I hear ya! I work at home as well and I completely understand how you feel when you see that kitchen floor in the bright morning light ;-) For me, vacuuming never really did the job I wanted either on the wood floor.

I have a couple of "tools". One is a rubber broom. The following link isn't the exact one I have but similar I think. I like that they pet hair doesn't get hung up in it and that it's washable if I drag it thru something wet or sticky. It really does act almost like a squeegie on the floor.
http://www.amazon.com/SCG-Sweepa-Rubber-Broom/sim/B00069QPCC/2

The other thing I use is a microfiber mop with washable mop heads. I can use the microfiber dry to dust and if I have something that needs cleaner or water to clean, I just put the cleaner on the mop head and hit that one spot. I have a few extra of the mop heads. I really like these things because while they're more of an investment up front, I don't have to keep buying swiffer refills. Again, the one linked here isn't where I purchased mine but it's pretty much the same mop.
http://www.starfibers.com/mops.php

We've got hardwood thru the entire house (except bath and laundry room) so I've worked my way thru a number of floor cleaning tools. The two above seem to work better for me than anything else.

Hope this helps!

Thanks, toomuchstuph! I actually have a rubber broom I bought at a home expo fair. I only tried it a few times, it didn't seem to work very well: seemed like the rubber would't glide across the floor. I wondered if there was some trick to using it that I didn't know. I'm still not sure if you are supposed to pull it or push it.

The microfiber mop looks promising. I think something fluffier like microfiber should work better. I certainly like my microfiber towels for cleaning the kitchen counters. I know you said yours is not the same brand as in the link. Did you buy yours online or in a store? I read though the descriptions and couldn't tell what the difference was between the StarMop and Starmop Pro. Which is closer to what you have? And what is the difference between the white dust cloth covers and the blue ones? Do you have some of each?

Thanks again, sorry to ask so many questions!

I sweep my kitchen linoleum every morning. Takes about three minutes. Omce or twice a week I go over it with a Swiffer Wetjet. Works for me. The linoleum is pretty new-installed Fall 2006 and still looks like new.

Linnea, I think the rubber brooms may be an acquired taste ;-) Our dog sheds in large puffy clumps. The rubber broom gets those great as well as things as dense as coffee grounds and dirt. I loaned the broom to my neighbor who has a black lab and it just didn't work as well for her. I will say when I use the broom I pull it toward me. The one I purchased is the "yellowtop broom" Got it ages ago from QVC. It came in a set of two brooms - one indoor and one outdoor. The indoor one works better for me. However, for what you want to clean, it may not be the answer.

Attached is a link from where I purchaed my mop and additional heads. I got the Bona kit which came with the hardwood cleaner and a mop. I purchased 5 more heads later. I try to keep my dirty microfibers in a separate little bin and just wash them all together so having extra heads works best for me.

Honestly I couldn't tell you the difference between the StarMop vs the StarMop Pro. It looks like the white dust cloth is more of a fleece kind of thing. The blue one (which is what I have) is like a very thick version of my microfiber cloths that I clean counters and dust with. A lot of online places seem to sell a version of this mop and I really think they may all be very similar!

Now to further complicate things I also have a thing called a Sh-mop. Just google that name and you'll find multiple links and places that sell them. I have a couple of mop covers for this as well (a couple plain white terry and a couple blue microfiber).

The basic diffrerence between them is that the "StarMop" style is smaller and the pad velcros on. The Sh-Mop is larger (8x15) and the pads slip over the top like a shower cap. I do like the Sh-Mop when I'm doing the whole house since it's larger and I can cover more ground. It doesn't get into the corners as well though. When I'm doing the big mopping job, I just wet a couple heads with whatever I'm cleaning with and wet a couple heads with clean water. When I'm done, everything goes into the washer. As I mentioned, I spent a bit more up front but haven't purchased a refill for anything and get to use the cleaners of MY choice!

Hope this info helps. Let me know if I can provide any other info or links for you!

Here is a link that might be useful: Microfiber Mop kit with Bona Floor Cleaner

I have a rubber broom and a black lab and I think it works great. I got is specifically because I had the black lab and I thought that all that hair was going to get stuck in the broom bristles, so I wanted the rubber material.

You should pull the broom toward you in short strokes and it really catches everything. Plus, I really like that it doesn't trap hair and lint and dust bunnies like a traditional broom and create extra dust and dirt to have to breathe in! You can just rinse the broom out when you need to.

Although I don't like to have to sweep with the broom, oftentimes I'm lazy and will vacuum it while vacuuming the rest of the house or break out the dustbuster, but the rubber broom really gets the job done. I have the "One Sweep" one of those "as seen on tv" ones, but I got it at Bed, Bath & Beyond. Got any 20% off coupons??! You know they never expire there!

I had a wool string mop I loved for my wood floors . It picked up and help the dog hair so well. Not sure what happened to it. I think I got it at Home Depot. I'd spray it with Endust and shake it outdoors to clean it. Wish I had it back.