Posts Tagged ‘history’

History of the Computer - Computers and Technology

Sunday, January 25th, 2009

The volume and use of computers in the world are so great, they have become difficult to ignore anymore. Computers appear to us in so many ways that many times, we fail to see them as they actually are. People associated with a computer when they purchased their morning coffee at the vending machine. As they drove themselves to work, the traffic lights that so often hampered us are controlled by computers in an attempt to speed the journey. Accept it or not, the computer has invaded our life.

The origins and roots of computers started out as many other inventions and technologies have in the past. They evolved from a relatively simple idea or plan designed to help perform functions easier and quicker. The first basic type of computers were designed to do just that; compute!. They performed basic math functions such as multiplication and division and displayed the results in a variety of methods. Some computers displayed results in a binary representation of electronic lamps. Binary denotes using only ones and zeros thus, lit lamps represented ones and unlit lamps represented zeros. The irony of this is that people needed to perform another mathematical function to translate binary to decimal to make it readable to the user.

One of the first computers was called ENIAC. It was a huge, monstrous size nearly that of a standard railroad car. It contained electronic tubes, heavy gauge wiring, angle-iron, and knife switches just to name a few of the components. It has become difficult to believe that computers have evolved into suitcase sized micro-computers of the 1990’s.

Computers eventually evolved into less archaic looking devices near the end of the 1960’s. Their size had been reduced to that of a small automobile and they were processing segments of information at faster rates than older models. Most computers at this time were termed “mainframes” due to the fact that many computers were linked together to perform a given function. The primary user of these types of computers were military agencies and large corporations such as Bell, AT&T, General Electric, and Boeing. Organizations such as these had the funds to afford such technologies. However, operation of these computers required extensive intelligence and manpower resources. The average person could not have fathomed trying to operate and use these million dollar processors.

The United States was attributed the title of pioneering the computer. It was not until the early 1970’s that nations such as Japan and the United Kingdom started utilizing technology of their own for the development of the computer. This resulted in newer components and smaller sized computers. The use and operation of computers had developed into a form that people of average intelligence could handle and manipulate without to much ado. When the economies of other nations started to compete with the United States, the computer industry expanded at a great rate. Prices dropped dramatically and computers became more affordable to the average household.

Like the invention of the wheel, the computer is here to stay.The operation and use of computers in our present era of the 1990’s has become so easy and simple that perhaps we may have taken too much for granted. Almost everything of use in society requires some form of training or education. Many people say that the predecessor to the computer was the typewriter. The typewriter definitely required training and experience in order to operate it at a usable and efficient level. Children are being taught basic computer skills in the classroom in order to prepare them for the future evolution of the computer age.

The history of computers started out about 2000 years ago, at the birth of the abacus, a wooden rack holding two horizontal wires with beads strung on them. When these beads are moved around, according to programming rules memorized by the user, all regular arithmetic problems can be done. Another important invention around the same time was the Astrolabe, used for navigation.

Blaise Pascal is usually credited for building the first digital computer in 1642. It added numbers entered with dials and was made to help his father, a tax collector. In 1671, Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz invented a computer that was built in 1694. It could add, and, after changing some things around, multiply. Leibnitz invented a special stopped gear mechanism for introducing the addend digits, and this is still being used.

The prototypes made by Pascal and Leibnitz were not used in many places, and considered weird until a little more than a century later, when Thomas of Colmar (A.K.A. Charles Xavier Thomas) created the first successful mechanical calculator that could add, subtract, multiply, and divide. A lot of improved desktop calculators by many inventors followed, so that by about 1890, the range of improvements included: Accumulation of partial results, storage and automatic reentry of past results (A memory function), and printing of the results. Each of these required manual installation. These improvements were mainly made for commercial users, and not for the needs of science.

While Thomas of Colmar was developing the desktop calculator, a series of very interesting developments in computers was started in Cambridge, England, by Charles Babbage (of which the computer store “Babbages” is named), a mathematics professor. In 1812, Babbage realized that many long calculations, especially those needed to make mathematical tables, were really a series of predictable actions that were constantly repeated. From this he suspected that it should be possible to do these automatically. He began to design an automatic mechanical calculating machine, which he called a difference engine. By 1822, he had a working model to demonstrate. Financial help from the British Government was attained and Babbage started fabrication of a difference engine in 1823. It was intended to be steam powered and fully automatic, including the printing of the resulting tables, and commanded by a fixed instruction program.

The difference engine, although having limited adaptability and applicability, was really a great advance. Babbage continued to work on it for the next 10 years, but in 1833 he lost interest because he thought he had a better idea; the construction of what would now be called a general purpose, fully program-controlled, automatic mechanical digital computer. Babbage called this idea an Analytical Engine. The ideas of this design showed a lot of foresight, although this couldn’t be appreciated until a full century later.

The plans for this engine required an identical decimal computer operating on numbers of 50 decimal digits (or words) and having a storage capacity (memory) of 1,000 such digits. The built-in operations were supposed to include everything that a modern general - purpose computer would need, even the all important Conditional Control Transfer Capability that would allow commands to be executed in any order, not just the order in which they were programmed.

