Newbie with 2 questions

[Solraeus]

I plan to buy a short scale bas and teach myself to play it. Is that nutty? As such I have 2 questions:
1. What are the relative merits and demerits of using round, flat, or tape strings?
2. I am mystified by what I should do with my picking fingers. Having wTched many videos, it seems the pinkie is rarely if ever used. But is there a rules based system for which finger should strike which string? And does that change when striking from high to low strings vs low to high? Should double fingers be used sometimes as a rule or are there no rules? Is there some video based instruction that solves this mystery?
Thank you for your help.

 

[jd56hawk]

I plan to buy a short scale bas and teach myself to play it. Is that nutty? As such I have 2 questions:
1. What are the relative merits and demerits of using round, flat, or tape strings?
2. I am mystified by what I should do with my picking fingers. Having wTched many videos, it seems the pinkie is rarely if ever used. But is there a rules based system for which finger should strike which string? And does that change when striking from high to low strings vs low to high? Should double fingers be used sometimes as a rule or are there no rules? Is there some video based instruction that solves this mystery?
Thank you for your help.

Flatwounds are good, but I'd suggest trying out some black tapewounds...D'Addario makes a short-scale set. Smooth as silk, perfect tension, amazing tone, and they look good, too.
As for the pinky rarely being used, not necessarily...and tapewounds will definitely help when using your pinky.
Other than that, I taught myself to play, no online or private lessons, simply by ear. If I can do it, so can you.

 

[jd56hawk]

One more thing about learning to play.
It's all about attitude.
It's even more important than practice, practice, practice.
Don't just play the bass, 𝙗𝙚 the bass!
When you plug in, nothing should exist but you and the music.
Think about method acting.
A method actor doesn't just play a character, he 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙨 the character, sometimes even staying in character off the set.
Attitude!
I wanted to quit learning after a few unproductive months, but once I changed my attitude, everything else fell into place.

 

[BassicJazzy]

Just a couple more comments, based on what's been posted so far. As a beginner, you want to focus on developing technique and fundamentals. As you develop your skills you can then make informed decisions about what type of strings, what specific bass and scale best fit you. As a starting point, you want to be able to clearly hear any mistakes you are making. Strings like tapes and flats can make your playing sound smoother but will cover up sloppy technique, dragging fingers, incomplete fretting. You need to be able to hear those things until you get your technique to a decent level. Likewise, you do not need an advanced or specialty bass, it may actually make your learning slower. A simple bass, either 4 or 5 string, with just passive p'ups and no preamp to fiddle with, will get you up to speed faster.