Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Some Business Terms of Endearment

Was doing some searching on Investopedia today and came across some terms you might find interesting. Investopedia always yields results that are informative and often revealing. Investopedia is a subsidiary of Forbes We're calling this post "some business terms of endearment".

For example the term of the day is "sin tax".

"What Does Sin Tax Mean?
A state-sponsored tax that is added to products or services that are seen as vices, such as alcohol, tobacco and gambling. These type of taxes are levied by governments to discourage individuals from partaking in such activities without making the use of the products illegal. These taxes also provide a source of government revenue.
Investopedia Says
Investopedia explains Sin Tax
Sin taxes are typically added to liquor, cigarettes and other non-luxury items. State governments favor sin taxes because they generate an enormous amount of revenue and are usually easily accepted by the general public because they are indirect taxes that only affect those who use the products. When individual states run deficits, the sin tax is typically one of the first taxes recommended by lawmakers to help fill the budget gap."

Of course, in Massachusetts we hear almost daily the rewards that may come from building casinos. As in the various state lotteries, citizens voluntarily tax themselves for a chance to "hit it big" and then these "sin taxes" benefit the state coffers. Of course there are side effects and consequences, but also moments of hope and pleasure. Many institutions beside the state benefit. Many local businesses have seen revenue gains but also many paperwork demands and monitoring, such as in the area of selling cigarettes.

Back to Investopedia we came across the "buzzword" "affluenza". You've heard of influenza and your need for an annual flu shot. No such shots for affluenza. Here's what Investopedia says about this condition:

"What Does Affluenza Mean?
A social condition arising from the desire to be more wealthy, successful or to "keep up with the Joneses". Affluenza is symptomatic of a culture that holds up financial success as one of the highest achievements. People said to be affected by affluenza typically find that the very economic success they have been so vigorously chasing ends up leaving them feeling unfulfilled, and wishing for yet more wealth.
Investopedia Says
Investopedia explains Affluenza
Affluenza is arguably present in the United States, where the culture is one that prides itself on possessions and financial success. Mainstream media outlets, such as television broadcasts, tend to show how pervasive the idea has become.

While affluenza cannot be quantified easily, those wishing to avoid the condition should look to be the master of, not a slave to, the things they have or wish to obtain."

Now it could be argued that "sin taxes" and "affluenza" are related and that the recent stock market collapse was also related leading to near bankruptcy in many states, the bailout of major financial institutions such as CitiGroup, JP Morgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, and Fannie Mae, as well high gas prices, mortgage foreclosures and 10% national unemployment, 10.6% /in Pittsfield. Of course "playing the market" could viewed as a form of gambling. Individual losses have wreaked havoc on state revenues and pillaged state pension funds.

We encourage you to get a daily dose of Investopedia. We end today's post with the phrase "a ton of money" Do you know what a ton of money is? According to Investopedia:

"What Does A Ton Of Money Mean?
A slang term used to describe a significant amount of money. The amount implied typically depends on the person, company or situation.
Investopedia Says
Investopedia explains A Ton Of Money
We may all have a different idea of what constitutes a "ton of money", but according to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, a ton of $1 bills amounts to $908,000 - nearly $1 million!
If you're talking about a ton of coins, then it's a different story - a ton of quarters is worth $40,000, and one ton of pennies (363,000 pennies to be exact) is worth $3,630."

A weighty matter for the end of March or something to think about when April 15 comes.





Monday, March 15, 2010

April/May 2010 Berkshire Athenaeum Workshops Announced

Today is the "ides of March" - March 15. Caesar, rightfully, had a sense of foreboding this day. But you don't have to worry because you are not Caesar. And the announcement of new computer workshops to be held in April and May does not bring a sense of foreboding. Instead it's a sense of anticipation and looking forward to good things happening at the Berkshire Athenaeum even in the face of municipal cutbacks and reduction of hours.

This will be the 2nd set of workshops to be held in 2010. The first set was held during January and February. This time around there will be a wide variety of offerings. Each workshop is one hour and will be held in the evenings and on Saturdays. Starting Saturday, April 3 with 10 FreeWebsites You Will Want to Consult Regularly and ending Wednesday evening, May 26, with Word 2007 Tables, there will be over a dozen workshops.

Workshops offered will include many with a web 2.0 orientation, including ones on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Blogs and Blogging. Microsoft Office 2007 workshops will include Word Basics and Advanced, Excel 101 and 102. Other workshops are Job Search Resources in Learning Express, how to be a Smart Consumer, Gmail, and Going Mobile.

