Go to Jeff Salisbury LWGate Home Page.From: persfin-digest <owner-persfin-digest@shore.net>
Subject: persfin-digest V4 #3
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:18:53 -0500 (EST)
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persfin-digest Tuesday, March 4 1997 Volume 04 : Number 003
IN THIS ISSUE:
ADVERTISEMENT: domainTNG
Y2K Solution for PCs
Re: Investment Book Recommendations
Re: Home PC Backup Options
Thoughts on Buying a Mac or Mac Clone
My CTX Computer Mail Order Experience
I Back Up To Floppies
Stay A Bit Behind Technology and You'll Save A Bundle
DATEK - Strike 1!
Sources for Macintosh Reviews
Please clarify "active participant"
Re: Macs and Zip Drives
Good or bad experience with GMI (one of the MLM)
Re: joint tenant vs community property in CA
Re: Waiting To Buy a New Computer?
Re: Buying New Computers & Year 2000
Home PC storage
Another Year 2000 Experiment You Can Do
Re: Buying a Mac
Consider a Custom Built PC
Re: "Taxing" Refunds - The AMT Angle
Re: Larry Williams Commodity Futures - From $20K to $7K And Loving It
Re: Tex asks about paying off mortgage
Re: How Is Margin Interest Taxed?
Help with IRA tax question
Re:Mutual Fund Investors Association
writing off expenses for my MLM venture?
Re: Tex asks about paying off mortgage
Re: Investment for a House Down Payment
Morningstar Principia Plus software?
Destiny telecomm?
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Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:38:04 -0500 (EST)
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------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:39:36 -0500 (EST)
From: FW & SC <kafer@crl.com>
Subject: Y2K Solution for PCs
Ira--
I have a Y2K fix (Y2000.zip) from Windows Magazine (I think). Works fine.
Doesn't change the fundamental in BIOS ROM coding, but recalculates every
date beyond 12/31/1999 into dd/mm/yy thru 2049. (Not many current computers
will still be used in 2049!! It is a piece of a larger commercial program
from some outfit in Texas. It was put into the public domain. If you can't
get it from Windows Mag/TechWeb, I'll be happy to send it to you for
posting on your web page. It is a 8344 byte zipped file. It is clean. I
have been using it for several months, and checked it by resetting my PC's
date/clock. I can send it as Zipped attachment. If you want it, holler.
Frank
(Editor's Comment - I could place this on our Web site and make it
available to all. -IK)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:41:32 -0500 (EST)
From: Rich Carreiro <rlcarr@animato.pn.com>
Subject: Re: Investment Book Recommendations
>1. The Only Investment Guide You'll Ever Need by Andrew Tobias
>2. One Up on Wall Street by Peter Lynch
>3. Beating The Street by Peter Lynch
>4. Learn To Earn by Peter Lynch
>5. The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham
>6. Bogle on Mutual Funds by John Bogle
>7. A Random Walk Down Wall Street by Burton G. Malkiel
[try to get the current edition -- Malkiel revises it
every few years]
>8. Starting and Running A Profitable Investment Club by Thomas E. O'Hara &
> Kenneth S. Janke, Sr.
>9. Street Smart Investing by George B. Clairmont & Kiril Sokoloff (may be
> out of print now)
To this I would add:
10. _Capital Ideas_ by Peter Bernstein
11. _Against the Gods: A History of Risk_ by Peter Bernstein
12. _How to Buy Stocks_ by Louis Engels
13. _Investments_ by William F. Sharpe [this is a college text, so it's
not the easiest reading]
14. _Stocks, Bonds, Bills, and Inflation_ by Ibbotson and Sinquefeld
[this isn't a typical book -- it's basically a collection of time series
data and correlations for 7 or so different asset classes from 1926 to
the present]
>1. Money
>2. Kiplinger's Personal Finance
>3. Mutual Funds
>4. Bloomberg Personal (comes with free access to their web site)
I like SmartMoney and Kiplinger's *much* more than Money.
Rich Carreiro
rlcarr@animato.pn.com
(Editor's Comment - I can create a page with links to the various
bookstores I represent at my shopping mall at:
http://www.krakow.com
Even without that, you can use the search engines on my Web page for
alt.bookstore and books.com to search and then buy any of these books
online. -IK)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:45:13 -0500 (EST)
From: David Meyers <dmeyers@panix.com>
Subject: Re: Home PC Backup Options
>My only word of wisdom is to buy a backup device.... tape drive, jaz
>drive or whatever.
_definately_ do this! And _not_ just back up to floppies.
I've lost all faith in floppies - too many cease working.
>(Editor's Question - Anyone use the Iomega Zip drives? They give you
>removable 100MB backups.
We're using Syquest EZ135 disks (on macs). 135M/disk,
a little more flexibility than the Zips (ie. scsiID, etc)
> Also, I wonder how many people are backing up
>their 2 Gig hard drives, and to what? diskettes? tape? If not, one
To back up an entire system of that size, I think tapes are
the only option. However, most of us don't need to back
up the entire drive all the time. It would be easy enough,
(well, a pain, but not a big deal) to reinstall applications
from their original disks or cd-roms. The _essential_ things
to back up are your datafiles and unless you are doing lots
of graphics work, it is not all that likely that you would
need more than 100M to backup up your documents.
- --D
(Editor's Comment - I use another computer as a backup. That way, I know
the backup works and I don't have to restore from the backup. Also, if my
primary computer is in the shop, my backup computer is available, and I
can swap out devices (monitors, modem) if necessary. A secondary computer
may be as expensive as a tape drive.
