I have never fished with live shad before. I have seen guys dip netting for them, and it made me think.

What is entailed in this?.....
How is it done? What is the recommended size for a net? Are there preferred locations for netting shad? Are the shad hooked the same way as chovies or 'dines are hooked? Is the preferred method fly-lining, slider, or ??? What tackle is recommended?

Thanks for any and all help!

I haven't Dip-netted for them but when I lived in Henderson, NV I cast netted for them. Late Summer through Fall they'd show up in Hemingway Cut on the Boulder Basin of Lake Mead. The cut had an underground spring and maintained a more constant temp than the surrounding waters. On a good day one throw would get 50 shad, with 10 being more like the average.
For fishing, with Striper as my quarry, I'd back hook one on a #2 or 4 Octopus hook. This would be on a 5' 8# leader attached to a swivel with a 3/4 full small or medium Castabubbble sliding above that. The vast majority of the Stripers were under 6# and I'd use a long whippy rod and 6# main line to make it fun and get neccessary distance. If I remember right the rod was a 9' 5weight flyrod before being converted to a spinning rod. It was very fun trying to control the 14#er I caught with it. :7
Tight lines,
Wade

Check with DFG about the kind of net that is legal (not all are). Also some lakes restrict locations where you are permitted to do this. DFG also does not permit transporting the shad to another body of water.

Bait-caught bass are less likely to survive release, so keep this in mind. Although there is more than one way to hook these shad, I agree with Wade about careful back-hooking (dorsal fin) to keep them frisky. I used to have much fun with my young sons using this technique under a bobber fishing for trout when Lake Berryessa would "turnover" in the fall and shad and trout would come to the surface.

Bob