There is alot of experience within this community. However, for someone just starting off, what resources are people using to learn basic concepts? PetitProfessor is OK but hes got a very limited and specific scenarios to show. There has to be more.... right? Or is it just easier to find a course in BASIC?

Look up SmileBASIC Source.

Learning the basics just read the manual and do small exercises, use your brain and start combining concepts. There are just some things that are hard to figure out (like spanim) and you can ask specific questions.