Question to ponder: Could you reconstruct your data if your disk was
totally unusable today? -IK)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:46:33 -0500 (EST)
From: David Meyers <dmeyers@panix.com>
Subject: Thoughts on Buying a Mac or Mac Clone
>In v.4, #1 Digest, Dave Cameron asks for suggestions on buying a new
>computer. I have a similar need. My current computer, a Macintosh LC, has
>been antiquated for some time although I have added RAM and a new hard
>drive. Finally, I have come to a decision to replace it with another Mac.
I'm kind of keeping an eye on the macs available, too. My
main computer now is a Powerbook 5300 - greyscale - got it
for $900 when they were discontinued. Added ram and an
external monitor (actually, the monitor I already had). I
think I want a regular desktop model, though, for my office
in addition to the notebook machine (ie. so I can leave
the notebook elsewhere in the house).
>I want a computer for fast, convenient Internet access, for basic word
>processing and spreadsheet use, for game playing for my sons. I want a
>fast model with a 604 or 604e processor - that is, a higher end model -
>that will provide 3 to 5 years of solid, reliable service. I believe that
I'd be a little wary of thinking you need the current high-end
in order to have a good lifetime of use of the machine. Just
about the time the first PowerPC 601s came out, I got a
discontinued LC475 (an 040 machine) for $500. My wife uses
it and plans on continuing to do so for a while. The 040s
are going to stop being supported sometime soon (Rhapsody),
but we've gotten several years out of a model which was
considered obsolete when we got it. My dad is still using the
machine which I had replaced with the LC475 - a Powerbook 160.
The 160 is pushing the limits of ourpatience at this point,
but the 475 is going strong. And I got that PB back in 1991,
I think.
>buying a lower end model tends to bring on earlier obsolescence. I am not a
Less so in the Mac world than in the PC world. Or at least
that's how its _been_. Things are changing.
>The Macintosh scene now encompasses a number of Mac clone manufacturers -
>Motorola, Power Computing, DayStar, UMAX, etc. I am attracted to Power
>Computing but then I must purchase the computer by mail order. I live in a
>rural area in the West far from Texas where Power Computing is located.
Power Computing has gotten rave reviews, and their low-end
PowerBase machines are supposed to be the best of the low-end.
There are _fine_, _current_ machines with 180Mhz 603e processors
for under $1500. I wouldn't sweat the difference between
the 603e and the 604 unless you are doing high-end graphics
design or something. For word processing, web browsing, persfin
and such, I'd suggest saving the difference in price and
investing it.
>My questions are: Do Mac expert Persfiners have any suggestions on a model
>or clone manufacturer?
The clones are all being watched much more closely by Apple
than clones in the PC world are watched, there being no real
central PC authority. I'd not really hesitate with any of
them.
> Is now a good time to buy a Mac, or do people "in
>the know" expect a major new advance to be on the market in, say, July?
Apple's committed to supporting all currently shipping machines
with the next operating system. Prices are pretty good,
but in the computer world, they are _always_ falling and the
longer you can hold out with what you have, the better you will
do when you do replace.
>What important elements should I be on the lookout for? What should I make
>sure to include in the system that I finally purchase? I would like to
>purchase a 17 inch monitor - any advice, what model? Is there anyone who
I like the Sony monitors, but you really just have to go and look
at them. As far as things to include in the system, don't sweat
it too much - the big package deals include things you probably
won't ever use and if you buy bare-bones no frills, the macs have
always been pretty easily expandible given their scsi ports. I
run an external hard drive, cd-rom drive, and 15" screen all off
of a powerbook - with no special hardware or software.
>has used and can compare Mac clones to Apple's Macs? Are there good
>reasons NOT to buy a clone? Are there justifiable reasons to believe Power
>Computing will not be making Macs or their successors for many years?
I don't think I'd worry too much. There is a sizeable base
of users out there who won't be left in the dust. The worst
case for a clone-maker like PowerComputing would be that
Apple goes under - in which case you are in the same position
as if you got an apple. And, actually, PowerComputing has
been shipping their machines with free beta copies of the
BeOS, in addition to MacOS. It is entirely likely that
if Apple crashed, not only would the MacOS already on the
machine keep working as it does now, but that new OSs for
it would be coming out and software for them evolving, too.
>No doubt there are newsgroups out there that cover these same topics in
>great detail. However, I am embarrassed to confess that I have never
>figured out how to use newsgroups and they seem tedious.
Well, most of them end up growing into "tastes great","less filling"
endless flamefest arguments when someone mentions that he or
she is debating between Macs and PCs, or is even contemplating
the purchase of one. You'd likely be facing a thousand idiots
berating your decision to buy a Mac. There are good reasons
on all sides of such debates, but they are often buried in heaps
of absurdity and argument for argument's sake.
>(Editor's Comment - Elsie, don't feel embarrassed. There's too much noise
>on most of the newsgroups and sometimes not enough signal. -IK)
Hence the need for groups with gracious editors who keep
discussions relevant and readable. Thanks, Ira!
- --D
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:47:36 -0500 (EST)
From: m_moy@juno.com
Subject: My CTX Computer Mail Order Experience
We bought a CTX 100 Mhz, 16 MB, 1 Gig multimedia
system last year for $899 at OfficeMax and have been
pleased with it. It was basically mail order price
at a retail store and, of course, there was a better
deal there a month later (120 Mhz, I believe).
