Learning tunes by ear is a great advantage
So is reading music
They each have their own problems
I read music and that makes me lazy, I should be able to memorise the tune but I don't bother as I have hard copy to read off.
People who play by ear have to work harder at memorising the tune and this makes their playing more fluid as they are not reading every note
The problem with playing by ear is that you have to hear it played before you learn it
I can learn a piece from written music on my own anywhere I don't have to have someone play it first
I am of to Galway now where I will no doubt here lots of great music, most of the tunes won't have a name and so I wish I could play by ear!

Roger