As stated in the title, I am looking to make my first purchase of a telescope. Astronomy has long been an interest of mine, but I am only now (at the age of 30) looking to actually make a telescope purchase of my own. I have made a fair amount of research into what type of telescope I should be looking for and have decided on something along the lines of a 10" dob (
http://www.skywatcher.com/product.php?cat=6&id=60) in particular. The purpose of the scope is for viewing of galaxies and nebulae under conditions with low to moderate light polloution. I am looking for more experienced opinions on a couple of matters regarding this.
1: Opinions on whether this is the right type of telescope for my purpose.
2: I am a fairly intelligent engineering minded person. Will tracking galaxies and such targets be something that I will be able to do easily enough with patience and persistence (over time with practice of course) using a dob mount design, or should I go for a goto type design.
3: Filters. Do I need them? I realize that from the start I should refrain from buying accessories until my personal experiences tell me what it is that I myself from astronomy. But other than waiting until I know exactly what I want from astronomy, are there any "must haves" for this type of viewing?