Do not use ‘seamless’ when talking about Quicken Online to Mint migration

Mint.com on August 29 could be where Quicken Online users could be putting their personal finance data. Quicken Online won’t let everyone else sign on now. Mint.com was bought by Intuit who made Quicken for about $ 170 million. In February, Intuit sent a message to Quicken Online users that their account histories and connections would be “migrated seamlessly” to the Mint budgeting site. There has ended up being some difficulties because of the main difference in software. This means that users have to transfer their accounts by themselves if they want the account moved. There are a lot of difficulties with the Quicken Online to Mint migrations.

Intuit’s ‘boneheaded move’

Numerous users of Quicken were surprised. They didn’t know about the migration from Quicken Online to Mint. Most thought they wouldn’t have to do anything. They expected an automatic transition. Tech Crunch explains that Intuit was going to have “elegance or accuracy” as part of the change. It changed its mind after seeing what a big change it really was. Quicken Online users might end up with personal finance data in Mint that is inaccurate. That would mean more work for the website. Double checking and manual correction would be required by workers. There was not any time for users to change their accounts from Quicken Online after Intuit announced this. Tech Crunch thinks that was a “boneheaded move” on Intuit’s part.

Budgeting site alternatives

August 29 is when Quicken Online users will lose all their information from Intuit. Users have to export info they want into a file before then as to not lose it. The New York Daily News said that Quicken Online users who don’t want to migrate to Mint have opportunities for their personal financial data. The Quicken Online to Mint program seems to be something Intuit is doing to promote themselves. There are other Quicken desktop products being advertised with this. You are able to pay between $ 50 and $ 90 for these Intuit desktop products. You can get an Online account for QuickBooks for $ 120. Online budgeting websites also contain GnuCash.org, HelloWallet.com and Yodlee.com, for those who want to quit Intuit altogether.

Intuit now doing hot

Many people are having problems. Most of this comes from the migration from Quicken Online to Mint. Jonathon Blum at The Street said Mint and Quicken Online just do not get along. Because of the different software platforms, Quicken Online data doesn’t flow directly into Mint. Instead, data must be imported like it would from any other bank or credit card account. Half of the accounts moved to Mint from Quicken Online have business transactions lost in there. About 90 percent of info transferred from Quicken Online to mint is accurate. This comes from an Intuit representative. Blum has his own opinion on the matter. Only 90 percent means a failing grade with accounting.

Additional reading

Tech Crunch

techcrunch.com/2010/07/19/quicken-online-users-saw-the-bait-took-the-switch-to-mint-com-and-are-left-with-nothing/

New York Daily News

nydailynews.com/money/2010/08/20/2010-08-20_quicken_online_free_budgeting_site_to_shut_down_by_september.html

The Street

thestreet.com/story/10841504/1/quickens-migration-to-mint-is-not-so-fresh.html?cm_ven=GOOGLEFI

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China gridlocks helps make United States of America commuter traffic seem tame

Americans stuck in traffic shouldn’t complain too loudly. They should consider themselves lucky they aren’t driving to work in China. Bumper-to-bumper traffic stretched for 60 miles on the 10th day of the Chinese traffic jam. Road construction in Beijing has caused a pileup of automobiles on a road between the capital and also the city of Zhangjiokou that is expected to continue at a crawl until the project is finished. Chinese drivers trapped in the traffic jam watch about a kilometer of the countryside go by in a day. Some drivers trapped within the traffic have not emerged for five days. China’s rapidly expanding economy is creating skyrocketing demand for coal and trucks for hauling it to power plants. Exploding consumer demand for goods and also the shipping involved is also adding to the pressure on China’s highway system.

Burgeoning economy produces circumstances pertaining to traffic jams

China’s drivers are accustomed to congested zones, however the latest Beijing gridlock is testing their resolve. A Wall Street Journal story identified road construction that began on Aug. 14 as the culprit that led to the traffic jam on a main route to Beijing through Heibei Province. Accidents and breakdowns exacerbated the gridlock. Highway officials say the traffic jam could persist for a month as the road project isn’t really expected to be finished until then. Gridlock on this highway has become the norm as the capital city’s population of 20 million consumes more goods.

