this thread makes me so happy - to add my $.02, i think an insulated coffee carafe is completely necessary.
i'm not a coffee snob by any stretch of the imagination - IMO, coffee, like alcohol, does not need to taste wonderful, it just needs to fulfill its intended function. with that being said, i'm kind of obsessed with my carafe. imagine: i wake up early one morning to start a marathon day of working at my computer. i make a pot of coffee, drink a cup or two, then leave the rest in the pot. by noon, when i need another cup, the coffee from this morning is either cold or scorched. i throw away what was left, and start another pot. repeat cycle. huge waste of time and money.
for those with similarly undistinguished tastes re: your caffeine, peep the carafe i have through the link below - it keeps your coffee hot (and your caffeine-high maintained) for up to eight hours. fantastic.
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?SKU=126992