I'm trying to run the setup for OpenOffice and am getting an error telling me that 'the user you are logged in as cannot run the installation wizard. please log out and log back in as a user with system administrator rights'. I tried logging in as root but that wasn't permitted. How then can I change my rights ?

Related question: where is a good online resource to get up to speed in Unix ? I've used Linux for years and have a mainframe background. I have 'touched' Unix off and on... but have some serious gaps in my knowledge. There are a LOT of resources online but am looking for a recommendation.

Thank you...