I am located in the San Francisco Bay Area.

uhmm is not it like driving a car?
how can you live in the san fran bay area and NOT have boating experience?
i'm from the other fricken side of the country, not even on the coast, and l have boating experience!

find a place where you do boating license and they can help you there

They offer classes in, basic seamenship, navagation, safty and captians classes

USCG Auxilary ( cgaux.org )

Well l can tell you that your best deal is to get a Glastron boat. l went to a convention of theirs in Las Vegas and that company is definitely #1.

Find a Marine course that teaches rule of the water ways>And seamanship> That will help with the names of the equipment & parts of boats>

You need to ''get ur feet wet'' before making the plunge.
There r many marina is & resorts that will rent small boats.
Pick a calm day, go to a small lake, rent a smaller boat & practice manuvering the watercraft.
You will find it is much different that driving a wheeled vehicle. It does not handle as precisely. When u turn the wheel (rudder) a boat may not respond immediately, & wo not respond at all unless u r moving. Slow speed manuvers r affected by currents, wind & load shifting inside the craft.
Then go & buy a smaller boat. Remember the two greatest moments in a boat owners life.. the day he buys a boat & the day he sells the boat. This means that used boats r much less expensive than new boats. Make ur mistakes with an ''experienced'' watercraft. Make sure the boat is seaworthy before taking it out. It should not take on water. Also, make sure the boat does not die out in the middle of the lake. This is the definition of the word ''helpless''.
The coast guard holds classes on boating. This might be the best place to start.
Another definition: Boat: A hole in the water that u pour money & work into.