How to effectively use each kind of weapon available in the game?

This is what I do with the weapons I'm used too:

Gimballed lasers: I'm kind of fond of using the gimballed lasers, although they only seem effective against small targets. They're also pretty sensitive to countermeasures and have a less-than-pleasant heat build-up. Just let them lock and pick the right time to pull and also to release the trigger. The most annoying thing is how they need to cool down too frequently.
Gimballed multi: almost same as above, but I tend to engage them only when target's shields are down, all at once. Hard-point placement makes me want to align the ventral and top hard-points correctly along the length-axis.
Rail cannons: seem nice for dealing with less mobile targets. Just have to get used to the wind-up time before actual firing and heat build-up. Nice to have some heat sinks synthesized beforehand, just in case. I admire how really effective players learn how to make they fire constantly (through lavish use of sinks and the ability to keep thargoids under the crosshair).

Other weapons: couldn't find myself to adapt to them. Would love to hear from you people. Specially the several kinds of missile/torpedoes ones.