Nightfighter I have been saying that for years......siding is not as much a savior of having to paint these days as it is a method of covering problems prior to homes going on the market....we are looking at houses and I will not buy one that has been sided!
Those shingles under the siding are going to dry and rot and harbor bugs, carpenter ants and termites will be thriving for years under the siding before you all realize they have been there and long about the time they start poking holes in the interior walls from the outside.....you will only then realize you have the problem! Then its too late!