Workshops fill up quickly and preregistration is required. It's easy to register. Just call 413-499-4980, ext 202 and have your name added or drop in at the Reference Desk and sign up for the workshop(s) of your choice. Did I mention that all workshops are Free?! Well, they are! So while you are thinking about it, why don't you give us a call?

For the full list of workshops, descriptions and times click here.

See you in April and May. You won't have to 'beware of the ides of March!'

Sunday, February 28, 2010

Your Favorite 20 Most Popular eBusiness Websites - Part 2

This is Part 2 of our posts on Top Business Websites as tracked by ebizmba, the self-described Knowledge Database. What ebizmba does is combine tracking statistics provided by Google (inbound links), Compete, Quantcast and Alexa and comes up with a monthly list or rankings of Most Popular Business Websites and in today's case the 20 Most Popular and Influential eBusiness Websites. If Part 1 was Your Favorite Business websites, most of these cites were known to you and that's why they are so popular. They have your attention.

The most popular and therefore influential "eBusiness websites" are more oriented to the backbone of the internet and what makes it tick, the technology industry, search engine marketers, venture capital investors and those who need to know what's the next big thing in order to survive the fast paced changes in this ever dynamic environment. Google and Microsoft are betting on cloud computing, social networks, developing new business plans for media and industry overall, indeed the very survival of media companies. These eBusiness websites are on the cutting edge and are both suppliers of industry intelligence to mass media and are creators of new benchmarks in technology, producing new models, white papers, in depth research, product reviews, downloads, webcasts, podcasts and are constantly developing, charting, and marketing strategies. These websites carry great authority in that industry insiders and investors are the chief audience.

While Part 1 focused on websites with hundreds of millions of visitors on a monthly basis, here zdnet had the most @ 48 million inbound links and techcrunch had 10 million inbound links. In terms of individual visitors each of the top 20 ebusiness sites has between 450,000 and 2,000,000 visitors. That these sites' audiences are hardcore technology and trendsetters, they have become must reads for industry, media, government policy-makers and developers. Another way of putting it is that first discussions of significant trends happen on these sites. If you want to know what's going on in the internet, these sites are the most important starting points.

What each of these sites has in common is the commitment to the future, critical reviews, product analysis, downloads, having a strong sense of the significance of statistics, business models, new marketing models, and commitment to advancing the internet in all its various forms. Further there is commitment to competing models whether open source or proprietary, Microsoft versus Google versus Apple, MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. These sites are the advance guard.

That said I believe it's important to be aware of these websites, which are eBusinesses, media networks, and blogs. Some are supported by the Wall Street Journal, and CBS, and supply technology and business feeds to Business Week, New York Times, Reuters and the financial media. Here, then, are the 20 Most Popular and Influential eBusiness Websites as of February 2010 according to ebizmba:

1) Zdnet.com - This is a major technology news provider. Its coverage is wider in scope than some of the other sites. It includes white papers, blogs, up to date news coverage, product reviews, downloads of software and utilities, user ratings of software, webcasts, videos and podcasts. A CBS company.
2) Techcrunch.com keeps up with technology trends and has emphasis on impact of technology on business enterprise. Views itself as on the cutting edge.
3) ArsTechnica.com - also provides indepth articles on Windows 7, Facebook, video gaming business, and technology trends.
4) Cnetnews.com - Like ZDnet, covers whole scope of internet with articles, blogs, industry forecasts, videos, product downloads and reviews. Keeps its finger on the pulse.
5) Mashable.com - One of the most significant technology blogs, currently rumored to be in talks with AOL, which wants to buy it. Mashable is the major site keeping up on all aspects of web 2.o and social networks. It is the starting place to find out what's going on at Facebook, Linked In, MySpace, Blogger and others. It's also the place to obtain numerous templates, widgets, and gadgets, and the many ways web 2.0 is business oriented and profitable. Mashable is definitely worth following.
6) DigitalPoint.com - Tools for the techie and the technically inclined. Forums and discussions.
7) Webmasterworld.com - Keeping up on the technical infrastructure, business marketing, adsense, forums, and web news and developer tools.
8) Allthingsd.com - Covers all things digital but is not the company allthingsdigital. News and blogs. Up to the minute coverage. Owned by the Wall Street Journal.
9) Internet.com - Covers the internet industry, ecommerce, small business. Is the industry newsroom for the Internet. Network for technology professionals. Owner of Webopedia.
10) InformationWeek.com - First place for industry announcements. A newsweekly publication and online presence. Emphasis on business value of technology.
11) ReadWriteWeb.com - A blog and critical first stop known for insightful articles. You will find important web 2.0 articles as well following the development in Google and Microsoft.
12) VentureBeat.com - Another blog focusing on business start-ups and development deals. Respected.
13) PaidContent.org - A major tracker of the media industry as it attempts new business model to survive in the online universe, otherwise known as cloud computing now. Major media outlets follow paidcontent.org. New York Times, Financial Times new business models to gain pay for content.
14) GigaOm.com - a major blog, named after its founder Om Malik. Leading technology news provider to New York Times, Business Week and Reuters.
15) SearchEngineLand.com - tracks developments of search engine industry, business and advertising.
16) WebProNews.com - development on the web, search engines, business and marketing.
17) ClickZ.com - The business of the internet, tracking strategies, marketing techniques, major revenue sources affording much competition between Microsoft, Yahoo, and Google as well as Amazon and Ebay. Development of applications and tools.
18) Techmeme.com - Keeps up with technology trends. often cited.
19) TechDirt.com - Often insider views on development of government and business policy. A blog of long standing.
20) EMarketer.com - Known for its indepth critiques and "objective" analysis. Worth looking at.

