PayPal Fatal Failure

Although this didn't happen to me personally, perhaps I didn't log in to PayPal at the time there was a glitch, a couple of friends informed me that they were shocked to see that there was "fatal failure" when they tried to log in to PayPal a few days ago. PayPal seemed fine after a while and I have also logged in to my PayPal account without this issue so I think the problem has been fixed.

The problem is that once again, PayPal did not report that they were facing an issue and that some users may be affected. The company, once again, failed to reassure users that everything is OK and that our PayPal accounts will be accessible soon.

PayPal, like a bank, should be more responsible in keeping customers informed since money is very sensitive and people will panic if the website doesn't work as it should, don't you think so?

Looking To Buy Gold Coins

I asked a friend if he would like to invest in properties since I have read about so many people who are making big bucks from it despite reports in the newspaper about the gloomy prospects in the property market due to the lackluster economy.

I know my friend could easily afford to pay off his monthly home loan installment but my friend said that since he already has a house, he is not desperate to look for another property. Granted, owning another property would mean more responsibilities and financial commitment.

My friend told me that right now, he would rather buy gold coins. It provides him a lot of freedom in the sense that he doesn't need to worry about maintaining it or topping up with even more capital. Oh well, gold coins are good but then to me, it would be great to own another property. I guess different people have different views.

Building A Home From Scratch

My sister told me about her friend who is aspiring to build her own dream house, just like what my sister did. I think that all migrants in the United States are chasing the American Dream and one good sign of having made it includes owning a house, a grand one, if possible.

This friend, Sarah, has already bought a plot of land in a new residential area and is saving money to draw her own house floor plan. However, my sister told her that to save on costs, she could actually buy home plans from a company like houseplansandmore.com which has plans for any sort of house style and designs that any new home owner may have in mind.

Sarah didn't know about this but now, as she studies the site, she is getting more and more ideas from the vast selection of homes plans available for her to choose from. Of course, even though a homeowner may buy a plan that is already drawn, she could still make changes to it until she is truly satisfied with the design that she is happy with.

This means that even though two people may have purchased the same plan, the two houses, when built, could be very different from each other and yet, these houses are cheaper than ones drawn from scratch and just as easy to individualize in terms of the design and house elements.

Yiddishe Momma For Sale On eBay

This auction on eBay for a Yiddishe Momma is ridiculous, though it's not the only one of its kind. The stranger thing is that while all previous "human" auctions on eBay were put up buy children, this one was put up by the son of the Yiddishe Momma who is 38 years old! Wouldn't someone that age be more sensible?

Someone who is familiar with eBay would know that we cannot put up an auction of people. If he is "innovative" as claimed by his Yiddishe Momma, then he should be auctioning off dating coupon where the highest bidder will get to date his mother, and not auction off his mother, and with a starting price of only GBP1!

Obviously, this auction was pulled by eBay. Well, better luck next time!

Consumer Credit Counseling Service

I was aghast to learn that my cousin brother has incurred a mounting credit card debt. When he was offered a credit card, no, he didn't apply for it, I had wondered if he really needs a credit card. He said he doesn't but he likes to have one and thinks that having one makes he more "adult".

True enough, he doesn't know how to manage the freedom of ready money in his pocket. He would use the card on luxurious electronic gadgets that he could pay by monthly installments that he would otherwise cannot afford to purchase. Taking care of payment of one card was still manageable but because using a credit card was so easy, he applied for a few others too so that he could spread out his expenditure.

Although I have never been in such a situation before, a few of my friends were once caught in such a financial bind but they acknowledged their problem and enrolled in credit counseling. Since then, all of them are back to using only one credit card; one is now without any credit card and she is very happy with that!

Credit card consolidation actually helps a lot since it would mean making one low payment every month instead of paying off numerous credit cards at different times of the month. It's not easy to manage our finances like that. I remember a friend telling me that he doesn't know where his money went even though he draws a rather fat monthly salary.

While I can't help my cousin to pay off his credit card debt, I could help him by looking for consumer credit counseling service. Hopefully, after this episode, he will learn his lesson.

Easy Surfing

My friend is thinking if getting an iPad for his elderly mother. It will be easy for her to surf the web where she could read the news and send email to her friends. She doesn't need something complicated like the computer since she wouldn't install any applications or programs.

