Emacs help; can't see to alter options!

[Kalebmcc]

I have poor eyesight, and so navigating Emacs is very difficult for me. I am
very new but want to learn. I found that switching Vim to a dark,
terminal-like colorscheme helped immensely. 

I stumbled through the Faces options and found a variable that seemed to
indicate background color, but when I set it to dark and saved, all it did
was turn the left and right borders dark. This is not helpful.

I also have many other questions I cannot find documentation for. For
example, how can I cut out all the extra stuff, like the calendar, news
reader, email, etc?

How can I add line numbers and syntax highlighting? Does Emacs support GUI
tabs? Is there documentation of all the things I can set in my emacs file? A
way to make Emacs use native Windows keybinds (CTRL+Z for back, CTRL+C for
copy, CTRL+V for paste, etc)? Can I make the toolbar more compact? 

I have so many questions, but am so puzzled by my inability to find answers.
And before you suggest buying a book, lemme tell you my philosophy: If you
have to buy a book to understand free software, it is effectively not free.
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