Happy Helping

Periodic Table Explorer

2009-10-09T00:20:00.000+05:30

Periodic Table Explorer is a new way of exploring the periodic table. It has the same functions as my original Periodic Table Explorer plus many more, it also has a completely new and innovative user interface that allows an almost unlimited amount of control over the display. Each display can be opened any number of times, and can show different information. The size, shape and position of each display can be customized too.

Features:

Detailed information on each element
Details of isotopes and allotropes
Details of important compounds
Details of reactions with water, air, halogens and acids
Images for each element (126 images in total) including valence and crystal stucture diagrams
Glossary of terms
Graphs of important element properties
Biographies for the important scientists and element discoverers
View the states of the elements at any temperature (from 0 - 6000k)
XP style support
Search through all content
Electron shell diagrams of each element
Atomic width diagram
Element names and the majority of the applications buttons are now available in eight different languages.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (20.6 MB)

Interlex Download

2009-10-09T00:19:00.000+05:30

Interlex is a free software that helps you learn vocabulary in a foreign language quickly and easily. The program is built around a simple idea: first you compile a list of words and phrases, then you test yourself until you have learnt them.
You can use Interlex to create bilingual vocabulary lists in any two of the following languages: Afrikaans, Albanian, Basque, Belorussian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Icelandic, Indonesian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian.

Interlex provides a highly focused, interactive learning environment that allows you to improve your language skills rapidly. Creating your own Interlex files is an excellent way to explore a language and become familiar with new vocabulary. You can then commit this knowledge to long-term memory by testing yourself in a variety of ways. Words and phrases are carefully selected with reference to previous input, encouraging you to concentrate on those you find difficult. Feedback is immediate and informative, without any distracting special effects. The overall result is a tangible sense of progress that makes vocabulary learning a pleasure instead of a chore.
Features :

targeted testing in 4 different modes
multiple translations in native language
intelligent evaluation of alternative responses
informative feedback using text, colour and sound
powerful editor with Undo, Sort, Find and Print
automatic keyboard and font selection
selection of ready-to-use vocabulary files
wide range of user preference options
context-sensitive Help and daily tips

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (862 KB)

Free Language Translator

2009-10-09T00:18:00.002+05:30

Free Language Translator is a desktop language translator application using the Google translation service. It adds more features to the existing service and addresses some of its shortcomings.

Quick guide for using this free multi language translator:

Open a text document or paste some text here, select the “To” and “From” languages, click on the “Translate” and select one of the options from the menu.
You can create your custom dictionary to correct the online translation and save them for further use when using the “Translate and use Custom Dictionary” menu option.
In order to add an entry to your Custom Dictionary, select the text to be corrected, right click in the translation panel and select “Add to Custom Dictionary”. You will be able to make further changes manually by typing into the translation panel while tracking the synchronized original panel.
The status bar can display an optional empiric quality of translation. Selecting a smaller page size increases the translation time a little bit, but at the same time, for large amount of text, it can improve translation accuracy and synchronization between the original and translation panels.
You can also set the orientation of the panels from the combo box on the status bar.
Finally, select the translated text and copy into the clipboard, right click in the translation panel and choose “Copy Selection”, or just save it as a file using the “Save File” icon in the toolbar.

Requires: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0.
Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (865 KB)

RapidTyping

2009-10-09T00:17:00.002+05:30

Learn how to use your keyboard in a fun and entertaining way for absolutely free. RapidTyping is designed to teach adults and kids to use their computer keyboard more efficiently than ever. Learning to type can be easy and fun. Touch typing tutor will help you learn quick and blind keyboard printing. Improve your typing skill, Increase your typing speed.

Features :

Uses the simple and colourful interface. Colourful skins library is supported.
Typing game. Training takes place in virtual picturesque underwater world. Variety of underwater fauna will make fun of your training. The more you improve your printing level the more nice underwater creatures will come to light.
Training statistics: wpm, cpm. Your training exercises statistics is shown both in tables and diagrams. Statistics reflects printing speed, mistakes quantity.
Keyboard emulation. Keyboard emulator will help you learn blind printing quickly. Automatic keyboard layout generation: QWERTY, QWERTZ, AZERTY, ABNT2, Dvorak, Dvorak for left / right hand, etc.
Personal typing exercises creation. You may create your own exercises and modify exist.
Free typing lessons choice. User has a free choice of all available typing lessons.
Multiple users support. Multiple users with their personal settings are supported.
Multi-Language interface. English, French, German, Portuguese, Spanish and other are available for your choice.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (992 KB)

eSketch PRO

2009-10-09T00:16:00.000+05:30

eSketch PRO is a powerful schematic capture and simulation application specifically designed for the ultra fast rendition and simulation of frequency-shaping analog circuits such as preamplifiers, amplifiers, active filters, passive filters, crossovers, equalizers and tone controls. eSketch is a specialized program for circuits containing capacitors, inductors, resistors and op amps. It does not provide transistors, diodes or other non-linear devices.
The programs simplicity of use and speed of execution provide an “electronic sketching” environment in which the effects of changes in layout, component values, component tolerances and op amp Gain Bandwidth can quickly be determined.

Schematica capture:

file merging
importing of (registered) Filter Wiz PRO files
rapid component (device) placement
fast editing of component values
op amp device database provides Gain BandWidth values for over 600 op amps
full circuit editing capabilities such as copy, cut and paste
annotation with text boxes and markers

Analog circuit simulation :

automatic indication of when circuit is ready to simulate
view two graphs simultaneously
two voltage probes - view both, either, or difference
save previous traces to view up to 13 voltages or currents at once
amplitude response (real, imaginary, dB, volts)
phase and group delay responses
input impedance
component current, impedance and power dissipation
Sensitivity of output voltage to changes in component values
transient response to impulse, step and “staircase” inputs
“ideal” and “real” op amp models
Monte Carlo analysis
Parameter Sweep analysis
pole-zero placement

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (3.5 MB)

Das Unit Converter

2009-10-09T00:15:00.000+05:30

Das Unit Converter is an easy-to-use freeware program that can handle virtually all of your unit conversion needs. With over 2000 units, over 80 categories, and with the ability to add more (units and categories), you may never need to use an online converter or a search engine for unit conversions again.

Features:

2002 units (More available via updater!).
82 categories.
1395 symbols/abbreviations (More available via updater!).
World currency converter (35 currencies!).
Online updater (adds/revises units, updates currency rates & checks for new version!).
Ability to add custom units/categories.
Shows symbol/abbreviation if available (ex. m/s, ft^3, etc.).
Supports mathematical operations (addition, division, modulo, etc.) and functions (sqrt, log, sin, etc.).
Auto, Decimal, Fractional and Scientific outputs with customizable significant figures.
Unit searcher and program statistics features.
Conversion history and quick notes features.
Quick calculator access and other accessibility features.
Transferable settings and customizations (to friends, family, and co-workers).
Complete help file included.
Uninstaller included.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (4.36 MB)

WordBanker VB

2009-10-09T00:13:00.002+05:30

WordBanker VB is a unique and fun method of helping you to improve your English Vocabulary. Do you have trouble memorising new words ? WordBanker’s “Visual Clue” method of testing means you learn without you even realising.

Features :

Approximately 2700 words
All words can be edited.
Option to cover the multiple choices to remove the “visual clue”.
Option to test using your favourite words.
A fully customisable “Practice Mode”.
Print lists of your unbanked words
Create up to 3 categories of your own, easily adding and recording your own words.
Send difficult words to a “Hotlist”.
Single or multiple users with “User Management” .
A summary and “Banked Meter” to monitor progress.
2 different methods of testing.
A “Type the Answer” testing method to improve your spelling.
Banking words enables you to test yourself only on the words you don’t now.
A dictionary containing an up to date collection of all standard and custom words in your collection.
Can be adapted to test yourself on other subjects.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (4.96 MB)

BearShare Music

2009-10-09T00:12:00.000+05:30

BearShare Music is a free files sharing software that helps you download all your favorite tunes from its infinite community. It uses latest technology for file sharing, and getting your desired music files will be easier than ever, downloading your files at maximum speed.
The main goals of BearShare Music are stability, security and the ability for users to use the program right away thanks to his user friendly interface. It runs on Windows.

Features:

Interface is nice and easy to use
Interface is easy operable by a system try icon
Advanced connection features
Configuration wizard
Tabbed interface

System Requirements :

Windows 95/98/98SE/ME/NT/2000/XP
internet connection

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (1324 KB)

HandyFind

2009-10-09T00:02:00.002+05:30

HandyFind is a faster, friendlier way to find words in documents and web pages. It finds words as you type so you’ll find what your looking for as soon as you enter enough letters. After using HandyFind for a short time, you’ll find it such a quick way to get around that you start using it for navigating documents as well as just searching.

Features:

Find as you type in Internet Explorer, Notepad, Excel, Microsoft Word and more
Much less cumbersome than the regular Find dialog.
Instantly jump to the next occurrence of your currently selected text or repeat previous searches.
“Click” on hyperlinks with your keyboard

System Requirements :

Windows 2000, Windows XP, or Windows NT. HandyFind does not work on Windows 98 and earlier.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (645 KB)

Blog Submitter

2009-10-09T00:01:00.000+05:30

Powerful blog submitter with the built-in set of blog directories. Blog submitter allows you to submit your blog to 100 blog and RSS directories direct from your browser. No more manually adding your blog to directories. Save your time!

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (118 KB)

Manage Firefox tabs Showcase

2009-10-08T23:59:00.002+05:30

Showcase provides a new way to manage your Firefox tabs and windows by showing them as thumbnails in a single window, tab or sidebar. Includes a find bar that will filter the thumbnails, and the capability to select the thumbnails in the same way you would select files in your system.

Features:

Showcase will show thumbnails of all open tabs of any window (or, optionally, only of the invoking window).
Thumbnails are resized and distributed on the Showcase window in the best way possible.
Showcase can be placed in it’s own window, a tab inside a browser, or as a sidebar.
Find bar (can be toggled with CTRL+F), to filter thumbnails and find the ones you’re looking for.
Multiple selection of thumbnails, so different actions can be applied on them (like bookmark, reload, merge…).
Browsers that are opened or closed will be dinamically added and removed from the thumbnail list, and thumbnails will be updated if the browser they represent loads a new page.
Labels are placed on each thumbnail indicating each browser current page title and icon. Loading icon will be shown when content is being loaded.
Contextual menu for thumbnails that contains the most common operations for the browsers (like bookmarking, printing, navigation controls…). Completely configurable.
Added an option to disable contextual menu for thumbnails, so it’s possible to assign an action for it.
Lots of configuration options, allowing a lot of different possibilities.
Middle click can be used to zoom on a thumbnail (although other functions can be assigned to it using the extension configuration panel).
Thumbnail will increase size when the mouse is over. Values over 100% are well supported since 0.5.8 version.
Keyboard support. Cursors to navigate through the different thumbnails, space for zoom, enter to select and delete to close. F11 will toggle full screen mode, and Esc will close Showcase.
IE Tab support. Right now it’s not possible to show a thumbnail of a IE Tab, but it will place an illustrative icon and will also show the correct URL.
the window can use an scrollbar that will prevent thumbnails from being too small. It’s on by default for the sidebar mode, and can be enabled in the other modes, too.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (156 KB)

Download With YouRipper

2009-10-08T23:58:00.000+05:30

YouRipper is a small utility application which enables the end-user to rip and download video footage from the YouTube, MySpace and Google Video websites.
While YouTube and MySpace unfortunately do not provide any method of saving the videos displayed on their site, Google does provide limited downloading; namely, in formats for iPod and Sony PSP. For PC owners however, Google only makes the video available for download in their own .gvi format; requiring their own Google Video Player to view the file.

YouRipper provides the end-user with the capability to save these video files to your hard-drive as a standard Flash Movie (*.flv). Form here you can view the videos in your chosen Flash Movie Player or, copyright permitting, incorporate it into your own projects or online services.
YouRipper is supplied around the world as FREEWARE and it contains No Spyware, No Adware and No Malware. There isn’t even a registration system.
YouRipper is only ever visible when a web browser window is in focus eg. on-top and it simply clings to the browser windows Title-Bar.
The following web-browsers are supported :

Internet Explorer
Mozilla Firefox
AOL
Opera
Mozilla
K-Meleon
Avant
Maxthon

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (2.9 MB)

DownThemAll

2009-10-08T23:57:00.000+05:30

DownThemAll (or just dTa) is a powerful yet easy-to-use Mozilla Firefox extension that adds new advanced download capabilities to your browser.
DownThemAll lets you download all the links or images contained in a webpage and much more: you can refine your downloads by fully customizable criteria to get only what you really want.
DownThemAll is all you can desire from a download manager: it features an advanced accelerator that increases speed up to 400%, it allows you to pause and resume downloads at any time and, last but not least, it’s fully integrated into your favorite browser!

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (394 KB)

Pugnax Internet Page Watcher Software

2009-10-08T23:55:00.002+05:30

Pugnax is an Internet Page Watcher Software. It lets you organize many different website links in to separate categories, and will inform you when the content of the page changes. You don’t have to keep checking your favourite sites to see if they’ve changed.

Features :

Scan any number of websites, in any number of user defined categories
Load and save configurations
Compare the “before” and “after” pages
Can be minimised to the tooltray
Four different scan modes
Autoscan at regular intervals
Supports access via proxy server
Stores details of the last 20 changes for each watched site
Import and export watches
Able to scan pages on the file system / network as well as over the internet
Supports the ability to move the cache folder to another directory, PC or network available drive.

OS : Windows 98/2000/XP
Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (971 KB)

Smart Data Recovery for U3 Flash Drives

2009-10-08T23:54:00.002+05:30

Smart Data Recovery for U3 Flash Drives offers you a free, reliable and easy data recovery solution that is specifically designed to be installed and operated from a U3 stick. Install Smart Data Recovery onto a U3 stick and keep it with you to use it immediately shall a need arise. Download and save directly to U3 drive if you already deleted your data and want to maximize your chances of getting it back. Avoid disrupting disk operations and increase your chances of successful data recovery by running the recovery process from a U3 device.

