There are quite a few options out htere, and Iwould suggest you look online and purchase a starter package that has a few of each and see what you like best before you purchase a whole stash of them.
First are prefolds and covers. Prefolds are like old fashioned diapers in the sense that you fold them and either pin or Snappi them on. These require a cover ,and the easiest to use are Bummis Super Whisper wrap. These are made of PUL (polyurethene laminate) and you can reuse them until they get smelly or poop on them, then wash. You can also purchase wool or fleece covers.
Next are fitteds adn contours. Kissaluvs are a popular brand of fitteds and contours. Fitteds snap on like a diaper, but require a cover. COntours lay in a cover adn you snap/velcro the whole thing on. THese are still pretty cost effective, and fitteds work great for newborn breastmilk poops!
Next are pocket diapers. Happy Heiny's and Fuzzi Bunz are two popular brands of pockets. These are currently the most popular diaper being used. THey are easy to wash, quick to dry, and really easy to use. These are a shell, PUL outer and fleece inner, and you 'stuff' the absorbancy in the middle of them. Again super simple to use. These run $12-$20 each, depending on brand and what you purchase with them.
Last are all in one's (AIO's). THese are the most expensive, and can be hard to wash as they take a long time to dry. THey are PUL outer and they are literally all in one, the absorbancy and shell are all one piec.e THese are most like a dispoable in ease of use. They are expensive, starting at $25+ each, but can be nice for day trips, babysitters, dad, etc. Bumkins are a popular brand of AIO's.
As for washing, that comes easily too. When your baby poops, just dump the poop off in the toilet and flush. THen you can rinse the idaper off and hang to dry, or leave it and put it in a dry pail or dry bag. No need to soak the diapers, it will acutally damage diapers made of PUL to be soaked. Then on wash day, do a warm rinse, warm or hot wash, and a 2nd rinse if desired. Hang up anything PUL to dry, and dryer dry anything else. You cannot use dryer sheets or fabric softener with cloth diapers, it will make them repel water.
ALso many laundry soaps will not work with cloth diapers. They will leave an after smell,,,, and flowery pee isn't very pleasant. :) Plus many will build up on the diapers over time, causing you t have to strip the diapers, which is a long hard process. We used Charlies Soap (www.charliesoap.com) its $13 for a bag, and one bag will last you a good 6mos because a full load requires only one tablespoon. However a load of diapers is not a full load, so you only need about 1/4 tablespoon to wash a load of diapers. No scent, no build up, it rinses clean and its all natural.
Good for your for choosing cloth diapers. You won't regret it!