That will work with most but not ALL the tools. If you look at the hidden tools you'll notice that some don't have a keyboard shortcut associated with them, a requirement for the shift-key shortcut to work. You can customize keyboard shortcuts to add those tools.

Practice, practice, practice. Seriously, I tell my students to try to use the app every day and learn one new thing every time they use it. Continue to practice it every time you use the app and you'll be an expert in a few months. Of course it's harder than it sounds, but the more you do it the easier it becomes. You might also create a cheat sheet with your favorite tools and shortcuts listed and keep it handy until you don't need it anymore.

Drag the brush from the current brush library panel and drop it in the main brushes panel.

Many of the tools are the same but the interfaces and workflows are very different. One of the reasons I teach how a tool works is to allow you to know how to use it when you encounter it in other apps.

Why not read some of the posts and decide for yourself? Personally, I find it a very high signal to noise ratio.

Check out the Topaz labs plug-ins: www.topazlabs.com

Always a good idea to deauthorize before changing OSes or putting on a different system.

Hey everybody, I am working hard on rerecording the Core 101 set for Photoshop CS5. They should be available by the end of June. I apologize for the delay but I have been very busy with several other time-critical broadcast and publishing projects. Bear in mind that the Core 101 set is designed for beginners. If you have seen the CS4 set then the biggest change is the interface. Some lessons will be simplified and others will be included in future training instead. I intend to create a lot more advanced training over the next several months targeting specific markets and tools. Thanks for your patience and understanding.

I have a few more lessons to record. The production folks are already prepping tutorials for distribution. Real soon now. If you're in a bug rush, the CS4 tutorials can get you started with Photoshop. For beginners, the biggest difference between versions is the interface. It's in the new features and the more advanced techniques that you'll find the biggest changes.

The tutorials are in final stages of production (in other words they're all recorded and NLE are adding all the candy.) How long do I have to sit in the corner?