Option 1: Directly connect your camera to the computer
A direct connection is not recommended in the long run.
Most cameras can be connected to your computer using the USB port. Your camera should have a “Preview” button, a green triangle pointing right words or triangle in any color. When you put the camera in preview mode and then connect your camera to the computer with a USB Cable, you should see an extra drive or a camera Icon in “My Computer”. Also you should see the Autoplay dialog box like this. Note: It might be possible that your camera does not have to be put on preview mode. It might do the above directly without preview mode.
Once your computer shows the camera as a drive, you can copy paste the picture files just like you do between regular drives.
Warning: The above method of directly connecting a camera to your computer is not recommend for a couple of reasons. If you do this again and again a lot, you might damage the USB port on the camera. It is also possible that you might trip on the cable while the camera is connected and the result is obvious. Only use this method in case of emergency.
Option 2: Use A Card Reader
A card reader (or a multi-card reader) is a cheap device that connects to your computer using a USB port. You insert your camera card in the reader and you should see a new drive on “My Computer” window. Some desktops and laptops also have a built in card reader.
A generic card reader costs under $10
Other possible options: Eye-Fi SD card / Camera Dock
An Eye-Fi SD card is built using proprietary technology and automatically transfers your pictures to on your home wireless network (wi-fi). See more details here http://www.eye.fi/how-it-works/basics
Some cameras come with a dock.
Some cameras like the Kodak Easyshare come with a Camera dock with ability to directly upload pictures to not only your computer but Flickr, Facebook etc. Please consult your camera manual in case this guide does not provide sufficient information.
