Reference request: introduction to commutative algebra My goal is to pick up some commutative algebra, ultimately in order to be able to understand algebraic geometry texts like Hartshorne's. Three popular texts are Atiyah-Macdonald, Matsumura (Commutative Ring Theory), and Eisenbud. There are also other books by Reid, Kemper, Sharp, etc. Can someone outline the differences between these texts, their relative strengths, and their intended audiences? 
I am not listing my own background and strengths, on purpose, (a) so that the answers may be helpful to others, and (b) I might be wrong about myself, and I want to hear more general opinions than what might suite my narrow profile (e.g. If I said "I only like short books", then I might preclude useful answers about Eisenbud, etc.). 

Eisenbud's book ("Commutative Algebra with a view towards algebraic geometry") is really gentle, and has good explanations together with lots of good illustrations. It is however huge, so you shouldn't really try to read the whole book.
Atiyah-MacDonald is no doubt the best mathematics book I've read, but it was a pain working through it because it is so densely written.
Edit:
Some of the reasons I like Atiyah-MacDonald:
 * Tons of exercises - and really good ones too.
 * Short, concise language (this makes reading proofs a bit harder, but it pays off later when you're using the book as reference). * Very good choice of topics covered.  
