Been using BeerSmith since my third batch. Looking forward to the upcoming version update too.
While there are people that will scream about the software they use, from either camp, I would suggest trying out both at the same time. See which one you can get up and running with easier, and is more to your liking.
Personally, I've not used any of the videos posted about using BeerSmith, figuring it out either for myself, or reading an occasional post about using a feature I hadn't used before. That was mostly when I was new to the software (within the first month, or so). Since then, I've really not needed any assistance in getting everything figured out and setup within it. I've added more malts to the database, as well as tweaked the hops to match what I have on hand (the AA% for the hops I'm using).
Fortunately, BeerSmith is available for a 21 day trial period. Simply download it, test it out and see if you want to buy it or not. IMO, you should be able to figure that out within three weeks, provided you actually put some time onto it.