Although getting an iPad for her is a good idea, my friend is a little worried that she would take it out of the house, perhaps to show her friends her new device or something. I think that if that's the case, he would have to buy ipad insurance so that he wouldn't have to worry about it getting lost.

Personally, I like the iPad too because it's so easy to use but it boots up faster than the computer too. Also, surfing from the iPad means that I don't have to be glued to my workstation for long hours. I'm waiting for the price to drop further, though. It's still way too expensive for me!

Increase eBay Sales At Zero Cost

eBay and PayPal are running a promotion for eBay Malaysian sellers whereby sellers who sell on eBay Malaysia are encouraged to offer PayPal as a payment mode to their sellers and there will be no transaction fee charged.

Promotional period runs from 15th June to 31st July, 2010 but to be eligible for the promotion, eBay Sellers have to be registered with any eBay marketplace with a valid registration address located in Malaysia. The same goes for registration with PayPal. The PayPal account must be linked to the eBay account and both accounts must be in good standing.

Do know that you will be charged fees as usual but will only be paid the rebate at the end of the promotional period within sixty days. Of course, there are some other small terms and conditions as well to qualify for this rebate.

For more information on this promotion, check out this PAGE on eBay.

Budget Web Hosting Packages

As a small time web entrepreneur, I manage a few websites, from blogs to online stores. The thing that stresses me out is when it's time to renewal my domains and webhosting. These aren't cheap, as you know, so I'm always on the look out for cheap web hosting all the time even though I may not need them yet.

The funny thing is that some friends, who are planning to set up websites themselves too, are always asking me for information on hosting their websites. Since they are new, they usually want to know the best budget hosting.

This is not easy for me to let them know as it changes frequently as web hosting companies come out with more competitive packages. I just told them that it's best to bookmark Web Hosting Geeks for the latest information.

Volatility of Currency

I was telling a friend that the currency fluctuates so much lately that it's difficult to make definite investment plans. We don't even know exactly how much we have, if you know what I mean.

My friend surprised me by saying that he has converted some of his cash to rare coins and have even bought a couple of buy gold eagle coins which are very popular with coin collectors.

Although he is not familiar with the coin market, he still thinks that it's a good idea to diversify his investment. According to him, these few coins that he purchased recently are only the beginning to a larger coin collection.

I think he is making a smart move and plan to follow suit. Hopefully, I could save enough cash first.

Ability To Filter Sellers' Negative Feedback Ratings

AuctionBytes wrote that eBay users would soon be able to filter feedback ratings of sellers, isolating positive, neutral and negative feedback. Apparently, this feature is available in many eBay international websites already but is still not in eBay USA yet. eBay sellers in the US have been fighting against this feature but I guess eBay has won this round, as the feature is going to be rolled out soon to the US marketplace.

Personally, as both a buyer and seller, I love this ability to filter feedback results so that I can reader a page of positive, a page of neutral and also a page of negative feedback ratings alone as I like.

But of course, although this has been planned in a rollout soon, things may change yet again. At the pace things are changing over in eBay, I wouldn't be surprised if eBay decides not to offer this ability to eBay USA users after all.

Seeking Alcohol Rehabilitation

I am worried about a friend whom I think is addicted to alcohol but he denies it. However, looking at the way he drinks, no matter how he denies it, action speaks louder than words. Mutual friends have been urging him to address his problems but I believe that even if the drinker seeks rehabilitation from a good alcohol rehabilitation center, the resolve for change needs tp start from within himself.

The recent death of South Africa's former president, Nelson Mandela, 13-year-old Zenani Mandela, who was allegedly killed by a drunk driver after watching the World Cup concert, stressed the point that not only does alcohol cause social problems to the drinker himself but may also be dangerous to others. In the case of Zenani, alcohol may have snuffed out a young life.

This friend, whom I shall not name, may be living in denial right now but I hope that when he "wakes up", it wouldn't be too late and he still has time to turn his life around and takes the step towards alcohol rehabilitation.

I have left him address to a good Tennessee Alcohol Treatment and hope that he will make use of it one day. I hope that the day will come sooner rather than later.

Advertising Within Budget

As an online entrepreneur, one of my main concerns is the inability to advertise within my small budget. This is not only my own concern actually, but the same thing that many of my friends, who run small businesses, especially online businesses, are facing.

Apparently, in a recent survey, about 60% of the respondents who used online advertising systems like Google advertising, 52% of these respondents said that their online advertising campaigns were not yielding results. This is what I am afraid of.

