Actions can be grouped into "sets", they are like folders that organize files on your hard drive, but instead you can group similar actions together with them. We are going to create a new set that will/can contain all your user made actions. Click on the "Create new set" icon at the bottom of the "Actions" palette. It looks like a folder.



After you click the "Create new set" button, you should get a dialog box like the one in the screen shot below. Name the set "My Actions" or anything you like.



Before you create an action, you might want to take a look at your image dimensions. This watermark action, you are about to create, will create watermarks that will look different if used with different image sizes, so you may want to create several actions, one for each standard size(like 800 x 600 pixels), or always make sure your image is sized to one size. You can use the image size in the name of the action so you can tell which one to use for each size. Go to the "Image" menu and scroll down to "Image Size".



You will get this dialog box with your image's dimensions. Make a note of the width and height of your image in pixels (like 800 x 600). Also note the resolution. It should be 72 dpi. If it is not, change it to 72 dpi. 72 dpi is sufficient for displaying your images on the web. Anything higher is just a waste in file size and the higher, the better for image thieves. If you put up a high resolution image and they can find a way to download it, they can print it out with better results and that is probably something you do not want.



Now we need to create our action to go inside our newly created "Action Set." Highlight your new "Action set" by left clicking on it. Now click on the "Create new action" button at the bottom of the "Actions" palette. It looks kind of like a page, second from the right.



After you click on the "Create new action" button you will get this dialog box, in the screen shot below. Type in a title for the action in the "Name" field. Something like "Watermark 800 x 600 @ 72 dpi" or just "Watermark 800 x 600" unless you plan on watermarking images other than 72 dpi. In the "Set" field, make sure the "Action set" you just created is selected. You can select a function key that will launch your action(with or without the Shift or the Control key) if you wish or just skip it and if you desire, you can assign a color to it.