I'm getting ready to make a drawing application in Windows. I'm just wondering, do drawing programs have a memory bitmap which they lock, then set each pixel, then blit? I don't understand how Photoshop can move entire layers without lag or flicker without using hardware acceleration. Also in a program like Expression Design, I could have 200 shapes and move them around all at once with no lag. I'm really wondering how this can be done without GPU help. I don't think super efficient algorithms could justify that?

Thanks