As people can see, it took quite a large amount of intelligence and fortitude to come to the 1990’s style and use of computers. People have assumed that computers are a natural development in society and take them for granted. Just as people have learned to drive an automobile, it also takes skill and learning to utilize a computer.

Computers in society have become difficult to understand. Exactly what they consisted of and what actions they performed were highly dependent upon the type of computer. To say a person had a typical computer doesn’t necessarily narrow down just what the capabilities of that computer was. Computer styles and types covered so many different functions and actions, that it was difficult to name them all. The original computers of the 1940’s were easy to define their purpose when they were first invented. They primarily performed mathematical functions many times faster than any person could have calculated. However, the evolution of the computer had created many styles and types that were greatly dependent on a well defined purpose.

The computers of the 1990’s roughly fell into three groups consisting of mainframes, networking units, and personal computers. Mainframe computers were extremely large sized modules and had the capabilities of processing and storing massive amounts of data in the form of numbers and words. Mainframes were the first types of computers developed in the 1940’s. Users of these types of computers ranged from banking firms, large corporations and government agencies. They usually were very expensive in cost but designed to last at least five to ten years. They also required well educated and experienced manpower to be operated and maintained. Larry Wulforst, in his book Breakthrough to the Computer Age, describes the old mainframes of the 1940’s compared to those of the 1990’s by speculating, “…the contrast to the sound of the sputtering motor powering the first flights of the Wright Brothers at Kitty Hawk and the roar of the mighty engines on a Cape Canaveral launching pad”. End of part one.

Works Cited

Wulforst, Harry. Breakthrough to the Computer Age. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1982.

Palferman, Jon and Doron Swade. The Dream Machine. London: BBC Books, 1991.

Campbell-Kelly, Martin and William Aspray. Computer, A History of the Information Machine. New York: BasicBooks, 1996.

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Day Trading - 3 Points That Show Why Technical Analysis Does Work

Friday, January 16th, 2009

It is so easy to become completely bogged down trying to keep up with the company news updates, you know, the feeds you get on the financial news channels. This causes you to get frustrated and often confused. There’s a lot of very interesting information, but does it serve to help our trading decisions? Remember, no two people have the same perspective on anything, and that includes the stock market. The analysts you watch and listen might well have very good and valid reasons for talking a stock up or down, depending upon their own investment criteria.

Here are 3 reasons to help you see why technical analysis works:

1. Every day trading decision, and I mean every one of them, without exception, ends up in one and only one result; price. The price of the stock at close of trading is where the whole picture finishes. You can do anything you like with company data; analyse it, pull it apart, listen to speculators, traders, journalists, but the result a closing is always the same.

2. It is correct that history does not necessarily reflect the future, and that’s quite right, no one would argue the case. But, and it’s a big but, it has been proven time over, that human psyche does repeat itself, the brain functions the in the same manner all the time. What you see on technical day trading charts is the result of past thinking, of past psyche. It will be argued until the end of time that you cannot trade for the future, based on historical data. But the technical data that is delivered and shown by these charts does lend itself to narrowing the odds enormously in our favour, IF used correctly. There are too many successful technical traders to suggest otherwise.

3. To see an excellent example, watch the price of a stock that’s moving in a trend, or range, and you can see that same patterns, by and large being repeated, day in, day out. All of a sudden, the price pushes beyond the upper and lower price boundaries that it’s held for the past few days or weeks, and you have a potential buy or sell trading opportunity.

There are traders who use only fundamentals, and still argue against technical trading, but if you have the time, a blend of both is best. The advantage of using chart set ups is that you can better gauge, and fine tune, where you are going to place you entry and exit positions.

How would you like to discover more about the techniques successful traders use to make profitable trades?

Download them free here: Day Trading Course

Ian Jackson is an authority on Day Trading information, learning the hard way - and now he reveals how you can learn the business too, without all the growing pains.

A Crash Course to the Basics of Day Trading

Sunday, December 14th, 2008

The human race has gotten familiar with the idea of trading since time immemorial. It has been the people’s outlet for survival, prosperity and progress, and for the exchange of their feelings, ideals, and experiences too. With a little back up of history, it can be traced back to when some of the primeval groups started swapping certain useful items with one another in the absence of money so that they could fulfill their daily provisions. Nonetheless, trading is an integral part of man’s life. It transcends race, religion, and sex as it is a common thing for all throughout the world. In this article, you will get a full blast of the information regarding the types of day trading and its pros and cons.

The following are the types of day trading which are qualified by the time frame in which the traders prefer to keep their stocks.

Basic day trading. This refers to the day that the trader opts to collect the stocks and then keep them floating for quite sometime in the effort of selling them all at once at the end of the day. The trader is both the seller and purchaser. One of its primary benefits is that he saves his stocks from being affected due to the unstable prices on the market.

Swing day trading. Bigger profits drive the trader to maintain the stocks under his custody for a longer period of time. Its downside is for the stocks to be gravely affected by the changing prices in the marketplace.

Position trading. With this, the trader buys the stocks and organizes them to last for a couple of weeks and sometimes even months. The trader is usually a good player because he waits for the best time to sell the goods.

