yeah, I don't really like paneling at all, I would much rather have drywall, this house was built in the 60s,
and remodeled in the 80s, so it's really outdated, I want to take out the ceiling tile too, and put up sheet rock and texture it
If you don,t like the paneling, don't just cover it up, take it down and upgrade the insulation, check for rot and other damage while your there. There is no better time.
Here is a thought ... if you remove the paneling, you remove the cigarette smoke residue too!
I'd say kill two birds with one stone . . . You can skim coat the walls with a slightly thinned mix of drywall mud, then prime with KILZ to permanently seal the smell.