Ok, so, here's the thing.
I am completely new to the hardware side of things(other than tinkering with computers, but nothing low level), and wanted to start on a simple project.

I went to an Arcade once when I was out of town and instead of using tokens, they used a chip that stores how much money you put on it and how many tickets you have. Being a curious lad, I started to wonder how easy it would be to just hook it up to my computer and change some numbers around.
I found the chip model(Atmel AT24C11) and the product specs ( http://www.atmel.com/dyn/products/product_card.asp?part_id=3261 ), but since I haven't really done anything like this, I'm not sure how to go about it.

Can anyone point me in the right direction on where I should start? This isn't to get free games, just to see if it would be possible. That arcade is over 500 miles away and I don't plan on going back.


Also, if anyone has any tips on books or websites that would be good to help me get started in this area, I would appreciate it.
Thanks!