Online trading. This type may cover any of the abovementioned day trading types except that the selling and purchasing of the stocks are done through the World Wide Web.

Day trading is a task that requires one’s full attention specifically because the stock market constantly fluctuates. If you are serious about this kind of business, you’d better be active and aware of what goes on around you. The stock market is one of the most uncertain places on earth.

You can’t define the outcome of your endeavor unless you try it yourself. Nevertheless, exercise full caution when dealing with stocks.

Miodrag Trajkovic is an expert on information related to Day Trading, Day Trading Systems, Day Trading Strategies, Online Day Trading and Day Trading Websites.
For more information visit his website http://daytrading.explore-me.com.

How to Stop Losing Money in Forex

Thursday, November 27th, 2008

When a trader begins to trade, what normally happens is that the first few trades are usually successful ones. The new traders then becomes so confident of their supreme abilities in trading that their carefully crafted trading plan and money management rules are cast aside.

Suddenly their trades are not going so well anymore, they begin to lose more and more regularly. It almost seems that the market is ganging up on them to rip the carpet from under their feet! New traders being inexperienced tend to take it very personally and then sub consciously decide to punish the market. The position sizes become larger and larger, money management is totally forgotten, and their trading plan is in tatters now. Any piece of rumor or hearsay is taken to be the gospel truth and acted upon. When all these fail and they still lose money, they turn to “sources” that tout the holy frail of trading. That one plan that could make a trader a million in less than a year! (Come on by now wouldn’t you have woken up already?)

At that desperate situation, many traders choose to believe these sources and make some hefty purchases. They re fund their accounts and take their new trading plan to the market. History repeats itself, their first few trades makes them money then they being to lose again and again. Soon their account is wiped clean and it is about 6 months from when they first started on their path to forex trading.

Does the above story sound faintly familiar to you? It should because close to 95% of new traders that trade goes through this cycle.

Usually at this point in time I get a lot of applicants applying to join my classes and they clamor and complain that it’s the broker’s fault or that the trading plan was a rip off or that they were unlucky.

If you found the above example silly or even simplistic, then you are correct. But isn’t it surprising that 95% of the people who start off as traders give up after 6 months? Simplistic or silly as it may seem, this happens so often that it isn’t even funny anymore. In fact most new traders focus so much on easy and fast profits that they forget the real money making methods.

How then do you stop losing money in Forex and start making some profits? Forex is a business that works best with a defensive stance. If you keep running after the dollars you will only end up losing your whole account! To protect your account must be the first and most important action you as a trader take each time you trade.

There is nothing wrong with the trading plan you started out with or the plan that you bought online or off the shelves. There is noting wrong with the brokers or with the market for that matter. There is a lot of wrong in the way traders think! Discipline both mental and emotional, well planned profit objectives, total money management control. These are the elements that are sadly lacking in the education of many new traders. Prevent yourself from losing anymore money in Forex, plan your trades, trade your plan. Keep a tight rein on your money management, and never take an aggressive stance. This way you will stop the outflow of your money and increase the inflow of pips!

Dr. Joshua Geralds is a successful Investment Specialist with over twenty years experience increasing the income of people world wide. Visit http://www.pipsalot.com to learn how to make steady profits through safe trading and down load your FREE e-book “Money Management” for a limited time only!

Forex History

Thursday, November 13th, 2008

Firstable, What is the Forex Market

The Foreign Exchange Market (Forex) is a market where currencies are traded. Currencies such as the Euro, the US Dollar, the British Pound and many others are traded in the trillions every day.

Why?

People buy and sell these currencies because they fluctuate throughout the day making opportunities for the traders to make a quick profit. Because the movements are normally just cents the profits are small, but if you combine it with a big number of trades per day you’re looking at a hefty profit.

Forex History

Since 1874 to the First World War the gold standard ruled the world economy. Every money that was printed had to be backed by gold. Once a country’s economy started to climb, they needed to import heavily to keep up with the amounts of goods being sold. As this happened, since the only tradable currency a country had with a another was gold, their gold stock was depleted and it no longer represented the amount of money that was in circulation. This created inflation. The country’s economy soon came to a recession making the value of goods so cheap that other countries started to import from them having them fall in recession themselves while the other country recuperated.

As you can see this system offered a highly unstable economy. In 1944 nations got together to prevent currencies from fleeing across nations, and so the Bretton Woods Agreement was signed. The price of gold was set to $35 per oz and all other countries would do the same, setting their currencies to gold. If Britain set it’s oz of gold to 70, that means that to buy 1 US Dollar would cost them 0.50 Pounds. This prohibited speculation of currencies.

In 1971 the Gold Standard ended in 1971. The currencies of the world were no longer backed by gold which opened way to economic tools such as monetary policy. The value of the currency in each country was now what the market said it was. It’s value was represented by how well that countries economy was doing.

Forex History - A New Era

With the advances in technology, computers and the internet made Forex possible. Now people from around the world can speculate and trade currencies as they see fit. Along with computers came software that analyzed the market trends. Having almost unlimited analytical power, these softwares are able to examine huge amounts of historical data in order to make trade suggestions or even trade decisions for the user making profits without their focused attention making Forex history.

