Wow. What a big question.
For starters, have a glance at the following:
F Gregg Bemis, Yacht Race Scoring, 1960
C Stanley Ogilvy, Win more sailboat races
Robert N Bavier Jr, Faster Sailing
they all have sections on scoring and attempt to discuss their pros and cons.
The methods they tend to favour on the grounds of fairness tend to look complex, and as a result, are not 'popular'.