The two best discoveries of the year...

With Christmas around the corner and plenty of people wondering what to ask for, I just felt like sharing two of the greatest things I've found this year.

1) TiVo. Actually, I have a ripoff version; it's a computer running Windows Media Center with a built-in DVD burner. I heard lots of people talking about how TiVo would absolutely change the way you watch TV, but I thought it was crap. It's 100% true. I've started turning on the TV at the start of a show, pausing the live TV and doing something else for 10-12 minutes, then coming back, hitting play and watching it like it's live. The only difference is I can fast-forward through commercials and will end up finishing the show at the same time as everyone else. No more running to the bathroom or missing crap if the phone rings. Just pause the TV. I would have missed the winning goal in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup finals because of a phone call, except I paused it and was able to watch it as-live just a few minutes after it happened.

2) On-line banking. This doesn't cost anything, so it's not much of a Christmas present. I just switched from National City to Net Bank a few months ago and can't imagine ever going back. Easily the best feature is on-line bill paying. You might have seen the commercial where the woman pays all her bills on-line while filling up the bathtub. It's actually easier than that. Once you set up all your monthly bills (mortgage, utilities, insurance, etc) you just punch in the amount of the bill and click "pay." No more writing out checks, buying stamps, and running to the post office. It EASILY saves me an hour a month.

Any other suggestions?