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Forex Trading Fact - Why Anyone Can Be Successful and How to Join The Winning 5%

Saturday, November 8th, 2008

Here I want to look at a paradox why forex trading is a learned skill yet 95% of traders wipe themselves out. Let’s look at how to get into the elite 5% who enjoy spectacular currency trading success…

Let’s start first with an inspiring story.

Trading legend Richard Dennis believed anyone could learn to trade with the right mindset and education so he conducted a test.

He selected a group of people of all ages both sexes and from all walks of life and set about teaching them to trade in just 14 days. He then set them up with trading accounts and the rest is history - they piled up hundreds of millions in profits and became trading legends.

Dennis had proved his point ANYONE can learn to trade and it’s not a god given skill.

Now trading is a learned skill so why do 95% of traders burn their money?

Well many fall victim to forex trading myths, think forex trading is easy or don’t get the right education but even those with sound systems can sometimes lose.

Now lets make a statement of the obvious forex trading can be learned by anyone but winning is not easy and you wouldn’t expect it to be, with the rewards on offer but it’s achievable and can offer a life changing income.

The important point to keep in mind is no one is going to make you rich.

Forget all the forex trading robots and the “sure fire” systems, success comes from within and this is what most traders don’t understand.

Your on your own and must learn a forex trading system you understand, can have confidence in and can apply with discipline.

This is what Dennis believed when he taught his students - he didn’t just tell them blindly to follow him, he made them learn the system and it was simple ( basically a breakout method ) but he taught them to have confidence in it and follow it with discipline, through long periods of losses to ultimate overall profits.

Most traders don’t take the time to learn the basics and obtain confidence and they never have discipline.

They think discipline is easy and its not.

Anyone who tells you taking loss after loss, as the market makes you look a fool is easy hasn’t traded.

Discipline is a learned skill and you can achieve disciplined trading - if you want to.

So there you have it - a simple system, you have confidence in, applied with discipline can make you a lot of money. Sure you may not get as rich as Dennis’s students (life simply is not like that) but there is a huge difference between something being impossible and being achievable.

You can be successful and for the effort you put in, the rewards are enormous. The question is:

Are you up for an exiting challenge?

If you are, welcome to the world of global forex trading and remember the forex Fact we have looked at - anyone has the potential to be a successful trader, why not you?

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How to Send Money Abroad From the UK

Wednesday, October 29th, 2008

Remittance is the transfer of money from one point to another; a transaction usually made by foreign workers and immigrants to send money to their home country. Money remittances serve as one of the largest types of financial transactions in the world, with remittances to developing countries reaching £83.9 billion in 2005, and close to £125.6 billion in 2006. This figure is more than twice the amount of international aid.

Remittances are considered a lifeline for people in developing countries. With the relative strength of currencies from developed countries, the money sent regularly to homes could be much more compared to the average salary in developing countries.

The increasing role of remittances in families’ incomes is starting to play a role in national development policies. Since one needs to open a bank account to receive remittances, governments can leverage remittances to promote economic development.

For example, the strength of the Philippine Peso and the Indian Rupee is based on the volume of foreign currency sent. The large amount of foreign currency that is transferred to these countries helps moderate local currencies. In South America, remittances account for almost 10% of the GDP in six Latin American and Caribbean countries.

An increase in money remittances is a symbol of a globalised economy, as more migrant workers from developing countries travel to the developed world to work in various jobs where domestic manpower is not available. Remittances are also valuable sources of domestic investment to aid economic goals.

Remittances can also be a crucial source for supplemental income during natural disasters and calamities. Money transfer services are also employed by non-government organizations and charitable institutions, so they can effectively mobilize their programs during a crisis.

Various remittance agents and money service providers facilitate money sent from one country to another. In India, cash2india.com or Xoom.com handles online-to-offline money remittance. With their online facility, you can transfer money from the UK to be picked up or delivered to the receiver in India. The global leader in money transfer services is W Union. With their long history in this industry, you can find a W Union branch almost anywhere on the globe.

Popular online facilities are also used for remittances. The easiest way to transfer money to india is Paypal, the largest and most widely used online money transfer in the world. A leading alternative to Paypal widely used in UK and the rest of Europe is Moneybookers. More and more international and local money transfer services facilitate remittances from UK to all parts of the world. The cost of money transfer varies depending on the type of service and the geographic cover of operations.

The top remittance countries in the world are mostly from Asia. In the period between 2006 and 2007, £13.5 billion worth of remittances were sent to India, followed by China with £11.3 billion. Third on the list is Mexico followed by France and the Philippines. Remittances will continue to come from UK, US, and the rest of the developed countries to these developing economies.

Send money abroad with Transfer Money from UK

99 Top Tips For Saving Money

Tuesday, October 28th, 2008

FINANCES: CREDIT CARDS AND LOANS

1. Create a budget and be realistic about all your incomings and outgoings. Make sure you know exactly what money you have and when you will have it. This will help you plan for events such as birthdays or holidays when you may need a little extra cash saved up.