I recently had all of the CMOS reset with modem
problems though, and I believe that these were due
to a power surge (virus was the first suspect). I
had an old modem that I threw on it but need a new
cable. It's the kids' machine anyways and it runs
fine for them.
Michael Moy (m_moy@juno.com)
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8208/index.html
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:49:14 -0500 (EST)
From: m_moy@juno.com
Subject: I Back Up To Floppies
I backup to floppy disks. My data consists of Quicken data, some text
documents, an MS Access database and a few spreadsheets. All of this
(compressed) fits on a single floppy. If I have a system crash, then
I just reinstall my software from CDROMS and floppies and restore my
data.
Michael Moy (m_moy@juno.com)
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8208/index.html
(Editor's Comment - Probably a lot of people have 2 Gig hard drives with
useful data fitting on one floppy (uncompressed). -IK)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:54:13 -0500 (EST)
From: johnel@ix.netcom.com
Subject: Stay A Bit Behind Technology and You'll Save A Bundle
In my thinking, most of the newer computers on the market are more powerful
than most people will ever need. If you absolutely *have* to have a screaming
fast machine, then by all means go buy one.
We use a 486 with a 120MHz processor, and have increased RAM to 32MB. We do
business software, internet access, Excel spreadsheets etc, and with this
configuration have had no problems. Sure, a faster computer might be more fun,
but then again, so would a faster car.
Computer manufacturers have succeeded very well in creating planned
obsolescence. The leading edge of technology is always going to be the most
expensive. My wife's father bought her a hand-held calculator for college in
1972, back when they were a new "toy", for $110. Two or three years later you
could buy a calculator with the same power for $15.
You first need to know what your needs are, in order to buy the right machine
without buying more machine than you need. A used 486 with at least a 66MHz
processor can be a good buy; my second recommendation is to buy at least 24MB
of RAM. More RAM is generally more effective than a faster processor with less
RAM.
The processor is going to be the most expensive part of the machine. To my
thinking, you will get much more bang for the buck by buying a slower
processor, lots of RAM, a huge hard drive, and a 28,800 baud internal modem.
Then later, if you just have to have that glitzy sexy super fast 600MHz
processor, you can upgrade to that while keeping all of the other components.
Stay a little behind the leading edge of technology. Save a lot of money.
John Leipold
(Editor's Comment - I agree. Also, think about upgrading peripherals,
such as:
1) A 33.6 baud modem for Internet access.
2) More RAM
3) Another disk drive, like the Zip.
The processor speed doesn't always translate to increased productivity.
Databases, for example, are disk intensive. Word processors simply don't
tax the CPU. For spreadsheets, it's only a factor in recalculations. -IK)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:54:58 -0500 (EST)
From: makd@FRB.GOV
Subject: DATEK - Strike 1!
After previously reporting that I had been farily pleased with DATEK
(except for regular difficulites in accessing their trading system), I
was very annoyed with a problem. On Friday at about 3:56pm ET, I
attempted to put in a market order so that I could buy near the close
of the trading day. It took a couple of minutes of waiting for the
DATEK system to finally accept my login and order. Finally, the order
went through, and DATEK time stamped it at 3:59:50pm. At 5:00pm,
there was no trace of this order at all! After contacting DATEK, I
was told that the order was too late to fill and rejected. Not too
good of customer service, if I would say!
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:55:51 -0500 (EST)
From: Chris Yohn <yohn@mcbi-34.med.nyu.edu>
Subject: Sources for Macintosh Reviews
I can give you two good sources of reviews of Macintosh products: MacWorld
Magazine <http://www.macworld.com> and ZDNet (publisher of MacWeek and
MacUser) <http://www5.zdnet.com/mac/>. In particular, you can see a list
of reviews and specs of Mac systems (Apple and Clone) at
<http://www.macworld.com/pages/star/starratings.Systems.html> or at
<http://www.zdnet.com/macuser/cpu/>.
Apple just introduced several new computers (reviews of which can be found
at the above sites). While the prices on these systems are quite good,
their introduction also caused a ripple effect on prices of previously
shipping models from both Apple and the clone makers. So now is a
relatively good time to buy one of those models that came out 5-6 months
ago. In particular, I would look at the PowerCenter line from Power
Computing or Motorola's StarMax 4000 line, as well as the newest offerings
from Apple (esp. 7300, 7600).
Based on the uses you described above (Internet access, word processing and
games), you don't need to worry too much about open slots and bays. Just
make sure you have enough VRAM to run that 17" screen (at least 2 MB) and
get a substantial amount of RAM - you can (almost) never have too much and
it is especially cheap now. Another thing to look for is a level 2 cache.
This is a relatively inexpensive chip ($100) that will give you a 10-20%
speed boost. If it is not included, you may want to add it yourself. And
of course, you'll need a modem, which in most cases will be a separate
purchase from the CPU (I think Motorola ships 28.8 modems with some
models). 33.6 is common, though two manufacturers are each pushing new 56K
technology. Otherwise, most Macs come with all the hardware necessary for
the above uses.
BTW, the Mac OS does not have the Y2K problem - it can recognize dates past
the year 2000 mark. (I don't remember exactly how far they go)
- ---
Chris Yohn
yohn@saturn.med.nyu.edu
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:56:35 -0500 (EST)
From: Jeff Morgan <morgajs@parsec.com>
Subject: Please clarify "active participant"
I have a technical question for the CPAs and CFPs
out there:
When defining "active participation" in a pension
plan for purposes of determining deductibility of IRA
contributions, is the following summary correct?
