Follow me on Twitter There are several different organizations soliciting money for use in the earthquake relief effort.
The one I chose is simple to do and I believe amongst the surest ways to make sure the money, all of the money, gets routed to the right parties and uses. I also used them because it encourages a spirit of bipartisanship that has been sadly lacking in the U.S. for a long time.
Two of our former presidents, President Clinton and President George W. Bush, were recruited by President Obama to come together and head up the effort. President Clinton did a similar and very successful partnership with the elder President Bush when the tsunamis hit Southeast Asia a few years ago.
You can contribute via your credit card, (with all charges waived), by going to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and pressing the “Donate Now” button.
President Clinton was intimately involved in helping Haiti emerge from poverty before the earthquake and I think by donating through this partnership your money will still be working in Haiti’s behalf long after the cameras and world press turn away from this tragedy.
For several years Apple has been the subject of rumors about a tablet. On more then one occasion Steve Jobs has pooh poohed the concept and asked “why?”. That would be important if he hadn’t same the same thing about Apple coming out with a cell phone.
For the past several weeks, though, the rumor mill has been in high gear and it now seems almost certain that an Apple tablet is on the way.
Here is what I know at this point……MORE
Hazel Mail is a wonderful online business that provides an easy way to send a picture you have taken to someone in the form of a postcard. As an example, my son and I were on vacation in Vietnam early last year. We were able to take a picture, download it to Hazel where it is turned into a postcard (a REAL postcard), write the note on the back and they will put it in the mail via snailmail……all while we were still on our trip.
Here’s how it works……..MORE
I confess, I am a craigslist addict. I’ve bought cars, rented vacation homes, looked for jobs and bought and sold tickets. I think it is the greatest.
When the iPhone came out and apps began appearing I tried a couple of Craigslist applications and always ended up disappointed. The idea of a good usable Craigslist app finally faded from my radar and I moved on.
Recently, however, I stumbled upon a new one. I loaded it onto my trusty customized iPhone and what do you know? This one is superb. I really, really like this one. It is called “Craigsphone”.
The first screen……MORE
The CES, as it is known, is the world’s largest consumer electronic trade show. This year it is again being held in Las Vegas and will have an almost unfathomable 20,000 products on display! It opens January 7, 2009.
“With a record number of new exhibitors, scores of new product introductions, several new Spotlights on the show floor and a dynamic lineup of keynotes sessions, the 2010 International CES will be our best show yet,” said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO.
The show features companies from over 140 countries exhibiting everything imaginable in consumer electronics……..MORE
For the past 10 years virtually everyone has been pronouncing the the year totally different then we did in the 20th century.
In those days we said nineteen-oh-nine. Or nineteen-eighty-four.
Somehow most of us changed after Y2K and begin saying two-thousand-and -six.
How’d that happen.
A new website aims to get us back on track.
This is another great iPhone application I have started using. Opentable.com has released a great little portable app that makes getting a reservation a snap!
It also let’s you find restaurants in any location, including right in the vicinity of where you are at the time you are searching. Go to the apps store and type in Open Table……MORE
The rumor mill has been bubbling for months about an Apple reader or an Apple tablet. Recent weeks have seen the rumors come to a slow boil and over the past few days they are off the chart. With Apple you never know. They are the kings of misdirection. Over the years they have mixed it up enough that you simply do not know what to expect. There isn’t always fire where there is smoke in Cupertino.
This time I think it’s coming….. MORE
Ah, Apple. I have been a long time admirer of Steve Jobs. Living here in Silicon Valley it is hard to escape the long shadow he casts. 2009 was a stellar year for the stock as it doubled in value and closed yesterday, on Christmas Eve, at an all time high of $209.04.
So what to do if you own the stock? I do and it was far and away the best performer of my modest portfolio this year. I am sorely tempted to take some of the profit off the table. A lot of professionals are saying it is over valued. On the other hand, as a gadget freak and consumer of Apple products I cannot ignore a few facts we all know and a few rumors none of which have been confirmed by Apple.
Let’s explore that a bit…….MORE
The first thing you need to know are a couple of basics. ERA stands for “earned run average” and it is a widely used statistic to measure the effectiveness of a pitcher. The final calculation gives you a number, say 3.45, and 
that is the number of earned runs a pitcher allows every nine innings, (the length of a standard major league baseball game).
To get that number you first need to know what an “earned run” is………MORE