you can get them in by hammering, the trick is to curve the wire first to curve of your fretboard and THEN pound the wire in. I usuall anchor the ends first before the middle of the fret. I dont pound right on the fret itself either, I use a block of wood so I don't mark the fret. Oh, I also glue mine in using hide glue as well, because it keeps the frets down and I can always get them out by heating the fret with a soldering iron to melt the glue.
One you get them in and they're more or less seated evenly your done. Now the trick is to get the files out and get the frets all to the same level- and THAT is the most important step, because all fret jobs, no matter how carefully done, *suck* until you get the frets level and re-do the crown on the top.
If you've got a beater, I'd avoid gluing them in at first, but plan on fretting and leveling that neck around 10 times. By about the tenth time you may actually be getting a usable result. And I don't mean that as a slam, fretting is a real art that takes time to learn to do really well.
You'll also need special tools to do thie right. They've got great videos and books, as well as a complete collection of tools at
www.stewmac.com