Besides the fact that website advertising could be a complicated process, it could be costly too. Those who utilize the services of online advertising services would have to pay a good percentage of their budget on fees alone while those who decide to do it directly find great difficultly in converting traffic into business and usually end up spending more than they intended. In short, website advertising is a very tricky and expensive affair.

Using a system like Simply.com is very helpful because like the name suggests, it has streamlined the process of online advertising. Not only is it easy, it is very cost effective and helps us to monitor our web advertising campaigns easily all within one website.

Honestly, I haven't tried this system yet because I have already used my budget for the month, sad to say without the desired results, but this is a system that I will definitely try in the near future.

Facebook Hoodie Heating Up eBay Auctions

I don't know what's the big deal about this Facebook hoodie that has a logo that has the words, 'Making the world open and connected'. It's not exactly an artistic design, mind you, but I guess because it was revealed at the D8 conference by Facebook founder himself, Mark Zuckerberg, people are clamouring for it.

This hoodie is not exactly "exclusive" but is given to employees only. So if you have someone working in Facebook, you can try to ask for it, perhaps for free. Right now, there is one that has made its way to eBay and bidding has reached US$4000. Is that too much to pay for a hoodie that's not exclusive enough? You bet I think so.

But then again, with a marketplace like eBay, if you think that there is money to be made, then go ahead and put it up on eBay, there is surely someone to pick it up, and surprisingly, may even pay more than you expected.

Gaining A Degree

My cousin told me that he feels like dropping out of college. He said that he has lost interest in studying and moreover, his mother is ill and he couldn't concentrate. I advised him to continue with his education because it is so important, it will open so many more doors for him, that have been shut to me because I don't have that all-important "degree".

I told him that he is not able to help his mother right now but he can help himself and that would make his mother so proud of him. If he has lost interest, there are so many more research college degrees that he could enroll in.

My cousin may be young right now and do not yet realize what not having tertiary education means in society. And I feel that being a guy, as compared to a girl, it is all the more important for him to see through college. What do you think?

Lunch With Buffett Auction Hits US$400,000

With still slightly more than a day to closing, the "Lunch with Warren Buffett" auction on eBay is already at US$400,000. Last year's auction was closed at a cool US$1.68 million dollars, with a total of more than US$6 million collected since its inception a decade ago, for San Francisco-based Glide Foundation, which charitably organization that provides social services to the poor and homeless in San Francisco.

The winner of the auction plus up to seven guests will get to lunch with Warren Buffett and have the opportunity to pick his brains, at a date and time to be decided upon by both parties, at the Smith & Wollensky steakhouse in New York.

I think that it's great if one could have a meal together with Warren Buffet but then paying over a million dollars for it is a little too pricey, even though it's for charity. Some people probably think it's a great honour, but I guess some hope to get some investment tips and make a profit that would be even more than what was paid for the meal.

Nevertheless, it would be interesting to see how this auction will end.

£0 Insertion Fee On Auctions On eBay UK 6 June 2010

Good news for eBayers who list on eBay UK. This 6th June, 2010, from 00:00:01 until 23:59:59 (UK time), to celebrate Summer, eBay is offering yet another Free Listing Day where it will be £0 to list any auction item (or auction with Buy It Now) with any starting price. This promotion is open to all eBay sellers except for eBay business sellers and PowerSellers. Also, do take note that only listing is free. All other frees still apply.

Of course, like all previous Free Listing Day (FLD) promotions, there are some fine prints to take a look at. Some of the items that are not eligible for this promotion are items listed in the "Cars, Motorcycles & Vehicles" and "Residential Property" categories. Items listed in the "Mobile Phones with Contract" sub-category of the "Mobile & Home Phones" category would not qualify too.

For more terms and conditions, read the eBay UK announcement page.

20% Increase In Cost Of Living

If the Government really sees through the reduction and then total elimination of subsidies over the next five years, it is reported that the overall increase in the cost of living for most people, at the end of the five years, which means the beginning of 0 subsidy, will be 20%.

That's a huge amount of money that we are forced to spend. One can say that we are too dependent on subsidies, if there was any to begin with but then when most of our earnings are so low, what could we do? We have already cut down on spending by so much already.

A friend told me that she is planning to buy gold coins to prepare herself in the event that there really is a gradual reduction of subsides and then total elimination by the end of the fifth year. I don't know how much this will help but any investment would be good. I too will have to figure out ways to overcome this impact of subsidy-free country.

