You may also want to double-check the version number of the style you downloaded versus the version number with which you are working. Some PS7 styles won't work with PS6 completely.

I'm curious as to the reason anyone feels that the brushes work better in PS 5.5 than in PS7...the brush dynamics can easily be made to match 5.5's brushes. Still, I'd like to know a little more specifically what kind of custom brushes you're trying to make, what kind of effect you're really trying to achieve. It's difficult to nail a specific formula down as there are about 50 bazillion different possibilities with PS7's brush settings.

There are a couple other options... For a straight grayscale conversion without changing the color mode, try using a Hue/Saturation Adjustment Layer as your top layer with the Saturation set to -100. Takes all the color out, and can easily be turned on and off for quick previews. A slightly more complicated solution would be to instead of using Hue/Saturation, use a Gradient Map with the default Black-White Gradient as the basis. The gradient can then be managed in the Gradient Editor or a Levels or Curves Adjustment layer can be placed above it for smoother control.

This is a feature that I honestly think is going to be incorporated at some point in the very near future, possibly version 7.5 rather than version 8. I back this up by the fact that Photoshop and ImageReady are two of the only programs Adobe makes that don't already have this feature. Illustrator has it, Premiere has it, After Effects has it...but griping about it here is about as effective as trying to translate latin by eating spam. It just doesn't make much sense...write to Adobe, gripe to them.

I've got to go with the big three...Gaussian Blur, Median and High Pass. Gaussian Blur most of all, not so much for its blurring capabilities, but when used with the fade feature under the edit menu (so you can just lighten or just darken or whatever during the blur), it's unbeatable for versatility.

Another solution is to duplicate your background layer, or if you have multiple layers, create an adjustment layer (he button on the bottom of the layer palette that looks like a half-moon, Levels, Curves or Hue/Saturation will do fine, just don't use something like Color or Invert) and just hit 'OK' without adjusting anything. With the new layer on top, set its blend mode (on the layer palette, at the top, it reads 'normal' by default) to 'Multiply.' Now, it may be a bit too dark at this point, which is easily fixable by changing the new layer's opacity.

Oh, as I was saying when I started the message...it only seems to happen on XP. So, if you feel particularly ballsy, installing another OS, like 2000 or ME or 98 will also work...but it really is more trouble than it's worth. In any case, it's not really an Adobe problem, it's a Microsoft problem. It just has an Adobe solution...says a lot about the way the software companies are going, huh?

This is a WinXP problem. I've seen it before, and it's not limited to laptops. I'm afraid that the only solution I've found that worked for me...or more to the point, my roommate, whose computer was freezing...was to re-install a couple Adobe programs. If you've got Illustrator (especially version 9 or earlier), that's one of the ones that needs re-installing, along with Photoshop. Apparently, the trick is to install Photoshop after installing Illustrator...if you're running Illustrator 10, same deal. My solution on this one is based on a theory of mine, which is to install the programs in the order of their release. In any case, it hasn't let me down so far. Near as I can figure it's something having to do with the color management systems, although I'm pretty sure Elvis has something to do with it as well.

Depending on what movie-playing programs you have available, there is usually an option to save out as PICS. That is, it saves individual frames into a folder in PICT format. Following that, the major hassle is processing the images...all of them. If for no other reason than the fact that hardly anyone uses PICT images anymore. The easiest solution (though it's not incredibly easy to learn, unfortunately) is to make use of Photoshop or ImageReady''s Automate features. If anyone's interested, My tutorials are going to be going online in about a week or so, and the Automation features will be among them.

There is only one stupid question and that's the one you don't ask. Ask. Someone knows. I'm not certain which version of Photoshop you're using, but if it's 6 or higher, another nifty feature available is the control bar on the top. You can enter in values, coordinates, whatever there which will give you extremely precise control. Retro's answer is, however, the easier way to go.

Also look under your edit menu for "Preferences," or hit Command/CTRL-K (depending on your system). In the main preferences dialog box, up at the top is the setting for your Redo hotkey. By default, Photoshop is set to toggle Redo/Undo with Command/CTRL-Z. Setting Redo to Cammand/CTRL+Shift-Z will allow you to use the Command/CTRL-Z for multiple Undos.

Yes, art tablets are some of the best tools available, especially considering that Photoshop has FULL support for them (including features on some tablets (www.frys.com) that Wacom doesn't offer). Wacom is one of the better manufacturers of these things...however, I wish to warn people that if you get one and get used to using it...you're going to run into one serious issue. Most place don't want to dish out the money for these things. So, unless you feel like hauling the tablet and stylus with you everywhere you go, you might think about trying to use it with a pair of boxing gloves on, because that's what it's like going back to a mouse or trackball afterwards. Hence, why I usually use a mouse for everything and save my tablet for special projects.

This is actually a rather decent example of the kinds of things you'd learn to do in the Photoshop WOW books.

Personally, I would have to agree. Jack is one of the best writers in regards to Photoshop materials. However, the material typically covered in the WOW book, is what I refer to as the 'fluffy' side of Photoshop. The WOW series is a good series of books to get because the exercises contained are fun, and you'll be more likely to stick with finishing them and therefore learn more about the program. Plus, the book comes with a CD that contains not only the program files but quite a few extras that can be used in a wide array of practical situations. But do yourself a favor, if you get the book, also get Adobe Photoshop Studio Techniques by Ben Willmore. His books, while not covering the snazzy special effects and whatnot, cover the truly practical effects that one would be most likely to use should they get an actual job using the program. Remember, just because you can make a flaming logo does not mean that you know the program...if you can correct an image's color balance, fix flaws, and make the final product look like something that HASN'T been touched by Photoshop, that's when you can say you understand the program. Ben's book will help you do this. Retrocity, back me up on this, huh?

Check out Google's Image search page... http://images.google.com/advanced_image_search There, you can specify not only the image keywords, but resolution and file format as well.