If you get an iPod photo, you're in for a treat! There are thousands of ways you can use the photo storage system to really make your life much easier.

First, create a directory on your hard drive and give it an obvious name. You can use iPodPhoto or something similar. Just make sure it's easy to find, because you'll be using it a lot!

Create subdirectories in this main directory, by subject. You might create folders such as

Jenny
Family
Cancun
Whiskers

and so on. The folder names will show up on your main photo screen, so they'll be quite easy to get to. In your iTunes software, go into preferences and point your photos area at this folder. This lets your iPod know to sync up with those photos each time you connect it.

Finally, it's time to put images into the folders. First, drag a COPY of each image you're interested in into the appropriate folder. You won't see file names on the iPod - just a series of thumbnails - so don't worry about how you name them.

Next, it's time to edit your copies. There's a reason you copied them and didn't move the original :) Your aim here is to make the images 220 x 176, which is the image size on your iPod. That way it is perfectly proportioned and sized. Crop the image so that the best part of the image is shown. If you have a photo of a cardinal with a TON of forest around him, crop out the forest. This is a small screen after all - you want the main image to take up the viewing space.

When you're done cropping and resizing your images, connect your iPod! Your photos will now download to the iPod, and are ready for sharing!