This thread has SO much potential, and as someone said earlier, if those who need it will heed it. Now, that said, there are as many different "styles" and techniques when flying as there are folks flying, so spending time at a field and absorbing as much info as possible is always a good thing. You'll hear many different viewpoints. Listen to the ones that seem to be in agreement, they're typically the important ones.

One of the keys is having help. You CAN learn on your own, chances are you'll learn quicker, and more inexpensively if you have a trainer (the individual who helps you, not just the type of airplane).

Remember how Donnyman said, "a flat bottomed wing is a killer when overpowered". Well, he's right- sort of... Here's where my two cents will come in and it's worth exactly what you paid for it. Which is worse, an "overpowered plane" that has the throttle too high and you keep having to give it down elevator to keep it from ballooning or a "not-overpowered" plane with the engine at WOT the whole time with no additional power to pull it out of a bad situation? Neither one is good. IMHO, neither is training someone to simply floorboard the throttle and constantly pulling the plane back from them on the buddy box because they can't keep up with what it's doing. I understand how a good sized field can get pretty small when you're new to flying, and that's where an instructor can help you by setting the plane in the air at a safe speed and letting you get used to it. In the long run, you'll learn early on that there are two sticks, and each direction does something. You'll be years ahead of some folks at the field. And, instructors, SLOW DOWN THAT PLANE! That flat wing makes a LOT of lift. IF you slow it down to a safe speed without fear of tip-stalling, you'll give the trainee light-years of reaction time.

Now, about that flat-bottom wing. Mounting it on the top of the plane helps with stability. Thankfully there are many types of planes that use a high-mounted wing, so it's not like you're plane will be painted with a big, fluorescent "TRAINEE!!!!!" on it for using this style. The design of the wing is important too. Keep in mind that air puts pressure on everything, in every direction. It's called "atmospheric pressure". Having a flat bottom creates more lift due to the air on the top surface of the wing moving over it faster than the air on the bottom surface. This reduces the amount of "pressure" that the air puts on the top part of the wing. IF you want to see this for real, take a string under the wing and measure from the front (leading edge) of the wing to the rear of the wing. Mark how long the piece of string is to reach this distance. Now, do the same thing with the upper surface. You'll note that the string must be longer to reach when put on the top of the wing.