Cooking sprays like PAM are OK to use on SS, or any other glass or bare metal cooking surface that it not coated with a nonstick material. The problem seems to be from the fact that they contain lecithin - which is the thing that gives the spray it's nonstick quality on bare metal or glass. The problem with using it on nonstick seems to be that lecithin and something in the nonstick material are "chemical cousins" that try to bond with each other when heated - producing a sticky polymer which acts more like glue.
As has already been noted - watch the temperature setting. If you have enough liquid to dissapate the heat, like in boiling water, then you can crank the heat up to high. But, for saute or pan frying - Med to Med-Hi is more than adequate for cooking. If you get the pan too hot, it will discolor the metal and cause it to warp.
There is always a learning curve when changing from one type of cookware to another. Just pay a little more attention to what is going on in the beginning until you learn how your new cookware behaves. Given the same heat, ingredients, and cooking methods - All-Clad Tri-Ply SS, Emerilware SS, and Calphalon hard anodized aluminum all cook differently. I actually moved to SS from a brand of anodized aluminum that is no longer made - it was about as thick as cast iron and makes comperable Calphalon feel like a tin cup! As it turns out - I really didn't "replace" my old anodized stuff like I thought I would ... I just added a set of SS.
Clean up can be simplified if you pour off any grease and add 1-2 cups of water and deglaze the pan while it is still hot. You can always wash it later if you wish - but the main thing is to disolve the fond while it is still hot. If you ever watch the cooking demonstrators on TV showing how easy it is to clean SS - that is what they always do - clean it while it is still hot from the initial cooking. Steel wool, as noted, will scratch the surface and cause food to stick more - the food actually gets stuck in the scratches and in turn acts as anchors for food on the surface. Bar Keepers Friend (BKF) is a low abrasive that works like a charm when you need a little extra elbow grease (and green scrubbies are also OK since they are softer than the metal but harder than the food residue). You can use BKF and a green scrubbie on both the inside and the outside.
On the "flip side" - especially if you have an electric stove (but the same thing happens with the grates on gas stoves) ... you may notice brown rings on the bottom of the pan. That's baked on grease. You can clean it off with a 3-step process. (1) When the pan is cold (room temp) and dry - spray the bottom with Murphy Oil Soap and let it sit for a minute - then scrub with a green scrubbie and rinse. (2) Sprinkle on a little BKF and use the green scrubbie again. If clean, go to step 3 - if not, dry off and repeat from step 1. (3) Wash with dishwashing soap, rinse, and dry. When cooking .... oil will splatter onto ajacent burners and unless you heat them up to HI and burn the grease off before using them the oil will fuse to the bottom of the pan.
Washing SS in a dishwasher will probably not do it any serious harm (from the heat) - but it could make it look mighty funky (dull and looking like it has a white powdery coating) especially after it runs though the drying cycle. This can be caused either from soap residue, water spotting from the minerals in the water, or in the case of SS, a spontaneous ceramic coating of the metal by chromium oxide (chrome rust - which is white). If you want to wash you SS cookware in the dishwasher - remove it before the drying cycle begins and wipe it dry with a clean dishtowel ... well, I guess you could use paper towels or a dirty dishtowel if you want.
