Or should I say, questionaire...

Yup, I'm a moron. Here I am living on the shores of the great Chessapeake Bay (been here my whole life, incidentally,) and yet I have not done any fishing since I was about 12. And I have only the most basic, vague idea what each piece of fishing gear is for.

Hooks, okay, I know what they're for. They hold the bait, then when the fish eats the bait, the hook grabs the fish from the inside so it can't get free, and my dinner is nigh.

Line, again, DUH.

Split shot, well, okay, they weigh down the bait and hook so as to keep them from floating too near the surface or drifting too horizontally in the current, right? But how and where should they be attached? Is there some rule of thumb about this? I have seen a few web pages with recommendations about different setups for different types of fish, but I couldn't tell a trout from a salmon without a picture so I sure wouln't be able to pick the right setup in a survival situation.

Snap swivels? They seem to serve two purposes - the snap part allows quick attachment and detachment of pre-made leads with hooks and weights, while the swivel part allows the hook to spin without twisting the line. But again, how should these be used? Weights above or below? Lead length? Should I put them on the line, or on the lead, or both?

And how should I set all these things up for storage in a PSK? Should I make a few pre-configured leads with hooks and weights on so I won't have to futz with it in a survival situation, or is it better to put all the pieces into the kit individually and rig them up for specific situations as I need them?

Despite our proximity to the Chessapeake, my family was simply never big on fishing, so I never learned all this basic stuff.