If the plan is a "defined benefit plan", one is deemed a
participant if _not specifically excluded_, regardless of
whether one chooses to contribute, and if the plan is a
"defined contribution plan", one is only an active participant
if one makes contributions or if contributions are made
by the employer on behalf of the employee?
To phrase it another way, if one is eligible to participate
in a defined benefit plan, IRA deductions are always
subject to limitations based on income and filing status,
regardless of actual participation, and if one is eligible to
participate in a defined contribution plan, IRA deductions
are only subject to the limitations if either the employee
or employer contributes, correct?
I was recently told that if one is *eligible* for an employer
sponsored retirement plan, one is always deemed an "active
participant", whether or not one contributes.
I'm not comfortable with that answer, and would welcome
clarification, as well as pointers to IRA rulings on the issue.
Let's assume there is no spouse in this case, there's no
reason to complicate matters!
Thanks in advance.
- --
Jeff Morgan - mailto:morgajs@parsec.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:57:24 -0500 (EST)
From: Francesca Pardo <fp10@cornell.edu>
Subject: Re: Macs and Zip Drives
I use a Zip drive to back up my 500 MB hard drive. It takes 3-4 cartridges
with compression. I like the Zip drive because they're everywhere, so
I can take a cartridge around with me at work and plug it in whenever I
need to save files.
As far as buying a Mac goes, the new 8600 and 9600 models have just come
out, driving down the prices of the older models. Even these older
models have most of the features you want... 604 processors, good speed,
big hard drives. I would think buying a 7600 would be a good idea, and
spend the extra money on a good monitor, extra memory, and a good backup
drive. To compare clone quality and speed I would check out some of the
Mac magazines... Macworld frequently finds that the PowerComputing models
with nominally faster clock speeds are actually slower than comparably-priced
Apple Macs because of bus slowdowns and other problems. Apple still leads
the market in terms of quality and reliability. On the other hand I know
a lot of people are very happy with their clones.
- -Francesca
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:58:27 -0500 (EST)
From: Trung_Nguyen@stratus.com
Subject: Good or bad experience with GMI (one of the MLM)
Hi,
Does anyone know anything or have any experience with GMI ? I was
approached by one of my friend.
Thanks in advance.
Trung
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:59:23 -0500 (EST)
From: "Mark J. Welch, Esq." <markwelch@ca-probate.com>
Subject: Re: joint tenant vs community property in CA
Paul Fan <fan@math.ucla.edu> asked:
> Does anyone know the difference between "joint tenant
> with right of survivorship" and "community property"
> for residents of Californaia? This is for a house.
>From http://www.ca-probate.com/chap06.htm:
"Joint Tenancy vs. Community Property Title"
(Estate Planning for California Residents, Chapter 6)
Most California couples own their homes as "joint tenants," because they
want the surviving spouse to own the entire home, without any formal court
proceeding to confirm the transfer.
Unfortunately, owning property as "joint tenants" can seriously affect the
taxation of any subsequent sale of the property after the death of one
spouse. This is because the U.S. Internal Revenue Code provides special
treatment for property owned by a married couple as "community property,"
but not for similar property owned as "joint tenants."
When someone dies, his or her heirs are treated as if they purchased the
deceased person's property for its fair market value on the date of death.
However, if the deceased person owned only a one-half interest as a "joint
tenant," only that one-half interest receives this treatment (called an
"adjusted basis").
Thus, if Mr. and Mrs. Jones buy a house as "joint tenants" for $200,000,
the IRS considers that each paid $100,000 for a one-half interest. If Mr.
Jones later dies, Mrs. Jones automatically owns the entire house, and Mr.
Jones' share of the house is revalued as of the date of his death. If the
house was worth $400,000 when Mr. Jones died, then Mrs. Jones is treated as
if she paid $300,000 for the house -- computed by adding her share of the
purchase price ($100,000), to the value of Mr. Jones' share when he died
($200,000).
In contrast, the IRS treats "community property" as if it were owned
completely by the deceased spouse, in applying this special "adjusted
basis" rule. (For other purposes, such as computing estate taxes, only
one-half of the value of community property is counted.) Therefore, if Mr.
and Mrs. Jones bought their house as "community property" for $200,000, and
Mr. Jones later died, leaving his share to Mrs. Jones, the entire house
would be assigned a new "basis" at current fair market value.
The result is that if Mrs. Jones decides to sell the "joint tenancy" house
for $400,000 shortly after Mr. Jones' death, she would realize a taxable
capital gain of $100,000 (the $400,000 sale price minus her $300,000
"adjusted basis," computed two paragraphs above). If the same house were
owned as "community property," however, she would recognize no capital
gain, because her "adjusted basis" would be the same as the sale price.
Of course, no tax will be due from the sale of the former "joint tenancy"
home if the seller quickly bought another home at the same or higher price.
Also, the surviving spouse might avoid or reduce the capital-gains tax even
if the house were owned as "joint tenancy," if she can still use the
once-in-a-lifetime $125,000 exclusion available for the sale of a home by a
person or couple over age 55.
The chief drawback of "community property," as a form of legal title, is
that it does not provide automatic transfer to the survivor at death.
Instead, the survivor must petition the court for a "spousal property"
order, or initiate a probate proceeding. In California, it is not currently
possible to own property as "community property" while also providing for
an automatic right of survivorship.
However, to capture the best of both situations, it is possible to transfer
property into a "living trust" (thus avoiding any probate court
proceedings) while also retaining its character as "community property"
(thus obtaining a full "adjusted basis").
