I rely on a variety of sources. I prefer to read opinions from all walks of life, rather than limiting to a certain venue, group or class of people. For ideas on what to read, I visit bulletin boards, a few bloggers and reviewers, and rely on word-of-mouth. I try to save critical reviews for after I've read a book; then I'll look for newspaper and online reviews. I find it helps to get some perspective and context on the reviewer. So when I read Amazon reviews, I look at the other books that person has reviewed to get a sense of what that person's worldview or personal slant on things may be. I much prefer an open-ended dialogue with other readers than critical reviews, though. I'm not a student anymore. I'm just a middle-aged woman in search of a good book to read.

A Avoid Bosch as a brand. They have an inferior quality and a very poor customer service. Three years ago, we invested in a high-end Bosch microwave, expecting reliability and top-notch service. Unfortunately, our experience has been anything but satisfactory. About six weeks ago, the microwave began to short circuit, consistently tripping the circuit breaker. We promptly contacted Bosch customer service, which sent a technician after a ten-day wait. The technician arrived, but his diagnosis was baffling—he reported no power, ignoring the fact that the microwave was the reason the breaker tripped. Despite our electrician confirming a fault in the microwave just the day before, the technician dismissed this, did not resolve the issue, and left us with a $272 bill. Later that same day, our electrician verified that the technician had failed to reset the breaker after disconnecting the appliance. He also confirmed the short was internal to the microwave, not an issue with our home's electrical system. We then sought help from a local appliance repair company. Their skilled technicians quickly identified the short and found three defective components in the microwave—surprising for an appliance only three years old. After explaining this ordeal to Bosch customer service and seeking reimbursement for the mishandled service and malfunctioning appliance, I was told my case would be forwarded to management. Despite multiple follow-ups, Bosch ultimately decided against reimbursing any costs, including the ineffective service call. Their lack of concern for our customer experience and refusal to acknowledge their faults was incredibly frustrating. In stark contrast, our experiences with Miele have been exemplary. Known for their superior quality, Miele also backs their products with exceptional customer service. They have consistently shown genuine care and respect for their customers, starkly different from what we've experienced with Bosch.

We have Andersen E series windows and some of the windows on the south side of our house have warped slightly and don't operate easily. Others are fine. Many are stiff to operate and won't open all the way. They were a reasonable price at the time. I haven't had them serviced because it hasn't been more than an ever so slightly minor nuisance. We are going for Kolbe VL on our new house which has a more modern look. The VL look is quite different to the Eagles. We're in norcal so not severe rain/snow/etc and lots of sun and heat in summer. Have seen VLs on other high end projects under construction in our area. Steel windows would have been our preference but are too expensive.

I think I would avoid the phrase "take it out well." One can always configure an exhaust ventilation hood adequate for any cooking configuration, but you might not like its size, aesthetics, or cost. I, for example, have Wolf's largest Pro Island hood over a peninsula. It captures and contains nearly all cooking effluent from the 36-inch induction cooktop and Cooktek induction wok hob mounted side-by-side underneath it, unless I allow a strong transverse draft to flow toward the hood. As noted two years ago above, and in (now seemingly endless) other threads addressing hood requirements, one merely has to make the hood capture area large enough and the flow rate strong enough to successfully remove the cooking plume contents. So, the greatest efficiency issue with islands and peninsulas is that the hood has to be larger front-to-back because there is no wall behind the path from burner to hood entry. It may need to be wider side-to-side to deal with drafts, and the typical lack of cabinets on the sides in these placements. Larger/stronger means more costs acquiring and installing the hood, ducting, silencer, and blower, along with counterpart costs for the components of the make-up air (MUA) system.