I've worked as a professional detailer in the past, but now it's more of a hobby. (If I can still call it a 'hobby', considering I have about 12 feet of shelf space in my garage dedicated to various cleaning chemicals). Here's what I use for routine cleaning, not finish repair. If anyone is interested in specific detailing processes or equipment for repairing paint damage, let me know.

Pre-Wash - For cleaning the tar/bugs/etc off the front of the bike, I use an aerosol foam bug and tar remover. I know it comes in a yellow can, and I think it's made by Turtle Wax. Since it's a foam, it sticks to vertical surfaces well, and it softens road tar, oily dirt, and bug guts. Let it soak for a few minutes, and then brush lightly with a plastic-bristled brush. I'd do it *before* you wash the bike, since because it's petroleum-based, it will attract more dirt unless you remove all of it after you're done, and washing the bike is the easiest way to remove it.

Fixing Problems - First there is the the venerable "clay bar". For those of you that aren't familiar, this is a surface prep method that has only hit the mainstream commercial market in the last few years. It's basically a lump of what looks and feels like Silly Putty, but it has some mild abrasive properties. You spray a lubricant on the paint, such as Meguiar's Quik Detailer, and then rub the paint with the clay bar. The clay picks up surface contaminants like embedded road grime, tar, and pollutants, leaving a much smoother surface than washing alone. This gives you a much deeper gloss after you wax the paint.
It doesn't work for damage *in* the clearcoat, just contaminants on top of the clear. As such, it's no good for swirl marks, scratches and the like, but it's a very good technique for amateurs, such you can't accidentally screw up the paint the way you could with a polish or compound applied with a rotary buffer.

Speaking of buffers, if you just want something to apply polishes and waxes, stick with a random-orbital buffer, the kind that wiggles around as it spins. The orbital motion makes it almost impossible to burn the paint, but it also makes it unsuitable for actually fixing any damage in the clearcoat such as scratches or scuffs. For that, you need a rotary buffer. I have a friend that took ultra-fine steel wool to his brand-new MR2 Spyder, trying to remove some tree sap. Needless to say, he ended up with a nice satiny patch on his paint. He tried hand-applied polish, then compound, then a clay bar, followed with some pretty aggressive compound on a random-orbit buffer. Nothing worked, but when he brought it over to my house to show me, sixty seconds with a rotary buffer, a foam waffle-pad and the mildest polishing glaze I have took it right back to brand-new.

I know some of this sounds excessive, but I don't use every product every time. My motto is "The cleaner you keep your bike, the easier it is to keep it clean". If I use the S100 every week or two, nothing builds up to the point where it won't just hose off on the next wash. I haven't used a toothbrush on any part of my bike for over two years, except for where the chain passes around the front sprocket. I can usually complete a routine cleaning on a bike in about 15 minutes.

A clean bike just looks better, and the various finishes will look newer for longer, which helps maintain the resale value as well. Plus, any fluid leaks stand out like a sore thumb, making timely maintenance easier.
Again, let me know if you have any specific questions - I've used just about everything out there over the years, and have my favorites when it comes to chemicals and tools.

Scott Gardner