Software:

There is a good free program you can start out with called Audacity.

It is open source and totally free, working like a software based multitrack.

You can use that and google for "audacity tutorials" to learn what it does.

This will get your education going, with zero investment.

Hardware:

This is a hard topic, there are many choices. I really like this review site:

http://www.tweakheadz.com/soundcards_for_the_home_studio.htm

The style is a little silly, but the "for noobs" link on that page takes you to some simple choices, and the rest of the site has more high end gear being reviewed.


Have fun!

Jon