Hi TM,
I just passed the 8 month mark and still haven't had a single cigarette since Nov. 1, 2011. I can no longer tolerate the smell of cigarette smoke and I have to be careful of becoming one of those ex-smokers that develop a holier-than-thou attitude toward smokers.
That said, for me the electronic cigarette is a life saver. I smoked two packs a day for 50 years and never thought I'd be able to quit. In fact, I haven't quit smoking - I just quit cigarettes. That's what made it so easy. I'm still addicted to nicotine - although at a lower level of consumption. From what I've read, nicotine is not the harmful chemical in cigarettes. It's the tars and thousands of other chemicals that do you in. After a month or two, I lost the smoker's cough and no longer wake up coughing my lungs out.
I use the V2 brand and am happy with them. They come in four different strengths ( levels of nicotine ). I started out at the 18 mg. level and soon found they were too strong for me. I spent the next several months at the 12 mg. level and am now alternating between the 12 mg. and 6 mg. level.
A few suggestions:
1. Buy the 10 flavor sampler to start out with. You will probably hate most of them as none of them really tastes like a cigarette. After a few days, you will learn to tolerate the taste of some of them. Interestingly enough, I never smoked menthol cigarettes, but the menthol electronic is now my most used flavor. I alternate between menthol and "Red".
2. Save your used cartridges - you can refill them using the E-liquid nicotine. It's easy to do and a lot cheaper. I only use the liquid now and it comes out to cost about $15.00 a week - a lot cheaper than cigarettes to be sure.
3. Buy one or two extra batteries and an extra charger for your car. The standard batteries last me about 1/2 a day. The longer ones last about 1/3 longer. If I'm going to be away from home for a day, I always take two batteries and two filled cartridges with me. You don't want to run out because you can't go into a store or gas station and buy new ones.
Finally, realize that everyone is different. I managed to get three of my close friends to try the electronics. One of them is doing as well as I am - one uses the V2 most of the time but, for some reason, needs to smoke real cigarettes while driving his car (why? I don't know). The third fellow used the electronic for a month and gave up on them and went back to the real thing. He says he's going back to the electronics but who knows if he really will. From the testimonials that I read on V2's website it seems that many people end up using both e-cigs and real cigs and I guess that's okay too. If you smoke a pack a day and replace half a pack with e-cigs you're still cutting back quite a bit.
I tried cold turkey, the patch, and the gum - none of them worked for me. I think we're addicted to two separate things, the nicotine, and the physical act of picking up a cigarette and dragging on it. The patch and gum work as far as the nicotine addiction, but do nothing at all to help us with the need to physically hold and drag on the cigarette. That's the advantage of the electronic cigarette - it tackles both addictions. Give it a try. If you stay with it for a while I think you'll do well.
I hope I've answered your questions. If not, don't hesitate to send more PMs. The fact that you want to quit cigarettes should help you tremendously. I didn't want to stop - I just knew I needed to, and it still worked for me. Hopefully it will work for you to.
Hang in there,
XXXXX
You can find many good devices for between$25-50. 