2. Make sure you are getting the best possible interest rate for your savings, opening an online savings account could receive a higher interest rate than a regular current account.

3. Missing your credit card minimum payment dates will hit you with a big charge, so set up a direct debit payment to make sure you never miss the date by accident.

4. Lots of credit cards now offer cashback or points on your purchases or gift vouchers when you first sign up, so make sure you shop around before choosing your credit card. However don’t just choose a card because of a one off benefit, you have to look at the overall package.

5. Don’t be scared to transfer to another credit card with an interest free promotional period as lots of credit cards offer this now. However make sure you transfer to a different one before the promotional period is over as you could be charged with a higher interest rate once it has ended.

6. Keep your credit history healthy- this will make it easier to transfer to different credit cards when you need to.

7. Don’t sign up to department store credit cards even if they do offer you 10% off your first purchase, they charge you a very high interest rate, high late payment charges and are too tempting to have in your wallet while you are out shopping!

8. Don’t get yourself into a mess with paying your mortgage. If you are struggling to pay your monthly payments, speak to your provider about taking a mortgage payment holiday which is better than simply defaulting on your payments.

9. If you have a little extra money, pay more on your credit cards or loans instead of spending it on a treat. If you can pay your debts off quicker, you will pay less interest.

10. If you have been stung in the past by large bank charges, try to reclaim them by writing to your bank. If you think your bank charges are significantly higher than other banks, think about transferring your account.

11. If you travel a lot, use a credit card which doesn’t charge you for using it abroad. Some credit cards charge 2.5% for using it in a foreign country, however there are some that do not charge this fee if you shop around.

12. If you are worried about your finances, get free help from your local Citizen’s Advice Bureau, they understand what troubles you may be facing and are trained to help you think of solutions.

13. Make sure you are claiming any benefits that you are entitled to such as Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit. The forms can take a while to fill out and it can be confusing about what you are entitled for but you can go to your local Citizen’s Advice Bureau to help with any queries.

SHOPPING

14. Do you shopping online, this will stop you having to pay for buses or parking and you are more likely to buy what you need when you are online.

15. Join Internet Cashback to earn cashback while you shop online and get access to discount codes which aren’t available in the shops. Earn cashback on a variety of products including your food shopping, clothes shopping, credit cards, insurances etc. Download the Cashback Detector and you will never miss out on cashback while shopping online again!

16. Don’t buy everything from the usual high street shops; use a price comparison website before you buy anything to make sure you are getting the best prices, which could point you to an online shop you have never heard of before with the cheapest products.

17. Try not to impulse shop! Don’t buy something as soon as you see it; give yourself time to think about it so you can see if you really need it. This will also give you chance to shop around for the best price.

18. When buying your groceries try the supermarket’s economy range. You’ll find most of it tastes the same but is half the price, so don’t be put off by the packaging. Supermarket economy ranges are also good for toiletries, medicines and cleaning products.

19. Have a spring clean and sell anything you don’t want or use anymore on Ebay- it is really quick and easy to sell on Ebay now.

20. Do your grocery shopping at night if you can, as supermarkets such as ASDA or Tesco often reduce the price of food like bread, milk or cakes at the end of the day to make sure they sell it.

21. Before you go shopping, make a list of what you need and then stick to it, if you don’t know what you need, you’ll be more likely to overspend.

22. Don’t buy your daily cup of coffee from expensive coffee shops because they are too expensive. A £2 cup of coffee every day will cost you approximately £60 over the whole month! Take a flask out instead!

23. Take a packed lunch to work instead of buying it everyday, it will work out much cheaper especially if you’ve managed to get your bread reduced for your sandwiches the night before.

24. Don’t buy ready made meals; they’re expensive and not very healthy. If you get yourself organised you can cook a meal from scratch in about 20 minutes. It’s healthier and much cheaper.

25. Only buy what you need to eat, buying too much food means it’ll go out of date fast and you lose money on it.

26. Use the leftovers from your evening meals for your lunch the next day, as long as you keep in the fridge it will still stay nice and means you won’t need to buy your dinner out.

27. Always look out for special offers, coupons and discounts. Bulk buy if there is a special offer on something you regularly use, for example a BOGOF on toothpaste however don’t just buy something because it is reduced!

28. Don’t feel you have to be the first person to get the latest products, for example a mobile phone could cost £300 when first launched but could drop to only £50 in the next year.

29. Plan your family and friend’s birthday and Christmas presents in advance by buying them during the sales. If you have enough storage, you could buy your Christmas presents for the following year in the January sales.

EVENING ENTERTAINMENT AND LEISURE

30. Stop eating out at restaurants at evenings and weekends so often. It’s easy to get lazy and head out for dinner but you’ve got to remember that your meal will cost a lot more in a restaurant than it will cooking for yourself.

31. If you do eat out at a restaurant, try to skip the starter and only have two courses which will save you money without ruining your evening. Also, try to resist the coffee at the end of the meal, you can get one at home for much less.

32. Find a restaurant where you can take your own bottle of wine! These are quite common and will mean you are not paying restaurant prices for your drinks.

