[andy]

I use and am fluent in

-imovie
-Final Cut Pro 1,2,3
-Avid Symphony and DV Express
-Adobe Premire 5,6, Pro
-Adobe After Effects 5,6
-Casablanca

If I had to reccomend a good starting program that is easy to learn and easy to step up to the "big boys" editing programs, I would choose Premire. It has alot of the features and controls usually found only in Avid and Final Cut. However it is easier to use and learn the the professional programs. Though once you use Premire you can easily switch to other programs (ex. Avid and Final Cut).

I would avoid mac programs like the plague because if you are a PC person you will hate them. Also the computing power needed to render video often is not found in any macs except for the G4 of G5 power macs. These are usually in the 3-5 thousand dollar range. For that kind of money you could easily buy several PCs and network render (really fast rendering) or you could use Avid (no rendering. correction: real time rendering)

Good luck!

If you have any questions I would be happy to help out if I can
-Andy