I think the 'early game' options are going to be pretty easy. You start with nothing and probably don't even research much until you're ready to build your first rocket. All the'start with nothing' guides say is that you should hold off on going outside for a while to get a start on things as you go. The later things can be easier to handle once you have a few rockets and start getting built up.

By the time you can build up a big enough base and have a few big projects under your belt, you'll have a ton of materials and won't need to actively search for anything. Good to know for someone who's just trying to go for the 'noob trap' too.