I"ll throw my 2 cents into question #1.
NetBSD maintains a current and a quarterly release of package build scripts (aka pkgsrc). The quarterly releases serve as the base for binary package builds and while that quarterly release is active, the build scripts are tweaked.
That being said some of the more complex packages have not compiled for at least 2 quarterly cycles, eg. a native libreoffice. There is a libreoffice-bin that is essentially the linux version that runs under emulation. The other caveat is that even if it builds, it may not run. OpenOffice3.1.1 for 2013Q1 was an example.
If being able to build and contribute to a project has value to you or you are running some exotic hardware NetBSD might be a good choice. If your goal is to obtain a functional, final product and then use it, other OS's may get you to that goal faster and with less frustration.
I suggest that you browse the NetBSD ftp site for packages
2013Q2 packages for amd64
to get a sense if the applications you are interesting have successful binary builds.
Pkgsrc.se. Will tell you what is in current