There you have it -- the Top 20 most inluential eBusiness websites. Those reading it are those involved in creating the new internet, cloud computing, the new gadget, the next big thing for investors and businesses. No single one of these websites is the only authority. One must examine many according to your needs. However these sites, though not having the 400 million Facebook audience, are in fact the ones creating opportunity for the Facebooks of the world. They are also the information providers counted upon by those making critical policy and investment decisions.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Your Favorite Top 20 Business Websites 2010 Part 1

How do you find your Business information?

Marketers want to know; companies want to know; google and site trackers want to know. They all want to capture your attention.

EBizMba - The eBusiness Knowledgebase dedicates itself to the answers to this question. Through combining google page rank, alexa and compete and quantcast tracking statistics, it ranks websites. In fact they have just released figures for January 2010 for regular business websites and ebusiness websites. From these rankings you may get a profile for your own uses. Albeit these are popularity statistics and not necessary the "best" sites. These are the sites most visited on a regular basis. In the future we will profile many of these sites in more depth. The entire ebizmba most popular business websites article can viewed here.

Here then are your 20 most popular business websites in 2010 according to ebizmba:

1) Yahoo Finance
Yahoo Finance is content rich and aggregates all kinds of finance, investment, stock information in one place. Pick your interest and there will be information there. Also provides a host of daily rss feeds from business and investment news providers;

2) CNN Money
CNN Money is homebase for Fortune and Money Magazines and provides cross the board stock and investment information as well as covering daily business trends. Also features videos and podcasts.

3) Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal online is a pay subscription site though there is much free information available there.

4) Forbes
Forbes magazine online is like CNNMoney content rich. An important business, investment information source.

5) Business.com
An aggregator of all things business. Users often go to business.com as a starting point. Not mentioned in rankings is an equally important source of information -- business.gov

6) Bloomberg
Bloomberg.com is another exceptional business site, though graphically not as attractive as others. Content rich, thorough information. Well worth your visit.

7) Business Week
Until December Business Week was owned by McGraw-Hill, also owners of Standard and Poors. Bought in December by Bloomberg, which immediately attached its own name - Bloomberg Business Week. Business Week is rich in content, an important source of information and support for Small Businesses, company profiles, and indepth overall information. Includes videos, podcasts and editor blogs. What Bloomberg ownership means remains to be seen. Worth your visit.

8) FT.com
If you read the Wall Street Journal, you must also consult the Financial Times of London for its global perspective on investment and finance information. A critical business site. Much of it is however only available to paid subscribers.

9) BizJournals.com
Another content rich site tracking small and large business information and providing local trends as well from its multitude of sources.

10) MSN money
Like Yahoo Finace, MSN money pools information on personal finace and investment, more oriented to smaller investors rather than institutional investors. Worth your visit especially regarding personal finance issues.

11) MotleyFool
Clear eyed investment advice. A first stop for many despite its #11 ranking.

12) CNBC.com
Another major investment site. Up to the minute stock reports. Like msnmoney, yahoo finance and bloomberg and forbes.

13) BankRate.com
A major source for bank and credit card information.

14) TheStreet.com
Another investment site with much indepth information on the markets.

