Some basic things self defense to keep in mind.

DO NOT THINK THAT THIS HAS ANY VALUE BEYOND THE ACADEMIC. I ain't an expert, you most likely ain't one. I am not responsible for your stupidity, you are, I am only responsible for my own.

There are several basics everyone should know when it comes to defending one self. First and for most is survival. You have to be willing to do what ever it takes to live to see the next day. The saying goes; "I'd rather be judged by twelve than carried by six." Why would I say this, well this is because everyone is capable of extreme violence. It's something many sheeple do not want to grasp. No exceptions, the capability is there. Okay, there is a man ready to do bad and violent things to you, what do you do. Ideally you never find your self in that situation to begin with. You use situational awareness, you avoid the threat the best you can. But lets say all else fails, shoot him. No gun, use a knife, improvise something. The only true weapon s that nerve center in your head, everything else is just tools.
Empty hand techniques, unarmed combat do not make up for a weapon. Yes there are guys and gals out there who can relieve a person of their weapons, I know a little on the subject myself, but those people would rather have their own weapons and not use these techniques, I know I would. If I ever find myself facing another person bent on doing violence to me, I will not fight fair, I will go home to my family, I will not be timid or pitiful. Aggression is a major factor in fighting. You have to tap that primal urge to stomp the everlovin' life out of the punk. If you don't, you'll be lucky to go to the ER.
Striking the opponent comes down to several basic movements. The jab and cross (reverse punch to my fellow Shotakans) are simple shooting your arms strait forwards into a target area. The hook and the upper cut involve arcing the movement of your arms. Aside from that, how ever you shape your hand and where you are targeting are the major differences in what ever hand strike you use. Basic elbow work is up-down and side to side movements. These can be used as both strikes and blocks. Knee strikes a front kicks have a lot in common. And then there is the headbutt. Elbows, knees and headbutts are for close fighting, kicks and handwork are for distance. I'll go through these in more depth later on.
Basically, anything you can punch, you can use the palm of your hand. Distance plays a factor and targeting plays a factor. The chin jab is an open palm strike to the base or bottom of the chin. It's basically an uppercut that uses the heel of your palm and has a likelyhood of gouging eyes and hurting the nose at the same time. The famous karate chop and hammer fist have the same freaking movements. The back fist is also along the same lines of though.
Kicks are best left below the waist. Believe it or not, they require more precision. The best spot to kick someone is the knee. Going for the groin is nowhere near as reliable as popular belief has it. No matter how big they are, take out the knee and they are going down or at least be hampered enough to allow you to escape. There are two ways to do a front kick. The first uses the ball of the foot, the second uses the blade. The same goes for the roundhouse kick. This is target dependent. The side kick seems best to me done with the heel and is the back kick. Heel kicks are devastating when done right, and foolish when done wrong. They also can be used in the take down when targeting the lower half of the legs.
Knees and elbows are two of the hardest parts or your body, they can do damage. They also can block attacks up close and even lock a limb in place. Headbutts are best for the nose, then the mouth.
No matter what, do not be gentile. Hit hard, hit fast, even hit first. Do not stop until there is no longer a threat. Being offensive rather than defensive is the best way to go. There is only one kind of fair fight, it involves score cards, judges and referees, you will not find this on the street. Next time on this subject I'll tackle grappling.