Once in a while somebody makes a bad assumption and thinks I have deeper knowledge of EVE Online than I clearly posses. I generally try to respond with what knowledge I do have, making it clear how limited it might be.
Sometimes though, it is better to open the question to a wider audience, the EVE community being the most excellent source of answers. With that in mind, I received the following from Yolande:
I recently started playing EVE Online again and altho I have played it casually off and on (its sort of my “part time” MMO, my main one being that 10million sub cartoony one) I have so much to learn! I have a pilot with a decent amount of SP (7Mill) and most learning maxed and yet still dont know how to make money in that game! Any tips or could you point me to some archives in your blog?
I can answer for how I have made ISK so far in the game:
Missions – Running missions is the easiest way to get started I think. Once you get to level III missions you actually start making enough ISK that you can invest it in other ventures. And when you get to level IV missions the ISK really begins to flow.
Mining – The most reliable ISK generation device for me has been mining. It starts slow and somebody (e.g. nerrellus) is going to comment about how boring mining is. And that is true, mining is hardly exciting. But when you have things setup right, you do not have to pay close attention to the game. You can do something else… like write blog posts. (I’m mining ice as I write this.) Following Halada’s excellent guide to mining will get you on the path to mining riches.
Production – Making things. I turned to this when mining was going strong as a way to sell my minerals for more than the market price. Rather than making 3 ISK per unit of tritanium by selling it in bulk, for example, I make produce things that sell for enough that I am essentially making 6-10 ISK per unit. This requires some up front investment in blueprints as well as some research into the market to see what is selling and where it is selling. The “where” is actually the more important. I have found you can sell just about anything for a decent return if you can find the right location. I have written about producing missiles and badgers on the blog.
I have tried other things. I do a bit of the market speculation, buying things cheap in one area and selling them for more elsewhere. I also poked my nose into invention, but my first attempts at invention were poorly planned and cost me much more ISK than I ever got in return.
What other ways are there to make ISK? What professions out there turn a profit?
The Ancient Gaming Noob 