Advantages/Disadvantages of various types of boats?

flat-good for shallow water
deep- good for rougher water

Flat bottom- Run in shallower water. Easier to push off of sand flat or mud if you get stuck. Better for fishing the interior marsh.

Deep bottom- Better for fishing the gulf/open water. Ride will be a lot better.

Fiberglass- Gives a better/smoother ride than aluminum. Is cooler to the touch especially in the summer. Walking on aluminum barefoot or touching your aluminum boat during the summer can burn your skin.

Aluminum- Is lighter than fiberglass and usually more durable and harder to dent or put a hole in it. Better for shallow water boats such as go-devils/gator tails because it is lighter.

That's all I can think of right now.

Flat bottom boat will require less horsepower to push and run in shallower water. The trade off will be sea keeping. It will beat you to death in all but the calmest water. As deadrise (V) increase sea keeping ability (ride comfort) increases but so does draft and horsepower requirement. A bay boat is a decent compromise between the two. Usually they have less than 10 degrees of dead rise and can run in fairly shallow water. As to the aluminum/fiberglass debate that is almost the same as chevy vs ford. Depending on the fabricator; great things can be done with aluminum. Usually but not always fit and finish is better on a fiberglass boat. However I feel aluminum will outlast.