It is possible to file a spousal property petition (or initiate probate)
and include "joint tenancy" property in the petition, arguing that it was
community property all along. However, this uncertain procedure eliminates
the benefit of the joint tenancy form of title, which is the automatic
transfer of title at death.
Another drawback of "community property" ownership is that the entire
property becomes liable for the debts of either spouse. In addition,
"community property" will usually be equally divided in case of divorce,
while "joint tenancy" property can be traced to separate-property sources
to permit unequal division.
Beware: The special "adjusted basis" rule usually works so that couples who
own property as "community property" are better off than couples who own
property as "joint tenants," because most property increases in value over
time. However, in the recent California real estate market, this general
rule hasn't always been true. If Mr. and Mrs. Jones bought their home in
1989 for $400,000, it is possible that the current fair market value might
be only $350,000. If so, it would be preferable to own the property as
"joint tenants" to avoid having the survivor's basis in the property
reduced to $350,000. (Instead, the basis would only be reduced halfway, to
$375,000.)
One proposal being considered by Congress would either eliminate the
"adjusted basis" at death, or would impose a capital-gains tax on the
adjusted basis at death. Although passage is unlikely, such a change would
have a substantial effect on estate planning.
For more information on Estate Planning for California Residents, see
http://www.ca-probate.com
- -- Mark J. Welch, Attorney at Law, Pleasanton CA
- -- http://www.ca-probate.com 510-462-8483
- -- This email is NOT legal advice, and is NOT confidential.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:00:44 -0500 (EST)
From: feren@ctron.com (Andrew C. Feren)
Subject: Re: Waiting To Buy a New Computer?
> My questions are: Do Mac expert Persfiners have any suggestions on a model
> or clone manufacturer? Is now a good time to buy a Mac, or do people "in
> the know" expect a major new advance to be on the market in, say, July?
[ snip ]
IMO waiting for market news to buy a computer is no better
than waiting on market news to buy securities. Find a model
(security) that does what you want and plan to hold onto it
until it no longer fits your needs.
For example my home computer is a Mac Plus (~9 years old).
This is certainly a long way from the Sparc Ultra that I use
at work, but at home about the only thing I need the computer
for is typing letters and occasionally connecting to work to
check my mail.
On the one hand the Mac is "obsolete", but it does what I need
in a reasonable fashion and is, therefore, not obsolete for
me. If you have more sophisticated home needs get a more
sophisticated computer to meets those needs.
I disagree with Ira's statement that "any computer you buy
will be obsolete in 3 years". If, after 3 years, your
computer still meets all your needs it is not obsolete. When
your computer no longer meets your needs then, and only then,
it is obsolete.
I, however, absolutely agree with Ira when he says: "Buying a
200 megahertz Pentium with a 2 Gig hard drive to write simple
letters and connect to AOL is a huge waste of money".
Determining which computer meets your needs is the tricky part.
- --
- -Andrew Feren (feren@ctron.com)
Cabletron Systems Inc.
Durham, NH
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:01:19 -0500 (EST)
From: Wai Poon <wpoon@me.umn.edu>
Subject: Re: Buying New Computers & Year 2000
Elsie asked about buying macintosh computers.
There are many choices for mac and its clones. If you are interested in
clones, check out the unofficial pages of starmax and powercomputing:
<http://www.starmax.net/>
<http://www.powerwatch.com/>
Also check out the magazines on Mac, they carry reviews of the products.
<http://www.macuser.com>
<http://www.macweek.com>
<http://www.macworld.com>
I bought a powercomputing model in Dec. It's fast and great. Now, the
prices are a lot lower. $1000 to $1300 will get you fast and decent
computers. Please check out the latest Apple's models. They are extremely
competitive. Also, powerpc is getting ahead of the performance curve. You
will be impressed with the speed over your old LC.
On the year 2000 problem, Apple's computers are not affected. The
Macintosh operating system used a 32-bit value to store seconds, starting
at 12:00:00 a.m., January 1, 1904 and ending with 6:28:15 a.m. on February
6, 2040.
I will be happy to answer more questions.
Wilson Poon
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:01:58 -0500 (EST)
From: WRobinette@aol.com
Subject: Home PC storage
Ira wrote:
(Editor's Question - Anyone use the Iomega Zip drives? They give you
removable 100MB backups. Also, I wonder how many people are backing up
their 2 Gig hard drives, and to what? diskettes? tape? If not, one
morning you'll turn on your PC and you'll lose a *lot* of data. -IK)
Ira,
Iomega has a Jaz drive that holds 1 Gig of info. This is a much easier, but
more expensive, solution to large backups.
Jim Robinette
WRobinette@aol.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:02:42 -0500 (EST)
From: jpoulter@islandnet.com (Jack Poulter)
Subject: Another Year 2000 Experiment You Can Do
Ira commented on the potential problems in year 2000:
O>(Editor's Comment - Try this experiment. Set your PC clock to one minute
O>before midnight, on December 31, 1999. Wait a minute. See what software
O>will or won't work. With my PC (Compudyne 486 with an AMI BIOS from
O>1992), my communications software quit on me, the date went back to 1/1/80
O>after I rebooted, files were saved with strange dates, and a few other
O>things I don't remember. -IK)
I did something similar to Ira's recommendation several months
ago. Everything seemed OK. The date changed as I had hoped it
would. Then I read about a program which gave additional details
on how to test your PC. After the date/time change to take one
into the year 2000, it instructed you to turn off your computer
and after a short wait, re-start. Note this involves a cold
boot, not a soft one. My result was a re-set to 1980. This
program provides a TSR that will check your date on boot up and
when the year 2000 dawns it will make the change as required.