OS : Windows NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista.
Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (820 KB)

Renpad Backup

2009-10-08T23:52:00.002+05:30

Renpad Backup is a small but powerful backup program. This application has been specifically designed to provide ease of use for the end user. This backup program has also been built using a modular upgrade design that allows for simple and small upgrades.

Features:

Designed with the end user in mind. By using a simple yet powerful interface the end user can backup their files with only a few clicks.
When a backup is carried out the end user has the option to create a .rib file which allows them to carry out that same backup with 3 clicks.
Split backups into smaller pieces so that you can burn your large backups to a DVD or CD for safe offsite storage.
By using a built in automatic update system you can always have the latest version ensuring a smooth bug free backup experience.
Choose what compression level you want to use on your backup.
Create a Self Extracting Backup so that you can recover your files on a Windows system without the need of any software.
Renpad Advanced Automation Engine to run those backups after hours. So you can go home and relax.
Renpad Backup supports Windows 2000SP4 and Windows ME, for wider system compatibilty.
Password protect your backup.
Encrypt your backup.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (1.9 MB)

Download Papel

2009-10-08T23:51:00.001+05:30

A new software tool designed for authors of fictional stories is now available. It’s called Papel (Spanish for ‘paper’) and runs under Windows, allowing you to write intuitively without logical tasks interfering with the flow of your ideas.
Papel is simple to use, and excellent for heightening creativity.

Features:

Visual on-screen representation of your writing project sections.
Drag & Drop interface for easy grouping of related pieces of work, notes, etc.
Individual icons for each piece of work, including Chapter, Scene, Male Character, Female Character, Plot Outline, Dialogue, and Note.
Simple papel naming system, with automatic file saving under the given name.
Find & Replace, Word Count, Spell Checking & Thesaurus in editor.
Drag & Drop to auto-create papels and auto-import text files.
Multi-sizeable project window with up to 8 times your screen size.
Configurable and saveable Editor font and size.
Saveable default Application and Editor window positions.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (1611 KB)

Transfering a Domain Name from Yahoo Domains

2009-10-08T13:40:00.000+05:30

So You are Stuck with a Pricey Yahoo Domain:
You can transfer it easy enough. I went with a GoDaddy affiliate that offers the domain names at cost. I haven’t had any issues with GoDaddy and their prices are good.

A Brief Overview of the Steps:

Be prepared for the transfer to take 5 days (blame Yahoo).
Unlock you domain using the Yahoo control panel.
Verify that you have access to the admin email address that is registered under the domain name. You will get automated confirmation emails at this address that you will need to respond to.
On another site that sells domains, click a Transfer Domain link to buy a one year subscription.
You will get a confirmation email sent to you, respond to it and enter the authorization code that is found in your Yahoo control panel.
Now you have to wait. Some domain registers will send you a confirmation email. Yahoo does not, so you will have to wait 5 days for the transfer to go through.
After the transfer goes through, joyfully cancel your Yahoo subscription.

Why Would You Want to do This?
I signed up last year for a $1.99 .com domain name from Yahoo!Domains with the assumption that the renewal rate would be $9.99 (the regular rate at the time). However I recently got the renewal notice and the price was $34.95 for 1 year! Wow, that brings back memories of Network Solutions from a long time ago. Anyway, that’s not too competitive and there are better options out there. This price change was too similar to a bait and switch for my tastes, so I will be much more wary of buying anything branded by Yahoo in the future.

Domain Name Yahoo !

2009-10-08T13:32:00.000+05:30

Domain name stands for ? A domain name is an address for the internet. It helps people to find your web site. As businesses and homes have street addresses websites have domain name. The yahoo! domain name is yahoo.com

A Domain name is made up of two parts, typically preceded by www. Let's use yahoo.com as an example
1. The first part, yahoo, is a unique name that represents the website.
2. The second part, .com, is the extension, and stands for "commercial". There are many extensions available, though .com, .net, .biz, .info, and .us are the most popular extensions in the United States.

Good domain name important. A good domain name helps you in two ways:
For Business :
Add your domain name to your business card, email signature, and other advertisements.
Build credibility: Show your customers that you have an established business.
Improve your marketing: Provide customers an easy way to remember

For Consumers :
Describe your site as best you can with your domain name. It make good attraction with the users.

Choosing a domain name in yahoo has below tips :
1. While selecting domain name in yahoo these tips are very useful.
2. Your domain name should reflect with the business name or the topic,which your site covers.
3. It should be unique which is easy to spell and remember.
Only letters, numbers, hyphen are allowed in yahoo domain name.
4. If choice you entered is not available then change the word order with a unique alternative.

Yahoo Small Business Web Hosting Just $6.47 per month!!

2009-10-08T13:11:00.002+05:30

Yahoo Small Business Web Hosting works for your business. Yahoo Small Business provides products and services that enable you to grow your business and establish a presence on the Internet. Make the most of the internet and grow your business! With Yahoo Small Business, you can easily create a professional yahoo web site and enjoy secure, reliable service. You will be able to learn how to easily build your web site with Yahoo Web Hosting. One can quickly and easily create a yahoo ecommerce site and sell products and services online around-the-clock. Yahoo Small Business also offers a suite of online tools such as Yahoo Domains or advertising your site with Sponsored Search to reach prospective targeted customers.

	New & Improved Yahoo Web Hosting
	Unlimited Disk Space - Build as many pages as you want
	Unlimited Data Transfer - Allow many visitors to your site
	Unlimited Email Storage - Never worry again about hitting your email limit
	Free Domain Name
	Free SetUp
	Yahoo ECommerce - Start selling online with a professional e-commerce solution.
	Yahoo Sponsored Search - Promote your business across the web.
	Yahoo Domains - Find a URL for your web site.
	Yahoo Business Email - all packages include a domain name and one or more custom email addresses...
	AT&T Yahoo! Internet Access - Affordable Access to the Internet.
	Yahoo! Marketing Tools - Tools to Market your Online Small Business.
	Best Reliability and Security
	And So Much More...

Increase Web Site Traffic with Yahoo Search Marketing

2009-10-08T13:07:00.001+05:30

No matter what you sell, you can advertise your business in Yahoo Search Marketing results and attract interested customers. The new Yahoo Sponsored Search offers you a way to get your business in front of targeted potential customers. Yahoo Search Marketing or Yahoo Sponsored Search is search engine marketing that allows anyone to create web ads that display in search results on the web's most popular web sites in the Yahoo! partner network. With Yahoo Search Marketing, you will drive targeted web traffic who are already searching for what you sell. Save $25 when you sign up for an account today.

Geo-Targeting Target customers locally or nationally
Budgeting Control the amount you spend with daily spending limits
Easy Management Navigate and manage ad campaigns online easier than ever
Ad Testing Run multiple ads at once to see what works best

Yahoo Web Hosting Control Panel

2009-10-08T13:03:00.001+05:30

The Yahoo Web Hosting Control Panel offers ease-of-use because of its tabular navigation to find the proper information regarding your yahoo web hosting account. Whether you want to check email, configure your design tool, design and develop your yahoo web site, or promote your site locally or globally via Yahoo Search Marketing, this yahoo web hosting control panel rocks!
The Yahoo Web Hosting Control Panel allows all yahoo web hosting users to access and mange their information in an organized way. You can easily access your FTP details, or manage your blog, or create and update your site. Also, their are site statistics and reporting features so you can see your daily visitor count to your site. The control panel makes using yahoo web hosting a one-stop-shop for all your web site needs.

Yahoo Web Hosting Professional Plan Begins at $6.47 Per Month

2009-10-08T12:58:00.001+05:30

The Yahoo Professional Plan offers unlimited disk space and unlimited bandwidth. This yahoo web hosting plan will basically allow you to build unlimited yahoo web pages. This is a great place to start if you are just beginning to build your web site. There are 3 different pricing plans available where the lowest is $6.47 per month — and you can upgrade to a higher web hosting plan anytime.
Sign Up Now

** Unlimited Disk Space ** allows you to build unlimited yahoo web pages
** Unlimited Data Transfer ** to support web site traffic
** Unlimited Email Storage **
500 Business email addresses (e.g., name@yourbusiness.com)
Free Domain Name
** New Yahoo Site Solutions Tool ** - allows you to build a yahoo web site in 3 easy steps
Create an interactive, highly-personalized site using advanced tools like Perl, PHP, and MySQL. Plus get the storage and bandwidth your sophisticated site requires!
Perl scripting support, PHP and MySQL support - so you can build in interactive elements like web forms and customer surveys, databases, create personalized experiences for your customers, and display content dynamically, based on a customer profile
Use Yahoo SiteBuilder, another web design tool at no extra cost. You can Choose from 330+ professionally-designed, customizable templates, build a professional site – without any HTML or site design experience you can get started fast with the Site Creation Wizard and there are no page limits
A customized domain name
Support for web design tools Microsoft® FrontPage, Adobe® Dreamweaver
Industry leading SpamGuard Plus that blocks 95% of junk email
Advanced statistics so you can see how your site is performing, and understand who is visiting, where they come from, and how they behave once they arrive
24-hour toll-free phone support
Exclusive discounts on marketing tools - yahoo search advertising, Yahoo! Local Enhanced Listings, and other marketing services
No long term commitment and no hidden fees. No annual contract required and you can always upgrade to a higher yahoo web hosting plan anytime
Pre-built email forms, guest books, discussion boards, and online surveys, so you can get to know your customers and increase repeat visits
Site statistics and access to raw web logs
Build a Yahoo website or several Yahoo websites with multiple Yahoo web hosting plans.

Yahoo Web Hosting Standard Plan Begins at $6.47 Per Month

2009-10-08T12:55:00.001+05:30

The Yahoo Standard Plan offers unlimited disk space and unlimited bandwidth. This yahoo web hosting plan will basically allow you to build unlimited yahoo web pages. This is a great place to start if you are just beginning to build your web site. There are 3 different pricing plans available where the lowest is $6.47 per month — and you can upgrade to a higher web hosting plan anytime.

Sign Up Now

** Unlimited Disk Space ** allows you to build unlimited yahoo web pages.
** Unlimited Data Transfer ** to support web site traffic.
** Unlimited Email Storage **
500 Business email addresses (e.g., name@yourbusiness.com).
Free Domain Name
** New Yahoo Site Solutions Tool ** - allows you to build a web site in 3 easy steps.
Create an interactive, highly-personalized site using advanced tools like Perl, PHP, and MySQL. Plus get the storage and bandwidth your sophisticated site requires!
Perl scripting support, PHP and MySQL support - so you can build in interactive elements like web forms and customer surveys, databases, create personalized experiences for your customers, and display content dynamically, based on a customer profile.
Use Yahoo SiteBuilder, another web design tool at no extra cost. You can Choose from 330+ professionally-designed, customizable templates, build a professional site – without any HTML or site design experience you can get started fast with the Site Creation Wizard and there are no page limits.
A customized domain name.
Support for web design tools Microsoft® FrontPage, Adobe® Dreamweaver.
Industry leading SpamGuard Plus that blocks 95% of junk email.
Advanced statistics so you can see how your site is performing, and understand who is visiting, where they come from, and how they behave once they arrive.
24-hour toll-free phone support.
Exclusive discounts on marketing tools - yahoo search advertising, Yahoo! Local Enhanced Listings, and other marketing services.
No long term commitment and no hidden fees. No annual contract required and you can always upgrade to a higher yahoo web hosting plan anytime.
Pre-built email forms, guest books, discussion boards, and online surveys, so you can get to know your customers and increase repeat visits.
Site statistics and access to raw web logs.

Yahoo Web Hosting Starter Plan Begins at $6.47 Per Month

2009-10-08T12:46:00.004+05:30

The Yahoo Starter Plan offers unlimited disk space and unlimited bandwidth. This yahoo web hosting plan will basically allow you to build unlimited yahoo web pages. This is a great place to start if you are just beginning to build your web site. There are 3 different pricing plans available where the lowest is $6.47 per month — and you can upgrade to a higher web hosting plan anytime.
Sign Up Now

** Unlimited Disk Space ** allows you to build unlimited yahoo web pages.
** Unlimited Data Transfer ** to support web site traffic.
** Unlimited Email Storage **
500 Business email addresses (e.g., name@yourbusiness.com).
Free Domain Name.
** New Yahoo Site Solutions Tool ** - allows you to build a web site in 3 easy steps
Use Yahoo SiteBuilder, another web design tool at no extra cost. You can Choose from 330+ professionally-designed, customizable templates, build a professional site – without any HTML or site design experience you can get started fast with the Site Creation Wizard and there are no page limits.
A customized domain name.
Advanced business email.
Industry leading SpamGuard Plus that blocks 95% of junk email.
Advanced statistics so you can see how your site is performing, and understand who is visiting, where they come from, and how they behave once they arrive
24-hour toll-free phone support.
Exclusive discounts on marketing tools - yahoo search advertising, Yahoo! Local Enhanced Listings, and other marketing services.
No long term commitment and no hidden fees. No annual contract required and you can always upgrade to a higher yahoo web hosting plan anytime.

Yahoo Web Hosting FAQs

2009-10-08T12:43:00.000+05:30

Q. What is the new 'unlimited' service from Yahoo Web Hosting?
A. Yahoo Web Hosting has launched a new service that allows small businesses and individuals unlimited room to grow online for one low price. It is truly the first "unlimited" offer of its kind in the shared web hosting space, and it creates a simple, easy path for small business owners and self-starters to launch and grow their businesses and websites online.
Q. How will the new "unlimited" service benefit small businesses and individuals?
A. The new Yahoo Web Hosting plan eliminates an important worry for small businesses owners and individuals, and answers one of their most pressing questions: How can I most easily take my business online? With the new Yahoo Web Hosting, small business owners and individuals no longer need to be concerned with the amounts of disk space, data transfer, or email storage included with their web sites.
No more concerns about the size of their site or how many visitors it can support, small business owners and webmasters can turn their attention to what really matters: creating a professional-looking web site, attracting new customers, and growing their business. Combined with unmatched award-winning design authoring tools, which guide business owners and web developers through an easy, step-by-step site building process, and features that help attract new customers, the new unlimited offer is simply of great value.
Q. Specifically, what are the new changes to Yahoo! Web Hosting?
A. Yahoo will no longer offer three web hosting plans, and instead will offer one plan, called Yahoo Web Hosting, to all new customers. The new plan includes:

Unlimited disk space, which allows you to build as many web pages as you want
Unlimited data transfer, which allows you to support as many visitors as you want
Unlimited email storage, never hit your email capacity again
30-Day Satisfaction Guarantee, which allows customers to cancel their service within 30 days of sign-up.

