Adobe ImageReady, sometimes version 3.0 and sometimes CS. I use it mainly because it has layers and transparency, the ability to save good-quality web images, and it can animate if that's what I want to do, all in one program.

There's a section on the site called "Spriting guide". Read that, then ask me if there's something you don't understand in it and I'll try to help. And please don't just say "I don't understand your guide"; tell me what exactly you don't understand in it. Otherwise I'll ask you to tell me anyway.

A: ScreenMatch is a funny thing. You activate it in sprite edit mode by pressing the M key. In the lower part of the screen, it will indicate whether ScreenMatch is on or off. If you leave it on, you're likely to end up with a lot of "duplicated" sprites overlapping the adjacent screen. The is especially bad if you move a sprite, stamp it down, decide to move it more, and stamp it down again. On the adjacent screen, you will have several matching sprites, not just the 1 you had intended.

Another common question. The answer depends on the size of the sprite. If your sprite is not wider than 32 pixels (which is likely), then you can now use the sprites.h header file. This header file defines fast functions which work with sprites (including masked sprites). The only limitation is that the sprite must not be wider than 32 pixels (the height is not limited).

If you mean cameos, see the previous question. If you mean permanent cast members to your comic, no. To see what sprites of mine you can use, visit the Downloads section. When and if I approve of a cameo request, I'll send the sprites you need.

Most likely you want to use sprites from a commercial game. If you are not going to distribute your game and are just using the sprites for learning/practicing, you won't get in any trouble. If you plan on giving away or selling your game, then you need the permission of the copyright holder. Some free games have liberal licenses that will allow you to use the sprites in your game.

It depends on exactly what you are doing. If your images are totally opaque, there is no advantage to using an RLE sprite, and it will probably be faster to use a regular bitmap with the blit() function. If your graphics contain masked areas, an RLE sprite will almost always be both smaller and faster than the draw_sprite() function. Compiled sprites are in general quite a bit faster than both the others for masked images, and slightly faster for opaque graphics, but this is far more variable.

Absolutely not. The only things ImageReady has over Paint when it comes to sprites are simply conveniences, like a long undo history, the ability to change all pixels of one particular color to another with a single click, and layers that allow you a little more messing-up without ruining your work and easier deletion of the original art when you're making a pixel-over. It all CAN be done on Paint. It's a little easier in better programs, but that doesn't mean it can't be done in Paint.

Eh, I'm sorry, but no. I'm not good at making scratch sprites, contrary to some weird popular belief. I'm what I call a "lucky artist". I can NOT draw. Sometimes I miraculously get the shape just right, but that's a very rare occurrence and it's pure luck. I doodle practically all the time, but 99% of everything I draw turns out looking absolutely awful with anatomy problems that would put a three-year-old to shame.

A: If the answer to this was documented, I never found it. I was having a very hard time because I put a lot of sprites on my screen. Small things ended up being behind large things (like trees). I could still see them just fine, but when clicking on them with the mouse, I would end up picking up the tree instead of the small rock behind it. I realized, don't use the mouse when you're placing sprites. It's not very precise and it's easy to move things a few pixels off.

Our office offers copies of the program that we use to make tide predictions for the NOS Tidal Reference Stations. Our office is not in the business of software development and distribution. The program we use was developed for our use and is not user-friendly. The program is written in FORTRAN and requires the use of a separate control file for each location that predictions are being made for.

I use Paint Shop Pro. I edit the images, make layers, put effects on the images and whatever I'd like to add to the montages. I also use this program to edit my screen caps. I've been using Paint Shop Pro for a few years and have fell in love with it.

Currently Adobe Photoshop CS, which I also use to make a few of my layouts even this current layout. Before I had cs, it was Adobe Photoshop 7.0 and before that it was Arcsoft Photostudio 2000.

I use Adobe Photoshop and Adobe ImageReady. You can purchase the software from http://www.photoshop.com.

Yes, but GeForce3 doesn't support specifying a per-vertex point size when using the fixed-function pipeline. However, you can specify the global point size. If you wish to use per-vertex point sizes, you must use vertex shaders.