Jason N wrote:
If properly installed, tubes make little difference in flat protection. Latex tubes can help prevent some pinch flats, but take a little more care to install properly, which as already mentioned can cause flats.
Anytime you get a flat, you should determine the cause. Sometimes it's difficult to do on the side of the road, but if you can't figure it out then, you should do it at the end of the ride. That will greatly decrease the chance of another flat compared to simply swapping out the tube and continuing to ride on. Saving the flat tube and finding where the hole (or what type of hole) in the tire is will help immensely.
If you're constantly getting pinch flats, that could be a sign that you're either not installing your tubes properly, you're not running enough tire pressure, or you're simply not avoiding cracks, potholes, or rocks that you should be avoiding.
If you're constantly getting punctures on the side of the tube that faces the rim, then your rim tape might need to be adjusted or replaced...or you might have something sharp in your rim bed.
If you're constantly getting punctures from the tire facing side of the rim, are you getting them in the same place? Are you sure you have removed the sharp object from the tire? Sometimes they are not easy to see or feel. This is why saving the punctured tube helps so you can match up the hole in the tube with the tire for further inspection.
During the ride, after you unmount the flat tire, inspect it for anything obvious, then run a cotton ball around the inside of the tire and the rim. It'll pick up small debris you might have overlooked (thorn, glass, etc), without cutting your finger. You can just tuck a cotton ball inside your spare tube so it's there when you change a flat.
If you inspect the old tube at the end of the ride and still can't find the puncture, add some air and submerge it in the bathtub.