Q. When will the new web hosting be available?
A. The new and improved yahoo web hosting has been upgraded and is available now.
You can sign up here.
Q.How much does the new Yahoo Web Hosting cost?
A. Yahoo Web Hosting is priced at $6.47 per month, at a 1-year subscription term, which is paid in full upfront and which is automatically renewed each period. The plans for yahoo ecommerce are a little more if you want to implement a yahoo store on your site.
Q.Why is Yahoo! making this change?
A. Yahoo! is committed to helping small businesses and website owners succeed online. The new hosting service helps meet that objective by eliminating a key worry for many, and giving owners unlimited capacity to grow their businesses online. With no limits on the size of their web sites, our customers are free to focus on what’s really important: building and marketing their web sites to attract customers. With more than 1.5 million customers, and an award-winning portfolio of solutions created specifically for small businesses, Yahoo! is a recognized leader in helping entrepreneurs tap into the power of the Internet to generate business success.
Q.How does this new upgrade compare with other web hosting providers and services to small businesses?
A. The new Yahoo! Web Hosting unlimited service offering is the first of its kind among the major web hosting providers of shared hosting services for small businesses. Other web hosting providers offer tiers of service, with varying prices and limitations on disk space, data transfer, and email storage. We believe the new and improved Yahoo Web Hosting model is unique and compelling, greatly simplifying one of the most important and confusing aspects of choosing a partner to get a business online.
What is the new 30-day guarantee?
A. The 30-Day Satisfaction Guarantee allows customers to cancel their orders within 30 days without any penalty fees. Customers who cancel within this time will receive a refund of the first three months' hosting fee, less the $7 fee that Yahoo! paid to its domain partner to register the domain name. The refund will also include any setup.

Design a professional looking Yahoo Store with Easy Design Tools

2009-10-08T12:38:00.002+05:30

Design a professional looking store using simple Yahoo Store design tools. You can design your yahoo store in minutes with an easy-to-use wizard. Pick a pre designed theme or pick from a range of color palettes and layouts to create your own look. Customize your yahoo store with built-in tools to create a design that matches your brand and vision. And finally, automatically create product pages for every product in your inventory -- no programming experience required!

Sign Up for a Yahoo Store today!

* Save 35% for a limited time *

	Save 35% on all Yahoo Online Store packages for the 1st 3 months
	Free Setup
	Build an attractive Yahoo store using our easy wizard or advanced design tools.
	Use third party software, like Dreamweaver®, to build your own Yahoo online store.
	30 Days Free Consulting
	Pay to have a customized Yahoo store built for you by a firm in the Yahoo Developer Network.
	Building a Yahoo Store is a start-to-finish solution that grows with your business
	Yahoo's starter plan is a great value - you get a complete e-commerce solution, web hosting, email, and a domain name for a low monthly fee of $25.97 (for 1st 2 months)
	Yahoo is a proven leader in e-commerce, hosting 1 in 8 online stores

Yahoo Web Hosting Benefits

2009-10-08T12:33:00.001+05:30

Yahoo Web Hosting has a ton of advantages over other web hosting companies. The Yahoo Hosting benefits are endless and will supply you with a solid web hosting platform to host your website. Reliability and Trust are two items where Yahoo Small Business will deliver!
Yahoo Web Hosting has also recently lowered the annual price to $6.47 per month for a great web hosting plan which also happens to be the most popular choice among users.
Here are some of the outstanding Yahoo Web Hosting Benefits...

** Unlimited Disk Space ** allows you to build unlimited yahoo web pages
** Unlimited Bandwidth ** - No limit on website traffic. Open the floodgates!
** NEW LOWER PRICE ** - The monthly price has been reduced to $6.47 per month
Email Addresses - More email addresses that you will ever need.
24/7 Customer Support - Outstanding Support
Free Domain Name - No need to buy your own domain
Option to Sell Online - Easily upgrade to Yahoo Merchant Account

E-commerce Plans and Yahoo! Merchant Solutions

2009-10-08T12:15:00.000+05:30

If you are looking to sell goods and services online via your own website, we suggest an e-commerce hosting solution like Yahoo! Merchant Solutions. Hosted e-commerce solutions provide both e-commerce and hosting functionality like authoring tools, product catalog, shopping cart, transaction processing, and order management, all on the domain name of your choice. Yahoo Merchant Solutions is the #1 provider of hosted ecommerce in the world with customers like Vermont Teddy Bear and Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong Foundation.

Yahoo! Merchant Solutions offers several different plans to suit your business's specific needs. Get your store online today starting for as low as $25.97 per month.

Tips and Hints for E-commerce and selling online :

Many people are confused about the types of e-commerce services available on the internet, so we have listed the alternatives to E-commerce hosting below:

Paid listing services are not full e-commerce solutions, but allow you to list your goods and services via a marketplace. Ebay is the most prominent example of a paid listing marketplace.
Shopping Cart Software allows a shopper to collect items and then, when the user is ready, purchase the chosen items. Shopping cart solutions are generally "bolted" on after a website is built, have limited functionality, and are not fully integrated with your web hosting solution. Paypal is the leading shopping cart provider on the internet.
Large companies like Amazon.com and the Gap use dedicated e-commerce solutions that are custom built. They require a substantial investment of upfront capital, time, and ongoing maintenance and can cost thousands to hundred of thousand of dollars per month.

For most people and businesses looking to sell online, an E-Commerce Hosting solutions like Yahoo! Merchant Solutions provides advanced e-commerce functionality without substantial investment and contracts. It is truly the best of both worlds.

A-Z Guide to Choosing a Web Host : Yahoo!

2009-10-08T12:08:00.001+05:30

What is Web Hosting?

Web Hosting is an internet service that allows people and businesses to make their websites accessible via the Internet. The most common and economical web hosting service is shared web hosting, where several web sites are hosted on the same server, therefore splitting the costs of maintenance and upkeep. Other forms of web hosting can cost as much as 5x to 50x as much as shared web hosting services.

Yahoo! Web Hosting is the 2nd largest shared web hosting provider in the world, hosting over 2 million web sites. For more Web Hosting basics click here .

Domain Names and Web Hosting

You will need to choose a domain name before starting with any web hosting plans. The major difficulty in selecting a domain name is finding one that you like which is still available. You can use Yahoo! Web Hosting domain availability tool here and you will get a free domain when you sign up for any Yahoo! Web Hosting plan.

E-commerce Hosting

If you want to sell your goods or services online, you will need to purchase an e-commerce hosting service like Yahoo! Merchant Solutions. Unfortunately, e-commerce is typically beyond the scope of most web hosting plans, including Yahoo! Web Hosting.

We recommend Yahoo! Merchant Solution because it provides a turn key e-commerce solution that includes a free domain, set up consulting, and 24/7 service from an established company like Yahoo!.Click here to learn about Yahoo! Merchant Solutions plans starting as low as $25.97 a month

Yahoo! Small Business

Yahoo! Small Business is a subsidiary of Yahoo! that focuses on providing online web hosting and marketing services to individuals and small businesses. Yahoo! Small Business offers a suite of products and services that help you get online (Yahoo! Web Hosting), advertise online (Yahoo! Search Marketing), and sell online (Yahoo! Store and Yahoo! Merchant Solutions).

No other competitors offer the full suite of web hosting and online marketing services under same umbrella as Yahoo! Small Business.

Web Hosting Services Plans and Yahoo Web Hosting

2009-10-08T12:04:00.002+05:30

You have a myriad of choices when picking a web hosting provider; there are literally hundreds of companies, most of which you would not recognize. Above the fray, Yahoo! Web Hosting stands out for the following reasons:

Your Yahoo Website will be hosted on the same servers as Yahoo.com and will have the same security and reliability as one of the leading internet properties in the world.
Yahoo Web Hosting is the 2nd largest web hosting provider in the world, hosting over 2 million websites.
Yahoo! Web Hosting offers 24/7 toll free phone and email support. You will also get a free domain name, unlimited disk space, unlimited data transfers, unlimited email storage, plus easy site building tools.
Yahoo! Web Hosting offers a 30 day satisfaction guarantee. Cancel within 30 days and receive a refund of all you hosting fees.
Yahoo! Web Hosting has cheap hosting plans starting for as little as ~~$12.95~~ $4.99 per month with no set up fees. See below for the special offer.

Compare Top Domain Name Providers

2009-10-08T11:59:00.001+05:30

Domain Name Provider	Yearly Price Range	Starter Web Page	Free Private Registration	Domain and Web Hosting Offer
	$1.99 - $9.95	Included	$9.00/year	Get a Yahoo! Domain for only $1.99
	$1.99 - $19.99	Included	$8.99 per year	Domain Sale. $7.49 .com domains at GoDaddy.
	$6.99 - $29.99	Included	Included	Domains from $2.99 to $6.99 with free private reg!
	$9.95 - $34.95	No	$8.99 per year	Free Domain with Hosting Plans as low as $4.95/month.
	$6.99 - $29.95	Included	Free with .com and .net domains	All .com .net and .org domains on sale for $6.99 per year!
	$34.99 - $44.99	No	$9.00/year	FREE domain name with the purchase of any annual web hosting package.
	$8.99 - $154.95	No	$6.99 per year	Free Domain Name With Hosting. Domains as low as $9/year.
	$9.75 - $154.95	No	$6.99 per year	Register your domain for only $9.75/year. Free Domain with Hosting.
	$8.75 - $179.95	No	$6.99 per year	Register your domain for only $9.75/year. Free Domain with Hosting.
	$35.00 - $60.00	Included	$11.00/year	$9.99 Domain name plus email only at Register.com!

What is a Domain?

2009-10-08T11:56:00.000+05:30

Domain Name Basics

All computers have a unique Internet Protocol, or IP, address. Essentially, this is a number that is given to each and every computer. It is like both a home address and a fingerprint. No two IP addresses are exactly the same.

An IP address is presented in decimal format with numbers ranging from 0 to 255. To better identify the IP address, a person must know what to look for. An IP address looks like this: 64.58.91.254.

Essentially, a domain name is identical to an IP address. IP addresses are domain names that people can easily read and comprehend. For instance, Google.com is far easier to remember than 64.233.167.99.

All domain names are a combination of numbers, letters and/or hyphens. Special characters such as &, $ or * are not allowed. If a person or business wants to create a site, he/she must have a domain name to get started. When a person registers his/her domain, it will directly correspond to their own personal IP address.

Domain Levels

In addition to simply choosing a name for the site itself, the domain levels must be considered. There are three levels of domains. Domains on the top level are most commonly used.

These domains are divided into three categories:

Generic
Country code
Infrastructure

Generic top-level domains are the domains that you would normally see when surfing the internet. These consist of:

.com- used by commercial organizations, available to the public
.net- used by sites related to the internet, available to the public
.org- used for non profit organizations, available to the public
.edu- used by educational organizations, not available to the public
.gov- reserved for government agencies, not available to the public
.mil- reserved for the US military, not available to the public
.biz- used only by businesses, not available to the general public
.coop- reserved for cooperative organizations, not available to the general public
.name- reserved for individuals, available to the public

Country code domains are used to designate a country. For example: you may see .uk at the end of a domain name. This is used to represent the United Kingdom.

Infrastructure domains are limited to .arpa. This domain is used exclusively by the government agency that developed the internet The United States Department of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or ARPA.

Second level domains come right after the dot in the top level domains. Examples of second level domains are .co.uk, .edu.uk, .org.au, and .net.uk.

Third level domains come prior to first level domains. These are usually sub domains like: www.johndoe.hostname.com. These are generally used on free hosting packages.

Here’s a quick breakdown of http://johndoe.tripod.com.uk:

john doe- third level or sub domain
Tripod- first level domain
com.uk- second level domain

In short, a domain name is what distinguishes one website from another. Make sure that the name you choose is not too complicated to spell or remember. Also, be sure that this name cannot be mistaken for anything questionable. Understanding domain names is the key to choosing the right one for your business or organization.

Yahoo! Domains Key Features

2009-10-08T11:53:00.000+05:30

PC Magazine Rated Easiest
"Domain registration through Yahoo! Small Business is the easiest."*

24-Hour Toll-Free Customer Service
Get answers anytime you need them from extensive online help sources and our 24-hour toll-free customer support.

Domain Management
Set up and manage your domain with our easy-to-use control panel.

Private Domain Registration
Help protect yourself from spammers and telemarketers with private registration. For an extra $9 per year, you can keep your domain contact information private

Starter Web Page

Publish basic information on a placeholder web page — until you're ready to upgrade to a full web site.

Domain Locking
Safeguard your domain from hijacking and unauthorized transfers with domain locking. Yahoo! Domains secures your domain for you — and only you.

Domain Forwarding
Point your new domain name to a web site you already have with domain forwarding. This is a useful feature if you own multiple domain names.

Complete Domain (DNS) Control
Advanced users: You can easily edit your name servers and MX, A, and CNAME records for complete control over your domain.

Email Forwarding
Unlimited forwarding of messages sent to your new domain name into your free Yahoo! email account.

Room to Grow
It's easy to add more services as you need them, such as email that matches your domain, a full web site, or an online store.

Need More Information?
Try our browsing our FAQs/Glossary section for more detailed information on domain names.

Start Now

Take advantage of special offer below: free domain name when you purchase Yahoo! Web Hosting. At $8.96 per month, it's cheaper than buying a stand alone domain name.

