Ahh, Anna Kournikova...looks great, loses often
Just kidding. In some ways I prefer AK over AA or KK because you can do more with it, and it's easier to get off the hand with AK than it is with AA or KK. Obviously, AK is not a made hand, though, so it's important (to me at least) to make it heads-up or 3-way.
Preflop: With AK I almost always make a raise preflop--at least 4 or 5 times the BB to push out the trash. If I'm in early position, I might check-raise if I'm fairly certain that someone behind me will raise (loose tables). In late position, I always raise, unless there was a raise in front of me, at which point a reraise is a judgment call--is the raiser loose or tight? How large was the raise? How many players are behind me, and do I think they'll call? All of these things have to be considered, but if I think a reraise will push out more players, I'll do it. If I think I'm going to be called no matter what (loose players behind, or players that like to defend their blinds), I'll smooth-call.
After the flop:
If I hit, I'm going to bet at it. Period. I'll also raise any bets if I think it'll push people off their hands. I've gotten burned too many times to slow-play AK with an A or K on the board to wait around. Besides, after my pre-flop raise, the pot's big enough for me to take it down right then and there.
If I miss the flop, then it gets interesting. A lot of factors come into play at this point:
1) It's still early enough in the hand to get away without losing too much money. If someone makes a bet at it and it's raised in front me, I'm gone.
2) What's the texture of the flop? All rags? I'd bet at it. Paint? It might be better to save your money for another hand (if someone bets in front)
3) Draws: If the flop leaves me 4-flushed or drawing to a straight (4-outer), it boils down to pot odds. If you don't know how to calculate pot odds, ask me about it. If everyone checks in front of me, I might semi-bluff at it, but a free card is a free card. Semi-bluffing depends on your opponent--if you think they can be pushed off the hand, take a stab at it. If your opponent(s) is a calling station, I'll just check it down to a free fourth street card.
4) Position is key--if everyone checks around and I'm in late position, I'm going to use that advantage and bet much more often than if I'm in early position.
5) When in doubt, I always think about some advice that I've read in pretty much every poker book I've read (Brunson, Harrington, Cloutier, etc):
Raise or Fold. Callers are losers in the long run.
Fourth Street:
At this point you're pretty much committed to the pot, especially if there was betting post-flop (which makes the pot pretty big at this point). I pretty much use the same factors as I do post-flop to determine my moves, except that I'm less likely to fold the hand, unless the bet in front of me is very, very large, and I don't have very many outs.
River:
See fourth street.
Obviously, this is just one opinion--if you think I'm wrong, let's discuss it (I'm always looking for ways to improve my game). I regularly play NL tables in Vegas (mostly the Wynn, sometimes at MGM or Palms) and here in L.A. (Commerce and the Bike) and I'm almost always up at least 3-5x my buy-in when I cash out. My game is tight and aggressive--no Gus Hansen-style for me. A lot of my play has been shaped by the books I've read, and I take very little from the crap they show on TV.
EDIT: Keep in mind that my playing style is based on live games, not internet play. I've logged way more hours playing in cardrooms than I have playing on the computer.