If you're a newbie, then fishless cycling is a great way to go. You don't have to worry so much about ammonia levels, cause there's no risk of frying any fishes' gills (even if they are 'only' cycling fish) and you don't have to sweat whether you can take the damaged fish back (if they survive) or keep them. The margins for error are much greater when cycling without fish.
The two best articles, IMO, on cycling without fish are these:
http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cycling.html
http://www.tomgriffin.com/aquamag/cycle2.html
(The second is a revision of the first, but it helps to read the first one first!)
Lots of us do/have done fishless cycling and we're always happy to help someone going that route. Have a read and let us know if you have any questions.
Jim
P.S. If you mention fishless cycling at your LFS, you'll most likely get rolling of the eyes, incredulous looks, or blank stares. The first lesson in fishkeeping is to NOT trust anyone who works at an LFS by default. Some employees are knowledgable and conscientious, but they are in the minority. They rather sell you the fish now, and then sell you an armload of medications and water preparations when your fish start dying from ammonia poisoning. We, on the other hand, are virtuous and are only here for the betterment of the hobby. Whom would you rather trust, hmm?
