[slightly OT] Advice on becoming an independent contractor

[Kurt Granroth]

This is off-topic to Linux.. but since there are so many consultants and 
independent contractors on this list, I thought I'd ask anyway.

I am about to enter into an agreement to work for a company as an 
independent contractor.  I will then have to take care of such things as 
self-employment tax, contributions to my IRA, and everything else.

While I know in general that I have to do those things, I'm not really clear 
on the specifics.  I imagine there must be some good advice sites online 
that can tell me what I'm in for and give hints and tips for doing things.  
For instance, how do I make a contribution to my IRA so that it's not 
taxed?  Exactly which taxes do I need to pay? Is there something 
non-obvious that I need to know?

Any help or links will be appreciated!
-- 
Kurt Granroth - "KDE -- Conquer Your Desktop"
KDE Developer/Evangelist | granroth@kde.org
http://www.granroth.org  | kurt@granroth.org