Question: What is User-Generated Content?

User-Generated Content is the term to refer to the method of creating content, usually on the Internet, by a volunteer group of people. The people can be preselected or anonymous and they can often delete, revise or rework other people's work. Think Wikipedia! But user generated content can take many other forms from the Lipofuze review you read on a blog to the book reviews you see at Amazon dot com. When you leave comments on this blog, its a form of UGC.

Question: Where Does Money Market Fund Money Go?

A Money Market Fund is an bank account or investment account where in the cash is invested in very short term low risk securities. These are often short term bonds and overnight lending. Why the setup like this? Two reasons -- first, to guarantee the money will never go down in value. Second, to provide depositors a reason to keep their money in the bank. Getting something on your money is better than nothing and the 0.5% to 2% return on a money market fund is nothing to laugh at. The money in the fund is guaranteed by the bank as if it were a savings account. The money is used as the bank likes but its FDIC insured.

Question: Should I Try Debt Consolidation Now?

Well it could make sense depending on your situation. Interest rates are at a low point right now which means if you have higher rate debt then you could save money with debt consolidation. Also if you need to cut your monthly costs, reducing your debt payments would do a service to you. But make sure you understand all the fees and charges associated with debt consolidation. If you consolidate to a lower rate but your pay a large sum in fees up front, it doesn't make sense!

Question: Does a Hybrid Car Make Personal Finance Sense?

Sounds like a no-brainer, doesn't it? Buy a hybrid car and save big money on gas. But it actually is more complex than that. Basically there are three modes of cost savings and one mode of higher costs. All four need to be considered and determine whether the savings outweigh the costs and after how long.

Higher Costs:

1. Hybrids cost more than non-hybrids -- Between $2000 and $20,000 more for a hybrid than the identical model in non-hybrid form.

Costs Savings:

1. Gas! -- Save $100 to $500 on fuel per year.
2. Tax Credits! -- Save $1500 on some hybrid models.
3. Higher Resale!

Question: Have You Seen How Busy Value Village Is?

Well maybe you haven't, but the message here is that a lot of thrift and second hand stores are seeing a real uptick in business this year due to the recession. From Value Village to Goodwill, you can find gently used clothes in these stores for $5, $3 and $2 a piece! That's really wholesale clothing when you think about it. These types of stores are seeing this gain and so too is WalMart, the largest discount retailer in the world. Have your shopping habits changed? Have you ever bought second hand clothes?

Question: How Much Did the S&P Rise Last Week?

Sure the U.S. Stock market gave back some gains in trading today but last week was just spectacular! The major U.S. stock indicies rose around 7% last week! That's quite a gain for a Bear market. All in all, this year to date my aggression 401k is up over 7.2% -- that's not too shabby considering the market turmoil seen this year and its great compares with the 40% drop last year!

Question: What is a Stay-cation?

This blog is all about saving money, so I'm always looking for new ways to share with you. One buzzword in the culture right now is the stay-cation. Its a vacation where you "stay" where you live. Visit your local city center or just stay in your backyard with your family. Sure you can buy some new outdoor dining sets to make it a little more luxurious, but its still probably cheaper than buying plane tickets or driving hundreds of miles on the road.

Question; What is a Project Management Baseline?

In Project Management, the baseline is defined as the approve work plan (e.g. schedule, budget, scope) with the approved changes added or subtracted from it. When the actual progress of the project is different than the baseline, a delta can be determined. This is useful in determining project metrics like work completion, cost projections and labor estimates to complete.

Question: What is Business Resiliency?

Business Resiliency is all about creating an organization which cannot be easily destroyed or ruined. Think about it sorta like diversification but without necessarily having different product lines. Its more like being able to get things done in different ways. Its about suppressing - not like appetite suppressant but like keeping the unexpected from taking over. Suppress issues and learn from them and grow your business into a resilient organization.

Question: How Can I Manage Assumptions?

