John,
I am not a hacker, and have been playing around like you for the past 15 months.
Unless I am misunderstanding your question, here's how I do what you want:
1. click "User" in quick links.
2. click Add user
3. fill in the blanks.
4. create a user password
If you don't provide a password, a random password will be generated.)
Info on intranet developmnt can be found here. https://openacs.org/forums/forum-view?forum_id=14014
Hope this helps
It is possible to find work arounds for many situations, eliminating the need to dive into the code. If you have questions, just ask.
Ben
