yes this works for all the gears
for launch just hold the clutch and gas pedal to the floor when it hits the rev limiter count to 10 and dump the clutch, this will get you your best possible launch (this is the trick the magazines use to get their test results)
if you find you are getting a lot of wheel spin when launching like this, you need to warm up the tires more... for a FWD car the best way to do this is to put it in reverse, cut the wheel all the way to the right or left, stomp on the throttle using the same rev limiter 10 count that you want to use for the launch, then dump the clutch and count 10 full revolutions of the car, when finished turn the wheel the other way and repeat the process... after this your tires will be properly warmed up and you should get a sweet launch
if you are still spinning a lot on the launch you may need a wider and softer tire