I get a lot of heat and annoying glare through my windows and it fades the furniture. The sun's intense heat through windows is a major contributing factor to high summertime electric bills.
Excessive glare is especially annoying when watching TV or using a computer.
Often, you end up closing a shade or curtain and switching on a lamp. This wastes even more electricity. All of these can be easily removed in the winter to take advantage of passive solar heating and reused again each summer. Another major advantage of these window treatments is more indoor privacy day and night. It is easy to install yourself.