"6. If my budget allows one thing I always wanted was a bike computer, mainly for speedometer and odometer readings, what are some good simple ones that you might suggest?"
I'm fairly useless as far as the rest of the questions, but this one I got. For $12.93 from
www.reioutlet.com you can get the sigmasport BC800. It has:
Current speed
Average speed
Max speed
Trip time
Trip distance
Total distance
Clock
Capability to set 2 different wheel sizes so that you can use it on two different bikes without having to reprogram the wheel size (you'll obviously need a 2nd mount/sensor on the other bike though).
I've had it for about 2 months now, it's been through february and march in minnesota so you know it has to be somewhat durable. I'd recommend it. Oh, and you certainly can't beat the price.