modding, getting started?

[JaydedOne]

For what it's worth, what I found the most useful in getting started on my mod was downloading other mods and looking into their guts (namely, their .dms and their .tgas) to figure out what had worked effectively for them.

I think the best example of a full nation mod, aside from what IW put out, is probably Ashikaga as it really flexed what the mod utilities can do. DL it, read the mod, and then come back with the initial questions that flow from it.

As a sidenote, does anyone have any recommendations on where to go for excellent PhotoShop FAQs and pointers? There are so many sites out there that trying to find a single, clear, comprehensive one is hard. What I'm really interested in is finding out whether there's a utility on PS that allows you to pick a single color-type for sprites and replace all instances of said color-type with another color. You can see the obvious reasons for wanting such, I'm sure.