The program is called Year2000.com and further details may be
found at: www.RighTime.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:03:21 -0500 (EST)
From: RLevitz42@aol.com
Subject: Re: Buying a Mac
Elsie's question of buying a mac or a mac clone is a good one. (BTW I use
a Mac 7600-132 at home and have used DOS, Windows and Windows NT at work
and still prefer a Mac for home use.)A few months ago I would have said
go with a clone because they are cheaper. Now however Apple is clearing
out old inventory at fire-sale prices. For instance CompUSA is
advertising a Performa 6400-180 with 16meg ram, 180 mh 603e, 1.6 gig hd,
modem and 15 inch monitor for 1599. Even the 7600 with a 132mh 604
processor and video-in is now only $1700. If you go with a clone I would
buy a motorola. Their reliability, customer support and warranty I feel
are better than the other clone makers and their prices have also dropped.
I have had a good mail-order experience buying from MacZone.
Robert Levitz
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:05:00 -0500 (EST)
From: Ian Haggard <ian@shellus.com>
Subject: Consider a Custom Built PC
> Unless it happens to be a Vax or Alpha running VMS,
In which case it's already obsolete ;^) As a Unix'er, I couldn't resist
that dig at VMS. I'm amazed to hear people still run that old OS...
I responded to the questioner by e-mail, but since it appears no one
else made the same recommendations as I, I'll summarize:
I would recommend buying a PC custom-built by a local computer store or
individual entrepeneur. Surprisingly, this can save lots of money. The
cookie-cutter systems built by Dell, Gateway, etc. include unnecessary
things that bloat their cost. They put way too much software on the
hard-drive that you're won't use. They include peripherals you don't
need -- my old system had a monitor, external 14.4 modem, and printer
that I'm still using on my new PC. They also spend too much money on
CPU and not enough on memory. My CPU was an AMD 586/133, not an Intel,
so not only can it divide correctly :^) it was also only $10 more than
an Intel 486, not $300 more. Plus, when I bought my system with 16mb of
memory, most cookie-cutter systems came with 8 or even (shudder) 4 meg.
I ordered from a guy who had built a computer for a friend, and got a
complete "multimedia" system (minus monitor, modem, and printer) for
$600 plus tax. One caveat -- if you do this, don't just buy from
someone you don't know. If it's a small computer store, find out how
long they've been in business and check with the BBB. And I wouldn't
recommend buying from an individual unless you get a word-of-mouth
reference from a friend.
The questioner also mentioned they used the Unix OS. I recommended they
look at GNU/Linux operating system -- GNU/Linux is a free Unix-clone for
PC's. My computer came with Win95 installed, but I'd delete it except
that I can't get Quicken and Juno E-mail on Unix. If you're interested
in Linux, do a Yahoo search on Linux and you'll find a ton of
information.
- --
Ian Haggard || ian@shellus.com (work) || IanHaggard@juno.com (home)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:08:20 -0500 (EST)
From: "L. Chen" <am302@FreeNet.Buffalo.EDU>
Subject: Re: "Taxing" Refunds - The AMT Angle
Also, if you paid AMT the previous yr., then you do not have to report the
state tax refund as income this year -- because you did not get the
benefit of state tax deduction.
Lily Chen
am302@freenet.buffalo.edu
(Editor's Comment: AMT = Alternative Minimum Tax, a special calculation
for people with a lot of deductions that would ordinarily have them pay
little or no tax. If you don't know what it is, it probably doesn't apply
to you. -IK)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:10:18 -0500 (EST)
From: LATHOM@pentagon-ocar1.army.mil
Subject: Re: Larry Williams Commodity Futures - From $20K to $7K And Loving It
Mark-
I have been trading commodity futures with Larry Williams system/hotline
for about 9 months now after receiving the mailing you referred to. I
found the tapes and literature educational and I've found Larry to be a
sincere, dedicated system trader. If someone has decided to accept the
risks inherent in trading futures, I could honestly recommend Larry's
program.
I went in with approx $20K of risk capital that I could lose without
altering my lifestyle. The results so far have been very mixed, and the
gain/loss swings quite pronounced. I'm currently down about $7K, but at
various points in time I have been up over $25K. I'd be happy to fill in
any additional details or questions you might have.
- -Andy Lathom
lathom@pentagon-ocar1.army.mil
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:10:50 -0500 (EST)
From: Rich Carreiro <rlcarr@animato.pn.com>
Subject: Re: Tex asks about paying off mortgage
>as usual. I'd rather pay off a debt in the future with today's dollars
Just remember that the interest rate you are being charged on the loan
is to make up for the fact that future dollars are worth less than
present dollars. Banks don't makes loans out of the goodness of their
hearts :)
Rich Carreiro
rlcarr@animato.pn.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:11:21 -0500 (EST)
From: Rich Carreiro <rlcarr@animato.pn.com>
Subject: Re: How Is Margin Interest Taxed?
[Disclaimer: this is my opinion, not advice. I am not a professional.]
>I don't know if the margin interest in my stock account is consider as
>investment interest or investment expense. Anyone familiar to this
Assuming you used the proceeds of the margin loan to buy
non-tax-exempt securities, the margin interest is investment interest
and is a Sched A deduction to the extent there was investment income
and also subject to the 2% of AGI floor.
