They're not finished building the one at my uni yet and they're still advertising for dentists. Quite amusingly my final IT project is building a simulation of the network for the dental school

Okay, need advise, 2150, 2160 or JA2?
HELP!

Bought Septerra since I played it once at a friend's place when it was new, and later on started the pirated version but never finished it.
Gorky also seemed interesting, and for the price of a Happy Meal, figured i'd buy it (my body will thank me for not eating Mc Donalds tonight :P ). Don't plan to download it right now, but if I'm ever bored I'll give it a try.

Depends on what you are after. RTS then Earth game (personally, I go with 2150), TBS then JA2.
The setting will also affect your choice. You want future science fiction type setting Earth game; you want earth paramilitary setting JA2.
I own GOG version of 2150 and JA2 and I think I like JA2 better. This is the first place I ever played JA2.
Each person is different, but I think JA2 is a great game and not easy. Earth has some great game play, but you have to get use to it first. Meaning things like, designing your own units, researching tech trees, etc..
The one thing I do not care for in the Earth series is that Naval units are absolutely worthless. With the Lunar Corporation's hover technology they effectively have naval units at the start of the game.
You will not go too far wrong with any of the ones you list, but just know some of the basic differences between them.

Reviews seem to prefer 2150 over 2160. You too. Why would you say so?

Personally, I simply prefer the game play in 2150 and you also get more games for the money.
2160 altered the way bases are built, and you will likely love it or hate it. Instead of each building being placed on the ground you build each component on top of the last one, so 2160 builds in a tower fashion.
Have not played 2160 in a long time but the game play was changed some and I simply liked 2150 style a little better.
If you are looking for the latest incarnation choose 2160, if you are looking for the most games for the buck then 2150 is the way to go. 2150 is a lot of game for the sale price: Earth 2150, Moon Project, and Lost Souls for less than $5.00.
Cannot go too far wrong with either, but I like 2150 better.

E2150 trilogy has more hours of gameplay compared to E2160. And yes - its better. Not that E2160 is a crap or something. It is good game too and its highly recommended to play it after E2150 because story continues.

Well i throwed 2150 since it had a much better rating, plus it had three games.
I've played Fallout Tactics and i liked it, but got bored near the end, mainly because i became just way too powerful and the story stopped driving me forward. How is JA2 regarding to that, is the story good enough until the end? And the balance?

Thanks GOG... Not looking forward to the credit card statement this month...
Earth 2140, 2150, 2160, Gorky 17, and Septerra Core...

I have to limit myself to 2-3 games. Thanks to folks advice on the earth series - for that choice it will be 2150 and if I enjoy it I will pick up the others later. For others it looks like septerra core and gorky.

Not much time left and i'm still wondering about E2150 pack but heard that Moon Project is almoast impossible to finish so I think to choose JA 2 Wildfire instead...