Spence, when I submit a ms, if there's a scene break I put a # instead of just quadruple spacing it. I never used to do this until a professional editor recommended I do this.
Also, when I begin a scene, I don't indent the first paragraph (again, after having a first chapter copyedited by a different editor), but it's okay if you do so as well. It's not a biggie. The important thing is to be consistent.
I've never used stars. If I want to emphasize a word, I use italics.
Hope this helps.
Vijaya