A very candid tale Lee. I would suggest you just take the new camera out and take lots and lots of shots with it. As you progress, read the parts of the manual that interest you at the time and you will learn more and more. Little conveniences and capabilities will come to light as you use it more, but always remember it is a hobby and you do it for pleasure. Like baseball, it's a game and the umpire says "Play Ball." He doesn't say "Work Ball!"

Although I am now on my second DSLR, I still found places to use the point and shoot until it died after 18,000 shots. My first DSLR did 48,000 images for me and is still working well in a relative's hands. I upgraded to get even more features, but I still do not know how to use them all. I read about it when I want to, and always learn a bit more. The improved features have been well worth it.

I still have my Pentax Spotmatics and film still captures a sunset much better than digital, in my opinion. The film camera is a lot more expensive to use, so I don't take too many sunsets.

Good luck with it and enjoy!

Wayne