Hiyas! My first day and post on this forum, and I'm enthusiastic. I happened to stumble upon Bitcoin listening to some alternative talk radio, and it seemed like a pretty neat venture to go for. 

First off, I'd like to ask the difference/advantages between soloing and pooling. Outside of sharing with others and the process being sped up in a pool, that is. It might take longer, but apparently you get more out of being the only one to mine a block.

Second, I'd like to know how to build or where to get a good miner starting off, since my laptop can only kick out an average of 700 khash. 

Also, is there anything that would make using Litecoin a good alternative, considering all I really have is my MacBook and an old Acer? I heard that Lite was optimized for standard non-specialized rigs.

Outside of all that, thanks for having me!