With the exception of CryptoNote no other anon coin offers even a remote chance at real anonymity. Nothing but gimmicks.
I'm pretty stunned at how many people are paying big money for CrapCoins for gimmicks like DARK, BitcoinDark, etc...
Cryptonote started with bytecoin. We already know bytecoin released fake names as its key devs, along with probably fake bios. The release of that first cn coin has huge questions around it, including whether its early blockchain is even real. Some of the promotional material of that first cryptonote coin was done in a way that copied exactly the presentation style of government projects. Not one early buyer or miner has stepped forward.
I don't know anything about cryptography but I'd be cautious.
Yes. Cryptonote offers good privacy (probably the best available today). Bytecoin (the first cryptonote coin), was some sort of scam. Monero (the first CN coin released in a fair manner) is a good coin.