ORIGINAL: MinnFlyer
There is some very good advice here, and I would like to add one more comment.
Watch out for the "2 Month Experts". I have seen several cases where somebody new comes here asking the most basic beginners questions like:
I just found out about this hobby, where can I get a plane? How much do they cost? What type of fuel do they use? Etc.
And then 2 months (or so) later, they are handing out the advice like they've been doing it forever. In many cases it's not harmful, like if you ask a general question that would have a standard answer, but I have seen a few examples where the advice is not good, and even dangerous.
I would say that time-in-hobby is an insufficient litmus test for judging the worthiness of advice (not that you're claiming that), although it is one factor that can be usefully considered.
My own litmus test goes like this:
* is the poster functionally literate?
* how is the poster's material generally regarded in the forum?
* does the post welcome corrections/additions, or does s/he seem to be vested in being "right" all the time?
* does the poster have a commercial interest in the topic?
* can the poster discern nuance, or is everything black/white and Us/Them?
* does the poster seem to care about newbies, and the hobby in general?
* is the poster willing to share his own mistakes for the benefit of others?
Bonus points for having a personal homepage with pics so I can see who I'm learning from. :-)