Consequences of Chinese coal demand

A principal contributor to China’s road traffic jam conundrum is the trucks shipping coal that is burned for power to drive the world’s fastest-growing economy. A Bloomberg report said the coal fields of the Inner Mongolia province to the northwest of the capital have outpaced Shanxi province to lead Chinese coal production. Numerous coal mines In Shanxi were closed by the government following a string of deadly accidents. Shanxi used an established set of railway routes to transport its coal. Inner Mongolia has not yet developed a railway system adequate to ship the growing tonnage of coal produced there. To ship the coal to port cities, using trucks, which have to pass through Beijing, is the only current choice. After fighting their way through Beijing, the trucks hauling coal proceed to port cities that ship the cargo to power plants within the south.

Emerging Capitalists within the strangest areas

Dealing with the frustration of the Chinese road traffic jam took many forms. NPR reports that road rage has been absent as individuals killed time by sleeping, taking walks or playing cards and chess. Individuals sustained themselves on food sold by locals, who were making a killing peddling their wares on bicycles. The Chinese traffic jam provided an old-fashioned capitalist lesson in supply and demand. Drivers complained about price-gouging by villagers who became their sole source for food and water. A bottle of water that normally costs 1 yuan (15 cents) was selling for 10 yuan ($ 1.50). Instant noodles that cost 3 yuan (45 cents) within the store were going for 3 times that.

Further reading

Wall Street Journal

blogs.wsj.com/drivers-seat/2010/08/24/chinese-traffic-jam-stretches-60-miles-ten-days/

Bloomberg

businessweek.com/news/2010-08-24/chinese-demand-for-coal-spurs-9-day-traffic-jam-on-expressway.html

NPR

npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129395326

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The helium has almost left and gone away

If you think all helium does is make you sound like Donald Duck, pay attention. MRI machines, solar telescopes and even nuclear reactors are essential places where helium is used for proper function and maintenance. Most people just know that helium is a cheap way to give lift to birthday balloons. However, as The Independent reports, the second-lightest element in the Universe is easily slipping from our grasp. The birthday balloons might fall to earth in our lifetime.

Helium’s departure may leave large holes

In 1996, Congress voted in favor of the Helium Privatization Act – and America’s supply has dwindled at a high rate of speed ever since. Helium became a cheaper by the dozen resources, which has dipped severely into supply. The 1996 law also calls for that all the helium in the United States National Helium Reserve near Amarillo, Texas, be sold by 2015, regardless of market price. Helium reserves worldwide are facing similar shortages due to short-sighted management of the resource.

Why running out of helium is bad simply because?

Hospitals use liquid helium to cool their MRI scanners. Terrorists are tracked via radiation-powered devices that require helium for operation. If that’s not serious enough, nuclear facilities need helium-3 isotopes for safe operation. Wind tunnels require garden variety helium. NASA uses it to clean potentially explosive rocket fuel from fuel tanks. However it may all be for naught, as The Independent indicates that helium could possibly be gone inside of 30 years.

”Once helium is released into the atmosphere in the form of party balloons or boiling helium, it is lost to the Earth forever,” said Cornell physics Professor Robert Richardson, a Nobel laureate.

Where does helium come from?

The Sun’s nuclear fusion creates helium as a by-product. Not only that, but the radioactive decay of various rocks produces helium on Earth. Earth’s supply comes from the latter method, of course. It cannot be created in any artificial fashion. Since it is taken 4.7 billion years for natural decay to produce the Earth’s current helium supply, waiting around for the planet for making more isn’t really an option.