33. Take it in turns for you and your friends to throw a dinner party. This is much cheaper than going to a restaurant and is often more fun especially if you have themed evenings.

34. If you are going out for the evening, don’t go too early and have a few drinks before you leave. You will spend much less money but will still have fun!

35. If you have an expensive gym membership and do not use it then cancel it as it is a complete waste of money. Try walking instead or using your local leisure centre which will be much cheaper than a gym membership.

36. If you pay to go to a slimming club, consider starting your own with your family, friends and neighbours instead. You will still get the same motivation but will save on the weekly cost.

37. Don’t pay full price for cinema tickets as most cinemas offer cheap weekend or daytime prices, and if you know someone with an Orange mobile phone you can get 2-for-1 tickets on Wednesday’s with their Orange Wednesday promotion.

38. During summer holidays most council’s have free or cheap events for families and children to take part in, so make sure you hunt around to make the most of what is offered.

39. Libraries are a great place to take the children on a rainy day and are great for adults too as many now stock not only books but CDs , DVDs and magazines.

40. Share the cost of events with your family and friends, for example if you love football then buy a season ticket with your friends and take it in turns to go to the matches. This way you might miss out on some matches but that’s better than missing out on all of them.

41. Try and find a market research group in your area which will pay you very well for telling researches what you think of specific products or ideas. These are enjoyable to do and you are provided with refreshments while you are there.

FASHION

42. Aim to build your wardrobe up with classic pieces that match. This way you will be able to interchange everything, so you won’t have to buy as many new pieces.

43. Go to the factory or clearance shops; they’re much cheaper and give you big brands at low prices and chances are, nobody will know where you bought them from!

44. Try to save your shopping trips until the sales are on. Although make sure you don’t buy things just because they are cheap if you don’t actually need them and take them back if they don’t fit as many shops do not open their fitting rooms during busy sale times.

45. Go to your local charity shop for cheap clothes! Remember, the majority of celebrities shop in charity stores because that’s where all the quirky stuff is so you will be in good company!

46. Don’t splash out on designer clothes for your children. Hand-me-downs and supermarket clothing ranges are a great way to dress your children cheaply and they probably won’t even notice the difference.

47. Learn how to sew and fix your clothes, not only will you be able to sew any holes or rips, you will also be able to customise your own clothes to make one off pieces.

48. Return clothes for a refund that you have bought and then realised you don’t like, don’t just let them sit in your wardrobe with the tags on.

49. Don’t avoid the cheaper shops such as Primark, they are great to stock up on your simple wardrobe necessities such as t-shirts and nightwear.

UTILITIES

50. Only buy home appliances that have been certified as energy efficient, they may cost more to start with but you’ll save more over time on running costs.

51. Replace your old light bulbs with energy efficient light bulbs as they last longer and save you money.

52. Lower your heating thermostat. If there are rooms that you don’t use in your home then turn off the radiator and close the door. If you live in a 2 storey house, you can turn the thermostat down even further upstairs because heat rises. By turning your heating thermostat down 10-20 you will be surprised at how much energy you will save per year.

53. Install more insulation in your attic, replace old curtain liners with new insulating curtain liners and seal any draughts. If you have a big enough budget, install double or even triple glazed windows, these are very efficient means of insulating your home, saving you money on heating costs. They also boost the value of a property significantly.

54. Turn off the lights if you aren’t in the room and make sure everyone in your house does the same. There’s no point in being charged for light that you don’t use. Simple as that!

55. Don’t leave electrical appliances on standby as they still consume electricity. Turn them off at the wall and you could save up to 10% off your electricity bills. According to reports, the UK government is bringing in legislation that will make it compulsory for all new appliances to not have a standby mode because of the huge waste this brings.

56. You can save a lot of money on your water bills very easily, always shower rather than bathing and spend as little time in the shower as possible.

57. If you have a big home with few occupants you could halve your annual water bill by installing a water meter.

58. Turn your washing machine down to 40. Unless your clothes are heavily soiled a wash on 30-40 will still bring them out sparkling clean!

59. Don’t be lazy by sticking with your current utility company, shop around and make sure you are getting the best deal; you can use utility comparison sites to help you see which company will be best for you and use Internet Cashback to earn up to 37.50 pounds for switching utility companies.

TRAVEL

60. Book flights early and save money. While many of the budget airlines will fly to a regional airport, it may actually cost less to fly into an airport closer to a city center (if you are going on a city break) as you won’t have to pay for a taxi to your accommodation.

61. Budget airlines such as Ryanair are now charging per bag checked into the hold in an effort to speed up their turn around times. If you can, pack what you need (minus scissors, liquids etc) into your hold baggage. This also means you don’t have to wait round to pick up your baggage at arrivals.

62. Book hotels online rather than walking in unannounced and being hit with the typically higher walk-in rate.

63. Buy your car rental online rather than arranging for it when you arrive. Car rental is a competitive market and there are plenty of money-saving offers available.

64. If you are planning a journey by train or bus then book early, look for offers and do not travel in peak times. If you buy your ticket on the day of travelling it will be significantly more money than if you book in advance.

65. If you are on a long train or plane journey, buy your refreshments before you board as drinks and snacks are always over priced once you are travelling.

