Originally posted by K57XR A 2-megapixel Fuji FinePix 2600Z.
Got it because I just started graduate school, wanted a digital camera (regretted not having one when I spent a month in Tokyo doing research), and I couldn't afford a dSLR yet.
I followed it with a Panasonic camera that was essentially a bridge camera before finally getting a Pentax (K10d). That was all over 7 years.
I should add that prior to digital, I had two SLR film bodies that were both Minolta. I think that when I thought I was ready for dSLR (ca. 2003), Minolta was done. I had hoped that when I got around to a dSLR, I'd be able to make use of my old lenses. That's actually how I ended up with Pentax. I had seen Pentax as comparable to Minolta in the film world (probably better), and appreciated that their philosophy was to maintain compatibility to all their lenses. I have no regrets.