Alright, you're my test case for this, but I think it'll work out fine.
Firstly, welcome to the forums. It's always nice to get new members. As for the basics, make sure you read the FAQ [Click] and this thread [Click]. In the second link, my post contains a lot of tips for getting respect from people, which seems to be something that you're looking for.
Once you've read those, feel free to ask me anything else that you're unsure of, and I'll try my best to help you out.