assuming you know the rules and basics like what is a fork.

>websites?
there's nothing remotely close to btp out there in terms of community. the chess world is full of untalented know-it-alls, it's really annoying.

http://chess.emrald.net/ is a sweet site for tactics problems.

>books?
The Amateur's Mind is a good strategy primer; teaches you how to actually play chess. also, any book called 'The Amateur's Mind' is clearly a must-have.
Logical Chess by Irving Chernev is a collection of annotated games that is supposed to be great for new players.

>general tips?
spend the most study time on tactics. least on openings.

yahoo and FICS are free servers that let you keep a rating. there are some pay sites like ICC (biggest) and playchess (best interface) that have more features that you might wanna check out.

you can download winboard and a free engine like fruit or crafty for going over your games. the evaluations they spit out are kind of cryptic but they find tactics instantly which is useful.

also, the well-known Dortmund Super GM tournament is going on right now. - the website has a live games link. check it out for sweet draw-tastic action.

they have backgammon on party now.

I like the Backgammon on Party, but I'm not sure how good I am at it. I never played seriously. Although, if there is money to be had at it, I might try it out. Last time I saw people playing backgammon for money, I was on a street in Denmark looking at the rows of backgammon and chess boards lining the sidewalks.

Start at the end, by learning how to give mate with various combinations of pieces. Learn when and how you can win with King+Pawn against King, why you can't win with a King and 2 knights versus a King, etc.

In short, first learn the basics of the endgame. Then start worrying about openings, strategy and tactics. There's no point in learning the Caro Kann 25 moves deep if you don't know how to convert a decisive advantage into a win.

Besides, the endgame is by far the most interesting part of the game!

Chess rules.

My name on stars is Checkmate36 and its the same on 2+2 and on Hilger's forum.

When you start learning, always work on your endgame at least for a few minutes when you play.

Im trying to think of a good book to get you started but the only one that comes to mind is the book about Capablanca's greatest games. My all time favorite.

I think the world championship match is sometime this month.