Well first off... people will ALWAYS say that they prefer what THEY own. It's the nature of Man to covet what he paid for, worked for or created.
That said, go to cnet, sharkeyextreme or some of the other websites that review and test hardware and take a look at their unbiased reviews and benchmarks for videocards and then make YOUR decision based on YOUR knowledge NOT someone elses.
$100 dollars says that the folks who told you to get a xxxx videocard.. own that videocard. So go read the info and make YOUR own choice.
BTW- My .02 cents would go toward a GeForce 2 or 3. The Nvidia chipsets are turned over every 6 months so updated drivers are non-stop in coming. Therefore even casual gamers have more options for optimizing their cards all the time. ATI can not claim to doing the same.
Also, keep in mind if you aren't also upgrading your mobo or cpu no amount of $$ or a great videocard will do jack in a system that's in need of a full upgrade/replacement. Word to the wise-big/fast videocard with slow cpu or mobo=BOTTLENECK.
Good Luck!
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Man, look at them there balls!!!!!!!
[This message has been edited by GeneralGenitals (edited January 28, 2002).]