I find that often the keys to a good experience are politeness, patience, and being specific (much like the article states). Cancelling service is a pretty specific example, but there are plenty of other reasons to contact support where the same principles apply; for example: Over this past weekend, one of the devices…

I have a love/hate relationship with repairing things. If whatever it is I'm working on is similar enough to a computer, I have no problems with ripping it down and tinkering and fixing. But the farther and farther away you get, the less and less comfortable I am; mostly because I know that I know just enough to be…

I don't know if you've used it, but when you're looking at a book, there's a little section of the page that says "Get a Copy", and there's a link to "More". If you click that "more" link, it'll go out and price-check across about 20 sites.

How do you manage to read 3 thousand books a year? That's almost 9 books a DAY... Do you do nothing other than read?

Mad props to your mom! :)

I was also an early adopter to e-readers, and I remember the Treos — I remember the pilots, too, so I'm not sure what age has to do with anything.

Thanks to paulblakeman, who kindly linked to an article about the potential differences in the way the brain perceives information from digital sources vs. dead-tree books,…

I'm the same way! I can tell you WHERE I saw a certain (related) piece of information, even if I can't recall the specifics of what it said. I know generally where to flip to within a chapter to look something up after I've read it. I lose that with digital books... paulblakeman posted a pretty neat article on why…

Hey thanks! That was a pretty sweet read... and it puts into context the difficulty I had with recall from digital textbooks. I got so frustrated I bought dead-tree versions halfway through the semester, and now I know why!

Nono, I read more than I did before, now that I have my nook. I'm just saying don't necessarily throw one out for the other! :)

;) That's why I said sometimes! Obviously different strokes for different folks — I don't read in the bathroom or when walking to my car (Most of my trip is steps; knowing me I'd fall flat on my face!). I do read before going to bed and I'll use my nook for that (glowlight!), but I make a point to disconnect and read.

Obviously, "a lot of books" is a personal quantification, but I find 20 - 30 books a year is "a lot" for me. Last year I read 34, surpassing my goal of 30, and I was elated. This year is a much busier year, and I've only read 7, so far. I'll be lucky to reach this year's goal of 20 — I'll be happy if I make it past…

Personally, I highlight and make notes because sometimes, a passage just strikes you a certain way and you want to remember it. Maybe it's relevant to something you're going through, or something you want to keep in mind for the future. Sometimes it's just witty. For anything especially profound or good advice, I'll…

That's the best, isn't it? I had that happen once, too, and I was over the moon! Some of the authors are really involved in the groups, too!

I might get buried for saying this, but ditch the e-reader (sometimes) too! I have a huge love for my nook, but I find that I consistently read more quickly and retain more of what I read if I'm reading a dead-tree book. Why? I have no idea!

Why not use Goodreads? It has a pretty good "list" system (they call "shelves"), and it has three by default: Currently Reading, Want to Read, and Read. You find the book you want to read, and it to your to-read shelf. When you're reading, you can keep track of your progress, add notes. And when you're done you can…

I've been toying with the idea of using etsy lately, but so many people are moving away from it since they re-tooled the search algorithm they use... So I'm a little hesitant. It would be nice to make some money, since I've given away so many quilts, and I have really more than any one person should have in their own…

Well, here's the thing: Hobby quilting is much different than (what I call) utility quilting. I do a combination of both — if I know the recipient of the quilting doesn't mind repurposed fabric, scrappy looks, etc then I'll use repurposed and it brings the cost way down. If I'm going for a specific look or a specific…

I quilt. I definitely lose money there... I don't sell them, and if I did no one would want to buy them — the cost of the materials alone for a queen-sized quilt can get into the $200 & $300's very fast. I also make my own notebooks — I don't make money, but I lose less money than if I bought all of them pre-made.

I honestly have to say I've never had that issue, and I've never ironed. A quick light run through the beeswax is all I've ever needed.

A candle, or a hunk of beeswax (if you have one lying around) works much better than dryer sheets. So does keeping your threads short... one long thread will knot up more easily than two shorter ones.