For example, coffee ground too fine will take too long to brew and will give a bitter taste, and likewise, coffee ground too coarse will brew too quickly and give a watery taste. Humidity and temperature also affect the brewing process but unless your a 'coffee snob' , that won't matter much to you. And if you are a 'coffee snob' than you know this already. Also, please note that a cup of coffee has more caffeine than a shot of espresso. Just thought you should know.
Filters can be either flat bottomed or cone shaped.
It will continue to cook and will become bitter in only minutes. I usually ' under grind ' my beans for this one. Preheat your press by running some hot water in it and swirling just a bit. Now, the amount of coffee you use depends on the size of french press you have. Let it steep about 3 to 5 minutes depending on the strength that you want.