(or, how I learned to love EAC, and the lessons it taught me)
To start, this isn't necessarily an easy process. It's easy once you get the hang of it, get everything set up and know what you're doing, but it can be daunting to the new user. However, this is the Right Way to do it. Not the Good Way, or the Okay Way, or the Not-So-Bad Way, but the Right Way. This means that anything that deviates from this is the Wrong Way, and should not be done. Period. Tell your friends.
I will attempt to describe the process in detail, enough that the absolute newbie should be able to get things done without any problems. Expect to spend probably half an hour doing everything if you're experienced with computers, and increasingly longer the less you know. Knowledge of the command prompt helps a lot. This guide also assumes you're using a Windows machine, if not you don't need to read any more here, I can't help you. (I'd love for someone to send me a mac-users guide to ripping a CD however, because I don't have one and don't know a single thing about what the programs are).
In the end, you'll end up with a properly configured extraction program, and the knowledge of how to rip and share shows, and make sure they're flawless and perfect shows. No gaps, no clicks, no pops, no errors, nothing, Just perfect music, compressed into a lossless format (such as FLAC) and spread to the masses with love and care.
Ready? You might want to go get a snack before starting or at least something to drink. I wouldn't want anyone getting dehydrated or hungry while they're on the path to bootleg perfection, because it's a real downer.
*warning* These pages are rather graphic intensive. Wait for everything to load, on a slower connection it may take a bit, but the pictures are worth it.
Step 1: Gettin' the Goods.
Step 2: Installing (part1) and Configuring (part2) EAC
Step 3: Ripping, Checking, Checking Twice, Finding out Naughty/Nice