If the margin loan was used to buy tax-exempt securities, or was not
used to buy securities at all (to buy a car, for example), the margin
interest is NOT deductible at all.
Rich Carreiro
rlcarr@animato.pn.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:11:58 -0500 (EST)
From: Shane Brewer <BREWERSH@UVSC.EDU>
Subject: Help with IRA tax question
This past year we mistakenly contributed a small amount
(<$500) to my wife's IRA (regular not spousal.) The problem
is she is not working and so the contributions we illegal
(?). We also claimed this as a deduction (contribution to
spouse's IRA) on Federal Taxes! I have no IRA and am the
only working member of our household. That is the
situation.
I have talked to my broker and he said he could remove the
illegal contributions from my wife's IRA (claiming them as
over contributions) and use them to start an IRA for myself,
thus eliminating the illegal contributions. In so doing, we
still can legally claim the IRA contribution deduction on
our taxes. The net result is that we will have claimed the
deduction as a contribution to my spouse's IRA instead of a
contribution to my IRA. Is this a problem? If so, how do
we correct it? Your timely response would be appreciated.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:12:33 -0500 (EST)
From: GeorgeS <pip@shore.net>
Subject: Re:Mutual Fund Investors Association
MFIA is run by Eric Korben. It is a news lettter devoted to assembilng model
portfolios from Fidelity Funds. He proposes three portfolios: Growth, Growth
and Income, and Income.
If you look in Hulbert Financial Digest, the growth portfolio returns about
the same as the Wilshire 5000, with slightly less volatility. This is to
say, of the many newsletteers tracked by Hulbert, Fidelity Insight ranks
among the top few on a risk adjusted return basis. If you look at Hulbert's
timing/selection criteria, he selects well but times poorly. For that
matter, he does not try to time the market, the model portfolio allocations
into stock/bond/cash, and domestic/foreign are listed and stable. His lists
of these allocations is useful, as it is somewhat difficult to keep track of
these allocations in Fidelity funds.
There is not much churning in the portfolios, changes are made two or three
times a year. Each portfolio contains 4 to 6 funds. What separates the
portfolios is the target volatility, growth targets are as volitile as the
S&P500, and the other portfolios are less volatile.
The basis for selecting the funds is to optimize the Sharpe ratio
(Return - Risk free return)/volatility
In this sense the news letter is based on modern financial theory. Once a
year the Fidelity funds are listed with a caclculation of the cross
correlation of the return.
Volatility is calculated based on monthly returns from the past three years.
This is not the sole criteria for selecting funds, as some funds are
proposed for the model portfolios that have been around for less than three
years.
In addition to the model protfolios, the newsletter contains a center chart
listing all fidelity mutual funds, their capitalization, and any loads or
restrictions on purchases. Each issuse also contains a chatty review of
Fidelity managers.
You are asked to pay ~$140 for a guide to Fidelity funds and the newsletter.
If you do not want the guide, and just want the newsletter, you can get it
for ~$99 a year. Persit, the offer is always there, but the sales reps are
sometimes petulant about giving it to you.
The model portfolios did very well until last year, when they had returns
less than the S&P 500, as was the case with most of Fidelity.
Korben's interests have wandered recently from the Fidelity insight
newsletter. He now offers a similar letter based on selection from the
Schwabe group. He now also offers his own fund of funds mutual fund. Whether
these new distractions account in part for the recent abysmal performance in
the model portfolios is an exercise left to the reader.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:13:40 -0500 (EST)
From: kristina@net.com (Kristina Miranda)
Subject: writing off expenses for my MLM venture?
Hi All-
I have been in a number of MLMs over the years and for most I haven't
made much money (zero effort=zero return) but I'm currently in one
that has products that I, and many of my friends, will be using so I
will receive a monthly rebate check for all of these purchases. Since
I am actually going to be getting some money (not much, maybe $50/month in
the beginning)
I was thinking about how I could write off some of the expenses that
go with it. I can see this business as being potentially profitable if
I put a bit of effort into it so I'd like to buy a new computer and
"write it off". I'm also keeping track of all of my mileage and other
expenses involved with this business like business cards, advertising,
etc. What I'd like to know is what do I need to do now to make this
deductible at tax time? Is there a minimum amout of profit that I
need to see in order to claim any expenses? Is there a minimum of
expenses? Do I just get all of the money that I spent back at tax time?
I know that sounds dumb, but I really have no idea how this "writing off"
thing works. I don't do my own taxes so I just want a general idea
of what I should be doing/saving/itemizing?
FYI:
- - I'll probably keep track of everything in M.Y.O.B. (I already own it)
- - The products I sell are usually at wholesale prices because they are to
my friends & family so I'm not making much, if any, profit there.
- - Most of my profits will be in "rebate" checks from the company.
- - I pay sales tax to the company, who in turn, pays sales tax to the govt.
so I don't think I have to worry about that.
Thanks for all of your help in the past, present and future.
Kristina
Shaperite Advisor, 415-780-5739
p.s.
Ira, your re-subscription check is in the mail. Thanks for all your
effort.;-)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:15:02 -0500 (EST)
From: "Russell J. Foster" <RFoster@specgrp.com>
Subject: Re: Tex asks about paying off mortgage
>>>I would rather invest the 100 grand and continue to pay off the
mortgage as usual.
Personally, I'd pay off the mortgage. Our first mortgage was for $90k
at ~$600/month. Of course, I'd lose the tax credit on the interest I
paid and a few other small lumps of money here and there related to
the same. However...
