I can definitely sympathize with the novice feeling. I'm not a linux pro by any stretch of the imagination. I think the best sort of advice I can give at this point would be to just try some new things that you might think are difficult. Getting a handle on the command line is important. Once you have even a light grasp there, everything else will just sort of start falling into place. I hope you enjoy your N900 otherwise, though. It's an impressive piece of hardware.