uncle matt

Just had a bow given to me. It's a Bear Whitetail Hunter. The fella who gave it to me said it was bought in 1990, so it about 12 years old. He said it wasn't shot for about 3 or 4 years. String is frayed a little and some of the plastic coating on atleast one of the cables
is chipping away near the pulley. So.....I WOUILD OBVIOUSLY NEVER EVEN DRAW THIS BOW.....I'm not very knowledgeable about bows at all-but I'm not stupid.

This is my first compound bow so looking for knowledgeable input.

I want to bring this bow in to a shop and have it thoroughly inspected, make sure it's sized to my draw, install new cable and string and install some sort of a sight.

My questions are:

1) First - Is this a good bow to spend some money on getting it back in shape? I mean is it powerful enough?

2) Second - What do things like having the inspection, installing strings & pulleys cost on average?

3) Third - What are the simpler & reliable sights? (i.e., tried & true)

4) Fourth - How do I start shooting? At what? What distances? What type of arrows? How much practice before actually drawing down on an animal? Hay bales? I don't know.

I don't want to waste any $$$.

Any input will be much appreciated>

Thanks Uncle Matt (IL)