Based on some of the problems mentioned on these forums, I get the impression that though 2006 has been released officially, it's still not quite ready for prime time. In addition, it seems like the Application Catalog for 2006 isn't growing very quickly.

Because of these factors, I haven't upgraded to 2006 yet. Any opinions on whether it's really worth it to do so now, or better to wait? Are there a fair number of people still working with 2005 because they feel 2006 doesn't seem quite stable yet?

Definitely worth doing. See my other post about flashing, but once on the new OS2006, I would not want to go back. Everything runs smoother. And new apps will appear soon.

By the way, talking about the apps: Those that are out are really good. The application catalog 2005 had some, well, early betas. Those officially released for 2006 are fine.

Christian is right. On any forum you will hear more about problems that people have than about things that go well...
I found that the upgrade to 2006 was uneventful (using a Knoppix live CD and the 2.0 flasher), including restoration of the 2005 backup, and the new OS to be stable, snappy and with so many little added conveniences it almost feels like an entirely new machine.
The 2006 AppCatalog IS growing quickly and already thick enough given that the final release is barely a fortnight old. And at least these are properly packaged and managed...
The only reason I can think of for not switching is if your daily usage of the tablet REALLY depends on some package that was available for the 2005 version and has not yet been recompiled for the new one (like Abiword, Gnumeric and some others).
Myself I skipped the beta period because I didn't want to be without Privoxy, but as soon as it appeared I jumped the gun and have not regretted it one second since.
And obviously, all the interesting new apps, or upgrades of existing ones like Maemo Mapper are going to be 2006-only from now on...

Well, thanks so much for your replies!

I think I'll take the plunge and flash to 2006. One thing I was waiting for was PIM apps, particularly DejaPIM. Their site claims a 2006-compatible version will be released on the 15th... we'll see. Plus hopefully they'll resolve the bug with Calendar categories and all-day events... this is a show-stopper for me.

Thanks again.

Is the gainroot mod available so that you can set the USB to allow external devices?

Have people been successful flashing with Mac's?

Those are the only issues holding me back.

Odin: If your device has the R&D flag enabled, then 'sudo gainroot' will still work. The R&D flag setting is stored in NVRAM or something as the 770 retains it's value after being flashed.

I wonder if the same is true for the USB host mode when activated by the flasher ?

Anyway with IT2006 things are simpler. There is a "becomeroot.deb" available in the app manager once you have added the repositories listed on the maemo wiki : one installed, it will let you type "sudo su -" in the console without further ado...