DirectDraw -- Urgent Questions :)

[shadybyte]

Hello. I am trying to make my first program that uses DirectDraw. This obviously means that I am new to DirectX. I have noticed through my research that DirectDraw seems to be obsolete and a new method of 2D drawing using 3D objects started with the DirectX8 SDK.

Question 1 ---- this might seem like a very stupid question, but if a program uses this new method of 2D drawing starting with DirectX8, it wouldn't use ddraw.dll right?

Question 2 ---- Am I correct in thinking that DirectDraw only exists for the DirectX7 SDK and lower, and that ddraw.dll is used only with the DirectX7 SDK and lower?

Question 3 ---- (advanced) If a call to DirectDrawCreateEx fills in a DirectDraw interface pointed to by the second argument, how do you figure out what version DirectDraw interface it filled in? eg. IDirectDraw, IDirectDraw2, IDirectDraw4, IDirectDraw7. I know how to figure out the highest version supported by a computer, but that question I dont' know.

Question 4 ---- Am I right in thinking that the IDirectDraw7 interface is the last and highest interface under DirectDraw?

Question 5 ----- Please, can you point me in the direction of how to continue the new 2D style of drawing that started with the DirectX8 SDK?

Thanks for you help on this matter!