Gavin,
I live in Abu Dhabi which has probably changed since you were a kid living out here and I'm pretty sure that Dubai certainly has. I spent quite a bit of time in Dubai, mainly for 'social' reasons' and whilst I prefer Abu Dhabi it's still a great pleace to live.
The expat life out here in the UAE is great (although I'm not sure some of the Indians etc would agree). I'll try and dig out some sites for you and if you have any specific questions feel free to PM me.
Here's one to try for a start:
ExpatWoman.com - free and friendly site for expat women