15) MarketWatch.com
MarketWatch is investment and personal finance for free. It's owned by Dow Jones, which also owns the Wall Street Journal and produces the Dow Jones Industrial Index otherwise known as the Dow. One of the better sites, thorough and content rich and free.

16) AllBusiness.com
In depth site soup to nuts on starting a business, buying a franchise and much more.

17) Hoover's.com
Used to be the source for company profiles. Still important though there is much competition now for its information. Basic information free; detailed information must pay subscription.

18) SeekingAlpha
Another investment oriented site seeking to find the scoop on the next big stock, ipo and so forth.

19) Entrepreneur
Our choice for #1 small business one stop shop, whether starting or maintaining or expanding a business. Excellent focus on women entrepreneurs, support forums, tax information. Truly a one stop shop for the gift of information that keeps on giving. Also a long standing business magazine.
Inc Magazine, not ranked, is a near #2 for small businesses. Check them both out.

20) GoogleFinance.com
Not as developed as YahooFinance and MSNmoney, but worth a visit and very competitive, up to the minute that you would expect from google.

There you have it -- "Your Favorite Top 20 Business Websites". What your real favorite will be will be based on your own needs and preferences. But if popularity and millions of links and hits are indicators, these sites may be worth your time and efforts and staying on top of things in critical in the business world.

Many of these sites are print magazines or newspapers as well and can be found at your public library such as Pittsfield's own Berkshire Athenaeum, Pittsfield Massachusetts Public Library. There we subscribe for you to Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Business Week, Forbes, Money, Fortune, Kiplinger's Personal Finance, Entrepreneur and Inc Magazines. As you can see they all have their own content rich online websites. Other business information and journals are available free at the Athenaeum on our online databases they can be viewed simply by the use of your library card. The library is also a one stop shop for your information needs!

Monday, January 25, 2010

2009 Year In Review -- What Recession? or What A Recession!!!

Been thinking about 2009 and what happened and what it means for 2010 now that we're in 2010.

Remember the Greatest Recession since the Great Depression comments? Remember the $700 Billion Dollar T.A.R.P bailout for companies and banks "too big to fail". TARP incidentallly means Troubled Asset Relief Program, begun by former Treasury Chair Henry Paulsen ( also former CEO of Goldman Sachs, a chief beneficiary of TARP ) during the waning months of President Bush's administration and supported by President-Elect Barack Obama. By Dec 31 2008 247 billion dollars had been sent to relieve failing Investment Banks and AIG. And at the very least Goldman Sachs was saved and is prospering quite well. It has even returned the $40 Billion dollar outlay. Quite a turnaround! So for Goldman and many other large banks, the Recession appears over. They're back to investing but not necessarily issuing credit.

On the smaller bank front for 2009 140 banks went into Bankruptcy and were saved by the FDIC -- Federal Deposit Insurance Corporations, whose own funds are nearly bankrupt. In 2010 bank failures have continued a pace -- 9 have failed since the beginning of 2010, taken over by FDIC. In 2009 over 1 million foreclosures occured jeopardizing individual families needs for shelter. Furthermore the national unemployment rate reached and has maintained the 10 % level, roughly 16 million individuals and their families. For those families the term Recession if not Depression is very real. Even Wal-Mart is closing many Sam's Club stores and laying off 11,000 workers. Jobs held by Wal-Mart former employees will be outsourced.

On the Investment and Finance front, the Dow has risen from a low of 7100 a year ago to over 10,000 on a continual basis (10,196 today) though there are still daily ups and downs but no dramatic downward shifts. Institutional investors are back playing the Market, confident that the US government and the Federal Reserve will prevent any dramatic decay. So the Investing community is moving forward even though wary of Financial Reform legislation. But there has been no real Financial Reform legislation no new FDIC or regulatory reform. Perhaps that is due to the hands off approach of former deregulators Larry Summers, Tim Geitner and Robert Rubin. Only recently has 82 year old former Treasury head Paul Volker been heard from in marked contrast to the hands off the "too big to fail" proponents.

Financial Reform like HealthCare Reform are both up in the air. Whereas TARP was okayed for 700 billion for 1 year HealthCare was for that same abount over 10 years and is stalled. Small Business have vested interests in seeing Health Care Reform though since it 's a large share of their own budgets, which operate on very small profit margins, unlike the "too big to fail" companies. The Outlook for any major Financial or HealthCare Reform in 2010 is very clouded, if not dim.

