Video #16
This video shows you how to get started with the Calculate Field tool in ArcToolBox. Its a powerful tool in that codeblocks can be added in VB or Python that can give you pre-logic power such as If...Then statements. You could write a class in Python and return that value to your expression that then gets written to your field.
In this video, I complete a simple string concatentation example - combining two fields to be written to another field.