Hello there, your extreme noob here...

So I start searching for team fortress 2 communities because I have owned the game all of 24 hours (my b/f got it for Christmas, it looked fun, so I d/l'd it.)  This is my first FPS, much less MMOFPS, except for a few hours in WarRock, which is a free game with oodles of problems. 
As a newb, I have been blown to bits several times, got accused of trying to give "Some friend of yours on the other side points.", got told I was an idiot, got told completely off...etc. etc.

Remember folks, it's just pixels.

Anyway, I'm basically reading your forums to find more information/tips/strategy/etc for different maps and classes and whatnot because, atm, I suck.

Welcome, try not to pay too much attention to  a-holes online. We were all newbs once, the measure of a true warrior is his ability to recognize the newb and feel compasion. Perhaps take him/her under his wing and train the newb into a fierce warrior.

Hope to see you online, oh btw get a Mic. It makes a huge difference in game and you can ask questions and learn much more quickly.

Does the whole mic thing require vent?  I have no idea.  I always avoided vent in wow, but the game was slow enough that typing in chat was sufficient.  This game is way faster.

TF2 has a built in voice chat client.  So there is no need for a secondary program.  Also, if you play on our servers (here are the IP's of our dedicated servers) you won't run into any of those a-holes.  If you want, friend me on Steam, my ID is {TF2F} Big Lou.  I'll help you get your feet wet.