Things to know about EVE Online before beginnig:
- EVE has no win conditions! avoid/mitigate the aspects of play you dislike, pursue those you enjoy, and ignore naysayers
- EVE is PvP-centric. anything can be destroyed if it's undocked, regardless of system security level ("High-Security" space is not a PvP-free zone)
- you can play nonviolently, but you cannot entirely avoid the possibility of ship-on-ship violence unless you never undock one
- even if you stay docked and only do station trading, the market itself is a form of PvP; if you don't like interacting with other people, EVE probably isn't for you
- losses in EVE, barring exploits or CCP errors, are permanent. CCP usually won't reimburse you for ignorance of mechanics or for scams or treachery
- if something seems too good to be true, it's almost certainly a scam
- EVE is unforgiving and deep. if you're easily upset by loss, can't laugh at yourself, or can't use a search engine, EVE Online probably isn't the game for you
Some suggestions for play:
- block toxic players if you encounter them (right-click their name in chat & select "Block"). most EVE players are chill, but some act terribly. report egregious behavior to CCP
- do not report people just for blowing you up! "PvP everywhere" is fundamental to EVE Online
- do the whole tutorial, and consider doing all the Career Agents' missions, too (they're well-made, give you useful rewards, and introduce you to most aspects of play)
- note: the link above points to a subsection of a huge article; I wouldn't bother reading the whole thing. just find the nearest set of agents & run their missions
- trust as few guides/tools/mentors as you can & test/validate if something's critical and uncertain. 3rd-party info/tooling (including my own) isn't necessarily correct or up-to-date
- seek out guides/tools/mentors and learn as much as possible from them. this contradicts the above, but the point is: other peoples' ideas/tools are constraints as much catalysts
- every so often, do something you haven't before; there's always more depth to explore
- you can be a lone wolf if it suits you, but the best ship in EVE is friendship! here's CCP's guide to the in-game corporation finder, and here's reddit's EVE Jobs Board
- leave your corp/alliance if it's not fun for you & try a different one
- if you don't know a word or phrase used in a fleet, the best thing to do is ask with your voice. if you can't or won't, then check EVE University's EVE Lexicon page
- it may be intimidating, but voice chat lets other players respond without diverting their attention and it's faster. using your voice is more considerate than typing
- any corporation/alliance worth joining will happily accept & help deaf players
I list my own tools & resources and link to others here. My stuff's not all newcomer-oriented. Remember #5.