Kid, that will cost $ 100

To slow the depletion of the world’s helium supply, Professor Richardson suggests the price for helium be raised considerably. If helium becomes 20 to 50 times more costly than the current rate (15 cubic feet of helium cost about $40 in 2009), motivation to recycle the gas would greatly increase. Thus, expect that a helium-filled Mylar balloon could cost as much as $ 100. There’s no other way.

Further reading

Helium Privatization Act

helium.com/items/874929-understanding-the-helium-privitization-act-of-1996

The Independent

independent.co.uk/news/science/why-the-world-is-running-out-of-helium-2059357.html

University of Denver study on helium

mysite.du.edu/~jcalvert/phys/helium.htm

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Banks like the low interest rates that stop savings and investments

Savings is popular. That is because many just want to cut out debt. The Federal Reserve, in an effort to keep the economy from a double-dip recession, is keeping the benchmark interest rate artificially low. Banks benefit from the interest rates being so low. This means they get to have much more money. Now the range between what borrowers have to pay and what financial institutions have to pay is wider with the low interest rates. Some analysts are saying that while Fed monetary policies shore up the banks it bailed out with billions, they’re an “invisible tax” on savers, investors, pensions and endowments.

Now saving is unimportant

Savers are getting the least amount of rates on savings account as possible. A Bloomberg story on a report from Market Rate Insight said the national average rate paid on interest for checking, savings, money market and certificates of deposit in July was 0.99 percent. The rate of interest index produced by Market Rates methods rates and bonuses paid by 1,300 commercial banks and credit unions of all sizes around the U.S.. Between January 2004 and July 2010 was when more savings rates were tracked. When the national unemployment rate goes up, savings rates go down. Savings interest rates go up after unemployment goes down.

Getting rid of debt hard with a bank

The Federal reserve is keeping interest rates at almost zero. This is helping banks but leaving average citizens out to dry. People who want to reduce debt and conserve more seem to have the deck stacked against them. Low interest rates effect mostly those individuals who have fixed incomes. Larry Doyle at the Daily Market reports this. Savings accounts don’t help much. You end up with less money after inflation. Credit card issuing banks make sure they raise interest rates on credit although it is costing almost nothing to get it themselves.

An invisible tax is what a low interest rate is considered

The New York Times’ Gretchen Morgenson explained that economic problems may be continuing because of the Fed’s rate of interest policy. Morgenson talked to Todd E. Petzel of Offit Capital Advisors who gave his opinion. He thinks that about $350 billion a year is spent on this “invisible tax” the Fed has created. He got that figure by beginning with about $14 trillion in debt issued by the Treasury at an interest rate near zero. Usually rates are around 3 percent. Seems like like it was too low when it was at 2.5 points. It needed to get fixed then. 2.5 percent of $14 trillion adds up. In fact, savers, investors, pensions and endowments will then lose about $350 billion a year. 3 percent of disposable personal income and 2 percent of gross domestic product is lost.

Find more data on this subject

Bloomberg

bloomberg.com/news/2010-08-24/u-s-banks-paying-depositors-record-low-interest-rates-market-rates-says.html

Daily Markets

dailymarkets.com/stock/2010/08/24/invisible-taxes-loan-sharking-usury/

New York Times

nytimes.com/2010/08/22/business/22gret.html?_r=2 and amp;ref=gretchen_morgenson

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Smoking films get an R-rating?

American movie rating standards have always been pretty controversial. This Movie is Not Yet Rated is a documentary made in 2006 all about the arguments involving ratings. This was mostly between directors, studios and also the MPAA ratings board. Unfortunately, they have one more thing they can start fighting about in Hollywood. A recent study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests that smoking in films should mandate that an “R” rating be given to the film as a protection for children and young teens.

Paying for product placement is illegal

The CDC study indicates that even though tobacco companies were banned in 1998 from being able to pay to place their products in films, there’s nevertheless more smoking in films today than there was at that time. Numerous studies cited by the CDC suggest that children and young teens do respond to smoking seen in films; they’re more likely to try smoking, versus adolescents who see little of it. Public health officials all seem to express the same concern. Health troubles are some of these concerns. The suggestion that there be less smoking in movies happened because of the amount of smoking in G, PG and PG-13 films.

