Please help! I have no idea what I’m doing!

[looney2ns]

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Ah! No kits make perfect sense. I never thought about certain cameras working best according to their placement and limitations. I think I’d like to just “start” with an NVR, and graduate to a PC loaded with Blue Iris once I’ve gotten my feet wet. Is that a difficult transition?

Thank you! I'm willing to learn and give it a try, but it's definitely a challenge.

Not a difficult transition, but in my opinion, not needed. BI is no harder to setup than an NVR.
I would suggest this:
1-Buy this: POE switch
2-This: Varifocal Camera
3-Install the BI 15 day trial on a your pc.
4-buy two of these: Patch cables
When it all arrives come back here and we'll help you get it all hooked up, unless you already know how.
This will give you a chance to get used to everything at your own pace.