No way I'm paying for a game with no release date yet
Done the Steam preload, but my money is better off with me until I have an idea of when it will be available
I find it very annoying they don't offer even a token discount, even $5, for buying games online.
At least backing up the Steam-downloaded files to a DVD looks viable - I tested by copying my Steam folder to my second PC and checking it ran (without actually installing anything) and is aware HL2 is 100% preloaded.