I was a closet pokemon fan all through my childhood, but never played a game till I heart D/P was coming out. Then I picked up LG in preparation, then Pearl, and here I am.
I'll probably stay out of Smogon tournaments, but I've found it to be a great resource for information. I'd like to dabble in the trade scene, but with next to no standing and a lack of crazy awesome pokemon like most of the serious traders here, I don't think I stand much of a chance. :P
FYI: I think RNG stands for random number generator. It's a way of manipulating the game in order to get the results you want in regards to breeding/shinies and such.