total noob question... please help

Hi Everyone, I signed up for chess.com about a month ago.  I have been enjoying playing against the bots, attempting to figure out the daily puzzle, and taking some of the beginner trainings.  I have been nervous about trying to play live against a real person.  Today I attempted to overcome my fear and play a live game.  I thought I was on the right track, but it turns out I selected a game that only lasted ten minutes (I thought it meant I had 10 minutes per turn to move).  So that was a total fail.  But now I have no idea how to play an actual full game against someone.   Can someone please take pity on me and point me in the right direction. TIA!  

Hi, each of the time controls will show the time for the entire game.  You can play longer games of your choosing, and you can customize this when you challenge someone.  A 5|5 game means that you have five minutes per side per game, and that five additional seconds get added each move.  45|45 is the same, just 45 minutes per side, with 45 seconds added each move.  This is one of our longer time controls.  Or you can try daily chess, which allows you 24 hours up to 14 days PER MOVE, depending on which you select.

Does this help?

In the "Play" tab, you can select the time control at the top right of the screen. The time displayed is the time each side has to play the entire game; when it is one side's move, their clock starts ticking down while the other side's clock pauses. It also depends on what you define as a "full" game, but I hope this can help steer you in the right direction!

ok,  thanks, now I see how you can select a longer duration such as the 45/45 or 60 minutes.  Maybe I should try those.  But I am hoping to play games from beginning to end  in one sitting with no time limit, like when you play against the bots.  Is that possible?

This is not possible live because it would easily allow someone just to abandon the game and leave the other player waiting, unbeknownst to them.  45|45 is the longest time control that you can go, as 60 minutes does not add time per move.

I would recommend 15/10. I don't know how good your are--only your rating--but for a total beginner I believe there are probably limits to how far you can analyze a position, no matter how much time you have. Under 10 minutes is ridiculous for a rank beginner; it's just too fast. But 45/45 seems pretty silly too. I mean, given that a rank beginner knows very little about planning and strategy and what kinds of openings lead to what kinds of endgames, a very long time control is going to have you staring at the board with no idea what to do no matter how much time you have. So I would suggest 15/10. It gives you plenty of time to think, but it's short enough that you can get in 2 or 3 games a day with time left over for study and analysis. Good luck.

Of the preset selectable time controls yes, but you can play longer than 45|45 using ‘custom’ (albeit with a fairly small pool of potential players that might want to accept).

I agree with the previous poster though that as well as games that are too quick for a beginner, some can be too long. You don’t want to rush things but you want to see a variety of situations/ games etc

Agreed.  I like the 90|30 games that are often played in USCF chess tournaments, and those are certainly much longer.  Though I reflect the 15|10 sentiments that this time control is a great one to use to start off.

90|30 online strains the eyes.
15|10 is fine.

You can also play "Daily" chess which allow games to be played over days, as the time control choices are specified as so many days per move (although there is no limitation on how quickly one can move as long as it doesn't exceed the specified time control), as opposed to "Live" games which are structured to be played in one sitting.

Time Controls - Everything You Wanted To Know...

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/time-controls-everything-you-wanted-to-know

Play daily games.  This would allow you time to think, analyze and learn.

More Powerful King?! ??

Don't play against computers. Computers don't play like humans. Play against humans; you will learn more. 

Nothing beats chess on a board.

Try with live figures. Fun.