i'm new to tiling. i've been reading up as much as i can but still need confirmation as i go along.
my house is 40 yrs. old. we've knocked down the wall between the dining room and kitchen. there is 4 1/2" by 1" diagonal boards under 1/4" plywood that is stapled down.

1. do we take up 1/4" or screw down 3/4" over top?

i would like to be able to do the job in stages as we have 3 children and need some of the area.

2. is it possible to do kitchen/dining area then stop before hall and the continue hall later? --with the length of the hall into kitchen we will need an expansion what-cha-me-call-it anyways.

hope this makes sense---thanks!!