i.e. vs. e.g.

Improper use of these two naughty abbreviations is so common, trying to establish their distinction could prove pointless; however, once one knows their meanings, their uses magically appear easy to apply (although still very difficult to remember over extended periods of non-use unless you take the time to re-reference, which is an action most intelligent people perform regularly because they realize, as humans and not machines, we cannot remember everything exposed to our minds and admitting confusion is not an admission of inferiority and randomly guessing between the two promises only ill-gotten success--well, people who do choose to guess probably figure their odds of choosing correctly (33%) are quite good.)

i.e. (id est ; Latin): that is

e.g. (exempli gratia ; Latin): for example

It is understandable when "i.e." is incorrectly used for "in example" because of the phrase's initials, but if you apply this simple rule when deciding which of these two crafty Latin abbreviations to use, your nasty skin rashes will never reoccur.

RULE

Ask yourself this question: "Am I choosing to list the only possible example(s) or random example(s)?"

i.e.: only possible example(s) (a finite list)

e.g.: random example(s) (an incomplete list)

EXAMPLES (using the same sentence, unlike many other examples given in dictionaries or style guides where they demonstrate use of these abbreviations, resulting in upholding the confusion you originally held)

I prefer eating at sit-down-and-order restaurants (i.e. Applebee's, Denny's, Olive Garden) rather than pull-up-in-your-car type establishments.

(In this example, I am stating that the ONLY sit-down-and-order restaurants I prefer are Applebee's, Denny's, and Olive Garden, an example of a finite list)

I prefer eating at sit-down-and-order restaurants (e.g. Applebee's, Denny's, Olive Garden) rather than pull-up-in-your-car type establishments. 

(In this example, I am stating Applebee's, Denny's, and Olive Garden are examples of my definition of sit-down-and-order restaurants, and might not be the ONLY ones I prefer, an example of an incomplete list)

If you still do not understand the distinction between these two abbreviations...read my post again.