It can be really daunting when you take a deeper peek at Xoops and you wonder where to begin.

Well begin with a bit of reading from this site. Start with these FAQ's, the Doucumentation site linked on the left and simply browsing the forums.

But if for you reading can be boring and you prefer to jump right in and play with your installation of xoops then check out this FAQ. Take the link to the module playground!

The first thing you need to do before you work on looks, content and appeal is to get the installation right. Our Xoops installation guide is essential reading!

However, if you are a 'visual' learner, you can also access visual tutorials here. These are an excellent way to get an idea of the knowledge and skills you will need to develop. It is great to have for example the 'installation tutorial' open while you go through the process.

If you are a total Newbie as I was go to xoops for dummies for a really easy to follow installation guide. Be sure you have also at your disposal an FTP program. Learn to use this too.

It is very possible you will get a blank page after installThis is easily resolved - read the trouble shooting on xoops for dummies and the FAQ on blank pages here.

Now you want to play with the look, feel and content of your site. My big question here was what next? Modules or themes? I recomend you go with modules first. Why? Your site is primarily about content - the dressups can come later...and if you are totally new to the jargon it will be some time before you will feel ready to play with themes.
Decide what types of content you want on your site and install modules relevant to those. This is where playing at the module testing site can be really useful to you.
Then go surfing for a theme you like and install this (or these) - experiment with how they make your site look. Select something and then take some time to learn to make it your own. There is a lot of help for this on the site too.

So..in a nutshell
1. Get informed
2. Install xoops and make sure it is in working order in it's basic form.
3. Install the modules that will suit the content and interaction you want.
4. Install themes, select and personalise them.

Hope this helps!