Share your experience with CF lights (+ poll)

There's a push on, privately and publicly, to persuade Americans to replace at least one incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent light (CFL) fixture. For starters. But that task isn't always easy. For one thing, there doesn't seem to be a clearinghouse of practical information as to which brands and types deliver the best benefit at the lowest cost.

So hey, let's make one!

Here's why it matters: If that first CFL purchase is a success, it will probably lead to more. But if it's a dud, that's not just the end of a brand preference--it may the end of the project.

So let's compare notes:

• Which brands have worked well for you, and which haven't?
• Which applications seem to fit CFLs best, and which haven't?
• What are you looking for in a CFL that you haven't found yet?
• And just as important, where did you find good CFLs at a good price?

There's a lot of firsthand CFL experience at dkos. Please add yours, and help make sure that a CFL newbie's first experience is one worth repeating. (P.S. Hat tip to dvogel001 for the diary "Wal-Mart Trying to Go Green.")