I'm an old mmorpg'r, actually started online gaming with text MUD's back in the early 90's. EQ, DAoC, SWG, and WoW have taken up most of my mmog time since '99.
Since starting Ryzom last week, there are a couple of things I've encountered that might help new players.
First, I'll link a tip with an apology. The tip is, aggro doesn't work like it does in WoW! It's more EQ-style...in other words, you can get a fellow Ryzom homin killed by running angry mobs over their head. I found out the hard way last night when my Tryker (name's Travyl) got someone killed. I'm going to get the name wrong, but it was like Shinshue? I saw him/her medding as I was fleeing the looters in the Ruins, and I had enough time to think "Oh no....are they going to aggro to her?" before they peeled off and killed her quick. I was *horrified*, and I'm very grateful that Shinshue accepted my apology

So, if you're running away from angry monsters, steer clear of people resting up!
The other tip that helped me was on step #4 of the Harvesting quest line. I was having a devil of a time finding Fine Zun Amber. My 50m Deposit Tracking would point me to a location, but prospecting the location revealed no resource that I could extract.
Thanks to the many helpful people who tried to explain Deposit Tracking, how to either back up a little or turn a little...unfortunately, none of those suggestions worked. It wasn't until someone pointed me to the right area of the map (below the 'E' in Embassy on the map screen, just outside of town) that I was able gather the Fine Zun Amber. I enjoy harvesting a lot (I miss being an Architect in SWG!), and I was seriously bummed that I was stuck on that step. It took two nights before I got the right answer, maybe I can pass on the assistance here.
I'm looking forward to seeing everyone in-game!
- Travyl