Solid Hardwood, Engineered and Laminate Flooring - Some questions as I go

I'm not sure if I'm using enough glue. When the pieces of laminate flooring get tapped together, there is only occasionally a small amount of glue seepage. Should there be a fair amount of excess glue to wipe off afterwards?

Also, I'm not sure how perfect the gaps are supposed to be. I spend a lot of time fiddling with the tapping block, the edge bar, and the clamps, so the floor maintains a fairly "tight" appearance. Is it imperative that all the edges be a perfect fit?

I know I'm supposed to make sure the first three rows are nice and straight. I've confirmed this by holding a tight piece of string above the leading edge of my progress. It "appears" straight, but am I supposed to be using fancy stuff, like a chalk line or measuring square?

I know the questions are rather dumb, but I'm new at this and I truly appreciate anyone's advice.

I don't see a brand name in this thread. Glued assembly type flooring typically has a looser joint tolerance and the glue fills the voids. Better brands are more precise and allow continuous and consistant glue application than cheaper brands. If your installation is "racked" (multi directional miss alignment) it will leave gaps regardless, although the lowest priced brands will be worse. Each manufacturer has a different location and glue bead size recommendation so delve into the installation instructions that came with your flooring. A carpenters square or larger is a very good idea.