There whei go.

And his fingers don't look short to me, they look pretty average actually.

but if he's a short dude (like Flea) then his 'average' looking sized hands are smaller than most hehe

I got a Fender Squire for my 3rd guitar. I love it still 3 guitars later. It wasn't technically my first but, it was the one that really made get into guitar. Here's the thing though, lots of good guitar players think that an acoustic is better for you to play. It makes your fingers stronger because you don't have an amp to give the sound, even if you really aren't playing well. If it were me buying the guitar I'd get the Dean V Acoustic, which is cheap (about 300), looks cool, and is an acoustic electric. The one down side is you can't really lap it. I think there's a model out there that does have an extra piece so that you can.

i think the whole 'learn on an acoustic first' is a throwback to old ways of doing things. it's how the 'greats' learned back in the 70s or some other load. i wonder if the availability of relatively cheap but decent quality electric gear was maybe a factor... hmmm??? or how many parents want to hear their kid learning and nailing more bum notes than clear ones on an electric over an acoustic.

yes, learning on an acoustic does give you stronger fingers, but in this day and age if you want to learn to play an electric get an electric. there's no point in learning an instrument on a version of it that you're not interested in. it's not like learning on an electric leaves you at a huge disadvantage if/when you start playing on an acoustic; nor does learning on an acoustic provide you with a huge advantage when playing an electric.

yeah your friend has it backwards, but playing GH and RB is a valid exercise for keeping your fingers nimble, and top notch for working on your timing / coordination.

I recently discovered a guitar site you might be interested in looking at, if you aren't already aware of it.
It's guitarnoise.com
It has some useful tips and information for guitar players of all skill levels.

Don't buy anything over like $300...it won't be as much of a burden if you end up not deciding to stick with it and if you do decide to stick with it you will have more money for a higher quality instrument in the future when you get one (which is pretty much inevitable). Ibanez makes some pretty decent entry level stuff that is very affordable...stay away from First Act

Since you're just starting out, you ought not to meet your life companion yet. What I mean is that you should start a bit small, incase you end up ditching it after a while-- that way the hole in your wallet doesn't remind you every day what could have been. I would start on a basic squire or fender telecaster or stratocaster. Those are pretty reliable, look nice and are really affordable. The more you get into it, that's when you start looking for the beaut you always wanted.

For example, I've been playing for ages now... Started up about 6 years ago on a squire Telecaster. I'll admit, it was certainly not a top notch guitar, but it worked and sounded good. It wasn't until last year that I finally spotted the guitar I knew I was going to keep forever... picked an epiphone dot right off the wall. Again, affordable, but nice none-the-less. Try being cost-effective, I suppose is the moral of this. Don't go overboard on the first thing! There will come a time when you decide you need that $800 beauty :)

Guitar Chords @ Chordbook.Com

The only site you'll ever need to learn the basic chords, I still use it if I come accross a chord I'm a bit unsure of.

Then depending on your music taste learn an easy one, one of my first songs was About A Girl - Nirvana, and Wonderwall - Oasis.

As for the guitar, it all depends on your budget, if your parents are buying you one for Christmas and can afford just under 400 pounds I'd get a Fender Telecaster.

Or for about 200ish a Yamaha Pacifica.

if you really are looking to give some time to it i'd say buy a mid-range guitar (Vintage, Epiphone etc.) save you paying out again later, If it's just something you're giving a go buy an Encore/ Squire.

Best way of learning is always to my mind going to be one to one lessons with an experienced teacher. Best online however is probably just to have a nose around youtube for beginner guitar lessons theres thousands of videos on there. Other than that try and get involved on a guitar based forum like ultimate guitar, I use talk bass and over the years it's come in handy to be a member and check up on there now and again. It can be quite informative and if you get stuck anywhere it always helps to be able to get answers to where you might be going wrong.