With a new piece of technology comes a new pile of I've-heard-about-this-in-conversation-but-I-really-have-no-idea-what-it-is-or-what-it-does-or-how-to-use-it questions.

I got a new Canon Rebel XSi digital SLR camera for my birthday but I have a serious learning curve ahead of me. I used to shoot 35mm SLR ten years ago and I kinda forget what I'm supposed to do. Yes, I remember f-stop and ISO and all that basic functionality but what about...

1. selecting the f-stop I'd like to use, it's not just a ring on the lens anymore?

2. is it easier to use the camera's presets rather than manually selecting my shot settings?

3. should I always shoot in RAW format?

4. do I edit the RAW images differently?

5. how do I use Adobe Bridge?

6. do I convert the file to a jpg to add it to flickr?

7. what other lenses should I get?

8. is my husband going to return it because I won't stop snapping pictures of him at inopportune times, ie. when he's trying to sleep?

These are my pressing questions. Maybe I'll hunt down answers and post them back on my blog, but if you can direct me to any answers for any of them I'd really appreciate it!