Jack,
Welcome to IIS
Cannot help you with the software at all, just a dobber here. BUT as for finding your way around the sky start get a good planisphere (large Chandler type) and a set of binoculars. Use it to learn your way around the sky and to identify the constellations then progress to a simple sky atlas. Its a lot of fun and a relaxing time to lay in a deck chair with a pair of binocs and cruise the sky to locate objects you want to observe with the scope later in the session.
Keep looking up....