Okay, so I met this week with a buddy of mine who is wanting to start his t-shirt business. He's doing great; got a mentorship with a friend of ours who is also allowing him to use his shop during off hours. But he basically needs moved along in the process; he finds the various registrations and whatnot daunting. I have no fear regarding these things, so I put together a list of resources for him. You guys might be interested as well.
Legal advice on starting your new business, with a full 50 step checklist: [link]
Small business administration: lots of good info from the government here; for us I've selected their women-owned small business program. [link]
Service corps of retired executives. SCORE is a great organization that hooks you up with a retired businessperson in your field who can help walk you through many different aspects of your business, from startup to marketing to raising capital. I met with them in Santa Fe and they were fabulous, really friendly and unintimidating and helpful. [link]
Small business development centers: Also based out of the sba, like SCORE. The Indiana one I linked for my friend has specialty programs for minorities and women, but I've linked the general site here. You'll want to find your local. [link]
You'll also want to check with your secretary of state's office, for info, for registration requirements, and for your local legislation.