iPod crashes, needs to be restored, corrupted, not recognized by iTunes

My 120GB ipod classic which is 2.5 years old keeps crashing or it is not recognized by iTunes. At first I thought maybe I had some RAW photo files on it but that is not the case. Maybe it is because I have the iPhoto pictures on an external hard drive. I'm going to leave the pictures off and sync the music, podcasts, videos, movies, audio books only and see what happens.

Last night I left it connected to the iMac and the computer would not boot up. All I got was a white screen. Something is going on but I'm at a loss as to what is causing the problem.

I'm really disappointed with this iPod Classic that I'm having this problem. The 120GB iPod is a better deal than any of the other iPods for everyday use and portability. Apple customer support was no help at all.