JustIT Is Unique

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The other thread does make for some interesting reading.
Thanks for the link.
Getting increasingly confused however with every post I was reading there.
I have no personal experience with TP whatsoever, which is my biggest problem really.
It's possible to spot the scammer when people come up with clear drawbacks of the service they receive. Whinging however confuses things for me big time.
And I feel that I do need a TP unfortunately.
I happen to have no IT background whatsoever. I can install XP, Mac OSx( and find the drivers needed, the functions of the CPU, GPU, motherboard, all the SSD vs magnetic make some sense for me). But I've been about PC's all my conscious life. My first PC was a ZX Spectrum that used tapes as 'removable drives'.
My position at work(our whole unit really) has been made redundant and I'm quite frankly fed with what I've been doing for the last 4 years(long story never mind).
Getting to work with computers for money is something I would love to do. Etc.
Question 1: how to start ?
I clearly need experience to get a job + some more knowledge ofc.
A+ seems like an ideal option for me to lay down the foundation.
Self studying sounds like a challenge and some fun(hopefully).
But the practical side of the exam requirements... How do I learn to work the different types of hardware if the only types I'll have will be the parts in the used desktop I'll have to get to practice ? Same goes for the OS - I have Win 7 Home Premium 64bit, but that's it. Books a great but you don't learn to drive by reading a book(I definitely didn't). I think I need a lab to be honest.
Question 2: Job. Experience. Getting a job in IT without experience ? Certainly not going to lie. A+ not a great helper jobwise either from what I've read) And the certifications that follow... I don't think it's too clever to go for any until(if at all) I can acquire some expertise and vaguely what I'm doing.
A bit of a cry for help in other words.
Any help will be much appreciated.
Sorry for the largeness of the post by the way.

 

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Honestly, alot of the knowledge/information can be acquired via books or the internet (e.g certforums!!)...However getting a job is the hard part, especially in a technical support type of role and this is the appeal of TP. In all honesty if you got the money go with justIT...there is another FDM-group, different business model - you're contracted to them for 2 years, they train you and you have to move around to different locations to work for different periods of times..if you break the contract you owe them 20k. The third way is to keep applying for 1st line/entry level jobs and hope something turns up or look to volunteering.

If you want to persue a software/programming/web development role...self-teach and build a portfolio.