Abit AB9 QuadGT or Intel BOXD975XBX2KR

Hello. My name is Missy, and as some of you may remember from my post about a month ago, I'm a blind computer enthusiast who is preparing to buy a new system, one that I hope will last me for at least as
long as my current system
has. The last computer I got was in 2002, and although it is still more or
less functional, I'm wanting to get a system that is not only more
up-to-date, but also more responsive. I do a lot of work with audio files ,
mostly mp3 and midi. I also do a lot of
web browsing, word processing, and I play a lot of text-based games both on and off line. I've been trying to do my homework with regards to parts to
include in my dream system. I've decided that even if it might be a little
more expensive, I'd rather "hand pick" every aspect of my new system to
insure that I know exactly what I'm getting and also to insure maximum
compatibility with my screen reading software.
My goals for this system, in order of importance, are maximum stability,
maximum responsiveness and as much future proofing as possible. I'm
prepared to spend up to $3500 to get everything as nice as possible, but
naturally, if I could spend less, that would be really great. For numerous
reasons, I'm not planning to upgrade to Windows Vista quite yet; I'm
planning to run my new computer using Windows XP media center edition for a
year or so. Never-the-less, I'd like this new computer to be completely
ready for vista whenever I am. The final bit of background information I wish to provide before getting to the actual point of this message is that I have no plans to overclock my system, especially since my screen
reading software can't
access the bios, so I would have to rely on someone with vision to do all
the playing around, and nobody I know would even have the slightest clue
how to do any of that stuff. Also, I don't understand all that well what rade is, but I do know that I have no intentions of trying to make use of it in any way, so if this information has any influance on which motherboard will best meet my needs, please let me know.
I thought I had figured out everything I wanted, and was only waiting for the price drop that's supposedly going to happen in April for processors. Anyway, I was browsing Newegg for something to do, and found another motherboard that sounded appealing. So, now I'm torn as to which motherboard I should get.
The 2 motherboards I'm interested in are the ABIT AB9
QuadGT and the Intel D975XBX2KR. Personally, I'm leaning towards the Abit board because it has blue leds on it, and also because it supports
quad core processors, which suggests to me that if I ever decide I need to
upgrade again in a few years, I will be able to do so without having to buy
another motherboard. On the other hand, I've read
that the Intel board is probably more stable, so would appreciate some
guidance regarding the best motherboard for my needs. In your experience,
which of these motherboards is more likely to play nice with my screen
reading software? As I've already indicated in my introduction,, I'm
looking for maximum stability and responsiveness. So, if you could please
provide feedback with regards to which of these two motherboards might be
best suited for my needs, I would really appreciate it.
Thank you in advance for your advice, and I hope that everyone is having a really great day!