total noob, need help

Recently, the modder bug bit me. I had found a site called thebestcasescenario.com and was awe struck at how easy it was to make what they called an alien fossil mouse. I instantly had a brain storm for what things i want to do to my computer rig. Before i went off half cocked i realized i now crap about this. Is there any information sourses that one could recomend like books, sites, etc. What are some do's and dont's when it comes to a novice with this type of modding? what type of skills should one have? What else should i know that i didnt list. Thanks in advance.