Getting a US driving license

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The first thing that I should point out is that in the USthere is no single national driving license, like in the UK.  In the US, driving licenses are issued byindividual states.  This means that thereare different costs, rules, tests, according to where you live.  (The driving laws also vary too from state tostate.)
I live in Florida.  Ifyou go for a license in California or Illinois, there will be many similaritieswith my experience, but also some differences.
Driving generally inthe US
Getting by without a car is generally much more difficult inthe US, compared to the UK, as there is generally far less public transport(trains, buses, etc.), unless you are in a certain big cities.
Automatic cars are the norm in the US, vehicles with manualgear-changing are less uncommon.
Petrol/gas is cheap compared to Europe, around half theprice, although people still complain about the price.
There is much more a driving culture.  People travel relatively long distances,compared to Britain.  Most people areassumed to be drivers and have a license.
Can I drive in the USon a British license?
Yes, you can for a time. I left it almost a year before I went for my Florida license.  If you go much longer than that, you run therisk of getting into trouble.  There are some big disadvantages with driving on a foreignlicense.  For one thing, the insurance ismuch higher.  Also, a US driving license iscommonly used as a form of ID in all sorts of situations.
How much does alicense cost?
Mine cost me $48, plus an additional $20 because I failed itthe first time(!)  This is cheaper thanin the UK, where the total cost was not far off £100 the last time that Ilooked.
Taking the test(s)
The Florida test was split into two parts: a written testand a road test.
I did the written test on a computer at the test center.  There were two lots of twenty multiple choicequestions, mainly understanding road signs and general road safety.  I passed easily, having downloaded and studiedthe handbook beforehand and taken numerous free mock tests that I foundonline.  
Most elements of driving and things like road signs aresimilar to the UK, but the terminology can sometimes be different, so it isworth doing some study of the handbook, even if you feel confident aboutdriving.  “Give Way” is ”Yield”, forinstance, and the “hand brake” is more often known as the “parking brake”, or“emergency brake”.  There are many minordifferences to be aware of, some of which you can easily guess, but they might throw you in a test situation.
Despite its name, the Florida road test does not take placeon the public highway, rather it is conducted on a mocked up road system in thegrounds of the driving test center, which you drive around, following the examiner's instructions.  There are no other road users to interact with.
 Thetest is generally much easier than the British equivalent and has a higher passrate.  Despite this, I still managed tofail it – having lived without a car in a British city for many years, mydriving skills were very rusty.  I retookit a few weeks later and passed it, although there was a surcharge of 20dollars, as I mentioned earlier.
Things assessed on the road test included parking,reversing, stop quickly (emergency stop), turn about (three point turn), stopsigns.
When do I get mylicense?
Thanks to modern technology, the computer was able to make alicense card for me while I waited.  Ittook about ten minutes.  I don’t know ifthis instant service is available everywhere.