rookie needs a camera, advice appreciated!

[kamplease]

Here are my criteria (warning, it is all quite elementary....)

*i am nothing close to a photographer and photography language is basically latin to me
*itravel overseas several times a year and willalso just usefor fam and
friends
*easy to use please
*i want the camera to turn on really fast
*i want to be able to take multiple photos very quickly,minimal delay
between photos
*a camera that will take really high quality night shots
*very long battery life is very necessary
*not to bulky but one i can get my hands around and won`t lose in my pocket
*video not a priority
*not sure about what is the best battery situation, so any advice would
be appreciated.
*Y300-500 bucksishprice range


I would probably like a Canon, Finepix or Casio--I know this is still broad but just to narrow it a little.... any thoughts??


Thanks in advance for any advice you may have!

[nelmr]

Well, the Fuji S5600/S5200 model has a quick start up time, has adecent shot to shot time, 10x zoom, takes nice night shots, and is affordable. It is however a bit large.

The Fuji F10/11/30 would also be a good bet. This is smaller, and does excelent indoors (most digital cameras have a hard time indoors due to the lower light).

There are more options out there but I'll let other ones chime in. I had a S5100 and was happy with it. I have recently moved on to a dSLR (Canon 350D) but the Fuji served me well.