DesktopZip 2008

2009-10-08T02:08:00.001+05:30

DesktopZip 2008 is a fast, simple ZIP archiver and dearchiver which uses most popular ZIP format. Its intuitive user interface is extremely easy to use, while its wide ranging support for most file compression formats and comprehensive feature set makes DesktopZip the only archive utility you will ever need.

Features:

Simple and intuitive user interface
Repair ZIP archives
Search ZIP archives
Support using wildcard to filter
Test Zip archives
Repair ZIP archives
Support drag and drop
Support large Zip files
Supports Windows 98/ME/2000/NT/XP/Vista

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (864 KB)

Universal Extractor

2009-10-08T02:07:00.001+05:30

Universal Extractor is a program do to exactly what it says: extract files from any type of archive, whether it’s a simple zip file, an installation program, or even a Windows Installer (.msi) package.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (4.6 MB)

RarZilla Free Unrar

2009-10-08T02:05:00.002+05:30

RarZilla Free Unrar is a beautiful decompression tool for RAR-archives that supports spanned archives as well as the extraction of password protected files. Decompression can be started by drag & drop, double click or shell integrated context menu. To speed the whole process up, RarZilla has the option to define a default output folder or a default password or both.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (1.2 MB)

Download UnPacker

2009-10-08T02:04:00.001+05:30

UnPacker is a fully automated extracting tool. This is not a WinRAR or WinZIP replacement but quite a useful utility when you want to extract large quantum of archives. The program makes a queue of every rar added to the list and extract them one by one. It also have optional functions to cleanup (removing archives after extract).

Features:

Possible to save unfinished extraction queue to file on exit and reload it on startup (or a crash).
Logfile support added.
Possible to rename the directory you’ve extracted from.
Possible to pause/resume on Unpacker and Autocopy.
AutoCopy can now operate in quiet mode.
Possible to set thread priority.
Autoscan directories by given interval.
Check autoscanned archives against the SFV file.
Automatic adding to queue when archive is equal to SFV.
Recursive scan of harddrive anywhere in Explorer for archives.
Archives can be queued for process.
Each archive is extracted one by one.
Possible to clean up the archive files after use.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (770 KB)

Ultimate Packer for eXecutables

2009-10-08T02:03:00.001+05:30

UPX (Ultimate Packer for eXecutables) is a free, portable, extendable, high-performance executable packer for several different executable formats. It achieves an excellent compression ratio and offers very fast decompression. Your executables suffer no memory overhead or other drawbacks for most of the formats supported, because of in-place decompression.

Features:

excellent compression ratio: typically compresses better than WinZip/zip/gzip, use UPX to decrease the size of your distribution
very fast decompression: ~10 MB/sec on an ancient Pentium 133, ~200 MB/sec on an Athlon XP 2000+.
no memory overhead for your compressed executables because of in-place decompression.
safe: you can list, test and unpack your executables. Also, a checksum of both the compressed and uncompressed file is maintained internally.
universal: UPX can pack a number of executable formats.
portable: UPX is written in portable endian-neutral C++
extendable: because of the class layout it’s very easy to add new executable formats or new compression algorithms

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (321 KB)

QuickZip

2009-10-08T02:01:00.001+05:30

QuickZip features no ads, no spyware and has been a completely free archiver since 1999. It is not intended to act as a clone of another archiver. Instead, we aim to provide a cleaner and more powerful interface.
QuickZip can create 10 different formats (zip, cab, lha, tar, tgz, bz2, bza, 7z, sqx, rs) and read 28 different formats (zip, cab, lha, tar, tgz, bz2, bza, 7z, sqx, rs, rar, ace, arj, gca, bel, zoo, pak, cpt, arg, asd, dzip, shar, zac, MacBin, Compress, Freeze, Splint, Jam) as well as various kinds of encoding formats without using any external programs.

Features :

Allows you to work with 22 encode and encryption formats and 44 archive extensions. Including the popular 7z format.
Run automated backups and other operations using the powerful aks and akp scripts.
Advanced file list support, including the highlighting of files that match the user defined filter. Thumbnail support to display all pictures in the archive.
Drag and drop files and directories from file list to explorer to extract or add. Context menu support to provide operations directly from the menu, without having to start the main program.
Allows you to add archive bookmarks which perform like your browser bookmarks. You can organize your bookmarks into folders.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (4.2 MB)

Packman

2009-10-08T02:00:00.001+05:30

Packman is a 32bit Windows Portable Executable image packer. It will take an existing executable and compress it into a form that runs exactly like the original. The main goal of the program is to give the user detailed control over the packing process.

Features:

support for all types of pe files
selectable compression algorithm
no “header tricks”
section naming support
selectable file alignment
minimum filesize specification
two different packing methods
section compression control
code filtering
header preservation
overlay support
export and export forwarding support
loadconfig support
relocation support
tls support
advanced resource control

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (115 KB)

HTMLPass

2009-10-08T01:58:00.001+05:30

HTMLPass lets you add basic password protection (Java Script based) to your web pages. In addition, you can choose to disable right-click, page printing, clipboard and PrtScr.

The program is easy to use, just select the pages to process, specify output options and select the protection features. Your original files can be automatically backed up, or you can output to a new location.
Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (793 KB)

Multi Virus Cleaner

2009-10-08T01:55:00.002+05:30

Multi Virus Cleaner is a free, stand-alone utility used to detect and remove major viruses. It is not a substitute for full anti-virus protection, but rather a tool to assist administrators and users when cleaning infected systems.

Multi Virus Cleaner is regularly updated and can detect over 3,000 common viruses, worms, trojans and dialers (including all variants of the Sober, MyDoom and Bagle viruses). The program boasts a fast, user-friendly scanner that requires minimal processing power and is an excellent choice for repairing a compromised system.
Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (947 KB)

Roboform 6.7.0

2009-10-08T01:52:00.002+05:30

Roboform is the top-rated Password Manager and Web Form Filler that completely automates password entering and form filling.
RoboForm was named PC Magazine Editor’s Choice, and CNET Download.com’s Software of the Year.
Features :

Memorizes your password and Logs You In automatically.
Fills long registration and checkout forms with one click.
Encrypts your passwords to achieve complete security.
Generates random passwords that hackers cannot guess.
Fights Phishing by filling passwords only on matching web sites.
Defeats Keyloggers by not using keyboard to type passwords.
Backs up your passwords, Copies them between computers.
Synchronizes passwords between computers using GoodSync.
Searches for keywords in your passwords, notes and Internet.
Portable: Pass2Go RF runs from USB key, no install needed.
PDA-friendly: sync your passwords to Pocket PC and Palm.
Neutral: works with Internet Explorer, AOL/MSN, Firefox.

Download Now

MSN Virus Cleaner

2009-10-08T01:50:00.003+05:30

MSN Virus Cleaner is an easy and fast way to remove MSN worm and viruses, just run the App and it well in Just a few seconds automatically delete unwanted applications for your pc, you may need to have an administrator account to completely remove the MSN Viruses.

Requires : Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0.
Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (363 KB)

DVD-Cover Printmaster

2009-10-08T01:49:00.002+05:30

DVD-Cover Printmaster allows you to print DVD covers quickly. Simply select the images for your cover template and the program will automatically resize the images for you. Makes it easy to create great looking covers for any cases. Import covers direct from a website by simply dragging the images from the website and dropping it directly to the cover canvas. Use the Print Preview feature to quickly preview your design and save ink.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (389 KB)

Cerberus Privacy Protector

2009-10-08T01:48:00.000+05:30

Cerberus Privacy Protector is a secure and easy program to clean activity and history traces and securely delete online Internet tracks stored in your browser and in hidden files. Cerberus Privacy Protector can delete cookies, clean index.dat files, clean the cache, erase the recent documents history, remove temporary files, free hard drive space, empty file and temp folders, just to protect your privacy and improve your system’s performance.
Cerberus Privacy Protector uses an advanced cleaning method to ensure all traces of your Internet and computer activities are permanently deleted and unrecoverable on your PC. Web browsers only provide partial privacy protection by allowing some temporary Internet files and cookies to be deleted, but they do not wash data out of all the hidden files, nor do they delete the data securely.

Features:

Clean temporary Internet folders
Clean Internet history folder
Clear cookies
Clear typed URLs
Clear URL history
Clear Favorites
Clear RAS autodial
Clear Windows temporary files
Clear Recycle Bin
Clear Run history
Clear recent programs
Clear last logon user
Clear Find Files history
Clear Find Computer history
Clear Find Network history
Clear Find Telnet history

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (570 KB)

Visualizer Photo Resize

2009-10-08T01:47:00.000+05:30

Visualizer Photo Resize is a complete package for digital photographers and webmasters who wants to resize, improve and share photos fast and easy. With Visualizer Photo Resize you can achieve the results you want without any graphic or web experience.

Visualizer Photo Resize also comes with a complete editor which allows you to view and edit your images in various ways. You can manually resize and enhance your images, by either changing or strecthing the image canvas to any user defined size.
Features:

JPG/JPEG Batch Resizing and Compression.
Batch watermark protection.
Batch Grayscale and/or Autofix colors.
Resize single images from user defined values.
Watermark Protection (Plain text, JPG, PNG, BMP).
Photo Viewing and Editing.
Brightness/Contrast, RGB Color Correction.
16 Photo filters (incl. Fade last action).
Photo Viewing supports JPG, JPEG and PNG.
Convert PNG to JPG or JPG to PNG.
Web album & thumbnail templates.
EXIF Reader.
V4U Player v.1.21 included (Slideshow Viewer).

System Requirements :

Windows® 98/ME/2000/2003/XP.
400 MHz Pentium processor (or equivalent) and later.
128 MB RAM (256 MB recommended).
800 x 600, 24-bit display.
10 MB available disk space.

Publisher : Visit Website
DOWNLOAD NOW (4.28 MB)

How To Prevent Identity Theft

2009-10-08T01:41:00.003+05:30

You can help safeguard your personal information by being conscious of when and how you use that information, or provide it to others.

Your Social Security Number - Memorize your number, rather than carrying it with you.
PIN Numbers - Memorize your PIN numbers. Don't write them down, or carry them in your wallet. Don't print your Social Security number on your checks.
Passwords - Protect your personal information and financial accounts behind passwords that are relatively secure. Don't use "easy to guess" passwords, such as your birthdate.
Credit Reports - periodically obtain and review your credit reports from the major credit bureaus, or a combined report reflecting your information from all three bureaus.
Secure Your Computer - Use firewall software, and download the latest operating system updates, to minimize the chances of an intrusion into your personal computer. Securing your computer is even more important if you have a high speed Internet connection.
Email Inquiries - Never provide your personal or financial information in response to an email inquiry, and never send that information by email. If you believe a legitimate business (such as eBay or Citibank) has requested that information by email, go to your account page on their website to provide it. Type the URL into the browser yourself - do not follow a link in the email. Most of the time you will find that, no matter how real it looked, the email was fake and was designed to defraud you.
Email Attachments - An email attachment may be a worm or virus, which is designed to secretly obtain personal information from your computer and relay it to others, or to open a security hole in your computer so that others can later access your hard drive. Beware of suspicious email attachments, even if they appear to be from somebody you know. Use anti-virus software, and keep it updated.
Website Inquiries - Do not provide personal or financial information online except through a "secure transaction". While not all businesses offer secure transactions, by now most do. You can tell if a page is secure because the "lock" icon at the bottom of your browser window will appear as a closed padlock. Also, secure URL's usually start with "https://" as opposed to simply "http://", with the "s" standing for "secure".
Telephone Inquiries - Do not give your personal or financial information by telephone, unless you initiated the contact.
Credit Card Applications - If you receive a credit card application in the mail and don't intend to complete it, shred it or tear it into pieces before you discard it.
Credit Cards - Sign your credit cards as soon as you receive them. If you are expecting a new or replacement card which does not arrive in a timely manner, contact the financial institution and report that it has not arrived.
Lost or Stolen Credit Cards - Report the loss immediately. In most cases, this will limit your liability to $50 per credit card, or $500 for a debit card. Credit card companies will sometimes waive the $50 amount if you make a prompt report.
Credit Card and Bank Statements - Watch your credit card and bank statements for unusual or unauthorized activity.
U.S. Mail - Don't allow mail to accumulate in your mailbox, but retrieve it soon after it is delivered. Deposit outgoing mail in an official mailbox; avoid leaving it in your mailbox for any extended period (especially overnight or over a weekend). If you are going to be away, have the Post Office hold your mail or have it collected by a trusted neighbor or friend.
Retain Your Receipts - Don't discard bank, credit card, or transaction receipts in public areas.
Personal Information - Tear up or shred any documents which contain personal information before you throw them away.
Monitor Your Billing Address - If your monthly statement for a bank, credit card, or other account does not arrive as expected, confirm that nobody has changed your billing address with the issuing company. If you learn that a billing address has been changed without your authorization, immediately report that the change was unauthorized and that an unauthorized person may be using your account.

What Is Identity Theft?

2009-10-08T01:40:00.000+05:30

What Is Identity Theft

Identity theft, also known as identity fraud, involves somebody obtaining and using your personal data, such as your name, address, telephone number, phone card or credit card number, mother's maiden name, Social Security number, without your knowledge to commit a criminal act. Most often, your information is used to commit some form of financial fraud or deception - whether buying something on your credit, obtaining money from your bank account, or obtaining new credit in your name. The identity thief usually intends to obtain goods or services in your name, and to ultimately leave you with the bill.
Identity theft does not only target those will well-established credit histories. Identity thieves also target those who may not have much credit, such as college students, and set up fake credit accounts in their names. Students make relatively easy targets as their personal information is often easier to obtain (particularly at schools which still post grades by Social Security number, but also because students don't always adequately safeguard that information), many don't closely monitor their financial accounts, while most regularly receive credit card applications in the mail.

Corporate Identity Theft

Businesses can also be the targets of identity theft. Upon applying for credit, a business may discover that it has a history of nonpayment of bills - bills run up by an identity thief. Thus, a small business that is in need of a loan may get the double surprise of being denied credit and learning that it probably will not be able to obtain credit until it clears up the significant financial obligations somebody else has accumulated in its name.

