Wow, I must have missed this post!

The rarely found lesser spotted hover snail

And apart from the fact it seems to be hovering I think its an excelent shot.

I love action shots, did you use a fast shutter speed

NICE!

I think converting to B&W was the right choice, not sure on advice for a crop though the top corners seem a little empty but I cant see any way to crop them without buggering up the image, leave it as it is and hang it on the wall

I dont think this will affect me one bit, I stop working effectively at anything below 20

Interesting topic though Ken, squeezed a few goods tips out of this one.

I reckon its because those on other forums dont know how or when to use smilies and offence is easily taken if a jest doesn't come over as intended.
Having said that there are the occasional folk who take offence even when something is obviously intended light heartedly, I may be guilty of causing such offence myself regarding a certain Samsung v Pentax topic

On the other hand the people on these other forums may be just a bunch of morons (note the lack of a smiley)

We all buy discontinued models, though they may be current when we get them

Err....the heading says "models discontinued in the Japanese market"

Perhaps it will be available over here a little longer

The noise on the K20D is bad too, just take a look at this;

https://www.pentaxuser.com/forum/topic/Dublins-Fair-City-9152

I was only shooting at ISO 6400 and the noise is terrible

EDIT....Sorry, scroll down to the last shot.

Well in that case.....

.......Welcome to the forum

I never get itchy feet when it comes to cameras, I love my Pentax for all the things I told you to look for yourself, and being a Pentax owner sets you apart from the crowd.
Your going to love your K200D

You've answered your own question Sony have to be forced upon people

Seriously though, you buy the camera that suits you best, the one you feel most comfortable handling, the one who's controls are well laid out and intuitive, then you look at features that you think you will use and also consider other features that may be of use in the future. Any of the current brands/models available will take great pics and cover most photographers needs.
What you dont do is buy a particular model because someone else tells you to (especially a salesman) Just remember the number 1 priorty is comfort and ease of use.

Now save up some more money and buy a K20D with 16-50DA*