I like to use a braided line (Berkley FireLine) as the main line, with a short mono leader - anywhere from two feet to eight feet, depending on where or how I'm fishing. I don't run the knot through the guides, and eight feet is about all I can manage without hooking something that's not a fish...
I like how the braid casts from a spinning reel, and Fireline has been the most well-behaved braid I've tried and seems to make the least noise when passing over a roller bearing. The mono is a shock leader, so-to-speak, so there's a tiny amount of springiness.
I'm not a steelhead expert by any stretch, since the only one I've landed was a steelhead only by the SW Zone's definition (rainbow trout over 16 inches), but I've used the combination on sea run cutthroat and rainbows without a hitch. For light tackle, I like 6# braid (3# mon equivalent diameter) to 4# mono. For the cutthroats, I like 10# braid (6# diameter) to 6# mono. For steelhead, I like 15# braid (8# diameter) to 8# or 10# mono. For chinook, I use 30# braid to 20# mono.
Mind you, the steelhead and chinook lines are theoretical. If I hook a real steelhead or a chinook larger than my 10# best so far, I'll know if I'm undergunned and when my heartbeat gets back close to normal, I'll let everyone know how it worked out.
I was using Trilene XL as a leader but stopped using it because it fails very easily when it's been wet for a while. I've been using Maxima UG leader material - it's stronger than regular Maxima on the larger spools - and haven't had a line fail, yet. I'm kind of curious about the comments against Maxima because my greatest uncertainty is the mono leader.
Oh! I snell my hooks with a standard snell knot. I haven't found anything stronger and more dependable than a snell knot for attaching a hook.