Why are cameras so hard to buy?

So, I kind of would like to learn more about photography and take some better pictures.   I’d like to get a DSLR and trade up from the ipod I use more often than not.

But man it’s daunting.  Every time I try to figure out what it is I should get I get so much information thrown at me .

It really is a lot of work just to figure out what I should be using to take my pictures with.  There’s a lot of terminolgy which has terminology even in the definitions.   I feel like this must be how it sounds when I talk about games and call them something like a single-screen platformer.

I know I’ve got some photographer friends.  If someone could recommend a site to get this stuff cleared up in my head it would be rad.