[lipidfats]

if you're new, i suggest playing with the stock ROM for a while. figure how things work, so you actually know the difference between stock and custom ROMs. Make note of things like memory, RAM, UI experience, WM6.1 (to compare with 6.5), etc. Plus it wouldn't hurt to learn the ropes of Windows Mobile so you know what you're doing when you flash ROMs and have to troubleshoot issues. It's a lot to take in if you've never had the pleasure of owning a WM device, so there's really no reason to get ahead of yourself.

The stock ROM on the tp2 is much better than stock on previous phones and i'm sure most of us here would agree. Custom ROMs will bring you newer versions of TouchFLO/Sense and WM 6.5 (if your device doesn't already have it). I recommend Juicy's ROM. NRG'S ROM is nice, but i've had low memory issues with it (prob cause of all the great things he puts in it). Never really been a fan of Mighty, but a lot of people here seem to love it. There are also different ROMs for 6.5 and 6.5.3... the latter being less stable, but more finger friendly.

When you flash, you will probably flash all the popular ROMs anyway, as they are all very good and have different things to offer the user. Have fun and make sure you use the correct unlocker and flash correct ROMs depending on your device being cdma or gsm. I can't tell you how many people i've seen who have permanantly or termporarily bricked their device because they jumped into flashing before they soaked up all the information out there.