Why We Are Vulnerable

In modern society, many financial transactions occur without any face-to-face contact. These transactions occur based upon names, addresses, account numbers, and sometimes passwords, but rarely require anything that is actually unique to an individual, such as a fingerprint check. Think about how easy it can be to use a credit card to place an order online, or (in many cases) to use your bank's website to pay your bills. Once a criminal has access to your accounts, it is not much more difficult for the criminal to commit a wide variety of financial crimes.

What Do Identity Thieves Do?

Thieves who steal other people's identity have been known to make purchases, apply for credit, open bank accounts, apply for loans, apply for government benefits, and to to obtain cable or utility services in the victim's name, and to forge checks or bank drafts, obtain wire transfers of money using the victim's accounts, or engage in similar acts of fraud.

Consequences Of Identity Theft

Victims of identity theft often have a great deal of difficulty clearing their credit records, during which time their own credit rating and ability to obtain loans is often significantly impaired. In the most extreme cases, an identity thief may actually pretend to be you - obtaining identification cards, bank accounts, loans, and jobs using your name - where you don't find out there is a problem until you get hounded by bill collectors, contacted by the government about unpaid taxes, or even find out that a bankruptcy has been filed in your name. The longer or more involved the identity theft, the more difficult it can be to repair the damage. A damaged credit history can also cause you difficulty obtaining new jobs or renting an apartment, as employers and landlords often review credit records for new applicants.

Identity Theft Insurance

A growing number of companies are offering "identity theft insurance". Many people will be eligible to obtain such insurance as an option through their homeowner's insurance policy. If you have insurance, depending upon the policy terms, you may be able to get assistance in detecting and reporting incidents of identity fraud, and may be eligible for reimbursement for any obligations which result from the fraudulent activity. However, even if you don't carry insurance, as long as you make a prompt report after detecting unauthorized activity you should not have to pay any account balances resulting from identity theft, except for the narrow exceptions defined by law (e.g., the first $50 improperly charged to a credit card).
There is some debate over whether the cost of insurance is excessive in comparison to the average person's need. But some people would rather pay the money for the additional peace of mind. If you are worried about identity theft and find insurance coverage which you believe to be reasonably priced, and which provides coverage you believe will be adequate, you may well benefit from the peace of mind that the coverage will provide.

Nigerian Email Fraud

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Nigerian email fraud is a type of "advance fee" fraud, with an associated possibility of identity theft. Sometimes this type of fraud is called "419" fraud, after the underenforced section of the Nigerian criminal code which makes it illegal. In short, a criminal sends out thousands of spam emails, hoping that an unsuspecting soul will reply. Once contact is made, and it appears that the response is from somebody who may fall for the scam, the criminal will repeatedly make promises to send the promised cash, but problem after problem will arise. These problems can only be resolved, the criminal will swear, if the target sends them money to pay certain fees or bribe various officials. (The term "advance fee" refers to the money they get from you - and despite their promises of riches, you never get a cent in return.)

Sometimes, the fees and bribes these people describe will seem small, particularly in comparison to the riches they offer. But there is no upside - even if you are only "risking" $30 or $40, you'll lose that money forever. And some people have literally been cheated out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

But The Letter I Received Is From A Different Country

Please do not make the mistake of assuming that the same type of offer from another country, such as South Africa, Zimbabwe, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Kenya, Senegal, Zaire, the Congo, the United Arab Emirates, or Sierra Leone, or even European nations such as England or Spain, is legitimate. There are people who operate the same type of fraud from a wide range of nations. Also, some scammers who are located in Nigeria will lie about their location.

Please remember that this type of email is always fraudulent, no matter who sends it or where they claim to be from.

How Did They Find Me?

Most people who have an email address for any significant amount of time receive so-called "spam email" (more politely known as "unsolicited commercial email.") Spammers create lists of email addresses by collecting them from websites, buying them from other businesses, and even by guessing possible names on popular email hosts such as Yahoo! mail and Hotmail. It is possible to buy large email lists for relatively small amounts of money. Most people who are running these scams get spam mailing lists in this manner, or buy them from spammers.

I Got The Same Type Of Letter, But By Fax - Is That Different?

Prior to the rise of email, it was common for this type of scammer to approach people by fax or even by regular mail. I am sure they are working on a way to reach people by instant messenger. However they reach you, they are trying to cheat you.

What Harm Is There In Contacting Them, "Just In Case"?

First, there is no point in contacting them "just in case" - of the thousands upon thousands of people who have been cheated in this manner, not one has received the promised money. You won't, either.

Second, you may inadvertently provide the scammer with information that they can use to fake your identity and commit credit card fraud or bank fraud. Even providing them with your name and bank account number can provide them with the basis to try to forge a bank draft or obtain a fraudulent money transfer from your account. If you give them any information, they will try to use it to cheat you.

Third, some of these scammers will actively try to lure you to Africa with the intention of holding you for ransom.

You may have seen sites where people turned the tables on the scammers, making them do foolish things or stringing them along. But it's safer just to delete their emails and forget them.

What Can I Do About Spam Email?

The best approach to avoiding spam is ordinarily to be very careful about the distribution of your email address. Once you start to receive spam at a particular email address, you will usually end up receiving increasing amounts of spam at that address no matter what you do. There is filtering technology which some find helpful, which helps to screen out spam email from legitimate email.

Spam Email : FAQ

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What Is Spam Email

Spam email is unsolicited email, usually with a commercial focus. Other names for Spam include "Unsolicited Commercial Email" (UCE) or perhaps more accurately, "Unsolicited Bulk Email" (UBE). Spammers will send thousands, and in some cases millions, of emails to try to lure people into buying their products, clicking on "affiliate links" or, worst of all, to try to steal confidential personal and financial information from unwitting recipients.
Please note that a key aspect of "spam" is that it is unsolicited. Sometimes people forget that they have signed up for information from particular merchants, or joined particular mailing lists, and confuse the emails they receive with "spam". If you asked for it, it isn't spam.

Why Do I Get Spam?

Most people who have an email address for any significant amount of time receive "spam email", and the longer you maintain a particular email address the more spam you are likely to receive. Spammers create lists of email addresses by collecting them from websites, buying them from other businesses, and even by guessing possible names on popular email hosts such as Yahoo! mail and Hotmail. It is possible to buy large email lists for relatively small amounts of money. Once you start receiving spam from a particular email address, it becomes effectively impossible to remove your name from the lists.

Can I Get Off Spam Mailing Lists?

There are two types of commercial email that you will receive: commercial email from legitimate businesses, and commercial email from true spammers. Occasionally a legitimate business will be tricked into purchasing an email list from an unscrupulous person, and may send you an advertisement that you do not want. However, every responsible business that sends bulk email also makes it easy to unsubscribe, usually through a link contained within the email.
Spammers often include a fake "unsubscribe" link in their email, but they typically use that link to verify that your email account works as opposed to actually removing you from the account. Unless you are absolutely sure that the email is from a legitimate business, or is for emails or a newsletter to which you subscribed, you should not use the unsubscribe feature.
Unfortunately, there tend to be a lot more illegitimate spammers than legitimate, responsible bulk emailers. This means that even if you unsubscribe from all of the commercial email you at one time invited, you are likely to continue to receive increasing quantities of spam.
With spam, as the saying goes, the best offense is a good defense. Be vigilant about your email address, avoid giving it to people or businesses you don't know, and don't let anybody post it on a website. Some people create "throw away" email accounts on free email services such as Yahoo! mail or Hotmail, so that they have an address they can give out freely without worrying about getting spam in their "real" email account. Once the "throw away" account starts to receive spam, they switch to a new "throw-away" account. Some people even use different email addresses for every transaction they make online, save for communication with family and friends, so they can figure out exactly who is responsible when they start to receive spam.

How Do I Get Rid Of Spam?

There are a growing number of technological approaches to dealing with spam. Filters may be "server side", screening for bulk email before it gets into your "Inbox", or "client side", checking every email in your "Inbox" to see if it is spam. The leading method of reducing spam is the use of an "email filter". Most webmail services now offer some level of email filtering to all of their clients, sometimes with better filtering offered to paid subscribers.
Unfortunately, the spammers invest a great deal of money and effort in defeating spam filters. Any given spam filter you use is likely to accidentally label some genuine emails as "spam", while missing some (or perhaps most) actual bulk email. While the technology behind filtering is improving, it is a constant battle to keep up with the "bad guys".
It used to be that you could report spam to the webhost where the spam originated, sometimes resulting in the spammer's site being shut down. Unfortunately, spammers now typically fake the information in the email header which might otherwise pinpoint their identity, and usually operate from servers which don't entertain complaints from recipients of spam.

How Do I Shield My Children From Spam?

If your children have email accounts, it is likely that they too will become the targets of spam. Spammers are often trying to sell products which are completely inappropriate for children, and spam emails often include very graphic pictures from adult websites. There are some software companies which produce filters to keep inappropriate Internet content from children, and if used they may offer some automatic filtering of such content from your children's email (particularly if it is web-based mail).
The best approach to keeping this garbage out of your children's email account is to set up their email so that they can only receive mail from known individuals. That is, you can set up their email on a service which allows you to set up a list of preferred email addresses, while blocking all email from any other address. That way, once approved, your children's friends and family can send them email, but spammers cannot.

Who Are The People Behind Spam?

A very large amount of spam email is sent by a small number of companies, which send hundreds of millions of unsolicited commercial emails to people around the world. Some of these companies are set up in nations which do not actively regulate or enforce their laws relating to this type of activity, meaning that it is very difficult to shut them down. Few of these companies respect the laws regulating commercial email.

What Is The Government Doing About This Problem?

The United States Government recently passed the so-called "CAN-SPAM" Act, which preempted state laws which regulated spamming, and created a new national law. Unfortunately, this law has yet to have any apparent impact on spamming activity, and some people have reported a significant increase in spamming since the law was passed. Critics of the law believe that it also interferes unduly with state efforts to limit spamming.
The government promises that it is preparing to prosecute a significant number of spammers under this law. However, the volume of spam email has increased significantly since the law went into effect.

How Can You Protect Yourself from Money Order Fraud?

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Think About The Offer. Most of these scams are obvious once you think about them. Why would somebody who supposedly can't get funds out of a country be able to send you a money order - thereby getting funds out of the country - and why would they pick a complete stranger as their partner? Why would somebody need an intermediary to deposit large money orders for them, when they obviously have their own bank account? Why would somebody who could easily send money to their own shipper trust a complete stranger with thousands of dollars to be forwarded to the shipper, rather than simply paying the shipper directly?
Get the Money Through a Money Transfer Service. You may have noticed that the perpetrators of this fraud don't want you to send them a check - they want the money wired to them (or to their partners in fraud) through an international money transfer service like Western Union. If you're selling somebody an expensive item such as a car, there is no reason that you can't insist that an international seller pay through a wire transfer service.
Insist On Checks From A U.S. Based International Bank. While any time you participate in a deal that seems suspect you risk that the money order you receive will be fraudulent, you can at least insist that the money order sent to you be issued from a U.S. based international bank. If the person is in a nation with no international bank branches, insist on a wire transfer service. Using a domestic bank will make it much more likely that the forgery will be detected before the check "clears".

This is a type of fraud where the offer is almost always too good to be true. If you have any suspicion that the person you are dealing with may not be completely legitimate, don't send that person any money until you are absolutely certain that the check has been honored by the overseas bank.

Examples of Money Order Fraud

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Work At Home - The victim is offered the opportunity to make easy money by clearing checks for a business or charity, with the victim supposedly receiving a percentage of each check they clear. The victim deposits the checks and wires the money to the client, usually to a bank in Canada, Europe or Africa. The checks are later dishonored, and the victim's bank demands reimbursement.

Online Auctions and Classifieds - A person claiming to be an international buyer responds to an advertisement, offering to pay a premium price for the item being sold - often more than the asking price. They tell the seller that they will send a money order for the purchase price, plus an additional sum for the international shipment of the merchandise. The seller is asked to wire the shipping costs to a shipping company identified by the buyer. The money order is later dishonored, and the seller is out several thousand dollars.

Pleas for Help - In a variation of advance fee fraud, the victim receives a plea for help from somebody claiming to have money stuck in a foreign country that they cannot get out. They offer the victim a percentage of the money in return for clearing the check. After the victim deposits the check and wires the funds, the check is dishonored.

Please note that there are many variations on this scheme, and as one becomes known another version seems to develop. Any private individual who is offered payment by an international check or money order should suspect possible fraud.

Money Order Fraud

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What Is Money Order Fraud?

Money order fraud involves forged certified checks and money orders, typically drawn on an overseas bank, which are issued to an unsuspecting person. The person is assured that a money order or certified check is "as good as cash." The victim deposits the check into a bank account, and initially the check clears. The person then withdraws part or all of the funds, and wires them to the person who sent the check. The check is then dishonored as a forgery, and the bank withdraws the money from the victim's account or demands repayment from the victim.
Many people who fall victim to this fraud think that they protecting themselves by checking with the bank to be sure that the check has cleared before they withdraw any money. Unfortunately, this fraud is based upon laws which require banks to make deposits available to their customers within a specified period of time, which is usually significantly shorter than the amount of time it takes for the bank to determine that the check is no good.

Why Aren't Banks Protecting Their Customers?

As was previously mentioned, banks operate under federal regulations which require them to make deposited funds available to a customer within a specific amount of time. If banks do not detect a problem with the check during that time, they will make the funds available to the customer. A bank teller may sincerely believe that as the funds are available in the account, the check was good.
Faced with the prospect of having to explain their violation of federal banking laws, particularly in cases where the checks ultimately are honored, banks have opted to follow the law and put a risk of loss on the person who deposits the check. The banks defend this practice, noting that the person who is in the best position to know if a particular transaction is suspect, or that a particular check may be forged, is the customer.

