FlipBook can help you do 2D, 3D or stop motion animation. FlipBook is a program that lets you play your animation in a loop and see the changes you make as it continues to play. You can scan, shoot or draw right into FlipBook where you can add sound, paint and play your animated movies. Then you can export standard movie files and post them on YouTube or burn them onto a CD or DVD.
This program is simple enough for my 12 year old son to use (and he's pretty much of a fanatic about it); yet it's also powerful enough to do serious animation. Simple, intuitive interface. The video tutorials keep the learning curve very manageable.
Cons
Obviously not as feature-laden as the upgraded FlipBook versions, but that's to be expected.
Summary
All around great product, for students and pros alike.