Painting - another paint over panel question

i know this question has probably been asked a million times before so i am sorry. i am very new to this and basicaly need it spelled out for me :). in the house my wife and i just boughst two of the room have that very thin wood paneling in them. the grooves run vertically. i am 90 % sure they are real wood and not the fake stuff. i don't want to remove them because i am afraid what i will find under them. i would rather just paint them. we want to paint the walls an off white with a hint of yellow to brighten things up. we definately want to paint them though. with the hardwood floors and wood walls it feels too much like a cabin. we are trying to restore that old "colonial" feel. what exactly do i need to do to the walls to paint them? do i need to sand the walls, then prime, then paint? or do i not need to sand? we have a sherwin williams right down my road and plan to use their products. we were going to go with behr but i read too many bad thing about their product here and friends. i don't mind keeping the vertical lines from the panneling when i paint. i actually think this will make it look interesting. unless someone out there has had a bad experience with that of course. any help or ideas would be greatly apreciated. and please respond as if i am a third grader cause' this is my first interior painting experience ever :). thanks in advance.

When you visit Sherwin Williams tell them exactly what you want to do. My guess is they'll recommend an oil based primer for your first coat and then two coats of latex wall flat for your finish coats. It's always good to give whatever you're painting a light sanding before you paint. This is especially true of glossy surfaces. Think of glossy surfaces as a sheet of ice, by sanding you cut very small grooves into that surface which gives the paint something to grip. If the paint store recommends an oil primer buy a cheap brush and roller to apply it - then throw them away. Use a different brush and roller for your latex finish coats which are easily cleaned with soap and water. Don't mix the two.

You will need to clean the walls before you sand. It can be amazing to see how much grunge is on a panel in a room. My favorite technique is white cloths and mineral spirits. Wash the wall with this until the cloths come off still white and clean.

I am sure that there are other methods that work just as well. Mineral spirits will evaporate without leaving a residue to have to remove later.

Avoid plastic drop cloths.