Investing Adventures - Week 5

So - I'm doing terrible right now in stocks - all thanks to NFLX.

Currently I'm down 6K tks to a STEEP nose dive from Netflix ... what happen guys? within 3 days of trading the change percentage is so ridiculously high.

Hasbro(HAS) is also not doing so well - but that will change after NYC -Comic Con and during winter season....that 32K invested is for the 3 months long haul.

CLWR - is being disappointing right now but its not as major as NFLX.

ATVI and ERTS (activision and EA Games) are doing well with EA games taking a good 200 lead.

Now two new mutual funds invested: DYN040(Dynamic Value Fund of Canada) and RBF1030 (RBC Life Sicence and Technology Series D)

First: The dynamic value fund is a fund that i personally use for my RRSP - so therefore so far its a good fund to invest in as it was growing steadily. I've added 2.5K in it - and so far has yielded -34$.

The RBC Life Science Series D is the same one i have invested earlier - except this particular fund requires a minimum of 10K. Considering that i am doing well in the other one - this one is similar but with a higher cap - so 10K there and its at +147$

NFLX is holding me back and I do not wish to sell and try to recoup my 6K lost - i just need to monitor now this progression and hope for the best.

join.me - web app review

join.me - from the creators of LogMeIn remote desktop software - comes a web 2.0 style of remote desktop and conferencing. Lets face it -ever since skype - we want more remote interaction.

The brain child of join.me is simple - small portable remote peek. The file stands on 1.4MB download for the servlet and then via web-browser or app you can peek in to the remote desktop.
If needed the "presenter" as they call it - can chat with his/her audience - show - and even let them take over the mouse pointer. Added bonus: send files too. Whats the catch? its free. Is there a paid version? yes there is - but my focus is on the paid.

As a viewer - its a nice - lightweight - enable your firewall to let the app run kind of deal. Within 4 mins - you download the program - launch - and then send a link with a 9 digit code to your viewing audience.

Does it work well? Sorta - i still like the native app of LogMeIn however as a lightweight no hassle viewing web app - its nice.

Its major downfall is when it comes to remote sharing - its terribly laggy. Now one could say ping/connection - so what i did was i turn the program off and use the reliable LogMeIn FREE already - and it was way more snappier - and the connection type hasnt changed.

Other than that tiny flaw - its a great conference device. Added bonus? They give you a specific number in which you can ask your audience to dial in and talk with you - however the number is not toll-free so beware.

Investing Adventures Week 4

There has been no trade this week (been busy at work) - however i've been reading the stock news and one things came to mind: should have sold them Hasbro Stocks.

As it stands - my stocks are + 418.80USD

With the following symbols: ATVI, CLWR, ERTS, HAs, STX, THQI.

Im also down on the Canadian funds from MCZ.

Things will hopefully be brighter by months ends as we gear towards fall.

One positive notes: my Mutual funds are up by +348CAD.

I will pick my monday mutual funds soon.

Investing Adventures - Week 3

So i sold the NFLX stock yesterday at 225$ a share - only to get my butt kicked today when it jumped to 233 - ugh. I still gained 900$ but i wished i kept it - would could have predicted that one? Then again i should have known that Netflix will lead the way in terms of multimedia streaming. Oh well - lets not dwell on such things.

New stock bought was EA Games (ERTS) - If I buy Activision Blizzard (makers of WoW and COD) - why wouldnt i buy the makers of Madden, NHL, and upcoming juggernaut Battlefield 3 (it looks gorgeous!) - so 300 shares bought at 22.65$ - this stock i will yield until the release of the game -the bigger the sales the better.

Unfortunately i didnt capitalize on any of the Hurricane Irene stocks but thats fine.

Lets look at my stocks today: HAS has a total gain of 2K approx, STX is up by 86$, MCZ - 19.75 (Note due to exchange rate i'm getting pumelled) CLWR is down by 23, THQI is up 55, and ATVI is up 82.

As for my mutual funds they are up in gain by 263.89$ CAD.

Not bad.

I forgot to mention one of my goals earlier: its to gain 5% cash return on investment per month. If someone gave me 100K can I make 5K in profit with just brain power? Hey If i make more the merrier but 5% gain from stock play is pretty good. Obviously sharks that does 200% gain also have high suicide rates but still 5K from 100K is basically a salary. Lets GO!

Investing Adventures Week 2 - Market Rebound

So Aug 24th 2011 - The market bounce back this week (monday) and one of the stock that clearly had a lead was the Hasbro Stock - current gains is about 2000$. Not bad however I did invest 32K$(or 1K in shares) - a nice goal would be to raise upto 3000$ and then sell half off and re-invest.