Find another way to stop young smokers from starting

In addition to the R rating suggestion, other ideas given by the CDC are to air anti-smoking ads onscreen before the start of a film and to specify in film credits that no person or business associated with the movie received financial compensation from the tobacco industry or any associated business. The CDC wasn’t the first group to bring up the idea that smoking needs to make a movie R. The World Health Organization made this suggestion previously. Smoking scenes are irresponsible in movies. WHO thinks this marketing towards kids is inappropriate.

Pay too much for the smoking addiction

Smoking seems to be costing a growing number of. MSN Money explains another fact to add to anti-smoking. A 40-year-old smoker who kicks the habit and funnels the money spent on cigarettes and also the associated dry cleaning and higher health insurance rates into something more productive like a 401 (k) could conceivably save more than $ 250,000 by age 70. Choosing black lung over a comfortable retirement is enough to send anyone’s budget scrambling for paydayloans and installment loans for bad credit to fill the gaps. The R-rated scene might really just be getting into the expense of smoking.

Find more info on this subject

Center for Disease Control

cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5932a2.htm

MSN Money

articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Insurance/InsureYourHealth/HighCostOfSmoking.aspx

Time Magazine

wellness.blogs.time.com/2010/08/19/rated-r-for-smoking/

World Health Organization

who.int/tobacco/smoke_free_movies/en/

Fox News report on removing cigarettes from movies

youtube.com/watch?v=FSxwPVUv7vY

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Google Voice connected with Gmail user interface

The prospect of making free telephone calls from within the United states to other United States and Canadian numbers – regardless of whether those numbers are land line, cell phone or desktop virtual phone numbers – is enticing to all. Phone service providers are against it, but everyone else likes the idea. Google users can make and receive calls for free when it comes to Google Voice being connected to Gmail. Free calling is limited just a little bit. It can only be done where you can access Gmail. Article source – Google Voice now built-into Gmail interface by Personal Money Store.

Gmail contacts turned into phone service with Google Voice

You might not have a phone on you, or you might be in a place with poor cellular reception or exorbitant roaming fees, but for those who have an Internet connection and can access your Gmail account, you are able to make a free call with Google Voice. Any calls outside the U.S. or Canada do have a rate. The rate is only 2 cents per minute though. Tech Crunch reports what is needed for this. All you’ve to do is get the Google Talk plug-in. Your Gmail inbox saves voicemails and your Gmail interface allows you to make and receive calls. There is also another really cool thing. Just transfer calls from Google Voice to your cell phone in case you are on the run but want to keep talking.

Google Voice in Gmail is coming soon

Google is rolling out the new Google Voice features over the next few days to U.S.-based Gmail accounts, according to the official Google Voice Blog. As soon as you are able to use it, a “call phone” will show up. It can be inside your Google Chat list. Google users who are using Google Apps for academic or business purposes will also be able to enjoy the new Google Voice features and free calling, but integration will take slightly longer in that case.

Further reading

Google Voice Blog

googlevoiceblog.blogspot.com/

TechCrunch

techcrunch.com/2010/08/25/google-voice-integrated-into-gmail-make-and-receive-calls-from-the-browser/?utm_source=feedburner and amp;utm_medium=feed and amp;utm_campaign=Feed: Techcrunch (TechCrunch) and amp;utm_content=Google Feedfetcher

Google Voice humor – testing transcript capabilities

youtube.com/watch?v=FzOMyXwfrR8

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Rod Blagojevich has guilty verdict

The trial has ended for Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich. After two weeks of deliberation, the grand jury returned only a single guilty verdict. One count of lying to the Federal Bureau of Investigation was given to Blagojevich. There hasn’t been sentencing yet, although five years could be given because of the false statements the government received from him. Federal prosecutors have already announced they fully intend to re-try Blagojevich.