And remember that other indicator of onset of Recession that caught economists by surprise. Here I'm talking about Oil and Gas Prices. It was just July of 2008 when gas prices were a steady $4.11, a price that was a shock to individuals then and now. By the end of 2008 gas prices were back down to $1.87 nationally. By that time the US automotive market fell apart. General Motors and Chrysler filed for Bankruptcy protection, Fiat took over Chrysler and US taxpayers put a major financial stake in General Motors; Barack Obama initiated the Cash for Clunkers program to get Americans back into dealer showrooms. The automotive industry is still floundering. Only Ford did not take advantage of TARP. However, when banks do not issue credit, buyers don't buy; so government money went into GM's major financial lender, GMAC.

Now if you have been following gas prices over the last year, they have been inching back up, from aforementioned $1.86 to national prices this week of $2.78 up from $2.60 during the Christmas holiday season. In Pittsfield in December is was $2.63; a year ago it was $1.80. Economists were not even including gas prices in cost of living indexes so they missed the Depressive effects of these high gas prices. Wages simply do not go up to cover these changes. Nor do State budgets have the flexibility to meet these changes. With employment down, investment down, tax collections were down as well and States have initiated 3 to 4 rounds of dollar cutbacks, that in turn has affected municipalities, such as Pittsfield. For libraries, the entire Regional Library System is being cut in favor of one centralized system. Libraries are losing expected levels of state funding and local governments are unable to support library costs. This has resulted in cutbacks in service,days open and in some cases closing of libraries. In western Massachusetts there is no longer Bookmobile service to dozens of rural communities.

So here we are in 2010. Has anything changed? Or does the Recession continue full force. There has been no financial reform and no healthcare reform, no relief for small businesses or workers. There have been none of the great reforms that occurred during the Great Depression other than the hope given by those Great Depression agencies the FDIC and for the banks, the Federal Reserve.

So the question remains What Recession? and the answer remains What A Recession flowing full force to every sector and unit of United States citizenry with the possible exception of big banks and the wary Investment community!!

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Best Business Books of 2009

2009 has been a year of extreme turbulence in business and the world at large! How have authors addressed this turbulence and its effects on business, individuals and families? In this post I have selected 3 books that might be worthy of your attention, 2 that are making many "best" lists and a surprise selection on maintaining sanity in the workaday world.

The Financial Times and Goldman Sachs (yes, of the bailed out Investment banks) every year make an award for Best Business Book. They announced their 2009 award of 30,000 pound sterling ($48,000 U.S) to Liaquat Ahamed for his Lords of Finance -- The Bankers Who Broke The World. Included here is a video from the Finacial Times of the award to Ahamed.




The New York Times, Time Magazine have acknowledged Lords of Finance as one of the Year's best. Ahamed's book represents an indepth look at the forces behind the Great Depression that swept the world in the 1930s and bankers and others responsible for market collapse. He looks at the role of central bankers, the Federal Reserve, and speculators in gold, the gold standard, the role of bankers in United Kingdom, Germany, France, and the United States, from bubble boom to economic and social collapse. Ahamed's is one view of the Great Depression 70 years after the fact. John Galbraith's The Great Crash, 1929 is closer in time and Galbraith became a significant actor in United States economics in the aftermath of the Great Depression. Ahamed and Galbraith's book are worth a look.

Barry Ritholtz' Bailout Nation -- How Greed and Easy Money Corrupted Wall Street and Shook the World Economy, names names, shows suitable outrage over outrageous extremes, and writes a well researched up-to-the minute book. He puts the current situation into an historical context giving a prior history of bailouts, the founding of the Federal Reserve, and generally makes a case for the emptiness of free markets ideology, noting that large corporate structures are not permitted to fail when perhaps they should fail. This has enboldened unhealthly risk taking and the "too big to fail" syndrome. Ritholz' provides a lively, intelligent account in his book where many books are deadly dull and unresponsive to diverse ideas outside scope of their thesis. Ritholtz gives you the information, lets you know what he thinks, but you can beg to differ. He is responsible for providing a real perspective on the guts of the economic crisis. You know where he stands. Rithotz also writes a very successful daily blog, The Big Picture, where follows up on themes in the book and his current thoughts on economic trends.

Both Ritholtz and Ahamed are finance professionals. Ahamed is a consultant to hedge funds, amongt other things and a former investment manager. Ritholtz heads his own firm as CEO and Director of Equity Research at Fusion IQ. Each of their books will provide "food for thought" and will do so 10 years from now. Interviews with Ahamed and Ritholtz may be found on YouTube.