I'm going to hold on to most of my stock from the previous week and watch for double gain and then sell.

This week some more stock that I have purchased are the following:

ATVI - Activision Blizzard. They make Call of Duty and World of Warcraft / Starcraft 2. As big Tech guru - you know that this is a key stock to have as a gamer and i'm happy to say that i got in while its relatively low in gain. In October Blizzcon (Blizzard's convention) is the event to watch for to see more of Blizzard's up and coming games and retweak. One of the fear i might have is that WoW is declining in subscription currently (dropping from 11M users to 10M) and CoD: MW3 is going head to head with EA's Battlefield 3. It might hurt sales but this is for the long haul. 100 shares bought

CLWR: Clearwire - ok this one is a long shark - this is one of the very few stocks that managed to climb during last week's decent. However there are rumors that Sprint are buying this company out. A buy out would be a huge soar for the value of this stock. I'll hold onto this for a few more days to see if it will climb. I'm not looking to gain much out of this buyout but better now than later and go "doh!" 100 shares bought

THQI: THQ interactive. Another video game company - this company has several great licensed games and one of them is the WWE brand. I have great fate in this stock to climb steadly. 100 shares bought.

MUTAL FUNDS.

Last week I have purchased one of such funds and it was on hold until it got cleared. At the same time I figured I would invest in another one too.

RBF274 - RBC Life Science and Technology Fund. 2500$ of share bought.

Life + Tech is where we are heading. Promote of life and tech always blend well therefore I have strong belief in this fund.

RBF499 Emerging Markets Equity Fund 2500$ of share bought.

This was a long shot as when i used the given tools my criteria was simple: give me the best return in 3 months time in Equity Funds. BINGO.

Week 1 of buying Stocks and Mutual

Week 1 of trading stocks - the stock market tumbles ...THATS AWESOME!

I'm not insane btw - as when stock dips - thats when you buy because its low. When you have stock in the market that dips thats when you get angry. Now which stock should i buy? Did ebay dip? yes, so did google and apple. I have 100K to choose from...

HAS - from Hasbro Inc - being in the collectible business I have verified their 52Weeks and their yearly portfolio - AUG is the best time to buy their stock as it will rise up in december. Now lets think of it logicially - August is a dead month since everyone is on vacation and most parents will be spending on back to school items - therefore stock drops. In December - stock will climb as they will pushing out Xmas toys like crazy. So Hasbro stock is a good 3 months buy investment. HOWEVER i bought 1000 share which i believe was a mistake. We will see if it be ok.

STX - Seagate Technology. Being a PC Guru - Seagate is one of the pioneers of harddrive making and with the increasing market of tablets and streaming media - Seagate is at the front door of HD tech. I believe that they will rebound despite this week's market low. 100 Shares Bought

NFLX - Netflix - YES! Their stock drops! 2 years ago at a mear 7$ a share and now 212$ and more - c'mon no brainer here. Furthermore here is an interesting fact: there are more NETFLIX subscriber in the states than there are cable tv users. Netflix is the new TV despite it not being live. WE are all couch potatoes and for a mere 8$ a month its worth to watch all those things provided that your ISP (internet service provider) doesn't cap you on the download and you have sufficient time to actually watch the shows. 100 Shares bought

MCZ - Mad Catz Interactive - the guys that makes the awesome joysticks for consoles. When SFIV came out they made 3 joysticks and they were sold out - at 99$ for the medium offering and 150$ for the high end offering. With ULTIMATE Marvel Vs Capcom 3 in November - more joysticks will be bought. The last 2 years saw the rise of fighting game and with the huge response that Evo2011 had - Street Fighter aint dead. 500 Shares bought

I have purchased 2 mutual funds too but they are not locked in yet so i will not report them yet.

My Adventure in Practice Investing - Prologue

Everyone knows that finance aint easy.

People who have made it rich by buying stocks one day and then selling it off are far and few.

Just like the hot tip eps of Seinfield - you can easily get the feeling "hey I can watch the stock market". Well your wrong - those tips are far and few.

Why the interest in StockMarket/Mutual Funds and finance in the first place? Ever heard of 401K? Ever heard of the RRSP?

They are stock market and funds portfolio for your retirement - why let something as far as 50 years wait when you can dip it in now and on a 5 days basis look at your money rise for you on screen or fade away as if you gambled it off (yes stock market is kinda like gambling as you do not foresee the future but your willing to take a chance).

