NEWBIE Q: How to upgrade my kernel ..

I would like to upgrade to the latest kernel and would appreciate any advice .. Also, is there a HOWTO or other instruction page I can look at before proceeding .. I've built the kernel before, but it was a very long time ago and I basically followed some instructions I found so I don't recall enough to build it on my own without guidance .. I'm currently using SUSE 7.0, kernel 2.2.16 (I believe) with X 4.0 on an iMac DV 400 .. I would like to be able to access my FW harddrive, but I'm not to hopeful .. Also, are there drivers to use a Logitech QuickCam on Linux? .. Finally, can anyone give me advice on getting my Epson Stylus Photo 750 working under linux .. TIA -joe