Sharing library between 2 IDs on same machine

Hello.  I'm trying to figure out the most strategic way for my wife and me to share content without overlapping each other on our respective devices.  Here are our specifics:
*  We each have separate Apple IDs and iPhones/iPads. 
*  We share a single computer (laptop running Vista and latest iTunes) but have separate user accounts on it. 
*  We select from the same pool of content on laptop (not sure if that means that we have separate libraries?), but must have distinct apps/music/other stuff (e.g. contacts) on each of our devices. 
*  I recently added a network-accesible storage drive to hold all of our media content. 
*  Ideally, we'd also like to be able to share our app purchases across our devices within the five-device license limit
I'm ready to start moving our media content to the shared drive but am not sure what's the wisest way to proceed so that I'm not painted into a corner down the road.  For instance, since we maintain separate Apple IDs, does it make more sense to have separate libraries?  Or is it even possible to have a single library without having to share an Apple ID/password?  But when I move all content to the shared drive, would separate libraries result in two sets of files?  And I'm not 100% sure what role the home sharing function within iTunes should play here. 
I'm sure that I'm making this more complicated than it needs to be, so I'm throwing myself to the experts who've been here before.  I want to ensure that I've got the best mix of shareability, device customization and lack of duplication.  Thanks much for your suggestions. 

FWIW, check these support articles for pointers:
How to use multiple iPods, iPads, or iPhones with one computer
how to share music between different accounts on a single computer

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