First off, I am a mechanical engineer and a DIYer. I bought a house
with an in ground pool that needs a lot of work. I will fix it up
myself (with whatever help I can squeeze out of my brothers-in-law ;^))
I want to learn as much as I can about pools so that I can minimize
maintenance as I repair the pool. The pool had a liner that was
practically destroyed. It has a concrete bottom and some of the side
is concrete. The final 4 feet or so to the top is galvanized steel.
The concrete has many cracks and missing chunks, and the steel is
rusted in spots.
I really want to do gunite or another permanent liner. I don't really
want to replace a vinyl liner every 10 years.
Also, I am very interested in alternatives to chlorine and other pool
chemicals whenever possible. Can anyone recommend any good books or
websites that I can study?

Thanks for any help!