I have an interest in creating fractals for use in textures and collages. What are some of the better fractal programs available? Free is preferable...

One of the best and most widely used is 'UltraFractal', which gives a lot of control over colors and allows interactions between layers similar to Photoshop. UF3 is commercial, but moderately priced. Recently I tried about half a dozen freeware programs before purchasing UF3, and my favorites are 'vchira' and 'apophysis', which are complementary in the types of fractals they generate. [my OS is Windows; I don't know about availability for Macintosh]

Another good freebie is Fractal Explorer. It has lots of controls to "tweak" to come out with a very unique fractal. It also has many "spot" files that can be loaded (fractal images that have been created by someone else); these can be changed until you have an image soley your own. I think its novice-friendly...from experience! you can find the program here: http://www.eclectasy.com/Fractal-Explorer/index.html

I like Stephen Ferguson's programs the best......and I think for a beginner, they are the most user friendly. Ultra Fractal may scare you to death if you're just starting out. But in my humble opinion, if you're into vibrating color, nobody can touch VChira or Tierazon. Both are free, and both require no install. You can download them here: VChira http://www.eclectasy.com/Iterations-et-Flarium24/vchira/index.html Tierazon http://home.houston.rr.com/fergusonsc/Tierazon-v29/index.html Here is a link to my gallery, where you can see these programs in "action", so to speak. ;) www.peapoddesign.net/gallery

I also use Fractal Explorer, but think I will take a look-see at those you mentioned as well Peapodgrrl.. What formats do they use just out of curiosity for import/export? Thanx :) ~Jani :)

Tierazon uses just bmp, VChira uses jpg and bmp.