Interesting article:

You Don't Need to Regularly Reinstall Windows; Here's Why

Today we're talking about the myth that Windows slows down over time, and how to solve the problem. The reality is that Windows doesn't slow down if you just take care of your PC a little more. Follow these procedures, and you won't have to wonder if spending hours backing up data, installing from disc, and re-installing your essential applications is really necessary.

I would say it's not a myth that the average Windows computer slows down over time - the myth seems to be that this is inevitable.

eta:

'm not going to sit here and tell you that your Windows PC will never slow down—because for many people, they almost always do. What actually slows your PC down are too many poorly written applications that stay resident in memory and waste CPU cycles, having too many badly written low-level applications that hook into Windows, or running more than one antivirus application at a time. And of course, if you've run your PC's hard drive out of space, you can hardly blame Windows for that.

I am thinking about buying a Roomba for the first time. I don't really want to spend the moon on one, any models you'd recommend? Or I should avoid? Are the basic models okay? I have two cats, so there's a fair bit of hair.

Sue, do you have carpet, or hardwood/bare floor?

Mostly hardwood with rugs. One bit of regular carpet, and some industrial type carpet in the basement.

I think there's a special model specifically for households with pets - it has a heavy-duty brush that supposedly won't get clogged w/ fur.

The Roomba Dirt Dog is marketed as being for workshops/garages/basements, but a lot of the reviews are people who use it on hardwood floors. A lot of the reviews mention pet hair, and the reviews are mostly good.

I keep meaning to get one, and then things happen, like my car deciding that now would be a great time to need a new battery.

t edit This seems to be the Pet Edition one that Jess was talking about: [link]

Thanks guys! I am not really loving the idea of forking over $400 for a roomba for pet hair, but I'll check out the dirt dog. Now to see how much that will cost me in funny Canadian money...

There was a pet roomba on dealnews recently for something like $250, so it does come down on occasion. But I can't find the deal now, so it must have expired.

Sue, read the reviews for the Dirt Dog (not just on iRobot's site, but elsewhere), and see what you think. The reviews seem solid.

Look also for refurbed/old models. My parents got me one at McFrugals which was about half the price. I presume it was an overstock.