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For the shifting and braking techniques:
I've never had a clutch fail on any car I've ever owned, and I drive pretty aggressively, so I like to think that whatever I'm doing is probably pretty good. I also manage better than the EPA says I should for fuel economy, in spite of getting on it somewhat frequently - go figure.
What I do: It's entirely dependent on the situation. I generally try to use engine braking as much as possible by shifting into a lower gear and letting the engine drag my speed down, and then apply the brakes once I'm approaching where I'm actually going to stop.
I pretty much only use my brakes as a primary means to bring the vehicle to a stop in two situations: once second gear is at low revs and I'm very close to stopping, or when a traffic situation demands I slow down/stop faster than I can using engine braking. It makes for better gas mileage, it ensures that you're in the correct gear to quickly accelerate once traffic clears, and it saves on brake pads.
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