a lighter is best but i saw alittle tool to start called a fire piston you can do some research a find them on the net they are pretty cool you can make one at home i am getting the rest of the stuff i need to make myself one

Get DRY tinder/paper or anything light and flammable and light it on fire! Gas always does the trick too! lol

If you don't have a lighter or matches try this. http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-make-fire-without-matches-or-a-lighter-... You have to watch a 30 sec. ad while the video loads.

Paper, matches, and dry wood always works for me

If you want to get wet wood going carry around some kerosene [not gasoline] or lamp oil. I find an empty bottle of brake fluid works great to store it.

Try using cedar bark, it will shread to tiny fibers when rubbed between hands making great fire tender. Ceder bark a good pile of small dead twigs and some pine knot will make a good fast fire.

I carry a small jar of Vaseline® Petroleum Jelly which is a mixture of mineral oils, paraffin and microcrystalline waxes. As some of you know Vaseline® has more uses that WD40. After cleaning the wound, use a small amount to coat the wound then cover the area. This keeps out and lets out the bad stuff also to keep the wound moist.
Vaseline® and magnesium stick is my primary fire starter rather than water proof matches. A 2x2 cotton patch saturated will burn 6 to 10 minutes.

Paper, lighter-fluid, and a lighter. But if you don't want to carry all that, you can use flint with some dry tinder or a cotton ball. Don't forget to bring the steel or your knife.

Carry a good knife, some tinder, and no less than two methods of making fire. On my person, not in my pack, I always carry a folding knife and a sheath knife, a zippo lighter because butane doesn't like cold and a match safe filled with "strike anywhere" matches, some toothpick sized wood slivers for tinder, and the striker strip from a box of matches because strike anywhere matches are actually a little particular about where they are struck. When in the wild I also wear around my neck on a cord a swedish fire steel with striker and a waterproof vile of cottonballs smeared with petroleum jelly. When the sparks from the fire steel hit the cottomball it bursts into flame and burns long enough to get the kindling going. Flame will not become fire without kindling and dry firewood, hence the need for a knife. Needing a fire is different from wanting a fire and usually happens in really adverse conditions. Been there done that! If you can't build a fire without copious amounts of petroleum products the mountain just might kill you. Use the knife to carve away wet wood or split it to get to the dry stuff. Split out pencil sized kindling if there isn't a standing dead pine nearby for dry twigs. Pine pitch from an old buck rub is a good accellerant. Dry pine needles and dry wood shavings make good tinder to light the kindling from the burning cottonball. Get good at this basic skill because in some parts of the wild your life might depend on it one day.

Seriously, like Clay cooper said, petroleum jelly and cotton ( I prefer cotton balls). Works like magic.