couldn't make a living consulting on Macs, since they are so easy to use that nobody needs outside help and Macs never break. Just don't tell any of my consulting clients. :-)
For the record, all of the above mentioned apps run faster on the 867MHz Mac, than on the 2.0GHz PC. The only common thing that you can't do native on a Mac is run MS-Access, which requires Virtual PC (about $260). On the other hand, you can do a lot of things on the Mac, in apps like Photoshop, that you can't do on a PC.
If you feel tied to a PC, then the AMD is the way to go and you can get the best AMD/Motherboard packages at Tiger Direct:
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/Category/category_tlc.asp?id=14
But, if you have a few more bucks, the Mac is well worth the cost to upgrade. You can get a G4 iMac (flat panel display) with a CD-RW for as little as $1199 (retail) and for $1699, you can get one with a faster processor and a DVD-R/CD-RW. You can get a DVD-R drive for a PC, but you'll have to spend an arm and a leg for just the basic software that is not even as good as what's included on the Mac. Also, the best DVD editing software for PC's is kindergarten work when compared to the best DVD editing software on Mac.
Just a little food for thought. But, if you stay with a PC, the AMD is the way to go.