Hi Matt,
I've installed 3 or 4 systems over the years and have learned a lot along the way...

Here's a link with a lot of good information, although it may be overwhelming. Some of the info is for larger commercial systems, but there's some good basic information as well.

http://www.irrigationtutorials.com/

I could write a lot about the subject, but here's just a couple of tips to get you started (assuming you install sprinklers)....

1) Coverage: I can't emphasize this enough. If you go to Home Depot, they have a couple of different design brochures that you can take home and look at. The issue of coverage is pretty simple...The gist of it is that the area around one particular sprinkler is watered by the adjacent sprinkler. So they have to be close enough to overlap so that you get head-to-head coverage. For example, if you install sprinklers that will throw 8 feet, then consider installing them 6 or 7 feet apart so the coverage works. If you put them 8 feet apart (for an 8 foot throw), you'll probably have dry spots.

2) Pressure: The Hunter brand sprinklers I use are rated for pressures of something like 25 or 30 pounds (I don't have my data sheet handy). The great thing about them (and other brands that have this feature) is that the length of throw and the angle of spray are fully adjustable. Back to pressure: If you have water pressure on your property of 60-90 pounds (many folks do), then you'll need to reduce that pressure to get the best out of your system. If the pressure is too high, the sprinklers will be overdriven, mist/cloud like crazy, and perhaps damage the sprinkler components over time. The high pressure will ultimately waste water and affect your coverage pattern. I installed a pressure regulator on the sprinklers that is set to something like 45-50 pounds. When one zone of sprinklers are running (in my case, 8-10 sprinklers), the numbers of heads that are spraying will reduce the pressure so that each head gets about 25-30 pounds and everything works well....

I hope that helps, and please let me know if you have any specific questions....

Thanks, Randy