Not much you can do about getting the Brownies/Dinos. It's going to happen at some point. Keeping your lights off will certainly help, but not eliminate the possibility.
As a beginner, I highly recommend you find everything you can for beginners here at R2R. There is a wealth of knowledge here. Read everything, because eventually you're going to need to know. If you only research one particular problem at a time, you will always be behind the curve. You don't want to be behind the curve because you didn't spend the time
I was in SFO 40+ years ago. Reefing only 9 months. Everything has changed dramatically. Fortunately, I had the basic knowledge
Unfortunately, I can't help with live rock. I built my Aquascape with Marco Rock.