For some months now I have been using and advocating the use of CFL or compact fluorescent lights. Up until recently these lights were expensive and had a few issues, such as a start up delay and extremely harsh light, that prevented people from buying them. While these lights have a number of differences from their incandescent cousins it's time for people to start to consider using them in the homes and businesses. The NY Times had a great article today on Walmart's push to put these bulbs in 100 million homes. While it is easy to assume that Walmart would only do this for profit reasons it should be taken into consideration that these bulbs use about a quarter the energy of an incandescent and typically last 5 to 10 times longer (source: NY Times chart). This translates into an annual savings of $8 (the chart implies that this is per bulb) while the CLF lights generally cost about $2-4 dollars each. So far the CFLs seem like a sure winner but there are few things that need to be factored in first, such as the paltry cost of normal light bulbs, the harsh white light of CFLs, and the fact that CFLs have a small amount of mercury in them so proper disposal is an issue. The actual shade of the bulb will depend on the color temperature so if you shop around a bit you can pick and choose. Personally I hate changing light bulbs (I never seem to have extras on hand), I prefer a whiter light, and I don't mind saving a bit on my electric bill so I have almost completely made the switch to compact fluorescent lights. The "almost completely" is because a few lights I use are LED, which is perfect for reading lamps and anything on the desktop though is not as versatile as incandescent or CFL. The CFL is not a panacea but it brings us one step closer to energy efficiency. Simply put, these lights are cheaper over the long run and conserve electricity, there is not much else to worry about, in my opinion. Not everyone is going to like their unconventional appearance (they lack a traditional bulb) or having to pay more up front but it should be well worth it for anyone concerned about energy efficiency. Also this seems to be one issue where Walmart finally got things right and is steering its customers in the right direction.