66. There are lots of websites which will send you free samples or money off coupons so find the best one and keep checking it for the samples you want to receive. Shampoo and body lotion samples are great to take on weekends away!

COMMUNICATIONS

67. If you don’t use your landline phone often then change to a pay as you go mobile phone, it is silly paying for line rental if you don’t use it.

68. If you don’t use your internet broadband often then cancel it and make use of free wireless internet in most restaurants, cafes and bars. You simply take your laptop and connect to their wireless for free (although it might cost you a cup of coffee!). You can go to your library and use their computers for free and even have access to their printers and photocopiers for a small cost.

69. If you are on a monthly mobile phone contract, think about going pay as you go instead. You will have much more control over what you spend, and you’ll be surprised at how many people will call you instead of you calling them!

70. Send an email instead of phoning or texting people. Most customer services departments will answer emails now if you have a problem with a service such as your utility bill which means you won’t have to ring their premium rate customer services phone number. You can also send your family and friends emails instead of calling them and even send birthday cards by email to save on postage.

71. There are lots of websites which let you send text messages to mobile phones for free so you won’t use up your credit texting while you can get online and use a messenger service such as MSN Live to talk to your family and friends over the internet for free.

72. Get a Freeview digital box and cancel your SKY or cable TV package. Freeview has lots of free channels and you can now watch the majority of TV programmes on the internet, so you won’t be missing out on your favourite shows.

AROUND THE HOUSE

73. If you have a spare room, advertise for a lodger. There are lots of people who just want a room during the week while they are at work, so you would still get your privacy at weekends. If you live on your own a lodger can provide you with great company and will help pay towards your bills.

74. Don’t be wasteful with products such as toothpaste, body lotion or foundation. When you can’t get anymore out of the tube, cut it open and you will be able to use the bits you couldn’t get to.

75. Re-use old ice-cream tubs or take away packaging, you can use them for freezing food or taking your packed lunch into work.

76. If you have a pet, don’t go out buying expensive bedding from the pet shop, recycle the waste paper from your office or buy your own shredding machine at home and shred up your old newspapers.

77. Only fill the kettle with the amount of water you need, filling it up full wastes energy and takes longer to boil so you’ll have to wait longer for your drink!

78. When you use your washing machine, make sure it’s full every time, if you just have a few items to wash then hand wash them in the sink.

79. Instead of drying your clothes in the tumble dryer, hang them outside or in rainy weather hang them over a clotheshorse. This will also keep your clothes nicer for longer as tumble dryers tend to shrink your clothes!

80. Learn how to make your own cleaning products which are as effective as the products you buy in the shop and you can often use the ingredients you already have in your kitchen cupboards.

81. Grow your own fruit and vegetables in your garden or rent an allotment, especially if you give the vegetables to your pets. Seeds cost virtually nothing compared to the actual products themselves.

MOTORING

82. Downsizing your car could save you 100s of pounds each year in both fuel and road tax so if you are just making journeys to and from work you should seriously consider getting a smaller, more efficient car.

83. Don’t renew your car insurance without shopping around first. Use a price comparison site and you could save £100s every year by changing to a cheaper provider.

For a price comparison service go to CompareTheMarket.com.

84. If you travel to work on your own, try and start a car pool with colleagues who live in your area, not only will this save in petrol costs, it will also keep your car miles low.

85. Don’t jump in your car for all journeys, if you can, walk or cycle and you will save money and get fitter.

86. Start a school run with other parents in your area if you drive your children to school or consider walking them there instead if it is in a walking distance.

87. Don’t drive too fast, the RAC claim most car engines run far more efficiently at 60-70 miles an hour, compared to 80 mph or over.

88. Check your tyre pressure regularly; if your tyres are under inflated by 20% then you’ll use 10% more fuel.

89. Don’t pay to get your car cleaned as it is a waste of money, set aside 30 minutes each week to wash it yourself.

MISC

90. Instead of buying a daily paper, read the news online. Most newspapers have regularly updated websites which have all the news stories for free which could save you approximately 15 pounds per month.

91. If you smoke, try to stop or cut down. The NHS has lots of free services to help you do this and it will save you £100s each year.

92. Monitor how much alcohol you drink. If you are having a few glasses everyday, try to cut back and only have it for special occasions.

93. Don’t spend money you don’t have on gambling sites, especially ones online. It is easy to lose track on how much money you are spending and more often than not, you will lose this money. Try premium bonds instead if you want to try your luck as this way you will not lose your money.

94. It may be cheaper for you to pay for your prescriptions in advance with a pre-payment certificate if you pay for more than five prescription items in four months or 14 items in 12 months.

95. Buy generic medicines when you can, a 16 pack of Anadin costs approximately 2.99 pounds however a Sainsbury branded pack will only cost approximately 33p.

96. Cut and colour your own hair, or get your friends to help you. There are lots of great DIY colour kits out there to give you a new look for under 5 pounds and a pair of clippers won’t set you back much. Be careful though!

97. Pretend it’s your birthday on a night out and you might get a free birthday cake or glass of Champaign.

98. Don’t lose all of your loose pennies, save them up in a jar and at the end of the year you will be surprised at how much money you have collected.

