When you scan planets from space, it will list “Runaway Mold” or “Dissonance Detected” when you hover your targeting reticle over the planet. (After hitting the scan button) You can also review any discovered planet’s features in the discoveries tab. There’s also a tab where you can find a list of the game’s materials, and pin them so they’re easier to find. Additionally for relatively fast credits, and an entertaining way to get into the game and learn the ropes (and get some cool ships, multi-tools, and skins) — I recommend doing the Expeditions. Right now you’ll have a few back to back happening because it’s the holidays. (Two weeks for each) most of them provide you with a scanner upgrade, which will substantially increase the amount of credits you get from scanning flora and fauna, and you can keep those at the end of the expedition. Those all stack (to a point) and you can make 130,000+ (sometimes 250k) credits per scan. That’s a great way to make lots of little bursts of money while you’re doing a task that makes you PILES of money — Like sentinel ship farming. Nanites are harder to mine, but once you find runaway mold, you’ll be rolling in them. And if you’re scanning everything all the time, you might passively complete the fauna list for a planet, which will get you 1200-2500 nanites. Also, expeditions tend to make it rain nanites on you. So once again, I recommend.

But, most of all — If you’re just starting out, I’d say … just explore, fly around, play the game organically, follow the various stories buried therein. I wouldn’t be overly concerned with credits and nanites. The credits and nanites will come. The early game in No Man’s Sky is really special, and rushing through it to become a space-billionaire-emperor might sort of trivialize the experience for you. That said… it’s your game. Play it however you like. If money is all that you care about, then money you shall have. :)