Newbie Questions

[Mowgli]

Hello, forum! 

I'm new here. So far, I've mainly played Combat Mission titles and Command Ops. But since I'm losing hope that Command Ops' multiplayer will ever get fixed and since I do like turnbased games and the scale of PzCampaigns appeals to me, I thought I would try it out. 

I've been reading the manual, experimenting ingame and taking notes. Quite a few things differ from what the handbook says, but I really like the mechanics so far. However, some things are still very unclear to me. Maybe a grognard can help me out? :) It would be much appreciated. 

1. How does spotting work? I get it that you can check LOS from a hex by pressing the S hotkey. There is a maximum visibility (determined by the weather/daylight conditions). Elevation further restricts LOS (ridges) and terrain also has an influence (each terrain has a "height" value assigned to it in the parameter window F4). Sometimes, units outside of the LOS (according to the S hotkey overlay) are spotted. I don't think that these are all instances of dust spotting?
   
2. When does spotting occur? If LOS it is updated "live" (everytime a unit moves a hex), then what's the point of "recon spotting"?  
   
3. Are casualties in assaults divided (weighted according to their strength?) amongst all the attacking/defending units?
   
4. Let's say you select 2 units in a hex and let them fire at an enemy unit. Is the result the same as if you'd select each unit individually (in succession) and let it fire?
   
5. Last but not least, I have a more general question: What's the most common way to play the game in PBEM? Do you guys prefer to play in phases (manual defensive fire mode) or do you stick to the traditional, more generous but also more fiddly (how many MPs does that action cost again?) type of turns?
   

Thanks in advance! Looking forward to meeting you on the battlefields!