Get the big chimney. You don't have to fill it, just add the amount of coals you need.
Use lump charcoal - do not use Kingsford
Grill a some chicken satay. You can't go wrong with meat on a stick.
Sure, though that would seem to require leaving your computer outside next to the grill? I have one of these which means I can keep the receiver end inside, but you're right it requires OCR. I really need a custom receiver that connects via USB. I'm not much of a hardware person though, so I don't know how hard that would be to make, or if such a thing exists.
I have this book, and I've yet to make something out of it that isn't great. Paul Kirk's Championship Barbecue Sauces (amazon)
Mine is. I just can't cook on propane.
I got it for that door on the bottom. What you can do is build your charcoal to the side so you can sear and then do indirect heat to finish your food up. Then you can throw some wood on your coals and get a good smoke flavor on your food.
I know I'll lose my man card for this but Here is the book I used to learn how to grill better, but to sum it all up... indirect heat is good.