Recommendations of Home Equity Loans in Texas

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Home equity loans can be a useful tool for freeing up funds that would otherwise be locked into a non-income-producing asset. However, they are not without their disadvantages. Before making the decision to apply for a home equity loan, consider the following:

For most families, their home is their most valuable asset. In Texas, a homestead is protected from the claims of creditors except in a very few instances. So, if you fall behind on credit card payments, or cause a serious automobile accident in which the damages exceed your insurance coverage, you might be sued but you will not lose your home. However, if you fall behind on payments on a home equity loan there is a very real risk that the lender will foreclose. Think carefully about whether you really need the money, and if so whether another form of credit might be more appropriate. Also, be careful not to borrow more than you need.
While interest rates on home equity loans tend to be lower than some other types of loans, you will still incur expenses in the form of interest and loan fees. You may also be responsible for closing expenses and document preparation fees. Be sure you know how much the loan will cost you. (See the links under the "Other Resources" heading below for help in calculating these costs.)
Remember that you can only have one home equity loan on your home at a time, you can only get one home equity loan per year, and a home equity loan cannot be converted to another type of loan. It is important to shop carefully for the best deal, because you may later find that it is impossible or prohibitively-costly to make other arrangements if you need more money or if you find a better interest rate.
Be aware of the time limits associated with making the loan, especially if you must have the funds by a particular date. One problem we frequently see is that borrowers fail to pick up their closing statement the day before the closing. Unfortunately when that happens, the closing must usually be delayed. Delays are not only inconvenient; they can also result in increased costs to the borrower if a fee is charged for re-drafting the loan documents or if the deadline passes on a favorable interest rate lock.
Read your loan documents carefully before closing to be sure they are correct and that you understand them. Never sign a loan document if you have questions about the meaning of its provisions or if it contains blanks. Texas real estate law can be quite complex, so you may wish to have a Texas real estate attorney review the documents to ensure that they are correctly drafted and to answer any questions you might have. In most cases such a consultation with an experienced Texas real estate lawyer should not require more than one or two hours of billable time (a nominal cost compared to the other expenses you may be paying), and may help you avoid some unpleasant surprises at or after closing.

Unique Aspects of Texas Home Equity Loans

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Because Texas laws have traditionally been designed to protect individuals and their families, home equity loans were not even possible in Texas until late 1997. Change comes slowly, however, so when Texas real estate law was finally amended to permit home equity loans, it included some of the strongest consumer protections in the nation. The law is both lengthy and complex, but some of the most significant provisions are:

The total of all mortgage debt (not just the home equity loan) cannot exceed 80% of the fair market value of the home. So, if you already have a $30,000.00 mortgage against your $80,000.00 home, the most you can borrow is $34,000.00 ([.80 x 80,000] - 30,000). If the mortgage on that same $80,000.00 home were $65,000.00, a home equity loan would not even be possible because the current mortgage already exceeds 80% of the fair market value.
Only one home equity loan may be made against a home at a time. While additional financing arrangements might be possible, a homeowner cannot obtain a second home equity loan until the first has been paid in full.
A borrower is only permitted one home equity loan per year, regardless of how quickly the loan is repaid, and a home equity loan may not be converted to another type of loan.
Land that is taxed as "agricultural" or "open space" may not be used to secure a home equity loan.
There are restrictions on who can make a home equity loan. For example, an unlicensed individual cannot make a home equity loan unless the individual is (1) providing seller-financing or (2) related to the borrower within the second degree.
Lenders are prohibited from charging fees and costs (other than interest) which exceed 3% of the principal amount of the loan. The law provides significant penalties for a lender who violates this rule and refuses to correct the error once it is brought to the lender's attention.
The lender may not require the borrower to apply the loan proceeds to repay a debt except debt secured by the homestead or debt owed to another lender. The borrower is otherwise free to use the funds for any lawful purpose.
The loan must be secured only by the home; the lender may not require that additional assets be mortgaged.
A home equity loan may be closed only at the permanent office of a lender, a title company, or an attorney's office.
The loan cannot close until 12 days after the borrower has made application for the loan and received a special notice of the borrower's rights.
Not later than the day prior to closing, the borrower must receive a final itemized disclosure of the actual fees, points, interest, costs, and charges that will be charged. (This requirement may be waived if a bona fide emergency or another good cause exists and the lender obtains the written consent of the owner.)
After the loan closes, the borrower has three additional days to change his mind and cancel the transaction without any penalty or charge. The loan proceeds cannot be delivered to the borrower until the three day period has passed.
The lender's rights on default are severely limited in comparison to most other loans. For example, the lender is not permitted to conduct a private foreclosure; all home equity loan foreclosures must be ordered by a court. Moreover, the borrower has no personal liability, meaning that even though the borrower may lose the home in foreclosure the lender will have no right to sue the borrower for money.

Avoiding Problems While Using a Mortgage Broker

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Shop Around - Talk to several mortgage brokers, and compare their fees and experience. Ask them for references.

Understand your mortgage broker's fees - And get them in writing! A mortgage broker typically obtains a "wholesale" price from a lender, and is free to set any "retail price" at which the loan will be offered to the borrower. The broker's fee will be the difference between the wholesale and retail price of the mortgage. Unless otherwise agreed, a mortgage broker will typically "mark up" or increase the cost of a loan, perhaps by adding points to the loan, in order to get the highest possible fee. Mortgage brokers are more apt to be able to charge excessive fees when they are working with borrowers who aren't consulting competing brokers, and who haven't otherwised tried to determine the cost of obtaining a similar loan without the assistance of a broker.

Read your agreement - Make sure that the promises your mortgage broker makes to you are the same as what is written in your contract with the broker. If you are seeking a home mortgage, don't let the mortgage broker mischaracterize the loan as "for business purposes" - any mortgage broker who does that is probably trying to avoid the application of consumer protection laws, or to secure a higher fee.

Be honest in your loan applications - Don't let a mortgage broker misrepresent your financial circumstances or any other information to lenders.

Verify your "bargain" with other lenders - Go back to your bank or another lender with your mortgage broker's best offer, and see if they will meet or beat that deal.

Borrow what you need - Recall that in a typical arrangement, the more you borrow the greater the mortgage broker's commission. Don't let the mortgage broker pressure you into borrowing more than you actually need.

It's not the promise that counts - If your mortgage broker promises you a great deal or exceptionally low interest rate to entice you to sign on, but can't deliver on those promises, consider switching to a different broker before making any further commitment.

Monitor interest rates - If interest rates decline between the time you lock in your rate and your closing, ask for a lower rate. To best protect yourself, you should have your broker commit in advance that, if lower, you will pay the lock rate which would be offered to a new customer on the date of the closing.

Get written confirmation of a lock - If your mortgage broker charges you a fee to lock in a particular interest rate, have the broker provide you with a copy of a written commitment from the lender. Some mortgage brokers have been known to pocket the lock fees.

Read the loan agreement - Make sure that the loan you receive is the same as what the broker promised.

Using a Mortgage Broker

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What Is a Mortgage Broker

A mortgage broker is an independent contractor who acts as a middleman between borrowers and lenders. A good mortgage broker will be able to check available loans from a variety of lenders, and can seek out a mortgage which best suits the needs of a particular client. A good mortgage broker will assist a borrower by locating the best available mortgage which meets the borrower's needs and circumstances. The broker is paid a fee, typically a commission based upon the amount borrowed, in return for finding the mortgage

Why Use a Mortgage Broker?

Some people don't want to spend the time and energy seeking out the best mortgage, by contacting a range of lenders, obtaining information about interest rates, fees and closing costs, and comparing available loans. A mortgage broker should perform those tasks for you.
Other people may have troubled credit histories, which make it difficult for them to locate reasonably priced credit. Sometimes a mortgage broker will be able to locate a lender who offers better terms than they can find on their own.
Additionally, some people may want more flexibility in the amount they borrow than is offered by their bank. A mortgage broker may be able to accommodate that desire, by finding them a lender which will, for example, lend them money with a lower down payment than their bank demands.
Yet others may not feel comfortable negotiating with lenders, and may prefer to have a mortgage broker perform that task on their behalf.
Although the mortgage broker charges a fee for this service, most borrowers will still save money by using a broker, as the broker is performing services which would otherwise be performed by employees of the lender. Assuming that the mortgage broker's fee is reasonable, the fee is often less than the lender would charge for those services. Assuming the mortgage broker also obtains a better rate than is otherwise available to the borrower, there are again cost savings to the borrower.

Refinancing Your Home Mortgage

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Initial Considerations

Before you refinance, you should consider what else you might do with the money you will be applying to closing costs. Similarly, if you will be increasing your monthly payments to pay off your mortgage more quickly, what else might you do with the money that will go toward those increased payments? Sometimes you will get a better return by putting that money into a retirement account, money market account, or mutual fund than by refinancing your house.
You should also check to see if you are paying private mortgage insurance (PMI), and if you have enough equity in your home to cancel that insurance. The cost of PMI coverage can be substantial.
You should also check to see if you will have to pay a "prepayment penalty" if you refinance your mortgage. If you must pay a penalty, the size of the penalty will affect your determination of whether it is financially wise to refinance.

Interest Rates

Perhaps the leading factor in most people's refinancing decisions is the prevailing interest rate. They understand that rates have dropped since they originally mortgaged their homes, and desire a lower interest rate and monthly payment.
Recall that mortgage closing costs and the change in your mortgage interest deduction must be factored into your refinancing decision. As a general rule, you will benefit from refinancing when interest rates have dropped two or more points since you obtained your original mortgage. But even if you are looking at a reduction of less than 2%, you may wish to explore the possibility of refinancing, particularly if you have built up equity in your home. You can easily shop around for the best rates, both online and by phone.
You may also wish to consider asking a lender to "lock in" an interest rate for a certain period, often forty-five to sixty days, in case interest rates rise. Any commitment to lock in the rate should be provided in writing.

Application Fees

If you pay an application fee when you apply for a loan or mortgage, find out up front if the fee is refundable if you are not approved for the loan or if you choose to use a different lender.

Closing Costs

In addition to the application fee, when you apply for a home mortgage, significant costs will be incurred before the loan is closed, often including an appraisal, title fee, title insurance, survey fee, points, recording and transfer fees, and attorney fees. You should press your lender to provide as much detail about these costs and fees as you can possibly obtain, in advance of committing to a mortgage.
Even if you are promised a "no cost" refinance, you should keep in mind that costs are involved. You will pay those costs through an increased interest rate or higher loan balance. There's nothing wrong with considering a "no cost" deal, but you need to look carefully at what you will be paying - it may be that, even with costs, another loan package is cheaper.

Charges for "Points"

Banks charge "points" when they issue loans to cover the cost of doing business. Generally speaking, the lower the interest rate for a loan the higher the number of "points" a bank will charge to issue the loan. Points are negotiable, and the number of points charged can vary between financial institutions. Borrowers are generally advised not to finance the points; and if you do intend to finance them you should consider how that will affect the financial benefits of refinancing.

Duration of Residence

To benefit from refinancing your mortgage, you should ordinarily anticipate staying within your home for at least three more years. If you intend to move before that time, the closing costs from refinancing are likely to subsume any savings from a lower interest rate.

Withdrawing Equity

If your home has appreciated since you bought it, when you refinance you may be tempted to get a larger mortgage and to pocket some of the equity in your home. You should check to see whether the use you have planned for the equity you withdraw is an "allowable expense" such that it qualifies for the mortgage interest deduction, and the significance of any change in your mortgage interest deduction.

Shorter Mortgage Term?

When you refinance your home, you may wish to explore the possibility of obtaining a shorter mortgage term. Shortening the term could mean that, even if your payments don't change significantly, your home is paid off in fifteen or twenty years instead of thirty.

Refinance or Renegotiate?

You should consider exploring the possibility of renegotiating your loan with your existing lender, instead of refinancing. Often the fees associated with a renegotiation will be significantly lower than those associated with refinancing, although the interest rates available are usually above what you would obtain if you refinance.

Fraud and Misconduct by Stock Brokers and Financial Planners

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When you use a stock broker or financial planner to help manage your investments, you place a great deal of trust in that individual. In working with your financial planner, you should be aware of common acts of fraud and misconduct which may occur with your investment account:

Churning - The Excessive Trading of Stock

As a stock broker profits by making commissions on each purchase or sale of stock, a stock broker may engage in "churning" in order to obtain higher commissions from your account. While it is not always apparent from a review of trading records if a stock broker has engaged in excessive trading or has reaped excessive commissions, it is possible to determine whether the growth in the account was sufficient to cover trading expenses, and whether purchases and sales of stock are made to the advantage of the investor - particularly where the amount of trading is excessive as compared to the amount of money invested. With enough questionable trading activity, it may be possible to establish that "churning" has occurred. You can protect yourself from "churning" by limiting the stock broker's authority to engage in discretionary trading.

Unsuitable Investments

A stock broker recommends that an investor purchase securities which the broker knows or should understand are not suited to the client's needs or investment goals. For example, the stock broker may recommend high risk stocks to an older client whose actual needs are for stability and a consistent income. Sometimes a stock broker will encourage clients to purchase a particular stock which is being pushed by the brokerage firm, and may mislead the client about the quality of the investment.

Excessive Concentration

Investors typically benefit from having a diversified portfolio, in which losses in one sector are offset by profits in another. If a financial planner or brokerage over-concentrates investment in a particular stock or sector of the market, an investor will typically face an excessive risk of loss.

Misrepresentations

A broker misrepresents a material fact about an investment or trade, or fails to inform the investor of a material fact, resulting in the client's making an investment decision from which the investor would otherwise have abstained. By way of example, in conduct known as "touting", a brokerage firm might encourage a client to invest in "house stocks", essentially low-value stocks which are part of an investment scheme to achieve the artificial inflation of their value, knowing full well that no fully informed investor would make the recommended investment. Similarly, a stock broker may claim to have inside information about a "hot stock" - if true, the broker is likely engaging in illegal insider trading, and if not the broker is lying.

Failure to Follow Instructions

The broker is instructed by the investor to engage in or abstain from a particular trade or activity, and either does not follow the instruction or ignores the instruction. For example, a stock broker may engage in trades in an account over which he has no discretion to make trades, or a stock broker doesn't follow an investor's instruction to sell a stock that the firm is touting.

