I've seen the Fourth Edition PHB and MM

Ive seen them as well. And the thing is, its not that I dont *want* to like them, its just that Im having a hard time in liking them period. Im glad that someone came along and saved TSR from going out of business completely, but it appears that WOTC has been incrementally trying to change something that has stood the test of time. Why not instead, re-release the boxed sets? Reprints? Is it completely necessary to completely scrap older systems and start anew? They take great risk in alienating their base, in my opinion, when they repeatedly do things like this. In a day and age where kids are more into MMORPGS than pen and paper games, this seems very risky. We've all seen it with each new release.. more and more folks deciding to not convert up.

I think WOTC ought to stick with Magic:The Gathering (a game I am a fan of, actually), and open the license to D&D permanently. ORICS, Labyrinths and Lords, etc are incredible works that keep the original systems alive and well. Alas, WOTC is a company, and to make revenue, they must keep selling books.