Thunderbird (and Gmail POP)
Thunderbird is an email client and a replacement for Outlook Express.
The good news is that gmail now supports POP access, so you can use Thunderbird to access you email and keep local copies. Your can continue using gmail via the web, if it's easier for you.
Evo - good points about the Mac. I (a long time ago) managed to get a Computer Science degree, so I guess I am technically minded. I have two Macs in my house and use them daily. Bottom line is less bang-per-buck, but they work, don't need rebooting every 5 minutes and (so far) have little problem with viruses. So on price vs actual usable performance, they're way ahead!