Steps To Online Shopping Safety

A friend told me that she has never purchased anything online before. In this day and age, shopping online is like second nature to most of us already. She doesn't trust disclosing her financial particulars on the internet.

Her concerns are valid seeing how there are so many people who have fallen victim to fraud already or have their credit card number stolen but when shopping online, or even using the internet, one has to use common sense.

If you are required to register with any website, use a strong password, ideally a mix of letters and numbers. Use a browser like Firefox that has an indication if the website is the authentic one by showing green on the address bar. Don't forget to put on your firewall and keep your anti-virus and security software updated.

As for payment, make sure that you are using safer methods like PayPal, which offers protection for buyers, or credit cards. It is important to realize that links that come in emails shouldn't be clicked on, even if the email is from someone you know.

Before I made my first purchase online, a friend told me that if the deal is too good, just forget about it. It can't be real.

Experienced Denver Accident Lawyers

Being involved in an accident is bad enough but being in one through no fault of yours is worse. Imagine being injured due to the wrongful doing or negligence of another party and not being able to work, having to spent a lot of money on medical bills and even rehabilitation AND not being compensated accordingly. That could cause an extreme financial strain on the family especially if the injured is the bread winner.

Experienced denver accident lawyers at Fuicelli & Lee P.C. know the kind of issues injured victims like these face. Therefore, they utilize their years of trial experience to help such victims win their personal injury court cases and get fully compensated for their "down time" and pain suffered.

Fuicelli & Lee P.C. is a law firm that would provide legal representation to accident victims, especially, and their denver car accident lawyers would offer their personal touch to each victim, treating them as "people" and not a "case" or "file" and using their expert knowledge in the law to fight for the rights of their accident victims.

If you are looking for a denver accident lawyer, you should look for Fuicelli & Lee P.C. The experts will be able to provide you with a free evaluation on the case.

Gary Coleman Death Drives eBay Auctions

The unexpected death of child star, Gary Coleman on 28th May, 2010, who was best known for his role as Arnold Jackson of popular American sitcom, Diff'rent Strokes, which ran from 1978 to 1986, has driven auctions of his memorabilia on eBay.

Immediately following his death, fans around the world have flocked to eBay to try to pick up something to remember him by, or to invest in celebrity memorabilia as new items are being added to the marketplace by the hour.

While Gary Coleman was a child star and was voted one of the most promising actors of his time, he endured a lackluster entertainment career in his adulthood. In view of this, I am not sure how bankable his memorabilia will be.

Fans of Diff'rent Strokes, people of my generation who grew up watching him on TV, may think otherwise, though.

Experienced Criminal Defense Lawyers in Denver

I know a guy who was put in jail for ten years because he and his group of friends were involved in car theft. Of course, I am not making an excuse for him but he was only a teenager back then and was influenced by his friends to participate in the crime. I do, however, think that the punishment was too harsh on him and I think that because he was of another race, the law worked against him.

I could be wrong but I am sure this guy wasn't alone. The good news is that for people in Colorado, they can seek legal representation with Fuicelli & Lee, P.C, where the team of denver criminal defense attorneys are very experienced in cases like these and they are compassionate enough to know that even though their client may be wrong, they still have rights. Besides juvenile delinquency, lawyers at Fuicelli & Lee, P.C are also experts in cases in domestic violence, drug crimes, traffic offenses and white collar crime just to name a few expertise that they have.

This reminds me of an aunt who was a victim of domestic violence. I was very young back then but I remembered that no one of "power" was willing to help. She made numerous police reports but no action was taken. If she had access to a denver criminal defense lawyer back then, I believe that her outcome would be totally different.

Whether you are involved in any of the cases mentioned above or alleged to be involved in any crime and need the help of denver criminal attorneys, you should look for Fuicelli & Lee, P.C.

New Career Opportunities

A friend told me that after four years working in the same company, she is ready for a change. Job hopping is nothing new and she was even proud of the fact that she is only seeking new opportunities after four years.

Unlike most people, though, my friend is considering running her own business. She wants to enroll in Maryland Cosmetology School and upon graduation set up her own salon. She said that she could take out a bank loan for that.

While I think it is a good idea, it would be better for her to seek employment first before running her own beauty business. She should gain experience first on how to handle customers. They could get pretty difficult at times!