Jury renders verdict after two weeks

It was about two years ago when Rod Blagojevich was arrested because he tried selling the U.S. Senate seat that Barack Obama left empty. In the time between then and the verdict, he was impeached and removed from office. 24 accusations of corruption were charged against him. There was a clear verdict given after two weeks of thinking. The judge declared a mistrial on 23 of the 24 accounts and announced the guilty verdict on one count of providing a false statement to the FBI.

Retrial wanted by U.S. attorney

U.S. Attorney’s office officials have claimed a retrial of Blagojevich are near, reports New York Times. He did get convicted of lying to the FBI. Making false statements to the FBI is a federal crime, which carries a fine of up to $ 250,000 or up to five years in prison, or both. Many hope both will happen.

Stereotypical Chicago politician for Blagojevich

Politics in Chicago, Illinois have just been expected to be corrupt. The previous governor before Rod Blagojevich, George Ryan, was also removed from office and convicted. Federal prison now holds Ryan because of the corruption he did. We do not know where Rod Blagojevich could be since a second trial may be happening soon. He could end up serving all five years in prison.

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Video game industry makes U.S. economy go up a bit

Video games all got to start out with things like Pac Man and Space Invaders. It is clear that there has been a leap in technology. Economists incorporated decided to do a study for Entertainment Software Association that was called “Video Games in the 21st Century: The 2010 Report.” This study showed that in 2009, there was $ 5 billion added to help the economy from the video game industry. From 2005 to 2009, the video game industry’s annual growth has exceeded 10 percent, which is more than seven times the growth of the entire U.S. economy.

Video games create job opportunities

Michael Gallagher, CEO of ESA, explained that job creation has grown at a “rapid pace.” It is also making “an essential contribution to our nation’s economy when stimulating technological innovations and expanding the impact of games on our daily lives.” The survey shows us that 32,000 have jobs with video games usually with an average salary of $ 89,781. Video games have made it possible for many within the U.S. to get jobs.

Most happens in California

Video game workers largely live in California. Compensation was a big part of their budget in 2009. $ 2.6 billion was given to direct and indirect employees. The state got about $ 2.1 billion in just revenue.

13,613 employees live in Texas with 11,225 in Washington. Between 2005 and 2009, Virginia increased their video game industry. There was a 77 percent increase.

Some of the value put towards entertainment

During a recession, entertainment expenses are among the first things to be downsized in a family’s budget. Video gaming is pricey with PCs costing a ton and consoles being anywhere from $ 200 to $ 500. Games range from $ 20 to $ 60, depending upon their popularity, age, format, etc. But if a consumer can derive somewhere between 40 and 100 hours of playtime from a well-constructed game, the price seems much more reasonable, particularly when compared with more passive varieties of entertainment like movies, the price of which has skyrocketed in recent years. Hand-eye coordination gets much better along with development when using video games. The video game industry has had a positive effect. The U.S. economy is feeling it.

More on this topic

Theesa

theesa.com/facts/pdfs/VideoGames21stCentury_2010.pdf

Washington State Lt. Gov. Brad Owen knows ‘Pong’

youtube.com/watch?v=M-b9wEww9MA

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University scientists dispute government oil spill report

A rosy outlook painted by a government oil spill report is being challenged. 3 scientific studies challenge what the National Incident Command says explaining the majority of the oil is burned, collected or vaporized. Shrimpers were given the green light. The president and his family swam within the gulf and ate seafood last week. A University of Georgia (UGA) study explains the ecosystem can be effected for years considering 75 percent of the oil hasn’t been collected yet. University of South Florida (USF) researchers have found one more oil plume on the sea floor. The American Medical Association (AMA) reports that human health and seafood safety can be hurt by the oil spill for a long time.

