(x-post from BF&I) If you would be so kind...investing, the essentials

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This is a crosspost from the BF&I forum. As far as I'm concerned, it doesn't seem to be breaking any OOT rules (YES I HAVE LOOKIN AT THE CHART). My reason to x-post this here is this; there are a lot of intelligent minds here at OOT and I would hate missing any advice from them. This could essentially be a big milestone in my life and I for one want to make sure I get all the necessary information before moving forward. Also, this could also spark interest for other OOTers who were previously uninterested in investing and would otherwise never become interested.

"First let me introduce myself,
I am an upcoming undergraduate sophmore in UCI majoring in business economics. I work extremely hard at whatever I'm interested in. I have essentially supported myself throughout my freshman year playing poker. I would say I put in at least 20 hours a week throughout the entire year. This should show you that once I put my mind into something, I will devote all my energy to it. I am very disciplined and tend to start what I finish. Therefore, whatever advice you give me here, I will put it to full use.

I have no history in investing. I have never bought a stock before and have no clue what hedging or any other business terminology means. Essentially, I am a total noob in stocks and investing. What I plan to do is putting some serious hours for poker during this summer while studying stocks and the art of investing. I plan on going to borders about every other day and soaking up everything I can. By the time summer ends, I want to be adept at choosing the right stocks.

Throughout sophmore year, I plan on dabbling my feet in buying stocks. I want to experiment and build a somewhat strong portfolio. Hopefully, poker will be good to me this coming summer and I will have a hefty amount of money to invest. I probably won't be risking too much (I'm thinking 25% of my bankroll) in stocks but I am definately going to give it a stab.

Basically, by the end of college, I want to have an strong diversified portfolio that will give me enough returns to support myself without a job (I don't know how feasible this is, but I'm going to live very modestly, i.e apartment, used car etc etc.) This will hopefully take off some pressure for me to find a job as quickly as possible and actually have time to find a career I will really enjoy or open up a business with a partner.

What I ask from you guys is simple recommendations of books, magazines, and forums to read. I'm not asking for lectures (although that will be much appreciated) because I know I should be doing the research myself. Perhaps a list of essential concepts I need to know. All in all, I just need someone to point me to the right direction.

Thank you in advance,

Nick Oh

Oh yeah, I would also like a reality check. If it seems like I'm being too naive, it's because I am. I am under the impression that anyone can beat the stock market for around 10% roi, but if I'm daydreaming here, please do tell. I know I am not one of the brightest and would say I'm just above average in intelligence (because I know through experience that the average, well at least the average u.s citizen is not too bright. "

CLIFF NOTES FOR IMPATIENT OOTERS: I R WANTING TO BECOME RICH THROUGH THE BUYING OF PARTS OF OTHER COMPANIES.