Photoshop 7 ranks as the best version upgrade for a long time. having been using for a couple of weeks, on occasions where i have had to go back to 6 ive missed the features ive already come to depend on in 7, which speaks volumes in itself.
Firstly the interface has been improved and streamlined, the context sensitive options bar speeds up workflow enormously, and finally after all these versions the ability to save custome tool settings, if you constantly find yourself retyping cropping tool settings et all, then youll appreciate what an advancement this is.
More layer blending modes to play with, improvements to most of the workhorse image adjustment areas, curves has had a major overhaul, and has become much more user friendly, not least with the ability to expand the size of the dialogue box.
The new tools are in fact great, the healing brush has that real wow factor, and is a great accomplice to the rubber stamp.
Even the texture generator seems to have some applications for creating original artwork.
The file browser is welcome, although for anyone who used to use Corel Photopaint, its merely something which has been missing from Photoshop for a long time.
Despite intitial scepticism, i think this is the best upgrade to Photoshop in a long time, although most of the enhancements should have materialised a couple of years ago, at least they have finally been incorporated.