In Project Management, assumptions can be defined as things we believe to be true during project planning. These things are taken to be true without necessary proof (although backup could be useful). Assumptions made during project planning have risk associated with them which needs to be accounted for. This follows into Risk Planning.

Question: Who is Recycling in Home Decor?

Google "Recycled Building Materials" and you will get millions of hits. So what's the big deal with this? Well there is something very chic right now about recycling building materials and building new homes made of old stuff. From reclaimed wood to antique chandeliers, its big business right now to recycle old materials and build beautiful new homes.

Question: Is the Widescreen the Computer Monitor Winner?

Yes, its true -- the standard 4:3 ratio monitor is becoming harder and harder to find. There has been recently an unofficial shift in the lifecycle of computer monitors. Many manufacturers have announced end of lifecycles for traditional 4:3 aspect ratio screens. From hear on out, the standard will be the 16:9 widescreen variety. If you are not a big fan of widescreen monitors, then hurry up and buy your 4:3 now before they are impossible to find.

Question: Are Online Pharmacies Safe?

Sure you can go online and get diet pill reviews and price comparisons, but is it safe for you to actually buy your medicines on the Internet? Well the appeal to save money and spend less is large but is it actually safe? The jury is still out. I mean, many large website state they are safe and list their safety records and protocols online, but how can you really trust them. I think Consumer Reports should make an article about safe online pharmacies.

Question: How Much Stuff for a Trillion?

The war in Iraq has cot the U.S. so far up to $1 trillion. Someone already thought about this large sum and wrote a book about it. Its called "What We Could Have Done With the Money: 50 Ways to Spend the Trillion Dollars We've Spent on Iraq" by Rob Simpson.

Some extracts from the book:
- Provide every high school student in the U.S. a free college education.
- Pay off every American's credit card Debt.
- Buy a new Buick for every senior citizen still driving in the United States.
- Put another 663,000 Police on the street for 32 years.
- Buy 6.6 million Habitat for Humanity houses, enough for 43 million Americans.

Question: Why Shop at Buy.com?

Why shop at Buy.com? Well here's the secret that the other sites don't want you to know. Buy.com will show you their price along side the price of all their competitors on the web for items they sell. They feel is they can't give you the best deal around that they will tell you where to find it. Its all about getting the absolute lowerst price for the hottest tech and home goods. Buy.com also has their famous weekly sale page where you can find amazing sale and closeout prices on stuff. I always check that page out once a week. Usually these deals are limited stock, so check back often and snatch up some amazing deals.

Can't get enough of those funny Buy.com commercials on TV? Well you can watch them all online. Just search for user "BuydotcomCommercials" on YouTube to find their page. Its really quite funny and refreshing. How exactly did Howie Mandel make this great breakout in U.S. pop culture? From his game show to his Buy.com commercials it has really been fun to watch him succeed.

1401 and Counting!

This is post number 1401 at Ask Jason and its been a long journey. Those 1401 posts took over 2 years to make. Still when you think about it, that's an average of almost 2 posts a day for two solid years. Thanks to all the readers who have visited this site and make it one of the top rates search results for ASK JASON on Google. Here's to 1400 more posts!

Question: How Can I Save Money on Flooring?

Is the current economic downturn making you think about fixing up your home. I mean, lets face it, with prices down you are probably going to be living in the same home for at least the next 5 years. So why not beautify your home? But how to do it for less money? I like looking at high quality wood flooring from innovative materials. I love bamboo as a price conscious and very eco-friendly choice. Bamboo is useful because it grows to fast and it is so durable and strong. It can save you money now and then in the future as it wears very well.

Question: How Will the New iPod Shuffle Evolve?

