Playing online sucks a lot of the fun out of it. The best way to get started is see if you can pick up a cheap copy of the Player's Handbook and run the example adventure in there with a few friends. If enough of you enjoy it, get the other players to chip in for a Dungeon Master's Guide and Monster Manual, and hey presto, you've got your very own D&D group. Most people find it a lot easier playing with friends than strangers as well, as it's often easier to get into character if you're playing with people you're comfortable making a jerk of yourself in front of - everyone does at some point, so it's good to be able to laugh at yourselves

Damn, that's a shame - there's plenty of places you can find online groups though.

Try Reddit's LFG sub:

www.reddit.com/r/lfg