Fixing bathroom ceiling

We had an issue with mold on our bathroom cailing a while back; one spraying with a bleach mixture and leaving the door ajar when taking a shower has kept the mold from returning (there wasn't much there to begin with).

The ceiling is textured and the textured material is cracking all over. I was going to paint it with a heavy primer then put a coat of mildew proof paint over it but am concerned that the cracks will still show (they aren't getting any bigger and non of it is flaking).

That failing I was going to get some sheetrock and cover the ceiling after putting down some strips to even it out a bit. After the seams were done I'd prime and paint normally.

If you where in my shoes here, what would you do? I have no experience with sheetrock so this would be something new to me, I guess I could get a friend to come over and help me hold it up.

(I was going to put a vent fan in but the bathroom is 3 stories up, the roof has a 12/12 pitch so getting up there with a ladder to cut a hole either in the eve or side of the house is a tricky situation.)

Remove the ceiling completely.

Easy to learn. Local library, this NG archives, lots of books at the box stores. Look at the tools the pros use at the borg or Amazon.com or Google. Use a mold resistant sheetrock (only costs a maybe a dollar more than ordinary). Setting type mud and fiberglass tape will resist mold better than conventional mud and paper tape because mold can feed on PVA in the usual mud and breed in untreated paper. Use a low platform to work on, made from some storage crates and planks. Get a shop vac and a Magna sander rig for dust control. Effective low angle lighting will highlight flaws so you can perfect your techniques.

Consider hiring this out after you buy the fan you like. Best done just after the ceiling is removed.

Now go ahead and do it, and good luck.

Joe