Beat the Raid on Normal
This goes without saying, but the best way to understand the basics of the Wrath of the Machine raid is to complete it at least once on normal. Heroic difficulty adds modifiers which can slightly alter certain parts of the activity, but the way they work is still relatively the same. Getting each section of the raid down in your mind will definitely help in the long run for this reason.
We have guides to help you out, of course, but we strongly recommend actually going through the motions. Certain segments, especially the final two encounters which pit you against Aksis, require careful placement of yourself and teammates, so try it out a few times if you can. You can still learn the ropes while just playing Destiny: Rise of Iron’s raid on Heroic, but why add on the extra headache?