1) Tamiya masking tape. Period. It costs more than the regular masking tapes, but if you burnish the edges down properly it will not leak. I put a lot of time and effort in painting and I'm not going to cut corners on my masking tape. I trust Tamiya tape and it isn't worth the risk to me.
2) If you are painting with acrylics, you absolutely positively MUST thoroughly clean the parts prior to painting. Acrylics don't bond to plastic the way enamels or laquers do, they simply form a plastic film around the parts. The mold release agent used in the molding process will cause the tenuous hold that acrylics do have to be lost. Many people use soap and water, I usually use alcohol.
3) If you are painting with acrylics I strongly recommend a coat of enamel or laquer primer prior to the acrylic. The acrylic paint will bond much more strongly to a primer coat than it will with bare plastic alone. This is the key to prevent acrylics from lifting when removing masking tape. I've never had acrylic pull lose from a properly primed part but I have it happen frequently on parts that aren't primed.
4) This is debateable and even I question whether it's true or not. When spraying acrylics I always use isopropyl alcohol as a thinner. It causes some problems with the paint (specifically they dry even faster than normal and it will cause Tamiya gloss paint to dry flat) but I feel like it helps eliminate any oil or grease that I might have left on the parts.