HD4870 or GTX260?

Hi,
I'm going to order very soon either a HD4870 512meg(possibly a 1gig model) or a GTX260 896 meg.

My computer specifications:
Intel E8400
Asus P5E motherboard
4gb ram
24" LCD Monitor at 1920x1200 resolution(soon to be delivered)
8800GT 512meg (currently)
Vista x64

The 8800GT I currently use runs Second Life very well and with little or no problems on a 19" 1440x900 resolution monitor.

Most of the time I use the computer to run Second Life and want the new videocard to be as trouble-free as possible for that, much like the 8800GT has been.
The HD4870 is attractive in that prices are about the same, and will keep the door open for the possibility of adding a second card later.

So my question is: If I go with the HD4870 will it be very troublesome?, Will the GTX260 be more compatible with Second Life much like the 8800GT has been?

Thank you for any feedback before I make the purchase

According to most reviews/benchmarks I've looked at, the the two cards perform about the same. It was true for a while that the 4870 was a better deal, cost-wise, but nVidia recently slashed their prices to be more competitive, so that doesn't seem to be the case anymore. Looking at the prices on NewEgg, 260's range from $250-$419, while 4870's are from $260-$559. I didn't look too closely to see what feature sets come with each of the various price points, but it seems the ATI cards on average cost more than the nVidia cards, which is an interesting reversal of tradition.

All that aside, I have to say go for the 260. ATI drivers don't tend to play too nicely with SL. For some reason, ATI has seen fit to deviate from established OpenGL standards, from what I've read. nVidia ends up being far more reliable with SL as a result. For that reason alone, even if the nVidia cards still cost more, I'd still say go nVidia. The fact that they actually cost less now is just a nice bonus.

You might want to review this JIRA entry and its related entries before making a firm commitment...

http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/VWR-8339

Seems there are some driver related issues regarding the nVidia 2xx series and Second Life. Or, at least, any nVidia card using the 177.xx version drivers which are required by the 2xx series cards.

There are also some issues with SL's support of the HD4870, so it's hard to win either way! http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/VWR-8014

I have an HD4870, great card. Had some issues with SL at first until I changed some settings (as per that JIRA entry), but everything is running smooth now.

Interesting. Thanks for the heads up, Kathy. I wasn't aware of that issue.

You might want to watch & wait for a bit, Brayden. It's safe to assume the ATI issues aren't going to go away any time soon, since they're pretty deeply imbedded in the company's current course of direction, from what I understand, but this particular nVidia problem might or might not be fixed soon. If your 8800 isn't currently giving you any problems, it probably makes sense to hold off on the upgrade, at least until there's more info available on this.