I noticed that CS2 ran slower on my computer than CS3. My computer is AMD 2500+, 1 GB of ram, Nvidia 6800. CS3 improved a lot in the interface. Palettes reside in docks and when you press the Tab key, all palettes are dismissing. Another good new feature is when you move cursor over to palette; it will spring back into view. One of the best improvements is nondestructive filtering. Now you can edit filters, you can add and remove filters you put up before. The Black and White feature does a really good job. If there is a picture of the beach for example, you can move your cursor to the ocean and you can brighten the water. Auto-Align Layers lets you combine best elements of similar shots. Photoshop CS3 Extended version lets you open video files and paint and clone right on the frames. CS3 also has a lot of features for scientists and architects.

The only negative side is that CS3 doesn’t offer dual-display presets.



Adobe Photoshop CS3 is pretty expensive too. Standard version is $650. Upgrade version is $200. Extended version is $1000 and extended upgrade is $350. Price is pretty high for average users, but for professionals this software worth every penny.