Ranged weapons are absolutely awesome in BG1 (mostly due to the high quality ammunition). In BG2, they are mediocre and forgettable. The archer kit is great, but it's pretty much the only case of archery being strong. And it's a specialty kit built entirely around the bow with little else to offer!
All I can tell you is that I examined the level 1 numbers in game and they are right. Therefore either proficient or specialized give you -1 Thac0 as well. Furthermore, in BG1 (Not Tutu, Trilogy or EE) the arrows do in fact give additional damage. I checked that in game before I wrote it as well.
Archers can be overlooked because many like to go toe to toe with the enemy. However, a fighter or ranger highly proficient with a bow, for example kivan in bg1 and mazzy in bg2, are highly effective. I was pleasantly surprised at their effectiveness as ranged dps. Add magic arrows and they simply dominate enemies from afar. Arrows of dispell eat mages and save the battle for your frontlines for instance.
In bg1, I saved up all my arrows of dispell and used them all on the final battle with Sarevok. Those pesky mages dropped like flies with their defenses dispelled every round and im convinced this is what won our battle.
The idea of combat is to kill the other guy as quickly as possible. If you're locked in a long duel, unless it's simply sparing, you're doing it wrong. Wether its by sling bullet or greatsword, dead is dead.
basically i would have my fighters, paladins, and rangers carry both two-handed swords as well as bows, my mages would also carry staves as well as slings. when i see an enemy or group of enemies from a distance i switched every one to ranged mode and let the enemy come to me while i pelted them with arrows and bullets, then when they got close enough i would switch to melee mode and engage them that way (my mages would join in or stay back and launch spells depending on the type of enemy).
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All I can tell you is that I examined the level 1 numbers in game and they are right. Therefore either proficient or specialized give you -1 Thac0 as well. Furthermore, in BG1 (Not Tutu, Trilogy or EE) the arrows do in fact give additional damage. I checked that in game before I wrote it as well.