Literature on the philosophy

Philosophy is a very large subject, and its tradition is over 2000 years old. Perhaps the best way to begin to study the subject is historically; this will give you a general sense of how philosophy grew and separated itself into more and more specific areas of inquiry, how each philosopher attempted to answer the questions of his time, and the specialised meaning of terms generally used in philosophical writing.
Keeping in mind that the author was a philosopher of note, and was often biased about certain philosophical positions, Bertrand Russell's History of Western Philosophy is perhaps the best introduction to Philosophy, and is certainly one of the most readable. Once you have finished his book, you may wish to read some of the philosophers he discusses, and pursue reading contemporary thinkers (his book was published in 1945).

http://www.iep.utm.edu/

Thank you! Well I'll do that

If you find Bertrand Russel's book a bit hard going Sophie's World by Jostein Gaarder is a nice enough primer that mixes a history of philosophy with a work of fiction that mirrors the history with some in-character examples of what the history is talking about.

It's not a perfect introduction, as the author decides to conclude certain threads according to his personal philosophy rather than acknowledging that most of the arguements are ongoing, but it's a good introduction to the major players and concepts and schools and is a bit more readable and memorable than many of the more academic works.

I also like the "Introducing" series, which give illustrated precis of various philosophers and philosophical and/or scientific concepts. Some of them are better than others, but most are pretty decent at giving a bit of biographical interest and historical context, as well as describing the main ideas too.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Introducing-Philosophy-Dave-Robinson/dp/184046853X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1279201918&sr=8-1

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sophies-World-Novel-History-Philosophy/dp/1857992911/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1279202029&sr=1-1

If you're just looking for online resources, this one seems to give a nice, broad look at the discipline. Wikki, also, has its own area here.

Personally, I'd recommend picking up a book-book (college or university "Intro to Philosophy") that has examples, excerpts and talks about some of the major lines of thought for each of the philosophical branches. If you, at all, end up with any interest in philosophy, having a marked or noted paper copy is awesome for referring back to.

Good luck

If you can get over the title, Philosophy for Dummies by Tom Morris is quite good, and much better than Sophie's World which is worse than 4 packets of artificial sweetener in your coffee. It is intelligently written, and informative.