In my previous post, we talked about putting in security software into your computer to help prevent malicious programs like viruses, worms, trojan, spywares, etc. from getting into your system and corrupting it in some sort.

In this post we will talk about maintaining your computer's efficiency. So what does it take to maintain your computer's speed?

We have to understand that your computer's efficiency or speed depends on various factors. Some of these factors are your RAM memory, Harddisk capacity, Processor, Video card memory, Network speed, and Internet Speed.

a. RAM memory - RAM or Random access memory is what people usually think where the computer's speed is based. Well that is not so true because this is only one factor contributing to the whole speed of your PC. The logic here is RAM memory is used by the computer for its processes that run in the background while you use your computer. This is also used for applications or programs while in their running mode. A basic illustration of this is, for example you are using your MS Word and MS Excel and at the same time streaming radio through your media player. Think of this, where is your unsaved document being written? Where is the file buffered by your media player stored? - the answer? yes, RAM memory. So to put it simply, one must understand the capacity of his RAM memory to take full advantage of it. It may be said that when you use 100% of your RAM then your computer will hang. This is not surprising because aside from the User's applications, RAM is also being used by the O/S (Operating System) for its basic functions. So like for windows explorer it uses RAM for its browsing functions and so if RAM being used by another program at its 100% capacity then the windows explorer cannot run properly as it should be.

For a basic user, I will advice that if you are using Windows Vista, you must have at least 2gb or RAM in your computer if you want to be able to use it normally. As to Windows XP users, 1gb of RAM is acceptable.

I will talk about how Harddisk capacity, Processor, Video card memory, Network speed, and Internet Speed, affects your computer''s speed in my next posts so keep posted! Cheers! :)

With the new $787 economy economic stimulus bill signed by the President, what do you think will happen now? Expectations are mostly positive that effects of the bill will seen immediately as the programs stated in bill will be worked on as early as possible.

So what is this to us? In relation to my previous post, if you have already went in to stock trading or have been analyzing the charts or doing your own self-study, you may want to ask yourself this, "Will I risk going in the market now and hope for the stimulus bill to take effect, or will I wait for it to take effect first?" Of course don't forget to check the specific charts of the stock quote you are planning to buy.

Let's just hope that everything will go well. Cheers! :)

People always are interested in getting in the stock market but what do we really need to do it? Basic answer: Money-makes-money. There are several ways of playing the market t and two of them is making a business or just using it to earn extra funds for you. Many choose the latter as they don’t want to sacrifice getting unemployed just to give their full attention in playing the market. But some do..

First of all, one must consider that for him / her to play in the stock market, he/ she should have extra funds. By “extra funds” this means that the money set as money market cash or trading cash will not be needed for at least a year or more. The money put in the trading account (account used to trade under a brokerage firm online or manual) is something that is not necessary or is not vital to the owner. It should be considered as if the money is put in a long-term restricted time deposit wherein you can’t touch the funds until it is due (of course yield rates would depend on the owner and not on a fixed rate).

Next is, the trader, before getting into playing must at least have prospective companies the he / she wants to invest in. What is the point in putting your money in a trading account if don’t have a clue of what to do with it? At least 2 weeks or a month, the prospective trader must select a company that he / she want to buy for starters and monitor its movement for the period specified (Although reasonable analyses uses data those are usually more than 1 month). When the specific company is selected then the next thing to do is select a broker. It is more realistic of having a broker than trying to buy it from the issuing company. One must also consider choosing a broker that is online or the traditional “by-phone” trading. These days with the ultra fast pace of stock trading, it seems advisable to do it online rather than calling your broker to place an order. Although some people still find it more convenient to do so, I personally prefer online trading due to the benefits it has over the conventional trading (without prejudice to brokerage firms who still does “by-phone” trading). One basic advantage is one can instantly cancel and replace an order with just a click of a button with your computer. Another is the convenience of being able to transfer trading funds into the brokerage account by just posting an ACH deposit / withdrawal order which is done online also. And of course, one major thing is the benefit of having several online analytical tools as guides in your trading. Please send me an email at j_p_espiritu@yahoo.com if you want me to send you an invitation for my advised online brokerage firm.

Let’s now go to using the charts. As there are so many type of charts analysis existing I will just explain briefly on 2 useful charts. One would be the candle stick charting which shows the historical movement of the stock price over a certain period of time. Basically, it is called candlestick chart because the price movements of a day is shown like a candle. Sometimes is has a wick on the upper portion which represents high price movements or on the lower portion of the candle which represents the low movements of the price. Sometimes it doesn’t have a wick at all which means that the high or low is equal to is opening or closing price. For more information on candle stick charting please search for it on the net via google search.

Another useful chart is the MACD (Moving Average Convergence / Divergence) chart. This one shows two lines which represents a fast line (9 days) and a slow line (12/26 days) price movement average. Although this is one good analytical tool, one must keep in mind that this is only an indicator and the ultimate outcome may be different than what is predicted to happen. A very simple explanation for this is when the fast line is more than the slow line then it indicates a rally up of the price. Vice-versa is of course a rally down. The trader must look out for cross-overs of these two lines and decide on his / her move based on judgment.

There are many other useful analyses used by great traders and I would suggest for people who really wants to get playing the market, is that they do their own research and studies. One thing I learned is that you may have the money to spare but not knowing how to manage it is like putting it in a hole where it can get stuck for a long period of time.

I hope this will help those that are interested in playing the market. Just keep in mind that these are only guides I made based on my experience, research, and from my friends’ own experiences. I have personally tried these steps and I believe that they are worth doing to at least reduce the risk of losing money.