I just don't get it

If everyone told newbies to shut up at everything, then what kind of educational system would we have? Teachers don't (at least I hope not) do that to students when introducing them to something new. Nor should this be the case when learning new parts of HTML.

BTW I'm going to help you

From what I understand you are looking to make a newsletter or mailing list for your site? I know of a few things you can do, depending on what language you want the mailing list script to be in. Or you can go the old fashioned route and use a Bravenet newsletter. It's fully customizeable and your users won't even know it's by Bravenet.

Give some more detail on what you plan on doing so we can take this a step further.

G

Well, basically what I want is a site where the people can come and look at the pretty pictures, read some stories, and submit some of their own stuff. So rather then having them sign up through email (I don't know why some people are so finicky when it comes to giving out their email address) it'll just be a site. I do have a site host (tripod uk) but I make some of the ugliest crudest pages ever seen. (So I don't put those up and just use tripod to hang onto my images).

I have a PHP script that will allow people to fill out a form (that you can customize with personal text fields). The information they input will be sent to you in an email (you can pick which address it gets sent to) and it also allows for them to upload a file off of their computer onto your site (into a directory that you choose). I'm not at all familiar with Tripod so I don't know if all of this is possible. If you'd like the script, PM me your email address and I'll send it along with instructions.

You can do what you want to do several ways

1/ just have a basic html site and give your email address for people to submit stuff to.

2/ use a server side language (programming language) like PHP, ASP, Cold Fusion etc (make sure tripod allows one of these first) and use G-WizZ's script or find plenty of free ones at places like hotscripts.com Which ever you use just make sure it has good validation, checks the uploaded size, file type etc And be careful allowing just anyone to upload things to your site. Plenty of rotten apples out there and having them sign up via email first can cut some of them out, plus so you know who uploaded what.

3/ Download something like PHPNuke (content mangerment system) which has most things already done for you, problem is most of these sites look and feel the same.

The above is just for the uploading/displaying of things. You also mentioned in your first post a newsletter. This again can be done several ways but is most easiest with/from a database if you expect to have more than 10 members, if you dont you can just use outlook express. There are free newsletter scripts out there but probably all require some server side programming language. Again if you download something make sure it has validation, things like that it is in fact being sent from your site, if it is only you sending, maybe have it set in a password protected file.

Welcome to TWF btw

But every single tutorial I've tried to learn from gets to a point where I just don't get it anymore and it all turns into gibberish.

--> post which tutorial and where you get lost maybe we can help splain it to you