Government reports the spill to have dispersed

Almost all of the oil, as outlined by the government, has been dispersed in the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico 2010. Burning and skimming has only taken away 4.9 million gallons of the oil in the spill says National Incident Command in a Wall Street Journal article. There has also been 25 percent that evaporated away. Some of the scientists at UGA explain that there is nevertheless 79 percent of toxins and oil sitting in the gulf. It might be years, they concluded, before the petrochemicals break down. There is not any way 25 percent of oil could have evaporated unless 25 percent was on the surface. Throughout the spill area, large oil plumes are trapped within the depths.

Undersea is a toxic oil plume

The USF team concluded that further east than previously thought, a large portion of the BP oil spill has settled to the bottom of the gulf. As outlined by CNN, an undersea canyon 40 miles offshore has droplets of oil in it because of the dispersing, says the USF study. Organisms, such as plankton, at the bottom of the food chain are reacting strongly to the toxic chemicals within the oil. The surface has oil that might come out again. The government didn’t end up measuring the methane and other gases within the water which makes up, according to t UGA researcher talking to CNN, about one third of the hydrocarbons.

Worried about gulf seafood safety

The AMA insists that gulf seafood safety could be affected for years by the BP oil spill. The Sacramento Bee reports that in the short term dangerous petrochemicals resembling cigarette smoke and soot will remain in the systems of gulf shellfish. Big game fish like tuna, swordfish and mackerel will amass high concentrations of mercury in the long term from consuming fish lower in the food chain. If you’re pregnant of have children, I’d keep away from eating any seafood from the gulf.

Discover more information on this subject

Wall Street Journal

online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704868604575434074237252604.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_MIDDLETopStories

CNN

cnn.com/2010/US/08/17/gulf.oil.disaster/index.html?npt=NP1

Sacramento Bee

sacbee.com/2010/08/17/2963788/gulf-oil-spill-still-a-threat.html

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Dr. Laura quits her radio show over N-word outrage

Radio industry veteran Dr. Laura Schlessinger should have known that peppering a black caller with 11 instances of the “N-word” would make no profound point about language. On the contrary, Dr. Laura now bears the stench of history. ”Dr. Laura quits” headlines have made it everywhere because of this.

The radio show no longer has Dr. Laura to work with

PopEater reports the only thing keeping Dr. Laura here still is that her contract has yet to expire. The conservative radio relationship diva told CNN’s “Larry King Live” that she’s making the move because she “wants to regain her First Amendment rights.”. Once upon a time, Howard Stern needed those rights taken away if you asked Schlessinger.

But Dr. Laura doesn’t call it quitting; she claims the move is empowering.

“I want to be able to say what’s on my mind and in my heart and what I think is helpful and useful without somebody getting angry – some special interest group deciding this is a time to silence a voice of dissent and attack affiliates and sponsors,” she told King.

Schlessinger apologized

While the good doctor apologized for using the N-word, she maintains that she “wasn’t dissing anybody.”. Dr. Laura’s production company says they are letting her “pursue opportunities” outside of their company. Also, General Motors and Motel 6 have pulled their sponsorship for Schlessinger.

Next on Dr. Laura as she quite

Dr. Laura has quit before, says TMZ. She almost had her own CBS TV talk show in 1999. She needed first for Howard stern to stop talking bad about her on his show with a “muzzle” of some sort. CBS balked at her condition, understandably. Dr. Laura did do a TV show for just a little when for Paramount after. One episode featured a conversation on homosexuals and how she didn’t like them, which made gay rights groups really angry. 170 advertisers wouldn’t advertise the show anymore with the StopDrLaura.com campaign. Dodge left eventually for Dr. Laura.

More on this topic

PopEater

popeater.com/2010/08/18/dr-laura-schlessinger-leaving-radio/

TMZ

tmz.com/2010/08/18/dr-laura-schlessinger-radio-tv-quit-larry-king-howard-stern/

Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Schlessinger

Dr. Laura tells wives to ‘get under your men’

youtube.com/watch?v=_mvm7moVvSs

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