Here's my advice for your research..........start growing, a lot of your questions will be promptly answered.......they may be answered by failure, but they will be answered.

And yes, just use CFL if you are truly as new to this as you say, HPS is a big jump from not growing to growing, especially in the financial stand point.

ALSO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Don't vent out your window, the hot air might set off some FLIC(forward looking infared cameras) Drill a hole in the wall and vent it through the house, it will slightly warm the house(MAYBE) and it wont go to the no no zone(were the po's can see)

-C