[dba-VB] ASP.NET app's web design

Hi All --

I wanted to ask three questions to the list members who has made some
graphics/knows well (at least in theory) what tools and principles are
involved in that graphics design process:

- 1) Is there any inexpensive graphic design tools, which allow to create
designs as the following? (assumption that graphics designer is able to
imagine and make such design is given by default and is not the subject of
my questions)

       http://shamils-23.hosting.parking.ru/Prototype/

      (Must have for such a tool should be a feature to make layered design
built from several graphical components as well as the feature of setting
transparent background for given color, drawing gradients but there is no
need in that many fancy and cute features one can find in ADOBE Photoshop -
just a set of feature to support development of simple and elegant Web 2.0
designs - that is required...)

- 2) When such design is created is it completely manual work to convert it
into a (set of) .css + graphics + .html?

- 3) Do you see a lot of graphics will go into .css + graphics + .html from
such a design or most of it can be presented by just .css + .html4 (maybe
.html5)? (I do assume here that photos of the consumer good products are not
the part of the design, as well as shadows, which can be ignore while
porting graphic design from .psd into .css + .html if they are not part of
photos)...

- 4) Do you suppose that the referred above design can be made without HTML
tables - by using <DIV>  + .css + as little as possible graphics?

Thank you.

--
Shamil