What sort of edge you use sorta depends what you use your knife for. A "sawtooth" edge is good for general purpose work that doesn't involve cutting fairly hard material(like hardwood), but if you exert much pressure on the edge, those little "teeth" tend to either roll over or break; depending on the blade heat treat/steel hardness. A smooth polished edge is good for slicing and whittling, but tends to slide on materials such as rope or cardboard boxes etc; Not that it won't cut, you have to work at it harder though. That sort of edge will also eventually roll on you, but normally it handles more work pressure that a more jagged one(all else being equal as far as the steel goes). I like a smooth polished edge since I rarely cut either a lot rope or cardboard. All my knives that I use and/or make come with convex edges, and I put them on with a belt grinder. Out in the "field" I use a hard stone to hone(straighten) the edge. Most folks use one of the various knife sharpening systems with guides and various grit stones to achieve whatever edge suits them best. Lansky, Smith, Gatco are among the many types available out there. Google on knife sharpeners and take your pick.