The 3rd book I have selected might well be called Surviving the ongoing economic decline. And it is that, but what it's really about is presenting a clear eyed view of getting and maintaining a job and weathering all kinds of offenses along the way. It's a refreshing account about getting along in the working world. Title of the book is The Amazing Adventures of Working Girl -- Real Life Career Advice You Can Actually Use. It's by Karen Burns, who by her count had 59 jobs over 40 years in 22 cities and 4 countries. Only problem with the book is its title, The Amazing Adventures of Working Girl, which is a euphemism for a prostitute. That's not Burns' intent here though she is aware of the implications of the term. Burns has learned from her experiences and wants to share what she has found out. Turn to any page and you will find revelation, revealed in concise often funny descriptions. And she hits the mark every time in every chapter. Burns claims she was only fired once of all the 59 jobs. Today she has a very active blog, and has career counseling columns at US News & World Report. She even has her gift shop and tips on marketing yourself. Burns also has an active Twitter account and a presence of Facebook.

While Karen Burns' book is The Amazing Adventures of Working Girl, any gender will benefit from it. She covers the territory, job search, interview, pay checks that bounce, what to wear, developing confidence, negotiating for raises, job changing to job hopping. There are hundreds of jobs books published every year, giving the same advice over and over. They are replaceable parts. Burns book is a keeper and so too is her blog. Check it out.

In fact you can check all these books out at the Berkshire Athenaeum or at your library.

Sunday, November 29, 2009

Webopedia -- Guide to Social Media, the Internet and All About Computers

You've heard about Wikipedia, the Online Free Encyclopedia and Investopedia, the Online Dictionary of Business and Financial terms. Today I want to introduce you to Webopedia, the Online Guide to Social Media, All Things Internet, and Dictionary and Encyclopedia of All Things About Computers and Computing Technology.

Here's how Webopedia defines itself: "Webopedia is a free online dictionary for words, phrases and abbreviations that are related to computer and Internet technology. Webopedia provides easy-to-understand definitions in plain language, avoiding the use of heavy jargon when possible so that the site is accessible to users with a wide range of computer knowledge."

Webopedia was founded April 4, 1998. Its parent company is WebMediaBrandsInc with offices in Darien, Connecticut and New York city. WebMediaBrands describes itself as "The leading global provider of events, education, jobs, and content for business, media, and creative professionals." It is a publicly traded company on NASDAQ ( WEBM ). Besides Webopedia, WebMedia provides the news service internet.com, an extensive guide to ECommerce and Small Business Computing.

When you go to the Webopedia, you can search any computer term. For example, what is phishing? (click on term for definition). Or What is an "operating system? URL or "social networking"? Webopedia gives you a basic definition and then provides more detail and related links. This allows the opportunity to get as much information as you want on a topic, to become conversant. It cuts through the jargon, abbreviations, to clearly represent the term and its significance.

Besides term definitions Webopedia provides a Quick Reference area where you may explore a Twitter Dictionary, Instant and Text Messenging and Chat abbreviations, acronyms; social networking tools, search engines and directories, google search tips, step-by-step methods to set up your own Personal or Business Facebook account, How EMail works, Selling on EBay, Small Business Computing essentials, even How to Clean Your Computer. There is a great deal of depth and knowledge, clearly presented on a wide variety of topics in the Quick Reference area. There is even a History of Blogging!

This useful site also includes an extensive "Did You Know...?" area. There you can learn how Affiliate Marketing works, how to protect against Identity Theft, Twitter tools, Windows 7, Firefox, Google Chrome, How to Format a Hard Drive, the difference between a virus, trojan horse and worm, all about Software, Open Source, Setting up a Facebook page for your business, VOIP and the Small Business, Internet Telephony, Internet Grammar, All about Cookies, Are deleted files really deleted?, Static Electricity and Computers, and Tech terms that are strange but true. Like any dictionary you may find the answer to your query but also to others you wondered about.

There is much practical, useful information to be found in Webopedia and there are hundreds of links to more information and detail. For quick reference and gratification Webopedia is hard to beat. It is up-to-date with current trends and news. It is a one stop shop for understanding internet, social networking, technical terminology. It's free and there are many tips for marketing your business, setting up links, creating blogs, and optimizing your business sense with the all the possibilities of the internet and web 2.0.

We have just scratched the surface of what is within Webopedia. I urge you to explore this site and to bookmark it for future uses. Your time will be well spent.