The new Apple iPod Shuffle was released a short while ago and it is certainly an amazing device. So small -- so advanced -- can you imagine that they fit 4 GBs of memory into such a tiny footprint. Here are the next steps for this amazing device:

1. More colors -- so far, its only black and white. Come one Apple! How obvious is this one? Its always the same pattern.
2. Cheaper Price / 2nd Model -- its always the same, start with one model, say 4 GB for $79 and then 6 months later, offer a larger storage version for the same (or higher price point) and /or drop the price of the original size device. I predict $69 for 4 GB and $89 for 8 GB in six months from now.
3. ???? - Here's the wild card of the pattern. This would be a special but not fundamental change in the device. What could it be? A mirrored front? Textures? Glow in the dark? What do you think?
   

Question: How Can I Get Style?

Are you dude who just can't get it together? I mean, you're not into fashion and you could care less about shopping for clothes, but you don't want to look like a schulb at the office... Here's my tip for style for dudes -- get a magazine subscription! No seriously, get a subscription to Esquire Magazine. Its a fun read, with lots of girls, tech, girls, and jokes, and, if your read it, you might pick up some style tips. From picking out a tuxedo to making sure your pants match your jacket, you can learn a lot my reading a magazine!

Question: Who Are the Gold Bugs?

No they are not termites who eat gold bar! When we hear the term "gold bug" is refers to someone who invests heavily in gold as opposed to stocks, bond, real estate or cash. A Gold Bug usually is very bullish on buying gold and holds it as a great store of wealth. The only problem I see with being a gold bug is where to store all your bullion? Under your bed? In the bank? In a buried chest in your backyard?

Question: How is Memory like Inflation?

Think about this one -- when you see a compact flash card for sale at a store, what determines the price? Moreover, when technology improves and more memory is available for less money, what happens to the existing inventory? Well the price of the existing cards must be slashed. Its sorta like a type of inflation -- for technology. Why would Target want to stock 2 GB memory cards for $9.99 each, when in 6 months you can buy 4GB for the same price? If they haven't sold all the 2GB cards, they will have to slash the price to $4.99 or less in order to keep it worth it. That's a 50% loss!

Question: Should I Just Cash in My Accounts?

In investing, some of the best advise I've ever gotten is "Stay the Course". This means sticking with your long term plan through thick and thin. An amazing example of this was seen last week. With all the meltdown on Wall Street on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, some investors would have gotten out of the market. If they had, they would have missed Thursday's and Friday's great rally. Look at my returns on Friday last week:


These were my favorite mutual funds and ETFs I hold in my retirement accounts. If I would have sold into the panic on Tuesday, I would not have recovered this much on Friday! Sure I was down for the week overall, but I would have been a lot more down if I had sold into Wednesday's panic.

Question: What Will Happen to the Beach?

What will happen to the beaches and other ocean front property as global warming and climate change start to raise global sea levels? I mean, think about it -- those beach vacation rentals and property will start to go underwater as ocean levels rise. A 10 foot ocean level change would displace hundreds of thousands of people around the world. Where would they all go -- what would happen will at that property?

Question: How Do You Calculate a Stocks' PE?

A PE ratio, also known as a Price-to-Earnings ratio is a measure of a stocks inherent value. To calculate PE, you take the stock's current selling price and divide it by the earnings per share value of the stock. For example, if a stock trades for $30 a share and the EPS (Earnings per Share) is $3, the PE ratio is 30/3 = 10.

Question: What is Whole Life Insurance?

There are many different types of life insurance out there and one is called "Whole Life Insurance". Here is what it means. As opposed to term life, whole life covers your for your entire life. When you die, your survivors get a benefit or if you live super-long, you get the benefit. If you want details, there are 6 different variants of whole life insurance: non-participating, participating, indeterminate premium, economic, limited pay, and single premium. See Wikipedia for more info.

Question: How Can I Improve My Meetings?

Well there are many things that you should be doing -- its up to you to read this list and determine which ones you are missing and whether they would fit your business environment:

• Publish and agenda ahead of time
• Stick with the agenda
• Post meeting rules
• No cell phones
• Set a start time
• Late people don't get recaps
• Late people must pay fine
• Late people must take minutes
• Table (for next time or new meeting) non-agenda or sidebar discussions
  

Question: Should I Buy Generic Food?

