Ask HN: How best to vest/distribute equity?

I am at the beginning of a new startup (my first) with several other people. I recognize the need to make ownership decisions up front and would like advice as to how best to approach vesting and equity distribution. There are currently 4 people involved in the project (3 who have been working on it for a short time and 1 who is just joining). One founder is from a business/financial background and the other 3 have technical backgrounds.

Is the best approach to determine appropriate amounts of equity and vest it over a period of time, cliff vesting for the first period? What has your experience been and what would you recommend?