Misappropriation

The stock broker or financial planner steals money from the client's account, perhaps fabricating losses to cover the loss, or providing fake records to hide the deductions.

Different Types of Letter of Credit

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Confirmed Letter of Credit

A letter of credit, issued by a foreign bank, which has been verified and guaranteed by a domestic bank in the event of default by the foreign bank or buyer. Typically, this form of letter of credit will be sought when a domestic exporter seeks assurance of payment from a foreign importer.

Commercial Letter of Credit

A commercial letter of credit assures the seller that the bank will provide payment for any goods or merchandise shipped to the bank's customer, assuming the seller provides any required documentation of the transaction and its shipment of the purchased goods.

Irrevocable Letter of Credit

An irrevocable letter of credit includes a guarantee by the issuing bank that if all of the terms and conditions set forth in the letter are satisfied by the beneficiary, the letter of credit will be honored.

Revocable Letter of Credit

An revocable letter of credit may be cancelled or modified after its date of issue, by the issuing bank.

Standby Letter of Credit

In the event that the bank's customer defaults on a payment to the beneficiary, and the beneficiary documents proof of its loss consistent with any terms set forth in the letter, a standby letter of credit may be used by the beneficiary to secure payment from the issuing bank.

The Letter of Credit

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A letter of credit is a document typically issued by a bank or financial institution, which authorizes the recipient of the letter (the "customer" of the bank) to draw amounts of money up to a specified total, consistent with any terms and conditions set forth in the letter. This usually occurs where the bank's customer seeks to assure a seller (the "beneficiary") that it will receive payment for any goods it sells to the customer.
For example, the bank might extend the letter of credit conditioned upon the beneficiary's providing documentation that the goods purchased with the line of credit have been shipped to the customer. The customer may use the letter of credit to assure the beneficiary that, if it satisfies the conditions set forth in the letter, it will be paid for any goods it sells and ships to the customer.
In simple terms, a letter of credit could be said to document a bank customer's line of credit, and any terms associated with its use of that line of credit. Letters of credit are most commonly used in association with long-distance and international commercial transactions.

Exercise Caution During Home Equity Loans

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Watch for inappropriate conduct by home equity lenders, including the following:

Bait and Switch: The lender offers one set of loan terms when you apply for the loan, attempts to impose higher charges when you sign to complete the transaction. Such a lender may attempt to distract you from the terms of the contract, to use pressure tactics to get you to sign or prevent you from reading its terms, or may even misrepresent what the contract says.

Equity Stripping: The lender gives you a loan based on the amount of equity in your home, even though you will find it difficult or impossible to make the loan payments given your income. If you are unable to make your payments you may lose your home.

Credit Insurance Packing: The lender adds credit insurance to your loan, perhaps at a substantial cost, even though you may not want or need credit insurance. If you need credit insurance, consider applying for coverage through a source other than the lender.

Loan Flipping: The lender encourages you to repeatedly refinance your loan, perhaps also encouraging you to borrow additional funds each time you refinance. Each time you refinance the loan you pay additional fees and points which profit the lender, but also increase your debt.

Deceptive Loan Servicing: The lender provides inaccurate, incomplete, or misleading account statements and payoff figures. As a result, it is extremely difficult for you to determine how much you have paid or how much you owe, and you may end up paying more than you actually owe.

Investigating Your Home Equity Options

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Shop Around. As with any mortgage, you should shop around for the best deals.

Get information about the loan. Know your interest rate and closing costs. Will interest be variable, as is common with home equity loans, or will it be at a fixed rate? If the rate is variable, what rate cap does the lender offer? Will you be able to convert the loan to a fixed rate loan if you later choose?

Loan or Line of Credit?You will typically have the option of obtaining either a home equity loan, or a home equity line of credit. Please note that the annual percentage rate (APR) for a loan typically incorporates points and finance charges, whereas the APR for a line of credit typically reflects only the interest rate charged. You must consider that difference when assessing the total cost of a loan against a line of credit.

With a loan, upon closing you would receive payment of the amount borrowed.
With a line of credit, you will typically receive a check book, and will be able to write checks against the equity in your home up to the amount of the line of credit.

If you obtain a home equity line of credit, you should make sure you understand all of the terms - For example, will you have to make monthly payments toward the total principal of your debt, or will you be required to pay only the interest? When will you have to repay the loan? Under what circumstances can the lender limit your line of credit?

Fees and Costs. Know the fees associated with your home equity loan. Some lenders will charge an annual fee with a home equity line of credit, whether or not you actually use it to borrow money. If you will be moving relatively soon, consider if it will be worth borrowing against your home given the fees you will incur.

Repayment. Know the terms of repayment, and the amount of any fees that might become due upon repayment.

When You Apply For the Best Home Mortgage

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A home mortgage involves a very large amount of money - and you will be well-served if you take your time and do your homework before you commit to a particular lender.

Shop around. You can request mortgage quotes from numerous financial institutions in advance of paying any application fees. You will likely find variation not only in the interest rates quoted, but also in the closing costs for the loan.
Determine the closing costs. If the lender estimates closing costs, including points and fees, or fails to describe certain costs, ask for additional details - most will provide more information if they believe they may get your business, and those that won't probably don't deserve it.
Don't get pressured. If you are pressed to sign a loan application, to borrow more than you need or can afford, to immediately commit to a loan, or are urged that interest rates may immediately skyrocket, be suspicious of the lender. In most case, lenders who apply this type of pressure do not have your best interests at heart.
Don't sign anything you don't understand. If you need help from a lawyer or housing counselor, ask for a copy of the contract and have it reviewed. Don't sign a contract which contains blank spaces "to be completed later".
Don't make false representations on your mortgage application, even (perhaps especially) if the loan officer tells you that "it's no big deal". Report any lender which urges you to put false information on your loan application to the FTC.
Don't buy credit insurance you don't need. If you need or desire credit insurance, consider seeking price quotes from insurance providers other than your lender so you know if your lender.

Before You Apply for the Best Home Mortgage

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Check your credit report. Make sure that it is accurate. Inaccurate entries in your credit history can significantly increase the cost and interest rate associated with your mortgage.
Know the terminology. You should also be aware of the types of mortgage you may be offered, and how those options fit with your financial plans. Are you willing to take the risk of having the interest rate go up, such that you are willing to apply for an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM), or do you want the security of having a fixed rate?
Know your financial needs. Know how much you need to borrow, and the maximum monthly payment you can afford to pay.
Get The Help You Need. If you feel confused, or don't know how to estimate your financial situation and mortgage needs, seek assistance from a loan counseling agency.

Before you sign the contract:
- Read all of the fine print. Don't let anybody rush you. Make sure that all the information on the loan contract, including any information about you, is correct. If there is anything you don't understand, ask for an explanation.
- If the terms of the loan offer have suddenly changed, don't be afraid to walk away

Be Aware When Getting a Debt Consolidation Loan

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Buy Only What You Need

Some services promise not only to consolidate your debt, but also to provide you with insurance and perhaps even investments, while at the same time lowering (or at least not raising) your total monthly payment. You should be wary of this type of service.
First, the odds are that if you were in a good position to make additional investments, you would not be in the market for a debt consolidation loan. You will likely be better served by applying the "insurance" or "investment" payments to your debt.
Second, the commissions associated with investments and insurance policies can be extremely high. Often the reason these services are trying to sell you additional products is so that the salesman can pocket an additional, substantial commission.
The best approach for most people who choose to consolidate their debt will be to obtain the best possible debt consolidation loan they can find, and to examine their other financial needs only after they have resolved their prior debt situation. Also, most people will benefit from using a professional financial planner, as opposed to buying insurance or mutual funds through a "debt consolidation" salesperson with little actual knowledge of investment, and who offers a much smaller range of investment options.

Beware of Multilevel Schemes

There are some debt consolidation schemes that are sold through multi-level marketing schemes. While there may be a certain comfort level in purchasing a financial plan from a friend, co-worker, or relative, consider this: What are the odds that this person truly is an investment professional? Most multi-level schemes offer very limited options to the customer, and all require very high commissions for the salesperson and the salesperson's "upstream" - those who sponsored the salesperson into the organization.
You should treat a multi-level program like any other option - see how it stacks up against your alternatives, then select the one that is in your financial best interest. But don't be taken in by the fact that you like the person who is selling the program, or the suggestion that you will be doing them a favor - many of these programs offer the "potential for six figure income", and your friend intends to profit handsomely by convincing you to sign up for their service.

Exploring Alternatives Debt Consolidation Loan

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Before you sign on for a "debt consolidation" loan, consider your alternatives:

Negotiate With Your Creditors - Sometimes your creditors will offer you a lower interest rate, or will waive certain fees associated with your accounts, if you simply call them up and ask. This is most often true of credit card companies.

Debt Management - You may be better served by utilizing a debt management service. With a debt management plan, you deposit an amount of money each month with a service which pays your bills for you. Sometimes creditors will work with your debt management service to offer reduced interest rates or waive certain fees associated with your account.

Using a Traditional Lender - You may also be better served by using a traditional lender, as opposed to a debt consolidation service.

Unsecured Loans - If your credit is relatively good and you are employed, you may be able to obtain an unsecured "personal" loan which you can use to pay off some of your higher interest debt, such as your credit card debt.
Secured Loans - As many debt consolidation services will use your home as collateral, you may well be best served by refinancing your home or obtaining a home equity loan, and using the proceeds to pay off your debts.

Bankruptcy - There is a possibility that your best option is to declare bankruptcy. If all consolidation will do is forestall an inevitable bankruptcy, consider whether you will be better served by proceeding directly to bankruptcy.

Is Debt Consolidation Right For You?

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A debt consolidation service provides a loan which pays off some or all of your existing debt, and replaces it with a single loan with a single payment. The promise is to replace various high interest loans, such as credit card debt, with a single loan with a lower total monthly payment.
A related type of service is a debt management service, which does not provide a consolidation loan, but instead pays your various debts for you.

It may seem at first blush that there is no downside to debt consolidation - you end up with a lower monthly payment and have more cash on hand at the end of each month, while your debts are still being paid off. However, depending upon how the consolidation loan is structured, you may end up paying a lot more interest on your consolidated loan, and taking a great deal more time to pay off your debt, than if you keep paying your present individual debts.
Additionally, there is a chance that obtaining a debt consolidation loan will hurt your credit. Depending upon the scoring used, obtaining a new line of credit and paying off existing loans can result in your being classified as a greater credit risk.
For people who are able, the best way to resolve outstanding debt is often to pay more each month to service their debt - focusing on paying down the principal of the highest interest debts with non-deductible interest (e.g., credit card debts).
Finally, you must ask yourself if you will demonstrate the fiscal discipline necessary to benefit from debt reconsolidation. If you obtain a consolidation loan with a lower monthly payment, but immediately run up new credit card debts, you will almost certainly end up in a worse position than you were in prior to consolidating your debts. You can even end up in a cycle of obtaining "consolidation" loans, with the commissions, fees, and interest rates accumulating to put you deeper and deeper into debt.

Get Out of Debt

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Stop Borrowing Money

The first step to escaping debt is to stop borrowing. Simply put, the more you borrow, the more you will owe. You can't borrow your way out of debt, but must instead pay off your existing debts while not borrowing additional funds.
If you are a typical consumer, you engage in a lot of borrowing by making purchases with credit cards. You should try to break this credit habit. Most credit card companies and store cards will reduce your credit limit if you ask them to do so. (The credit card company may try to talk you out of lowering your credit limit - because they make the most money when they let you borrow more than you can afford.) You can also cut up some or all of your credit and store cards.

Budget Your Income and Expenses

Map out your income, expenses, and payments on your existing debts for a typical month, and create a balanced household budget. Remember to budget some money for emergencies - if you are fortunate enough that no emergency occurs, you can either save the money for future emergencies or (if you are afraid that you will spend it) use it to pay down some of your debts.
If you are paying credit card debts, budget to pay more than the minimum required monthly payment. Minimum payments are usually set in an amount such that, if you don't make an additional payment toward the credit card balance, you will never pay off the debt. Usually, your credit cards will carry the highest interest of any of your debt, and thus it will make sense to pay them off first.
If you cannot figure out how you can possibly pay your bills and still have enough money to survive at the end of the month, you may wish to consider using a credit counselor or a debt management service. You may also wish to consider the possibility of a debt consolidation loan.

Stick To The Budget

For many people, this is the hardest part - it is easy to create a theoretical budget which allows them to get their debts under control, but impossible to resist the impulse purchases which break the bank each month.
You can help avoid temptation by cutting up your credit cards and instead making your purchases with cash. As previously mentioned, you can also have your credit limits lowered.
If you need help creating a workable budget or sticking to the budget, as previously suggested, you may wish to work with a credit counselor or a debt management service. If your situation is beyond their help, you may have to consider filing for bankruptcy.

Finding a Good Credit Counseling Service

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Where Are Their Offices?

Some credit counseling services operate at a distance, while others make a point of meeting with debtors in a local office. You won't necessarily save money by using a service which doesn't offer a local office, and sometimes it is easier to make and stick to a budget when you are working with somebody face-to-face. Also, local credit counseling agencies sometimes offer educational programs or classes, which may benefit you when you are deciding if you need credit counseling services, and may provide further assistance while you are participating in debt management.
It is okay to work with a credit counseling service over the phone, particularly if you are embarrassed about meeting your credit counselor in person, but you should take care to verify that any service without a local office is in fact legitimate.

Who Is Your Counselor?

With some services, to the extent possible you will receive services through a specific credit counselor assigned to your case. With others, you will get whomever happens to be available at the time of your call or appointment. If you want a more personal relationship with your credit counselor, you may wish to confirm that your service will assign you to a specific counselor, and that you are comfortable with the counselor assigned to your file.

What Services Do They Offer?

While a typical credit counseling service offers budgeting assistance and debt management services, most established services also offer educational programs. These may take the form of classes and seminars, self-study programs, and Internet programs. Try to work with a service which will do more than simply set up a repayment plan, but will help educate, support and guide you through the resolution of your debts. If educational materials or programs are offered, ask if they are included in the fees you are already paying or if there are additional costs or fees.

