• You know, it's the book that you tossed in a drawer after you opened your new electronic toy. Most instruction manuals have a troubleshooting section. Personally, I've saved a number of products from the recycling bin by just reading the owner's manual. (OK, my husband has fixed them by reading the owner's manual.) You also can try www.livemanuals.com , which has simulated instruction on how to operate many products as well as online versions of user manuals.

• If you're the do-it-yourself type, there are many Web sites that can help you with a broken product. Check out www.repairclinic.com or Point & Click Appliance Repair at www.pcappliancerepair.com .

Both provide troubleshooting help so you can figure out how to fix your appliance. Each also can help you find replacement parts. And if you're a handyman (or woman), Point & Click Appliance Repair has a national in-home service referral database.

• That's right, call the maker even if your product is no longer under warranty. In the Consumer Reports survey, 10 percent of readers who complained about a problem got an offer to fix or replace an out-of-warranty product free of charge. Hey, it never hurts to ask.

If you want a list of products that have been exceptionally reliable or to obtain a very useful repair-or-replace timeline, check out Consumer Reports' Web site at www.consumereports.org . You will have to pay to register on the site to access the information. But it's worth it.

If you're faced with the fix it or nix it choice, do a cost analysis. Don't assume a repair will be too expensive. When it came to my TV, I thought it was at least worth the effort since I had paid $900 for it.

(Under duress, I might add. My husband was tired of watching the Super Bowl on our 19-inch.) Trust me, having paid more than I ever thought I would for a television, I wasn't going to heave-ho it into a landfill.

For $80 I got the sound back. Now I don't have to strain to hear what those desperate housewives are saying as I prepare my kid's lunches for the next day.

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