Each starship has the following points of interest:
Modules - these are the parts of the ship. Each one fulfills a different function for the ship.
Officers - each ship has four officers who, like their captain (you), are effectively immortal. As long as you don't abandon ship they'll always be with you, working hard for your benefit.
Crew - recruited and trained by your officers, these are the basic support group for your officer's heroic efforts, requiring only a minimal fee per turn and not even getting upset if you don't bother with the Life Support modules needed to keep them alive.
Each officer is allowed one action per turn. As I go on through these rules I'll give brief descriptions of the actions available and then add the associated game mechanic in another colour. It may be easier to read through the general stuff first then come back and go through the mechanics in detail.