service posts

A recent Moneyville article questions the notion that a furnace maintenance plan is a necessity, especially if the furnace is less than ten years old.

So, should you cancel your furnace maintenance plan? After I knew all the facts, I did. Read on to find out if you should, too.

Times, they are a'changing, and we are changing with them. We would be looking askance at the selling and shopping manners of just a scant couple of generations ago. Our children (and grandchildren) will be wondering about our manners to the nth degree, too.

But we now live in a society driven by science. So, we don't leave the development of future markets to accident. Darwinian evolution might be a fine and dandy theory, but we need to know in advance not only where we've been but, more importantly, where we're headed.

That's where Intersperience, a British company known for its thorough research of business trends, comes in.

Their research concentrates on technological change, but what's going on has wider implications.

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It's important to have a good relationship with your bank; after all, you're entrusting it with your life's savings, investments and debts -- and paying fees to boot. Luckily for Canadians, we've an array of good banks. But which one should you choose?

In terms of general customer satisfaction, credit union customers are Canada's happiest bankers, according to a Financial Post article based on a poll of more than 2,000 adults compiled by Forum Research in March. The poll shows that 74% of credit union members are "very satisfied" with their institution.

Among the big banks, Bank of Montreal has the highest percentage of happy customers, with 72% saying they are "very satisfied" with the service they receive. But not all banks perform so well.

Now that the holiday season is over, the organization begins. Back in the office, back in school and the daily schedule that eats up a lot of time of spare time.

I need to write some thank you notes - but when to find the spare 10 minutes to organize it?

Technology to the rescue with ThankThankNotes, a new website that helps you send a proper thank you note, but let's you keep your email/IM/text cred. The website has a template for you to fill in addresses and message (75 words or less), and choose a style of note.

Have you ever been on a flight from hell? I sure have, more than once. Check-in lines that seem to never end; rude staff, sneaky baggage fees; delayed flights with no explanation; flight staff who disappear after take off; passengers who got drunk on board; emergency landings because of passengers who got drunk on board; broken entertainment systems; broken air conditioning; bad food; no food; chairs that don't recline; and crammed seating with flat headrests that result in the person next to you sleeping on your shoulder. You name it, I've experienced it.

The more bad flying experiences I've had, the more I've come to appreciate the flights with good service. I'm also more likely to fork out a little extra to fly with a good airline, especially over long distances. Some of my personal favourite airlines are Singapore Airlines, Qantas, Cathay Pacific and Thai Airways. Two of those airlines were named in the list of the world's top airlines by this year's Zagat survey.