Forays into Emacs, part 1

I've been wanting to learn Emacs for a while now, and over the past few days I've forced myself to really dive into it.  It is overwhelming at first, and I didn't really get into it until I finally figured out how to install the package manager, change the theme, and download a useful package for web development (web-mode.el).

Lessons learned:

• Take the built-in tutorial, and DO the exercises
• Memorize ONLY the basic commands, you'll get the rest later
• Figure out how to use the built-in help
• Install the package manager ELPA / MELPA 
• Find a use-case for why you're learning EMACS - mine was web development, and luckily I finally found a major mode that seems to fit the bill: web-mode.el
• Practice using the new keys for your major / minor mode