I was a drive thru car wash user until I got the Zed a couple of years ago and started to learn about washing with care. I have learnt tons from watching lots of short vids, but I think this pulls all the basics into one place and minimises the need for reading lots of guides/threads on day 1.
Regular readers will know I'm a fan of AMMO vids/products, I know detailing provokes lots of different opinions on different techniques and different products, but I honestly think most people would agree that if you can follow the simple steps outlined in this video and experiment with any half decent products, you'll be able to keep your paint spot on with minimal fuss. It's kind of long, but it only needs one watch really to absorb the messages. I wish this was made when I started to learn, as it basically is the regular wash I've gotten into a routine of doing.
This is a wash only vid, it's not correction or anything advanced, personally, I think it's worth a sticky in the detailing forum (do you?) as it's something that pops up semi-regularly.
If people could please post up a couple of their favouritst, 5 star products and the jobs they use them for, it could be a heck of a resource.