new trader - tips on research

Hi guys, I hope I'm posting in the right place. I'm completely new to the stock trading world and this is pretty overwhelming. I am currently using Macquarie Edge and taking advantage of their free 1 month research trial to get most of my information.

I just want to know how you guys go about doing your research on companies? Is it worth the money for a newbie to pay for research (e.g. Macquarie, Morningstar, Australian Stock report, etc)? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.