Game engines, programming languages, etc

what would be the best way to learn? tutorials or a guide? idk where to start

Tutorials of course, and then using the compiler and then making something. To learn the basics, you can try this interactive in-browser tutorial. Easy. http://tryruby.hobix.com/

oh yeah, and time efficent is kinda a priority, dial up and all >.>
how long will that take, I'm looking more for like a pdf or something that's within an hour of downloading :P

And if you're stuck, ask around. Google is also your friend (codeproject is, expert-exchange is not).

It loads pretty fast, won't take long at all on Dialup.

thanks for the help guys