[Wavytone]

Ok ... take a deep breath and prepare to dive in.

Old-school way - buy a star atlas (map) - the best for beginners is “Norton’s Star Atlas” available from Amazon and others, now in its umpteenth edition. There are others but nowhere near as useful.

If you are a millennial, get a copy of Sky Safari on an iPhone/iPad or Android. Use this to show the night sky above you; selecting a bright star will show its name.

The stars have common names, as well as Latin names and IAU designations, Sky Safari supports all of these.

Sky Safari is a full-feature planetarium as well, you have much to learn from it.

The other aid you will need is a compass so you can find north/south/east/west. Either a real one or a smartphone app, your pick. Once you are confident with the southern cross and pointers you won’t need a compass.

The starting point is to learn the southern cross and pointers, then several bright stars such as Canopus, Antares, Fomalhaut, Achernar, Sirius, Canopus, Vega, Rigel, Betelgeuse and so-on. After these, finding your way through the constellations along the zodiac is a good start.

Another thing to learn quickly is which ones are planets (not stars). October 2018 is a rare month indeed because in the evenings in the middle of this month it is possible to spot 8 planets, all 9 if you count Pluto, and the one you’re standing on.