99. Make saving money fun! Saving money doesn’t have to make you miserable! You can still see your friends, buy yourself treats and go on holiday; you just have the added advantage of feeling proud of your finances instead of hiding away from them!

The author of this article is a keen blogger regarding cashback deals for retailers’ such as for ASDA and affiliate marketing programmes.

Currency Trading Tips - A Simple Tip to Warn of the Big Moves

Saturday, October 25th, 2008

If you want to enjoy currency trading success, you need to catch and follow trends and spot turning points and this tool will help you - it’s an obvious tip in many respects but most traders simply don’t use it, so here it is.

It’s to look at other markets that impact on the currency you are trading and for the purposes of illustration let’s look at the US Dollar.

The dollar is a net importer of energy and high energy costs hurt it and the main one we are referring to here, is crude oil. In recent history when crude has hit high levels (and we have had recent tests of $100 a barrel) it has hurt the dollar and the retreat from this level has seen the dollar stabilize and rise.

Tops in the oil market recently have warned of dollar rallies.

Another major factor is interest rates.

Recently the dollar has been hurt by the perceived view that interest rates will be cut and you can get an idea of how much by looking at interest rate futures. When the interest rate futures rally too hard to fast and then fall, you can often see the dollar rally.

Why? Because traders get ahead of themselves - the recent rally in dollar euro was preceded by 100% consensus that interest rates will be cut by 50 bps (probably true) but gave 50 - 50 that rates would be cut by 75 bps (unlikely) the level of interest rate cuts factored into the market was overdone and prices in interest rate futures fell and the dollar rallied.

Tops in oil and interest rate futures can be used to warn of dollar rallies.

Another important variable is the stock market. Weak stocks hurt the dollar and strong stock markets support it - so watch it in fact if you want another tip:

If you are trading long term trends and only want to look at the prices of currencies once a day, do it just after the stock market closes. This closing price is always significant and while currencies trade 24 hours they are effectively thinly traded until Tokyo opens and the US stock market close sets the tone for the next day

Other currencies are also affected by outside influences:

The Canadian Dollar - Is a net exporter of oil and high prices of oil and other commodities are supportive of the currency

The Australian Dollar - Australia is a big producer of gold and when gold prices are high it supports the currency.

By looking at other markets that are important to a currency, you can often spot whether trends are going to continue or reverse. While it’s obvious that currencies don’t move in isolation, many traders do not bother to look at other markets for clues - if you do, you can get a trading edge.

A trading edge is what forex trading is all about and if you research this tip further, you will find it very useful as part of your forex trading strategy for bigger profits.

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Are You Aware of the Rules That Have Changed Our Money Management?

Sunday, October 19th, 2008

We receive little if no information from our public school education about managing money. Even if we have, most of us are not aware of the public policy changes that have been made that influence our current money management.The most recent change dates back to President Nixon, who in 1971. took us off of the gold standard. It has to be one of the biggest monetary changes that has occurred in world history. Many people alive today are not aware of the large impact that this move has made on our current world economy. After this move, the dollar was no longer money, but became currency.

What is the difference between money and currency?Currency, in order to survive, has to keep moving. If it quits moving, it loses value and then the people stop accepting it. The result is that the dollar will approach a value of zero. Before this move to eliminate the gold standard, the United States was one of the richest nations in the world. Now after this move, the U.S. government is in debt.

Another change that occurred in 1974. That was the move from the defined benefit retirement plan and to the defined contribution plan. The defined benefit plan guaranteed the retiree a paycheck for as long as he or she lived. This proved to be too expensive. The defined contribution retirement plan depends on how much you and your employer contribute. This contributes to one of the greatest fears of the current retirees. That is whether they will run out of money before their demise. Typical defined contribution plans include IRAs,Keoghs, 401[k]s.etc.

There are many of us who want to rely on the government to solve their financial problems. But how can they rely on an entity that is in debt and cannot solve its own financial problems. Thus, it is important to educate yourself as to how to actively solve your financial problems. Unfortunately, the poor and middle class tend to avoid or pretend that they don’t have financial problems. After all if the government is in debt, why isn’t okay for them to be in debt.

The trap to avoid is the scenario that begins with the ease of overspending your available budget. Because credit cards are so easy to use and can delay the responsibility of payment, one unpaid credit balance can lead to another unpaid credit balance. And then one has to take out a mortgage on his house to try to get out of debt. This is a vicious circle and one to best avoid in the first place.

The important lesson from all of this information is to learn to stay within your budget. Then at the end of the month you might have some money left over to invest for the future and retirement. You will find that you will begin to learn how to solve money problems rather than to be a victim of poor money management.

http://www.astewart37.com

Word verification for the day: What is the origin of the term “boogie-woogie”? A “boogie” is a hobglobin or anything majic. “Boogies” like to dance to weird music. Music with the beat of the toms-toms in the bass is “boogie” music.”Woogie” was a later addition.

I am a recently retired general surgeon [ 40 years] living in beautiful Colorado Springs, Colorado at the foot of Pike’s Peak.