Wouldn't it be great to be relieved from a $600 obligation each month?
You're essentially living rent free. No more dealings with the
mortgage company, no more double checking to make sure the payment got
posted on time, no more wondering if we have enough money to buy
groceries after the mortgage gets paid, no more checking refinance
schedules, no more wondering: "Is it time to convert my ARM into a
fixed rate mortgage?"...
Yes, you're giving up some opportunity cost, but personally I'd rather
have the peace of mind. The mortgage payoff is a guaranteed 7% ROI,
not a great ROI, but it is guaranteed.
Likewise investing a lump sum at any point in time is more risky than
investing a steady amount over a period of time (which is what I'm
assuming we/I/you would do with the extra $600 each month from not
having to pay the mortgage).
Why? If I plunk $100k into stocks at a single point in time I'm taking
a 1:3 chance that the market is on a down-swing, 2:3 chance that it's
on an up-swing.
Dollar cost averaging allows you to manage point-in-time risk
accordingly. I won't go into the historical stats, but if you're
interested in a copy of the WSJ article that talks about this
(assuming I can find it), I'll be happy to email/fax it to you.
Russell J Foster
rjf@mcs.net
P.S. If anyone is interested in a copy of this article, please send me
your fax or email address (to be sent as a bitmap attachment).
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:16:23 -0500 (EST)
From: Holly D <hollyd@informix.com>
Subject: Re: Investment for a House Down Payment
> > Well Holly I just wanted to point out that you emphasized
> > that you have NO INTEREST in a 30 year mortgage and I just
> > say, WHY NOT? Consider a 30 year mortgage that you pay off
> > in 15 years buy making additional payments to the principle
> > each month. The thinking here is that you are only obligated
> > for the payment based on the 30 year plan.
>
> I can give you a good reason - the difference in interest rates.
> There is usually a lower interest rate for a 15 year mortgage,
> normally between 0.25% and 0.50%. This is normally enough of an
> incentive to go with the 15 year mortgage (not counting the
> thousands of dollars you'll save over the term of the loan). Plus
> you'll often find that the difference in payments is not as large as
> you might expect. I say the interest savings is more than enough to
> offset the "safety net" of the lower payment requirement of
> the 30 year loan, IMHO.
That's one reason. The others are:
1) My age. I am 38 years old and I would like to retire someday.
Soon. Preferably semi-retire in no more than 10 years.
2) My aversion to debt. A 15 year loan is not as much of a burden
to my psyche as a 30 year loan.
3) The fact that even at the same interest rate, a 15 year loan is
considerably cheaper over all than a 30 year loan. Even
after adjusting for the income tax factor, which will frankly
no longer be a factor anyway long before I get anywhere close
the end of a 30 year loan.
Although it has been pointed out that making larger payments on a 30
year loan can bring the actual loan life down to 15 years, it has been
my experience that different mortgage companies treat overpayments in
different ways. Why complicate things? Since a 15 year loan life is
what I'm after it only makes sense to get a 15 year loan to start with.
It is not the total loan amount that I am trying to maximize, but rather
the total debt that I am trying to minimize, so there is NO advantage
to a 30 year loan (quite the contrary in fact).
Also, it is always tempting to skip the extra payment this year, or
to just make the minimum monthly payment this time so you can use
that extra cash elsewhere. And doing this adds up over time, even
if it is fairly infrequent. Plus you are risking it becoming a habit.
So since a 15 year loan is what I want the best thing to do is in fact
GET a 15 year loan.
So where do you get Treasury bonds? What's a STRIP? And do only
banks issue CD's? Won't I also have to make sure that all the money
comes available about the same time, or can you sell off a 5 year
Treasury bond a little early with no appreciable loss?
All my investing heretofore has been done via my 401k, which typically
limits your choices to a list of whatever your employer is offering.
Thanks.
Holly Deiser
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:16:52 -0500 (EST)
From: Brian David James <bj756092@oak.cats.ohiou.edu>
Subject: Morningstar Principia Plus software?
Hello again
I have been asked to review different software options for mutual fund
research, and I'm wondering if anyone has any significant experiences with
things like Principia Plus or CDA or anything similar. Is it
cost-effective? Is it user-friendly (i.e. are the hypothetical portfolios
easy to construct?) What was the transition from old info sources like?
Any suggestions?
As always, thanks much for all of the info. I have learned more from
checking my email than I have from sitting in Finance classes. Too bad
Ira's not giving me a grade this quarter!
TIA,
Brian D. James Ohio University Innovation Center
Marketing Assistant http://www.cns.ohiou.edu/ictto/
bj756092@oak.cats.ohiou.edu ictto@www.cns.ohiou.edu
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 20:17:24 -0500 (EST)
From: homayoon_larki@MENTORG.COM (Homayoon Larki)
Subject: Destiny telecomm?
Hello,
I was wondering if anyone has any experience with Destiny telecomm?
A friend of mine is trying to get me to join in and I wanted to know
if this is another Amway, or is it different? I'm not the type who
does to well with MLM schemes....I'm just not aggressive enough to
be successful at recruiting people. He says that this bussiness is
the best he has ever seen, and that it will sell very easily once
people learn about it. I will be going to one of their meetings in
a few days, and I wanted to get your opinions on it first, since there
are some really smart people on this list. Please let me know at
larki@wv.mentorg.com, or just post it to the list.
Thanks alot,
H. Larki
------------------------------
End of persfin-digest V4 #3
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