This game is not something you’ll pick up right away. You have to practice and not get frustrated.
Many of the people on this board (myself included) have been playing since SFI in the mid 80’s, so it’s natural to get your ass kicked.
Here’s some of my advice:
Strategy:
Don’t concentrate on special moves, for now. Stick to simple “combos” like jumping roundhouse, crouching forward kick, crouching roundhouse (for most characters).
Lots of people get enamored with fireballs, shoryukens, and crazy combos (and you will need those to beat anyone worth a spit), but it’s often the simple attacks used at opportune times that win the game.
Character:
As others have said, it doesn’t matter who you start with in this version of the game. They all seem to be really well balanced.
Although Ken and Ryu are great for beginners, I remember starting out with Blanka, Honda, and Guile. They use charge moves, as you already know. For me, holding back for 2 seconds, then forward and a button was 10x easier than performing a dragon punch.
Controller:
I think this is important.
Although I started in the arcades, when SFII came to the SNES, the pad was just about the only choice. As the Street Fighter series made its way on to the PS1 and 2, the dpad was basically all I used.
I can now that I wish I had used a joystick for all of those years.
It’s just a different experience and it’s what the “pros” use.
Moreover, playing for a couple of hours on a pad will KILL your thumb! The more you damage your thumb, the less you can play.
Finally, you should check out the official fighter’s guide for Street Fighter Anniversary Collection, by Brady Games. It covers just about everything and includes screenshots that walk you through combos and advanced strategy.
Good luck!