Sounds creepy -- "generic food" -- but I think we're talking about store brands or no-name brands of common foods. In my opinion, to save money, buying WalMart brand products for beans and pasta and milk is perfectly fine. If it means the difference between having to set pantry moth traps in your bare pantry or having enough food to eat, make sure you and your family eat well. The food is just as healthy (if not as tasty) and it can save you hundreds of dollars a year on grocery bags.

Question: What is the Future Role of YouTube in Music?

Here's an observation I've recently made -- YouTube.com is the MTV of the 21st century. Remember MTV before the days of Reality Shows? Yeah, they played Music Videos and people watched. Well, same thing now with YouTube. Look at the top 20 viewed videos of all time and half are music videos. If Avril Lavigne can have her video viewed over 90,000,000 times, then its maybe more important to have music videos on YouTube instead of cable television.

Question: What Not to Give For Valentine's Day?

Well with Valentine's day only hours away, if you haven't already bought your sweetie a gift, you may feel rushed to run out and get a gift. Well beware -- don't rush and buy the absolute wrong gift. It could just end up being worse than not buying anything at all. What qualifies for a bad Valentine's gift? Well how about diet pills or workout clothes? Or maybe cleaning supplies or a vacuum? Yup all those gifts really stink. Don't make a big mistake this year and buy one of those for your significant other.

Question: Can I Buy an Unlocked Cell Phone?

It is becoming easier and easier thanks to the power of the Internet. Why would you want one? Well unlike the cell phones you buy from the AT&T store or Sprint, unlocked cell phones are not tied to a single mobile service provider. With these phones you can use SIM cards from any provider you choose -- almost anywhere in the world. Lets say you wanted an iPhone but didn't want to use AT&T. In that case, you'd need to buy an unlocked model so you could use another service provider. Do they cost more? Yes, but they free you from being locked into a provider you don't like.

Question: What is Deterrence?

Deterrence is the term which relates to reducing the likelihood or favorability of an outcome, usually a negative one. One classic example is how a burglar alarm will deter criminals from breaking into your home. Why? Well if you have 5 houses on a street and one has a security system and the other 4 don't -- which one would you rob? Obviously not the one with the alarm system! Therefore the alarm system acts as a deterrent to a break in. As the old saying goes, sometimes a good offense is the best defense.

Question: Should I Sell All My Stock?

In investing, some of the best advise I've ever gotten is "Stay the Course". This means sticking with your long term plan through thick and thin. An amazing example of this was seen last week. With all the meltdown on Wall Street on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, some investors would have gotten out of the market. If they had, they would have missed Thursday's and Friday's great rally. Look at my returns on Friday last week:


These were my favorite mutual funds and ETFs I hold in my retirement accounts. If I would have sold into the panic on Tuesday, I would not have recovered this much on Friday! Sure I was down for the week overall, but I would have been a lot more down if I had sold into Wednesday's panic.

Question: What Are Naots?

Haven't you heard about Naot? Well Naot shoes are taking the country by storm. They are the next level up from those good old crocs. Instead, they are where comfort and fashion meet. Noat shoes are as close to walking barefoot as you are going to get. Developed in the 1980s these high tech shoes are coming more popular now as millions of people are discovering their form meets function approach to footwear. Check them out online or at a fine footwear stores near you.

Question: Have You Heard ELPUOC DDO EHT?

ELPUOC DDO EHT is a special version of Gnarls Barkley's latest album The Odd Couple. It is the entire album, as a single track, played in reverse order. You can download the album free from Danger Mouse's site Fronttobackbacktofront.com. No joke -- all I can say is...



I listened to it a few times but it got a little useless after that. Oh well, what do you really expect for free these days?

Question: How Can I Cut My Energy Bills?