My nephew and I talk about stocks pretty easily and its all about market watch - watching what the industry is doing and what are the CEO and Tech are doing for a company. With this incentive - 2 years ago he told me about this crazy "virtual" stock market simulation and aid for education as to how the market works. It had some nice features and a "pool" to see how fair the other people that are in your league are fairing. You start with 100K in fake money and you buy and trade stock. It was fun for a while and apparently i doubled in my income (how can you not when you can finally buy some google and apple stock!) - but soon after i lost interest - as the tools and the simulation grew dull. Its a simulator after all.

Well 2 years later - with the market slowing down again (Nintendo is slowly dying!) I made it a challenge now: RBC has a Practice Account of 100K of fake money for you to practice with. Its directly tied into your existing online banking account and it uses the exact same tools as if you had a real account.

Now Let the games begin.

My GOAL: is to see how smart i can be in using the fake money and make in short term a profitable portfolio assuming that i had 100K disposable to me. How knows - maybe secretly someone will pay attention to this and will actually give me 100K of real money to play with! I just want to proove that I can do.

So on a weekly basis - i will summarize what i bought, what i sold, why i did it , and how is it doing.

Alter Ego Cosmetics - Local Pro Make-Up on the Go.

Alter Ego Cosmetics - Why am i talking about make up? What do I know about Make Up? ZERO - NADA - ZIP. You ask me ANYTHING about it from Eye Liner, Blush, etc - i wouldnt know what to tell you. What I can say is if you give it to a woman/girl these products - the result is just amazing.

Lets be honest - Montreal is a multi-cultural soup pot - asian, european, africain, and more. Varying skin tones: fair, dark, yellowish (my people), toned, light...etc. With this much variation can you go into a cosmetic counter and be able to reach your full look with what they have and feel good about yourself? Are you sure you need THAT many lb of make up? No you dont and with some quick suggestion from Ally Zwonok (Founder of Alter Ego Cosmetics) - you can spend list and look like a star. NOW THATS where my opinion comes in....

C'mon - lets be honest there are natural beauty and as much as you can sweet talk the next girl you meet, you will never convince her that she doesnt need make up. So why start a war and suggest "hey I know this up and coming line of make up that might elevate your game"

A bit of background: Ally Zwonok is not a freshwoman on the block when it comes to make up. She is a veteran that has multiple booking for weddings and photoshoots with her AirBrush method. She has done make up for the likes of Shawn Desman, Luc Guimond, and a few more artists. As an extension of her passion - she launched a full line of make up products ranging from Blush, Eye Liner, Light Compound, and lipsticks shades for all occasions and mood.

With her online website now Alter Ego Cosmetics can go coast to coast. This local homebrew business is ready to take the world.

-Why choose a known brand wore by artist who are sponsored by what they wear, when you should trust the one who is putting it on those same artist. (Think about it)

http://www.alteregocosmetics.com/main.sc

RetroAssassin.com - Local T-shirt and Urban Wear.

Looking for urban eastern style tshirt and urban wear that is original and local? Look no further than Retro Assassin line of clothing. Clothing line by Ra Oun (founder and CEO) brings the Eastern culture with easy on the eyes and sharp looking colors to fans of urban wear. Products such as tshirts and hoodies are abundant in urban culture but what brings this unique line of clothing are the bright color blend and design.

Now available in the Spring/Summer 2011 collection are new Retro Assassin Polos to expand existing flavor of the clothing line. One can only predict that dress shirt, track pants, and more will come in time.

If you are in the Montreal/Laval area and wish to support local home brand urban fashion designer - this is one up and coming line to not miss out.

Retro Assassin supports upcoming and rising music stars such as Young Avz, Vinnie, and more.

Establish artist are also supporting this clothing line: Drake, Shogun, Import model Steph Ly, Kid Cudi, and more.

If you are too lazy to travel - Retro Assassin opened their online shop in December 2010 and now you can order your gear with 3 simple click!

Montreal In Fashion: Gap Summer 2011 collection

Montreal In Fashion: Gap Summer 2011 collection: "The first day of spring in Montreal it snowed. Not surprising as freakish weather is our climate's norm. I however counteracted the un..."

Cartoon Network Announces Formation of DC Nation! - TV News at IGN

Cartoon Network Announces Formation of DC Nation! - TV News at IGN

Honk For Japan!

