cactusclay wrote:Wow, that didn't take long and the 17-55 isn't even out yet.

I think I would wait and see some of the tests, before making a decision, on the other hand if you are willing to pay 1200 bucks, there may be something better to compare, like 24-105 or 24-70. You have 18-24 covered with your kit lens and I honestly can't see much if any image quality difference in that range, with the L and the kit lens.
I've found that I take 60-62% of my images with 17-40/4L, which raises my interest for zooms in 17-55mm focal range.
In winter scenes (at least above tree level in alps) falls short on tele end and in events f4 is limiting factor. One solution for this problem would be Tamron's 28-75/2.8, but if I can have it "all" in one lens (17-55/2.8 IS) at cheaper price than those two combined, then it just might be worth it to buy EF-S lens.
Anyway, I'll be waiting to see how Canon's 17-55/2.8 IS and Tamron's new 17-50/2.8 will perform in people's tests, before I buy f2.8 zoom and put my 17-40/4L for sale. With this in mind, I will probably have to wait until August/September timeframe. If I have to make my mind before that (due to some event, where I need faster lens ,etc.), I'll probably go for two lens solution (17-40/4L + 28-75/2.8).