My number one tip in the winter months is to closely monitor your thermostat setting. You don't need to run it when you are not at home! And you don't need to run it downstairs at night when you sleep upstairs. Make sense? Well it does but you'd be surprised how many people don't follow these simple ideas. Also, you can localize the heating to just your bedroom using a floor heater or a electric blanket and cut out the HVAC mostly altogether.

Question: What Does Pump and Dump Mean in Investing?

It's a dangerous scam, to fall for, so read up and what out! The Pump-and-Dump scheme is used in penny stocks and other low quality securities. A stock is hyped on the Internet, on the phone, or in public (a tip at the bar) in order to pump the price up. Once it goes up, the people behind the scheme sell their shares for a big profit. Since the run-up in price was not backed by any real news, the value of the shares quickly fall thereafter, usually below the initial price.

Question: How is Youtube the New Music Television?

Well you remember that video fo those guys singing on treadmills? (OK-GO)... Well, you probably saw their music video on YouTube.com and not on cable music TV (MTV). Now go to YouTube and check out the top 10 viewed videos of all time. How many do you see which are music videos? Yup -- most of them! This is the future of the music video and the web is the perfect medium (short, fun, and multimedia).

Question: What is a PM Milestone?

In project management, a milestone is an activity with duration of zero days. What this means is that the milestone is a date at which something has been accomplished or a phase is completed. When adding it to a schedule, you select a duration of zero days to show that there is no actual work to be done -- its only a placeholder. Of course milestones can move based on predecessor shifting or being rescheduled, but htey remain with duration of zero days.

Question: What's an Idea for a Website?

One site I really liked today was datasheets.com -- its a site filled with millions and millions of technical datasheets on products. Sounds boring? Well it may be but not when you are looking for technical details on a certain product. So how about a website on nothing but drug and supplement information. From Apidexin to Zoloft, you could use the warning labels from all possible medicines to create a library of all of them. Thousands of pages, indexed by Google. Slap a few Google ads on there and get targeted views and ad results!

Question: Will Citigroup Become a Penny Stock?

Probably not! Although far from a penny in value, these class of stocks range in price up to $5 per share and/or does not trade on a major stock exchange. This is not an exact definition. In fact, the U.S. SEC defines penny stock as:

While penny stocks generally trade over-the-counter, such as on the OTC Bulletin Board or in the Pink Sheets, they may also trade on securities exchanges, including foreign securities exchanges. In addition, penny stocks include the securities of certain private companies with no active trading market.

They also refer to penny stocks as "microcaps" which relate directly to the underlying tiny market capitalization. One of the biggest risks with penny stocks is that they can be so small that they do not report their financial data to the SEC and thus are not subject to financial scrutiny.

Question: How Can I Sell My Own Merchandise?

Do you have an idea for a great slogan or image and you want to get it on t-shirts, magnets, coffee cups, posters, and thongs? (Well, maybe not thongs)... It may seem like a daunting task -- you know, finding a vendor, getting the design submitted, executing orders -- but its really not thanks to the Internet. There are several companies out there like CafePress where you can create your own virtual store and sell your merchandise with ease. The site takes care of the printing, shipping, and money, and you get to keep some profits!

Question: Why Do Some People Call the Web "The Internets"? Is There More Than One?

Here's a question from Cohnsey, left via comment:

Why do some people call the web "the internets"? Is there more than one?

Nice question Cohnsey and nice persistence. Thanks for the kick in the pants.

Referring to the Internet as "The Internets" is an Internet humor meme sparked originally by something President Bush said back in 2000. Here he is saying it again in 2004:


For a more complete description of this Meme, check out its entry on a weird site Encyclopedia Dramatica. [ Not Generally Safe for Work ]

Question: What Will Happen in 2009 for Homebuilders?

Well I think we will start to see a new batch of bankruptcies for home builders. Long gone are the days of Hansgrohe upgrades and Corian counter tops. In fact, the last few months have been a struggle for many builders just to stay afloat. After the new bankruptcies I think we will see a turning point in the Spring. Historically the Spring is the time of year that home sales pick up and people think about new houses. Lets see if it works.

