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Nexflix? How in the heck does Nexflix work?

Those were the giggle-worthy words that came out of my elderly grandmother's mouth when she received a subscription to Netflix as a gift; the print was too small, and she misunderstood the name when we told her what it said. Now everyone in the family calls it Nexflix - and I'm still not sure if Grandma gets the joke.

My grandma watches a lot of movies, but her mobility isn't as good as it used to be; a trip to the rental store is not an easy process. After she figured out what it was, she was thrilled to have the subscription - and she continues to enjoy it to this day.

The trick with Nexflix, which we laughingly explained to her, is to time your rentals right. They offer several packages, which vary in price according to the frequency that you'd like to swap out movies. According to them, their most popular package is the one where you can rent three at a time (that's the one we got for grandma) - and it's set at a reasonable price, too.

Shipping is free, so here's the trick to the three-movies-at-a-time deal: Rent all three movies at once, to get started. When they get there, go ahead and watch them - and return one after a day or so. Now you have two to continue to enjoy, and when Netflix gets the first one back, you're eligible to get another one sent out. Keep repeating this process, and you've always got a new movie to watch in a constantly rotating selection.

The best thing about what Grandma still calls Nexflix is that they don't have any overdue fees (and they don't assume you're keeping a movie forever and charge you full price for it like many video rental places do) - so if you're a bit forgetful, you get a gentle reminder in the mail instead of getting penalized. They want you to keep swapping your movies out; in fact, their success depends on it.

Everyone in my family has decided that Nexflix makes a great gift, especially for those movie buffs with limited mobility. When we bought the subscription for Grandma, we also bought one for ourselves - and checking the mail and finding a new release you've been waiting to see is a bit like receiving a gift. It's easy to make it work, too; as they say, timing is everything.

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