A few rogue questionsFollow

I was thinking of going rogue a bit a dont know if ive asked this before, but how does the leveling speed compare to a hunter or warlock? Also, profession wise I was thinking either mining/jc or ins/herb. Any suggestions? Why is a rogue so solo friendly? Since I am only a casual player, usually only 1hr or so on most days, how long would it take up until lvl 55 in your opinion? Thanks.

In my experience, once I got the knack of chain-pulling as Affliction, leveling was faster on my lock than my rogue. But that's not to say that a rogue is slow by any means, just not quite as fast as a pet class. I do find soloing generally easier with my rogue due to stealth more than anything. If I don't have time to kill everything on the way to a specific mob, I can generally avoid any fighting and get to the main target quickly.

If you're going to remain a casual player, then just take the crafting profession that you find interesting and grab the gathering profession that pairs with it. Engineering would be my pick (and was, actually) for a casual player due to the bombs, target dummies, pets, etc that come with it. Lots of toys, even while leveling.