SMF Mod Installations

I did a fresh install of SMF. I tried installing some Mods that I need, and unlike on my previous Hostgator account, I get prompted for the following:

__FTP Information Required

Some of the files the package manager needs to modify are not writable. This needs to be changed by logging into FTP and using it to chmod or create the files and folders. Your FTP information may be temporarily cached for proper operation of the package manager.__

I already tried changing the files to 777 and attempting to install the mods again, but it did not work. I have tried a number of things that people at SMF have said, but they don't work.

I'm guessing my last resort is to setup an FTP, but I do not know how to do that, and setup a user/pass with it.

Help is appreciated