getting started

[adoy]

i will be predictable and start the way most newbies start by saying.....

i am new to all of this and would like to know more....what do i mean by this...ill tell you...i am learning more and more every day about computers and would like to learn more about networks and security.....i have done a little network admin work at my last job and found it rather interesting.....ive been playing around at http://www.hulla-balloo.com/hack/level1/ which is quite fun but i have found myself being left behind....ive been looking thorugh thread that talks about this site which can be found here http://www.antionline.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=245613 once most people got to level 5 thye started talking another language.....i was lost and i guess the reason for this would be that i tried something that i new nothing about and found that i could bluff my way through for awhile.....

after all that hoolala what i am asking is.....what is the starting point?/....im not a hacker and never will be....but i enjoyed that site and understand that i you want to stop something from happening to your comp you need to know about it....please help me

late

[Deathkne11]

Welcome aboard!!

Good to see another fellow countryman here!

You say your only starting out? Well that's cool - so am I! The best way to learn about 'puters and securing them is to read, read, read (and when ya get stuck - give a holler). A lot of the archives, FAQ's and tutorials right here at Antionline are fantastic for noobies like us

This is a good a place as any to start:



You may also wanna check out



and the Antionline FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions).

Hope this helps you some. It did for me. And, P.S. - Don't be afraid to ask if your really stuck. People are SO cool here and will help you if you've exhausted every other avenue you can think of without success. That's what we're here for!

As I said - welcome aboard and I hope you enjoy learning with us!

L8R
D.

[RunningDuck]

I agree whole heartedly with Deathkne. If you come across a specific question, which I have on a few occasions, go ahead and give it a post. This site is home to some of the most knowledgable and frindly hackers I've ever heard of. If one of them can't find an answer for you, nobody can.

Also, to add my own point of view, I'd say go work on some certifications. I've recently got my A+, am working on my MCSE/MCSA and after that I plan to get CCNA. And just by finishing the A+, by far the easiest of the three, I've already learned huge ammounts about computers and the way they work, which is vital if you should ever want to try for that highly-prized hacker status.

Read read read, and try not to let yourself get burnt out. And don't be afraid to experiment on your own computer. If you have an old computer lying around, take it apart and tinker. Mess around with the os. Every time you hear of something new, try it yourself. The best way to learn is to do.

And, of course, have fun. That's what this is all about, really.

[Deathkne11]

Originally posted here by RunningDuck

Read read read, and try not to let yourself get burnt out. And don't be afraid to experiment on your own computer. If you have an old computer lying around, take it apart and tinker. Mess around with the o/s. Every time you hear of something new, try it yourself. The best way to learn is to do.

Yup - that's one I forgot to include.

You can only do so much reading before you need to apply that information. By this I mean, as said by RunningDuck, you need to 'tinker' and physically look at your 'puter. Look at the different hardware associations, how SCSI, ATA, SATA and IDE devices work (hint: do a google search on each of these terms ), then actually look at the components inside your box. It's recommended that you probably shouldn't 'tinker' with your 'primary box' but if you have an older spec'ed 486/386 laying around - GO FOR IT!!! (P.S. If you don't - depending on how 'into' computers you want to get - it may be worth investing $100-$200 in a really old machine that you can play with it without fear of 'screwing things totally'.

OK - I'm done now.....


|C-YA,
-----|D.

[mrleachy]

speaking on the challenge type sites, another good one for you to learn quite a bit from would be the slyfx challenges, www.slyfx.com if its still up, im pretty sure it is coz its very popular, if you can get to level 5 you'd be doing really well, but as deathknell said, the best place to start is with some books, if you get stumped on one of the challenges ona site its a good excuse to go out and find out how the language or problem works, these sites are more than just a place to have fun around with, they can be used as a very good starting point because not only do you get the practical 'experience' but you get a sense of accomplishment as you complete a 'task' and advance a level, all the better for your confidence

also always start with the basics on something new, thats obvious, set yourself small goals to work stuff out or get something done, break the probs down into parts and ask us if you have trouble and cant find things yourself, we don't bite no doubt you know and this site is worth more to me than any book ever was or will be for a while to come

[SirDice]

Welcome adoy, hope you learn alot

It's also good to see all those newbies giving each other great advice
And as said before, if you have a problem don't hesitate to ask. We're all here to help.
Keep your questions plain and simple. If it's a bigger problem try and divide it into smaller, easier to solve questions/problems. Also A Good Thing(tm) to do would be to answer a few questions you think you can answer. Just start by answering some simple questions and move along as you learn more.

[nyx]

Like everyone pointed out u (we, I'm a newbie too) have to read a lot, so this thread is a good place to start:
http://www.antionline.com/showthread...hreadid=243809
I'm sure there are more threads like this, just a search in the forums, the tutorial forum is great too, and wellcome aboard.

Antionline It's a great place to learn....

[Wrayth]

Just please, if you're going to post a question, Give Us Some Background!

"I can't get into Windows" doesn't really help. (Yes, I'm exaggerating here to get the point across)
Rather try something along the lines of "I can't get into windows cos whenever I start my machine up it bluescreens when my CD-Rom drive spins up. I'm on an AMD 2200+ with a Geforce4 4200 Ti and 256Mb Ram and the CD-Rom is an AOpen 56x generic piece of Junk. I hate M$!"

In other words, if you're asking a question, add any information you can think of, no matter how unimportant you think it is

[Dark Phoen1x]

You can get a lot of harmless and very usefull information at "Http://www.happyhacker.com". Good Luck

[AlcatraX]

adoy,

if ur seriously interested in hacking this site. then pm me.
as it is fun site made to learn security of websites so there is nothing illegal about it.