My 2 cents is it depends on you're working as a graphics professional or as a hobby.
As it's been said you're talking about $99 or less for Paint Shop Pro and $150 - $600 for Photoshop (I think Elements is about $100-150).
If your graphics need to be loaded by somebody else and edited or printed professionally, then perhaps photoshop is what you need. I believe it has a fairly steep learning curve, but I've seen people that have learned by themselves and can produce fantastic stuff.
I don't believe that Paint Shop Pro boasts the printing capabilities of Photoshop (as in taking art to a print shop). It used to be easier to grasp, but as it's added features, I believe it's become more like Photoshop as far as the learning curve goes.
If you're hoping to learn about graphics for your own use or for web use, skinning, etc. I'd recommend Paint Shop Pro. It's the least expensive and most bang for your buck. If you decide to expand and want to learn Photoshop later, you can always pick it up later when you *know* your in it for the long haul and then it's a real investment.
Photoshop is geared towards corporate professionals, Paint Shop Pro is geared towards to the rest of us.
I believe either will support you well, but as most have said, you will only get out of it what you put into it.
Good luck.
P.S. You can always go to Jasc's website and download Paint Shop Pro and give it a whirl. Might be able to Demo Photoshop Elements too, so you can evaluate based on a hands-on feel.
