A few recommendations for those looking to set up a new tank:
Best books: The Reef Aquarium 1,2,3 (Delbeek and Sprung): A good mix of information on hardware and organisms that they keep current. Experts at reefs and writing.
Ultimate Marine Aquariums (Mike Paletta, I belive): Pretty inspirational, the pictures would make good wallpaper, and it gives detailed specs and accounts of what each reefer did to have a successful tank.
Equipment: Sea-Swirls oscillating returns are a cheap way to try out random water flow without investing too much in wavemaking equipment. I have used the same ones for years without many problems
Invest immediately in RO/DI water filter for making saltwater and top-off water. I could have saved a lot of time trying to control hair algae blooms had I done this sooner. I like the one I got from AirWaterIce.com, but good ones all work similarly.
Buy metal halides. Even if you want to go with soft corals/mushrooms initially, it gives you more flexibility later, and even lower light specimens grow faster under halides as long as you take care not to burn them by too long a photoperiod, enough distance of bulb above water, etc. Face it, you'll want to try out some SPS sooner or later, and there are plenty that aren't hard to grow if you have the halides. Plus, it is undeniable that the shimmer effect is cool and makes you want to go diving.
Glass vs. acrylic: Used both, but I'm glad I started with a homemade acrylic tank. Building the tank yourself is not an option for most, but the flexibility you get in being able to say "hmm, lets drill the tank here and try a closed loop" and then take it out a year later and patch it up in ten minutes was great for a new DIY type reefer like me. I don't know if they still do this, but I hate that center divider on large glass tanks; Eurobracing on a wide acrylic tank makes it so much easier to splash around. But yeah, you will scratch the tank eventually.
And don't forget to experiment and learn from your own mistakes, its really the best way to learn anyway.
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