Got my Raspberry Pi...
Plugged in the card I got from Element14...plugged in power adapter I got from Element14...Raspberry Pi showed solid red light on. Is it supposed to?
Then...I plugged into my HDMI to my TV. TV was looking for something and never found it. Tried different settings. Nothing worked. Screen on TV never changed.
Suggestions welcome. Thanks for any help you can provide.
John...Red light stays on. No other flashing lights. SD card seems fine. Get can't find signal from TV.
David...I plugged in monitor/TV, keyboard and mouse before connectiong power. Get can't find signal from TV.
After reading the troubleshooting information, I've come to realize that using a Raspberry Pi is not as easy as it sounded when I heard about it as a device for kids. It sounds more like a toy for kids who have engineers in the family. Measuring voltage and testing connecting cords, etc. is way beyond a mere mortal like me. 
Joel, you've taken a very good first step towards discovering that it's not as hard as it seems by coming to this technical/engineering site. It does require some minimal investment in a digital multimeter, but an adequate one can be bought for well under a tenner.
Admittedly I'm biased, but I strongly believe that nobody, and I really do mean nobody, should be without a multimeter. Even if you do nothing more than test the charge state of batteries, it will pay for itself in no time because it makes a person more informed and less ambling in the dark. That is easily worth its weight in gold.
And armed with a multimeter, you'll find no shortage of people willing to help on this site, and elsewhere. 
Morgaine.
>>Admittedly I'm biased, but I strongly believe that nobody, and I really do mean nobody, should be without a multimeter.<<
OK, tomorrow I'll go to my local Radio Shack and get a multimeter.
Looking foward to the wonderful world of multimetering. I hope. 
Wow, I've made a sale! 
Pity I get no commission. 
Be sure it's a digital one. Analogue multimeters are still around (barely), but generally have little utility compared to even the cheapest of digital instruments today.
Addendum: Related issues and similar advice given .
I feel I have to disagree slightly with your comment Morgaine, I find there are still good uses for an analogue multimeter especially where indicative readings are what are needed rather than absolute ones, such as RC discharge or rough capacitor values or sudden voltage/current changes.
Admittedly as you say for Pi purposes and general electronics, a digital meter is the way to go, I just think you've written off analogue meters a bit too quickly, even if privately you still use them.
Of course just to muddy the waters, I prefer to use an oscilloscope for hunting down logic and AC problems, but I'm not suggesting people need to run off and buy a sillyscope (tm John Beetem), just to play with their Pi. 
Colin
Hehe. Well I have a ton of old analogue instruments here as well, so I do slightly sympathize with your comment ... but not a lot. 
Analogue indicators can sometimes be more useful than digital readout as you say, but then, all my digital multimeters feature analogue bar indicators as well, even the cheapest one. I expect that's normal nowadays. I do wish I could alter the damping factor on the bars though, as I don't find a single compromise setting sufficient in all cases.
And yes, I agree with your comment about oscilloscopes entirely. If they were available for under a tenner, I'd be recommending that Joel buy a sillyscope (tm John Beetem) instead of or in addition to the multimeter. 
