Is After Effects cs3 enough for basic effects?

Just about any compositing or visual effect you ever saw in a movie or a commercial can be and has been done using After Effects, even a version that is 10 or 15 years old. The only difference is the workflow and the time it takes to process. There are limitations, and you probably will not be able to buy 3rd party plug-ins anymore for software that old, but you can learn compositing and motion graphics.

Don't expect one-click solutions to your design problems. On average a new user needs a couple of hundred hours of concentrated and well-directed study to become proficient enough in After Effects to be competent enough to design something and then execute that design.

If AE CS3 is something you can put your hands on right now and if it's running on your old computer, then just go for it. Get into it. You'll realize very quickly if this setup is enough or not.

Or in other words: what is your option if this is not enough? And why don't you take it?

*Martin