Links

IrfanView, a compact but powerful image editor, lets you examine and modify pictures and other graphics, and play around with creative effects. The program supports all major image file formats.

GNU Image Manipulation Program (the Gimp) is a veteran open-source software application. Use it to do simple paintbrush jobs, create and work with complex images, or fix photos.

Paint.net was created by computer science students at Washington State University. It's as powerful as the Gimp but much easier to use and install. It is, however, only for Windows 2000 and you'll need Microsoft's .NET framework installed on your PC.

PhotoPlus from Serif installs easily and is loaded with features, including layer support. In fact, it looks and feels like a "lite" version of Adobe PhotoShop - except that it is relatively easy to use!