Zelda Timeline - Angry Video Game Nerd AVGN - Cinemassacre.com

ToyDorks - Mcfarlane Toys - NBA Miami Heat 3-Pack - Lebron, Bosh, Wade

ToyDorks - Mcfarlane Toys - NBA Miami Heat 3-Pack - Lebron, Bosh, Wade

Super Pitfall - NES Review - Angry Video Game Nerd - Cinemassacre.com

My Tech - #ipad x #nano x #blackberry

Phone: BlackBerry Bold

i ditched an iphone 2G for Blackberry Bold - I had enough of the autocorrection of the iphone and the constant “open one apps at a time”. This was pre appstore era. I needed the full keyboard and now with BBM - its hot. Equipped with Twitter,Facebook,Email push and bbm - im set. Now with iphone 4 out - i still need the keyboard. Helps when driving too.

Music: ipod nano - 4th Gen.

4GB is enough - enough mix tapes and dj remix for long haul. ipod touch is too much and im not mobile enough to need it (i dont commute). Battery life of 7-8hrs is more than enough to travel to Tdot - its enough. Music is music -thats all that is import.

Mobile Tablet: ipad 1

Light enough to carry - ios 4.2 with multi tasking - nice browsing experience and large. Watching youtube and reading is perfect. Its light enough to be portable. 16GB with StreamToMe apps or Dropbox makes enough room for a portable. 64GB is only for those who are an app hog.

Laptop: M1330 Dell XPS.

SSD 128GB - 13” Screen - Windows 7 Ultimate. Its fast on the boot - its small enough to not be heavy.

ToyDorks.com - Fresh Toy Store Official News: DC Unlimited - World of Warcraft March Release - W...

ToyDorks.com - Fresh Toy Store Official News: DC Unlimited - World of Warcraft March Release - W...: "Pulled right from the game come the next series in DC Direct's stunning line! Each figure has a astounding level of sculpt detail and paint ..."

Gas is now 1.33$

Long live Hondas/Acuras and anything that has 1.6 motors that can gas up for 40$.

Universal Docking Charge at its best

http://www.engadget.com/2011/02/18/idapts-40-i2-universal-charging-dock-now-shipping-patching-o/

Google One Pass

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20032217-1.html

Air Display by Avatron - another step in being portable

As a designer - its easier for me to have browser material on one screen and my work on another. LCD are dirt cheap (150-199$ish for 22"??) so to have two it will be no more than 400$ MAX!

Laptops these days have those nifty VGA/HDMI out and you can use your laptop as a desktop and display your nice 14" screen to a bigger one. What to do if you have an iPad and a laptop? Well why not use AirDisplay and use that swag of a nice display as your second monitor?

Step 1) Download from Avatron the server program availabe for Mac OS X and Windows flavor.
Step 2) unfortunately it will require a reboot of the computer.
Step 3) Purchase at the App Store AirDisplay

As long as you are on a local network your good to go!

Now there is a possibility of the following thought: Didnt you just say that with 400$ you can get two LCD 22" for view pleasure? Well bottom line is that yes you can but you will need a desk, then a power source, etc....this is for portability solution. Try it!

StreamToMe - behold - how to unlock the power of your ipad!!

StreamToMe is THE software for streaming the contents of your desktop/laptop to your ipad/iphone/itouch

http://projectswithlove.com/streamtome/

step 1) download the client server on your desktop (pc or mac)

step 2) purchase the client software for your i-product

step 3) launch the server - let it load and accept the firewall settings.

step 4) launch the software program off your i-product and you will see your server as part of the list and it streams with the highest quality.

Please make sure you fiddle around with the settings to have it optimal.

Also for those who have extra accessories - you can buy a cable to link up with your tv!!!

Dell - how i love you.

For those who dont like outsourced Customer Service and Tech Support - i encourage you to be a dell customer.

on the week of December 21st - it was time for me to have my M1330 XPS laptop serviced. Its under the warranty of complete care for 3 years. ( i still have 445 days to it). After speaking to someone in tech support - recorded everything - Brown Box for a return to depot is in order. Wonderful! (as it was expected).

Week of December 25th - Jan 1st - no box.

Called Jan 4th - customer rept apologize for the delay due to holiday and i should expect one no later than Friday.

Jan 5th Brown Box came it with a return label via Purolator.

OFF IT WENT.

ETA: 7 business days.

Jan 10th - Brown Box came back - after inspection they repaired everything and included a note: your battery is kaput - please call Dell for a replacement.

No tks dell for that but tk so much for getting it back for another 445 days run before warranty runs out.

Cost for this? 0$ but 20 days with a slow laptop.