Question: How Bad Will 2008 End Up on Wall Street?

With only 3 trading days left on the U.S. Stock Market, everyone is wondering how the year will end up. Will we sink lower as people sell for tax purposes (if anyone has anything left!) or will there be a post-Santa Claus rally? So far the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 36.2 percent. This represents the biggest drop since 1931 -- that's right -- the worst since the Great Depression where 1931 saw the index drop 40.6 percent. Hell, only 4.5% to go? Maybe we can sink another 5% and make it official.

Question: Should I Buy Books?

Buying books is a noble effort but I'd prefer to borrow them from the library. Why? Because its free (*as long as you don't rack up late dues). Reading is important but you don't have to spend a lot of money to do it. Here's my process:

1. I look up the hottest and most popular books on Amazon books or NY Times.
2. I go to my library online and reserve the books from the list which interest me.
3. When the books are available, they are reserved for me at the library.
4. I go and pick them up and read them!
5. When they are due, I either return them on time or I renew them online to avoid late fees!
   

Question: Can You Say Stagflation?

Heard that term in the news lately? Yup, people are talking about Stagflation -- what is it? Stagflation is the combination of the words stagnation and inflation. It occurs when a country sees grow in inflation while at the same time the economy is weak. The main problem is what to do with interest rates. Central banks usually cut interest rates to stimulate the economy, but lower rates help increase inflation. If you raise interest rates (to slow inflation), you risk slowing the economy and hurting business even more.

Question: Why Should I Subscribe to Magazines?

Well it seems that with 24/7 cable television and the amazing Internet, you no longer need to read books and magazines, right? Well, no! I like subscribing to magazines to get useful information like how to properly dress at work (Esquire) or what's the best weight loss pill (Men's Health). Also I like reading music magazines to keep abreast on new and upcoming releases. How about you? Do you feel that magazines are still useful or are they dinosaurs of the 21st century?

Question: Who is the Bond King Anyways?

Well you might have heard his name if you frequent CNBC. Bill Gross, as in William H. Gross, is one of the most famous financial managers in the U.S. He is known as “the Bond King” and invests heavily in them in the mutual funds he manages. He currently manages the 5th largest mutual fund in the world (Pacific Investment Management’s Total Return Fund). I like him not for his investing powers but because he is a stamp collector (philatelist) and has a complete collection of 19th century American stamps!

Question: How Can I Whiten My Teeth on a Budget?

Well you have several options out there, but I guess since you are asking me, you have already tried most of the over the counter stuff. It works, sort of. Instead lets look at professional whitening. I am amazed to see teeth whitening centers going in to my local WalMarts. Do you have them where you live? Its like no matter where you are -- from Atlanta to Washington DC teeth whitening, these services are popping up in unusual places. Forget the dentist, you can whiten your teeth at WalMart for under $100. Imagine that!

Question: Should I Care About MPGs Anymore?

Even with gas prices around $1.80 a gallon, it looks like the days of $1 a gallon prices are gone forever. And it can only be a matter of time until gas creeps back up to $3 and $4 (or more). So how can you save money? Here are my tips:

1. Shop Around -- I love going to Kroger grocery stores which sell gas outside. The prices with your free discount card are usually 3 to 5 cents less than brand name stations.
2. Get Rewards -- Get and use a rewards credit card which gives you cash back on gas. My Chase Perfect card pays 3% on all gas purchases. No monthly or annual minimum! That's 12 cents off a $4 gallon.
3. Start Slower -- You can save 20% fuel economy if you accelerate more slowly. You may not be first off the line, but you will end up with more money in your pocket at the end of the month.
4. Keep Tires Inflated Properly -- Under inflated tires means more friction and less fuel economy.
5. Buy a More Efficient Car Next Time!