Welcome to the asylum.
Couple of things here. First and foremost don't be afraid to ask questions. You'll get a couple of smart A##ed remarks from the peanut gallery but, for the most part, the accomplished sticks want to see you get good. Much more of a challenge to fight. For the record I am not one of them. I play this game for fun, for the community, and general relaxation.
Spend time in the Training Arena. Not only is it fun to fly around without worrying about getting shot down generally speaking the junk talk on 200 is limited.
Talk to the trainers. They are a hand picked group that really know how to explain things in detail. Go to
http://trainers.hitechcreations.com/ to see schedules and write ups about how to do almost anything. Also check out
http://www.netaces.org for more info.
Most important. Initially you'll see your skill ramp up exponentially then level out and this can cause frustration. When this happens ask one of the trainers or an accomplished member (Skyrock, Dedalos, Simiral, Rowdy1, etc,) to work you through some things.
Additionally your score and ranking mean squat. The most important measure is are you having fun? If the answer is 'yes' then don't worry about people griping at or about you.
If you have account issues, want to change your game handle, hardware issues, etc. Don't hesitate to contact HTC directly. Their customer service is hands down the best in the business.
Best of luck to you and if you see me in the TA (Dichodog is my in game handle) feel free to use me as a target drone.
Lastly.. have a thick skin. Some people like to talk smack. In the end it really means nothing. If this is your style have at it. If not just laugh at / with it and drive on. It is the intardweb and a lot of people have more 'keyboard courage' than actual spines.
