Camera Raw vs Photoshop

Question

To what degree should I edit photos using the Camera Raw Editor first before editing in Photoshop, given that all the features in Camera Raw Editor can be duplicated in Photoshop? Are there any MUST features that should always be done first in Raw editing e.g. cropping / white balance / contrast / brightness / exposure / black and white conversion?
Just to give two examples, Martin Evening's book suggests correcting the white balance first in Raw editor - but other guides I have seen play on the fact that Photoshop has a white, grey and black balance dropper, which gives more options that Raw editor. Another book I looked at suggests that all Black & White conversion should be done in the Raw editor rather than Photoshop, as it is infinitely better!
Any help on this? I want to get this fundamental basic clear in my mind first before I start learning all the photoshop functions in detail.

Answer 1

To each his own, I guess. Both have merits. One thing to keep in mind though, if you edit in camera raw the edits stick with the raw file, whereas any edits done in photoshop stick to that file only. But there is nothing that says you can not start with that file next time.
As far as which is better, that probably depends on which was the last to get an overhaul. Personally I think the two teams compeat to see who is better when updating the software, but really they should be working more in concert to make sure we have the best of both worlds.