Since the "newbie" forum is mainly for introductions, I thought I might post this here.

1. The best way to learn is to play the game.
2. The best way to play the game is to play with others at or near your own level. Yeah, it's fun running along behind an upper-level character, XP rolling in like nobody's business and feeling invincible. But playing with others of your cadre will teach you cooperation. You'll learn that rushing blindly into rooms is not a good idea. That, sometimes, discretion is the better part of valor. That having to respawn and make the long walk back to the group is a good object lesson in patience. Humility, too, sometimes.
3. If an upper-level friends you, by all means, invite us to join you. Please understand, though, that if we're up to our rear-ends in lesser djinn or aliens, we don't always have time to get you an answer. It's nothing personal--we just don't want to die or to let our group down.
4. If we tell you we can't make it right now (busy playing another level/have to go soon/whatever), again, it's not personal. Sending 25 invite requests in a row isn't helpful, it's nagging.
5. Don't beg for higher level stuff than you can currently use. Actually, don't beg period. Most of the folks I play with give away a lot of goodies, me included. The only hard and fast rule seems to be that beggars don't get any.
6. If you've been helped a level or two the last time you played, play with folks at or near your own level for your next level or two. Again, you'll make friends with folks coming along at the same pace you are, you'll learn more and you'll show us that you're willing to work at it, not just have levels handed to you.
7. Have fun. Be nice. Cooperate. Don't let your group down. When you get higher on the food-chain, don't forget to help the new crop of newbies along. And have fun. It's important enough to be said more than once.