Go to carp universe.com and wacker baits.com there is a lot of info for carp fishin the way the europeans do it...
Some real cool stuff!!

Carpin good advice on where to actually see a "hair rig". Many of the carp sites should have diagrams and show you what they are.....very simple to use and effective. In simple terms it's nothing more than a dropper line off your hook to hold your bait while leaving your bare hook adjacent to the bait. The dropper, about an inch either tied off the eyelet of your main hook or tied off the bottom of the hook to which a bead or small treble hook is tied to actually hold the bait.
 
Carp will often taste your bait several times before picking it up and moving it. They can suck it in and expell your doughball before you can set the hook even if you were watching them. I've watched them(while standing in clear river water) many times take the bait into their mouths and spit in out before I could set the hook. When they expell the bait with the exposed hook from the "hair rig" it will usually prick them in the side of the jaw and they bolt resulting in one solid hook up. A properly set drag is essential when fishing like this. 

Popcorn for carp has been a big hit. You can throw handfuls out on top of the water and then fish a "dry fly" for them. They will come up and suck it right off the top.

Wally cat i have used the hair on the pay lakes with some very finicky carp and it works well....

Carpin.....I fish for carp a lot at a local county park and most of the other people I talk to say the carp are either gone or they just nibble. Little do they know that with a "hair rig" I catch carp when they nibble. Some of the guys think I use some kind of secret ingredient in my doughball.

Catfishing the rivers, large minnows/shiners 3-4 feet under a float always produce better than bottom fishing. When you see lots of active fish jumping, most are cats.

Wally cat we all have some secret stuff in our bait...lol
what county lake do you fish. i did some carpin in twin lakes a few years back  man there are some hog in there..
they like the wheat germ with peanut butter,hot sauce,and gravymaster...give it a try in sping when they want protein!!!!

Yes I know that twin lakes has some real hogs.....I've caught a few there. I fish Jacobs Creek Park.....lot of carp but most are from 18 - 24 inches.....only caught two nice size ones(15 pound) and I caught both of them fishing for eyes with 5 inch creek chubs.....at first I thought I had a monster eye only to be blessed with a big carp. Caught two the same day.....looked like twins.
 
I also like to fish the Yough on occasion for carp around Dawson or Connellsville. Not very big but they fight like tigers in that cold running water. Biggest out of the Yough was a 14 pounder that I caught during a carp tounament. I took first place for biggest carp and first place for most weight in five fish.
 
Donegel Lake has some monsters in it. I've caught several there in the 20 pound class and I'm sure there are bigger ones there.

My favorite bait for cats is slow trolling nightcrawler harnesses under inline plainers or anchor the boat in the current and float large baits (shiners or chubs) on the same inline plainers. The big cats will rip the plainer down like a bass under a stick bobber.

depth charge.....I like your idea of using planer boards for big cats in the current.....like below in dam in a river.....that way several people could fish the current and have your baits spread out a bit. Think I my try that on the Mon River below the locks where I fish.
Thanks