Is it me or my camera???

I've been shooting with my EOS 20D and 18-55mm kit lens a little over a year now and my pics have not seemed as sharp as they should be since I purchased it. I'm trying to narrow the problem down and am curious if anyone else is having similar problems. I've read posts from others who had trouble with their sensors out of calibration and/or lenses gone bad. Also, my kit lens...with the lens set to auto...has some looseness in the focus ring...not only rotational, but also side-to-side. Is this normal? Just recently (within the last six months) I purchased a Canon Powershot SD630 for my wife and the pics from her $300 camera are sharper than mine.

Of course, I could just be cross-eyed!!! %)

Thanks!

Most of the photos you see on here have had some (ranging from "just a tweak" to mega-levels) post-processing, part of which includes sharpening the image. DSLRs don't, out of the camera, sharpen the image as much as P&S cameras like the SD630; they leave that, like a lot of other settings, for the photographer to do in their own preferred manner. You can crank up the sharpness in-camera a lot if you want out-of-camera JPEGs that are closer to what a P&S delivers, but if you shoot RAW only Canon's DPP, which came with the camera, pays attention to the in-camera settings for sharpness.

But how about posting a couple of shots, including EXIF data, you're not happy with, and let us see if there might be something else.

A good way to find out if it's the focus calibration, is to do a focus test chart.
Read this:
http://photo.net/learn​/focustest/

Yes, many P&S cameras do deliver something that looks "better." Designed to please the masses that way. But, we need some examples of your problem.

By far the most common cause for the problem of poor sharpness in a good digital camera is a lack of post-processing.

The above posters (Jon and adas) have given the OP the tools.

Along with post processing, you might also try stopping the lens down to f/8. That's the "sweet spot" for the kit lens, which isn't known for its stellar image quality. You might also consider upgrading to the Tamron 17-50. It's a great lens for the price and would help in obtaining better images.

Thanks everyone,
I have an extended warranty with the camera which includes cleaning the sensor yearly. When I send it in for cleaning, I'll have them check calibration just to be sure. In the meantime, I'll print the focus sheet mentioned above and run a test with the timer and mirror lock-up. Afterwards, I'll post the results for all to see. Thanks again