Welcome to the forum from SE Arizona. You are going to truly enjoy the smoker. I am mostly a hickory wood user. I like the flavor it imparts on pork and beef which is all I smoke. And I purchase the hickory from Cookshack. Very good quality and quick shipping.
You will want to cover the lid of the wood box with heavy foil. And line the bottom/floor with foil and be sure to punch a hole through the foil so the drippings can exit the drain hole into the drip pan.
I agree with the scale. I use an Oxo. You do NOT want to over smoke your food. I also use a moisture meter, General, to check wood moisture. Too dry and I rehydrate.
I also have an instant read thermometer, ThermaPen. When the controller says the meat is done, I use the instant read to probe a couple other places, just to be sure. A full packer brisket is a large hunk of delicious!
Once you have the meat and wood loaded, and the smoker running with the meat probe, just walk away and no peeking. You can periodically check on the meat temp via the display. Large cuts will hit a stall at approximately 170 degrees and the temp will climb very slow. Be patient. If doing ribs, no probe, you need to check at the 4 - 4 1/2 hour mark and just sort of play it by ear.
Water pan is optional. I occasionally use a throw-away aluminum loaf pan for 12 to 16 hour overnight smokes .
Enjoy!