Hello, my name is ryan and I'm new to the forum. Don't mean to be insulting here with newbie questions, however I don't know the things I would like to know, so I'm hoping someone out there will take kindly to that and set me straight.

First, I'm trying to build a mining rig that I can set up for the mining pool I'm in. Right now I'm mining on an old macbook pro, and it's just not cutting it.

          Questions -

1. what pieces of hardware are needed/most important for mining ITC? Could you go down the list? How about cpu,gpu,asic,etc.?

2. how do i tell hash rate on my laptop or eventual rig, and what is a good hash rate for ITC right now?

3. what is the minimum dollars i need to spend to get some good numbers ITC (worth my time) from mining?What numbers could I expect?

4. Once the rig is setup, how is it connected to my pool?

5. Can you still mine ITC solo, or if I have a decent rig, should I just do pool?

6. Anything else you can send my way.. just trying to get up and running, so I can do some high-yield ITC mining and spend more time contributing to the community.

Thanks!

Excuse me, IFC .. bonehead mistake! It was late last night when I was typing, however no excuse!

 berm2055.. wasn't sure if I could expect an answer, I've seen some other questions about hardware go unanswered - very appreciative of you, and the answers you gave me, so thanks!

just one more question..

due to budget restraints, in your opinion, could i use the budget or mid range options from the link you sent me, for mining good numbers of IFC? Also, could you mine both IFC and LTC at the same time, or is it better to just focus on one?

I'm more interested in mining IFC, however LTC is worth something now, so this is why I ask. Thanks again!!