Completely new to sea angling

update: courtown angling got me sorted with basic gear and on saturday. Spent allot more than anticipated but glad that i now have a basic setup: rod,reel,tripod,seatbox,line,weights and rigs.
To test my setup out i drove to collect my ragworm from courtown angling this morning and later ended up in beach near Cahore. I have to say it is way different than course fishing im used to. Casting felt like trowing a brick in a water its so heavy....
First two hours i have spent trying to figure out what is what: how to minimize tip movement because of waves, what weight lead i should use and other things that i believe are obvious to you all
5 hours i was sitting there like eejit without a single bite. Have to say loved every minute of it... But then ive seen my rod tip to drive down. I have caught a fish!
A starfish Yeah, my first see creature caught is starfish...
15 minutes later i followed by decent size plaice
Not much for first time but i am well happy

well done, plaice have red spots (most of the time) and are rarer than flounders who usually have no spots

One tip to minimise tip movement is to put the rod up at high as possible, assuming low wind conditions to try to keep the line out of the waves - the other would be to fish from within the waves, either holding the rod or with a tripod. Good luck with the new adventures!

Please post up your reports, even if you blank as it is all useful...