I think there are 4 other bike designs that bears mentioning. Touring bikes are stable and strongly built (read: sluggish and heavy) to withstand the rigors of carrying a full load over a variety of surfaces. In between these 2 extremes are the Club Racer (or Audax) bikes and the Sport Touring bikes. These bikes have the same light weight construction as racing bikes, but are more stable and comfortable on long rides. Sport Touring bikes differ from Audax type bikes in that they can be used with panniers. The last road bike design to mention is arguably not a road bike and that is the Cyclocross bike. Cross bikes pre-date mountain bikes by decades but have only been gathering popularity in North America in recent years. Picture a road bike with knobbie tires and you'll get the basic idea.

I think there are 4 different primary styles of bike to consider. The first is the New Ultimate. As of this writing, the New Ultimate is carbon fiber but this has a tendancy to change every few years. So, if you want the New Ultimate, be prepared to buy new again in a few years. The second style is welded (or glued) metal. The type of metal could be steel, titanium or, most likely, some type of aluminum. These bikes have a clean, modern look. The third style is lugged steel. This is the style associated with older classic bikes, but this style is still currently produced. The lug styles range from clean and simple to very orante. And lastly, there is what I call the "Beater Chic" style. These are bikes that look like abused beaters but are actually top quality bikes.