Treads, Tracks, Tank system Talk/Help

[UndergroundVoid]

The Background:
Alright, I would like to say to start off I love treads/ tracks/tank drive and feel the need to please the tank gods. My team has had a tank drive system for one year and support after that year for tank type drive systems have died and have be replaced with others systems aka wheels, omnis, mecanum, etc. The robot equipped with the tank drive system was for a while my roommate as i had made repairs but found out why then bot had so much issues like fractured lex sand framework and really bad gearboxes but yet it holds true to my heart. I'm revamping its design which is near completion but has some questions that need answering before it can be completed and also it may have more questions that i may have not thought of.

The Question:
1. What gear ratios should i have for the tank tank system (motor to gearbox output)?
Note: I'm not stupid i know there is a series of equations to find the right ratio but I'm looking mainly for what others have done that might work for me.
2. How to solve the walking effect where i seen some robots with treads hobble as they turn and even become unbalanced that the driver has to stop?
I assume this is from the tracks not being held center because of certain belt track systems.
3. How to correctly tension the tank system, such as spring loaded or motor controller tension or to have the tracks at a fixed tension set by the frame?

General Talk:
I'm also looking for just a general what you may have done in this field of drive train and certain things you may have experienced that may help me and everyone have a better idea on how to produce tank systems to please the tank gods.