OVERVIEW
Basically, in EVE online, you live your life in space. It is totally open-ended as to what you do and where you live. EVE is what I call a "Career Game". It's not a game where you just jump in and start blowing people to smithereens. To use different ships and weapons as well as ship modules, you have to train for it. There is ALWAYS something to train for in EVE. Some take hours to train for and some weeks or months. Each skill has a level (1 through 5) and the higher your level in that skill, the more efficient you are and some skills have prerequisite skills to train first in order for you to train them.
You....are immortal. Well...kind of. You are a "capsuleer". Meaning that you live in a pod and use that pod to jump into any ship you fly. But what happens when you lose your pod (i.e. get shot by someone ... mostly in low sec or null sec areas or womholes). Well....you "die" and awaken in your clone back at your home station...wherever that might be. You will ALWAYS have a clone to wake up in. What's important is that you upgrade your clone regularly to make sure it can retain your skillpoints that you have learned (i.e. It knows all the skills you have trained). For example, say you have 75,000 skillpoints and you get "killed" (podded) in space somewhere. Your clone has been maintained and can hold skillpoints up to 90,000 skillpoints. Well then...you are all well and good and still retain all of your knowledge. The only loss you will have would be to any implants installed in your previous life. Now....say you get podded when you have 75,000 skillpoints but your clone was only upgraded to hold 50,000 skillpoints. in that case, you lose the difference (25,000) skillpoints. This causes you to lose skillpoints and "forget" a bit of some skills and perhaps even some skills altogether!!! Always ensure your clone can hold more skillpoints than what you currently have! Otherwise, you will have to re-train some skills.
MONEY
ISK - This is your money in game. This is EVE's version of the dollar, ruble, yen, pound, whatever. EVE is a MMORPG but what's key here is that you can turn in game credits (ISK) into game time by purchasing PLEX (Pilot Life Extension) on the market in game. This equates to 30 days of game time per account. Each account can hold up to three toons, though you can only train one toon at a time. However, this allows for you to play for free should you be finding yourself with excess ISK to do so. At the start, it may seem a huge undertaking but as you skill up and get proficient at the various ways to make ISK in game, you can easily fund your account and perhaps a second or third account of yours even.
WHAT DO I DO IN EVE?
What is there to do? Well....anything you want really. Below are some of the career paths that you can take and you are not limited to any one and can change anytime you want or combine them.
Miner - Mine ore in space and sell on the market to make ISK. Or refine that ore to build weapons, modules, ships and structures.
Manufacturer - Build items such as weapons, modules, ships and structures via blueprints and refined ore. You can then sell them on the market for ISK or keep for personal or corporation use.
Researcher/Inventor - Research blueprints or reverse engineer items to make improved versions of items for your use or to sell on the market for ISK.
Trader - Play the market with supply and demand. Buy items cheap in one system and haul them to a system where they are in demand and sell them for a profit.
Milita - Join the milita of any faction. This will allow you to shoot any enemy of that faction but beware, they can also shoot you! (Not recommended for new toons)
Mission Runner - Run missions for a faction's division to make ISK and potential bonus items plus gain loyalty points for special issue items or discounts on faction items. There are different divisions in each faction (security - shoot enemy pirates, Distribution - Haul stuff from point A to point B, Research - try to help invent items, etc.)
Explorer - Basically a freelancer to explore the vastness of space and reap rewards of the sites only to be found in certain areas. Be warned...some areas are extremely dangerous (wormholes and null sec for example)
Pirate - Self explanatory. Kill merchants and grab their loot for yourself. Or....do you ransom their life? Do you kill them after they pay you the ransom? No holes barred. Not recommended for new or inexperienced toons.
Ninja - These are the "scum of high sec." Scan down enemy Mission Runners and warp in and steal their salvage and perhaps loot the wrecks they have killed in their missions before they can.
CORPORATIONS?
Corporations are basically groups of people that play together. You can be your own CEO of a Corporation and recruit new members or join an existing corporation currently in place. Corporations can join together in an Alliance to increase their strength and/or presence around the galaxy. There is strength in numbers!
Most likely, you will not get a good feel for EVE until playing for a while. Personally, it took me three months before I really got into EVE and saw the vast potential of the game. So, if you find yourself confused at the start...don't worry. Give it time and it will click. The game is totally open ended and what you do is totally up to you.
My only word of caution - Trust NOONE in EVE.
EVE Trailer can be seen here: http://youtu.be/9kmUf3fflrA
Cheers.
Jester