Do I need anything else?

What styles are you interested in playing by the way?

Rock? Blues? Jazz? Funk?

Dogbite kinda suggested picking up an overdrive. If I may, the Arion Tubulator is only ten bucks! It's out of stock on Musiciansfriend right now though, and guitar center's website doesn't have it. Both carry the Danelectro Fab Overdrive, which has gotten some decent reviews. http://www.guitarcenter.com/shop/product/buy_danelectro_d2_fab_overdrive?full_sku=151848

Either would be good additions to the set up. If you get a pedal, your going to need another cable too.

As far as books go I recommend the Ernie Ball How To Play Guitar Phase 1 & Phase 2. There just these cheapie little magazine like books (maybe $5-6 each) but for some reason when I was first starting out they really helped me out a ton. The pictures of the chords and notes are big and easy to interpret and I kept using them over any other book I had at the time. You outgrow them quickly, but for starting out they are great IMO.

Both carry the Danelectro Fab Overdrive, which has gotten some decent reviews. http://www.guitarcenter.com/shop/product/buy_danelectro_d2_fab_overdrive?full_sku=151848

I've got the Danelectro FAB Overdrive and would recommend it to anybody.

I'd get some buskers books too - the Big Guitar Chord Songbook series (Wise Publications) is great - set out in volumes from the 80's, 90's, classic rock etc, and it's got some 70 songs in each volume complete with chord boxes. There must be a few in each book that you know, and a bunch more that you actually do know but didn't know what they were called. Then you borrow CDs to get the songs and you can start trying to play along. 21st Century rock is also a good series of books, and they seem to have Tab and Buskers' versions.

Best,

A :-)

What styles are you interested in playing by the way?

Rock? Blues? Jazz? Funk?

Dogbite kinda suggested picking up an overdrive. If I may, the Arion Tubulator is only ten bucks! It's out of stock on Musiciansfriend right now though, and guitar center's website doesn't have it. Both carry the Danelectro Fab Overdrive, which has gotten some decent reviews. http://www.guitarcenter.com/shop/product/buy_danelectro_d2_fab_overdrive?full_sku=151848

Either would be good additions to the set up. If you get a pedal, your going to need another cable too.

looking to play rock and indie (ala similar to the strokes)

i will look into the overdrive pedal and extra cable, as well as some books today.

i understand the basic concept of the overdrive pedal, but what overall purpose does it serve?

i hope you understand i am coming from the land of 'there are no dumb questions', because this is all completely new to me.

Overdrive is designed to simulate the sound of a tube amp getting pushed into distortion.

Just so you know:
Tube amp: An amplifier that uses an older technology using little lightbulb like glass pieces, that convert power. They usually produce better tone then solid state. There are exceptions.

So an overdrive is what will give you that dirty sound.

I also second Hanzo's suggestion of the ernie ball books. I used those to start out too.