No offense, but IMO a beginner should first get comfortable with the builtin objects. Setting up plain Pd should be easy.
No offense taken. You're definitely right, especially if we're
talking about someone who doesn't have any patching experience with PD/Max. Personally though, I've spent the last year with Max/MSP on a master's course, so I'm not a complete beginner. I was under the assumption that PD and Max were very similar programs. There are obvious similarities, but the more time I spend with PD the more they feel like different beasts. I will definitely go back and start from square one with PD.
Thanks so much for the advice, Frank. Much appreciated!
Best,
Jared