I was a little unclear on this until I had gone through it. For the benefit of newcomers like Stefano, XeNoDeMoS, PiVale, et. al., here\'s a summary:
To increase a skill (yes, I am repeating from the Player\'s Guide) you require a
combination of training and
specific experience. To get training, you need both money and Progress Points (PP) which you gain each time your
general experience points(XP) roll over.
In your Skills window, each skill is shown with a combination of yellow and red bars; the ratio of yellow to red is the ratio of training to practice eg. swordsmanship takes a little training and a lot of practice, alchemy takes a lot of training and a little practice, and endurance can be increased strictly through training. In every case you will require
repeated training and practice to gain a level.
Now, here\'s the important bit: Once you have recieved training from an NPC, a green part will appear in the Skill bar. This shows your progress towards a level increase. Train repeatedly until the green covers the yellow, then go out and make use of the skill (mine, cast spells, crack Clackers or whatever). When you do this you will gain
skill experience along with any XP you may or may not earn. Eventually the green will cover the red; at this point you gain a level in the skill and
then you\'ll start to notice the improvement.
There; I\'m done. I hope that\'s of use to someone, and that it\'s not too long-winded to read...
