Pretty stupid question about Skyrim.

1. Right click mouse button to look around, or look around with your joystick.

2. Look at the top of the screen.

3. Bar on top indicates direction.

4. Find quest pointer.

5. Keep following it, just like a compass.

6. Done.

That's how you use the compass to follow symbols. But I've only played like... 15min of Skyrim. Yeah, come at me with your judgment, brodah.
See image for more compass.

Edit: There are mods for the compass, though. Like here and here.

View attached image.

There is no mini-map. the compass is at the top of the screen with the arrow pointing to your quest area. for the full and only map, press tab, go to map and your there.

Right so, basically it's just showing you in which cardinal direction your objective is. N for north, W for west, E for east, and S for south. If it's between the two, such as between N and W, that indicates NorthWest. You can refer to the map if you need more precise directions, but it's pretty much just a "here go this way" thing. Also, if you see red dots on the compass those are bad guys.

It's pretty intuitive, you'll get the hang of it in no time. It pairs well with Skyrim, which I feel is a very relaxed do-anything-at-your-own-pace game.

just remember to disable the quests you're not doing at the moment. otherwise you'll end with some 10 arrows on your compass and you'll freak out running in circles. (trust me, been there done that)

read the manual lol

Thanks a lot guys, problem solvem.