What Promises Do They Make?

If a service is promising to resolve your debts for pennies on the dollar, suggests that they can "repair" your credit by removing accurate information from your credit report, or promises you that its debt management program will not affect your credit rating, be skeptical of the service. No credible or ethical credit counseling agency will make that type of promise.

What Accreditations Do They Have?

It is wise to seek credit counseling through a service accredited by the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies or the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. It is far less likely that an accredited organization will charge excessive fees or try to take advantage of you, than it is for an organization which is not accredited.

Will Your Creditors Cooperate?

In many cases, creditors are happy to work with credit counselors, as they want to help their debtors stay out of bankruptcy. An "unsecured debt" such as a credit card debt is typically discharged through the bankruptcy process, leaving the creditor with nothing. However, if it turns out that few of your creditors are willing to cooperate with your credit counselor, no matter how good the service, you may obtain little or no benefit from utilizing its debt management services.
Thus, when you approach a credit counselor, you should be prepared to ask what its experiences have been with your more significant creditors. You may be able to find a service which has a better track record with your creditors, and is thus more likely to be able to negotiate a repayment plan that is in your financial interest.
If certain creditors are not included in your debt management plan, you should make sure that you have a clear understanding of who those creditors are. You will be responsible to continue to make payments to those creditors on your own.

When Are Creditors Paid?

You should try to work with a service which takes into account both when you are paid, and when your bills are due. Some services try to pay all creditors for all of their clients on a single date each month. This can cause them to pay some bills almost a month early, and in some circumstances to make late payment on other bills they manage.

Can You Make Payments Electronically?

If your debt management payments can be automatically withdrawn from your bank account each month, it is easier to keep on track with your program. While you still have to make sure that your bank balance is sufficient to cover your payment, with electronic transfer you are far less likely to make late payments or miss payments, and are thus more likely to successfully complete the program.

What Happens If You Have Difficulties?

Given that many people have difficulty sticking with a debt management program, or encounter sudden financial emergencies during the course of a debt repayment plan, it makes sense to ask up front what will happen if you miss a payment, are late with a payment, or may not be able to make your full contribution.

What Fees Do Credit Counseling Services Charge?

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Before you sign up for credit counseling services, it is important to learn what fees they charge and how those fees are paid. Avoid a service which charges large up-front fees. Don't be put off by a service which collects a commission from your credit card company or other creditors for managing your debt, but be wary of one which will take a big slice of your monthly payment to cover its commissions even before it services your debts.
Some services suggest that it is better to work with a service which charges you a large fee, rather than deriving the bulk of its fee from discounts and rebates from your creditors. Keep in mind that creditors work voluntarily with credit counseling and debt management companies, and are paying any fees or rebates voluntarily. Also, some firms which charge you a great deal of money will still attempt to collect rebates from your creditors to fatten their fees.
You should request that your credit counseling service provide you with monthly statements for their debt management plan, reflecting the amount you paid in, the dates and amounts they paid to each of your creditors, and the amount of their fees.

How Do I Contact The Major Credit Bureaus?

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If you wish to obtain copies of your credit reports, the major credit reporting agencies are:

Equifax
1-800-685-1111
http://www.equifax.com/
Experian
1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742)
http://www.experian.com/
Trans Union
1-800-916-8800
http://www.transunion.com/

There are also services which will provide a "combined credit report", which lists the entries of all three agencies. If you wish to thoroughly review your credit history, it can be beneficial to obtain a combined report.

Removing Inaccurate Information From Your Credit History

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Although the process can be slow, it is relatively simple to object to inaccurate information on your credit history.
After you obtain a copy of your credit report, review it for any inaccuracies. If you don't understand some of the entries on the report, ask the credit reporting agency what they mean.
Once you have identified any inaccurate entries, notify the credit bureau about the entries you believe to be in error, providing as much information as you can about the error. For example, if you paid a debt which is reflected on your credit report as delinquent, you may wish to provide a copy of a cancelled check reflecting payment. Once you make the report, the credit agency is responsible to investigate any errors at no expense to you, and to either verify the information in the credit report or to remove any information that is inaccurate or which cannot be verified.
You may also contact creditors directly, to let them know of any errors, and to ask that they correct their records and forward accurate information to the credit reporting agencies.
If you are unable to obtain the removal of information from your credit report, and still object to its inclusion, you may submit a written objection (up to 100 words in length) to the credit reporting agency, explaining your side of the story. The explanation will be included in your credit report, and will be distributed to anybody who obtains a copy of the report.

Warning Signs of a Bad Credit Repair Company

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Do not use any credit repair company that doesn't follow industry standards or regulations.
Do not use a credit repair company that offers to "wipe out bankruptcies", to remove accurate negative information from your credit history, or to obtain credit for you regardless of your credit history.
Do not use a credit repair company that promises to exploit "secret" or "little known" loopholes in the system to remove information from your credit history.
Do not use a credit repair company unless it provides a written disclosure of your rights in relation to your credit history before asking you to sign a contract. The contract should include all the terms and conditions of payment, a detailed description of the services to be provided, including any guarantees of performance and an estimate of how long it will take to perform the contract. The agreement should also include a right to cancel lasting at least three days, in case you have second thoughts.
Do not use a credit repair company that attempts to charge money before it has performed the credit repair services.
Do not use a credit repair company that discourages you from directly contacting the major credit bureaus.

Common Credit Repair Scams

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Getting a New Social Security Number - Individuals are only permitted to have one Social Security number. It is against the law to use a different Social Security number to create a false identity.

Getting a Federal Employer Identification Number (abbreviated as EIN or FEIN) - Proponents of this "file segregation" scam claim that you can obtain a federal tax ID number, as if you are a business, then get a clean credit record under that tax ID number. It is against the law to use an EIN to set up a false identity. Further, a new credit report under an EIN will not show any credit history. It is unlikely that a creditor would regard a new business with no credit history as a good credit risk.

Challenging Every Negative Entry on a Credit History - As a general rule, it is lawful for credit agencies to keep accurate records of negative entries on your credit history for up to seven years, and to keep records of any bankruptcies for up to ten years. There are certain circumstances where truthful negative information may be reported beyond those time periods. As much as you do not like having negative information on your credit report, your ability to object to inaccurate information is not meant to be a license to harass honest creditors in an effort to remove accurate negative entries.

Considerations Before Selling Your Structured Settlement

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Factors which should be taken into consideration before selling a structured settlement include:

Legal Restrictions - Due to the nature of some settlements, there may be legal restrictions on their sale.

Contractual Restrictions - Some structured settlements and annuities are set up in a manner which makes it difficult to impossible to sell them.

Tax Considerations - A structured settlement may offer considerable tax savings to an injured plaintiff, whereas a cash payment may subject the plaintiff to a significant, immediate tax liability.

Low Offers - Sometimes a buyer of structured settlements will make an unreasonably low offer for the settlement.

Can a Lawyer or Accountant Help :
While a lawyer may not be able to help you decide if you should sell your settlement, a lawyer or financial professional can help you figure out the short- and long-term financial consequences of selling your settlement. They may also be able to help you determine a reasonable selling price for the settlement. A lawyer can also review a proposed contract for the sale of your structured settlement to make sure that you are adequately protected in the event of future complications.
Depending upon your circumstances, you may require a court to approve the sale of your structured settlement, and a lawyer may be able to assist you with that process.

Before You Enter Into a Structured Settlement

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Not all plaintiffs have the luxury of choosing whether part or all of their settlement will be structured. For example, a number of states require that certain future damages awards be paid in installments as opposed to in a lump sum, or permit a defendant to petition the court to pay future damages in installments. However, where a plaintiff can choose between a structured settlement or lump sum payment, care should be taken to make the correct choice.
Benefits of a structured settlement include possible tax avoidance, preservation of settlement funds for future care and future needs, and coordination of settlement proceeds with other benefits or public assistance.
Disadvantages of a structured settlement include possibly not having the available funds to make necessary purchases, or even desirable discretionary purchases, high commissions on the purchase of annuities, and a low yield as compared to other investment options. Also, if payments are equal, each payment will actually be reduced in real value as compared to the prior payment due to the effect of inflation.

Special Considerations of Structured Settlement

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Any person entering into a structured settlement should be on guard for potential exploitation in relation to the settlement:

Excessive Commissions - Annuities can be highly profitable for insurance companies, and they often carry very large commissions. It is important to ensure that the commissions charged in setting up a structured settlement don't consume an inappropriate percentage of its principal.

Overstated Value - Sometimes, after negotiating a particular settlement figure, the defense will overstate the value of a structured settlement. As a result the plaintiff, in accepting the settlement, in fact obtains a significantly lower dollar value than was agreed upon. Some defendants have nominally paid the full amount of the settlement, knowing that they would later obtain significant rebates from the annuity companies they used. Plaintiffs should consider compariing the fees and commissions charged for similar settlement packages by a variety of insurance companies, to make sure that they are in fact getting full value. A plaintiff may wish to make it a condition of the settlement that the defendant will actually pay the full value of the settlement in setting up the structured settlement, and that any rebates received by the defendant for annuities included in the settlement be payable to the plaintiff.

Self-Dealing - There have been cases where the plaintiff's lawyer is also in the insurance business, and sets up a structured settlement on behalf of a client without disclosing that the attorney is purchasing the annuities from his own business, or is pocketing a large commission on the annuities. Similarly, there have been situations where the plaintiff's attorney has referred the client to a particular financial planner to set up a structured settlement, without disclosing that the financial planner will be paying the attorney a referral fee in relation to the client's account. Make sure that you know what financial interest, if any, your lawyer has in relation to any financial services sold or recommended by the lawyer.

Life Expectancy - It is unfortunate, but many people who receive large personal injury or workers' compensation settlements will have a shortened life expectancy as a result of their injuries. It is important to consider life expectancy in association with any structured settlement, and to consider whether it is appropriate to enter into an annuity where payments will cease upon death. Sometimes it will make sense to insist upon an annuity that pays a minimum number of payments, or one that will pay a balance into the plaintiff's estate, such that the value of the settlement is not lost to an insurance company upon the plaintiff's untimely death.

Using Multiple Insurance Companies - For larger settlements, it often makes sense to purchase annuities for a structured settlement from several different companies, dividing the settlement between those companies. This can provide you with protection in the event that a company that issued annuities for your settlement package goes into bankruptcy - even in the event that one of the companies defaults in part or in full on your settlement payments, you would still receive full payment from the other companies.

Selling a Structured Settlement

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If you have a structured settlement, you may have been approached by a company interested in purchasing your settlement, or may be curious about selling your settlement in return for a lump sum buyout. About two thirds of states have enacted laws which restict the sale of structured settlements, and tax-free structured settlements are also subject to federal restrictions on their sale to a third party. Also, some insurance companies will not assign or transfer annuities to third parties, to discourage the sale of structured settlements. As a consequence, depending upon where you live and the terms of your annuities, it may not be possible for you to sell your settlement.
Keep in mind that companies which buy structured settlements intend to profit from their purchase, and sometimes their offers may seem quite low. You may benefit from approaching more than one company in relation to the sale of your settlement, to make sure that you obtain the highest payoff. You also want to be sure that the company which wants to buy your settlement is established, well-funded, and reputable - you don't want a fly-by-night outfit to obtain the rights to your annuities but to disappear or go bankrupt before paying you the buyout money. You may have to go to court to get a judge to approve the buyout. It is usually a good idea to consult with a lawyer before entering into an agreement to sell your settlement.

Potential Disadvantages of Structured Settlements

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Some people who enter into structured settlements feel trapped by the periodic payments. They may wish to purchase a new home, or other expensive item, yet be unable to muster the resources because they can't borrow against future payments under their settlement.
Some people will do better by accepting a lump sum settlement, and investing it themselves. Many standard investments will give a greater long-term return than the annuities used in structured settlements.

Benefits of a Structured Settlement

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One significant advantage of a structured settlement is tax avoidance. With appropriate set-up, a structured settlement may significantly reduce the plaintiff's tax obligations as a result of the settlement, and may in some cases be tax-free.

A structured settlement can protect a plaintiff from having settlement funds dissipated, when they are necessary to pay for future care or needs. Sometimes a structured settlement can help protect a plaintiff from himself - some people simply aren't good with money, or can't say no to relatives who want to "share the wealth", and even a large settlement can be rapidly exhausted. Minors may benefit from a structured settlement as well, such as a settlement which provides for certain costs during their youth, an additional disbursement to pay for college or other educational expenses, and then one or more disbursements in adulthood. An injured person who has long-term special needs may benefit from having periodic lump sums with which to purchase medical equipment or modified vehicles.

In some situations, it will be better for a severely disabled plaintiff to set up a special needs trust, rather than entering into a lump sum or structured settlement. Any plaintiff who is receiving, or expects to receive, Medicaid or other public assistance, or the guardian or conservator entering into a settlement on behalf of a disabled ward, should consult with a disabilities financial planner about their situation before choosing any particular settlement option or structure

What Is a Structured Settlement?

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Sometimes when a plaintiff settles a case for a large sum of money, the defendant, the plaintiff's attorney, or a financial planner consulted in association with the settlement, will propose paying the settlement in installments over time rather than in a single lump sum. When a settlement is paid in this manner it is called a "structured settlement". Often the structured settlement will be created through the purchase of one or more annuities, which guarantee the future payments.

A structured settlement can provide for payment in pretty much any schedule the parties choose. For example, the settlement may be paid in annual installments over a number of years, or it may be paid in periodic lump sums every few years.

Possible 2009 Credit Card Meltdown

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The financial crisis has only just begun for some families. Last year, we saw the mortgage crisis send the United States into a recession. Coupled with high gas prices and tightening credit standards, many families were forced to use credit cards in order to survive the big jumps in the cost of living with the hope that fuel prices would return to reasonable levels. For those individuals who, for whatever reason, were already stretched financially, credit cards became a life line of survival through the tough months in 2008. In 2009, gas prices have been significantly lower which would seem to ease the burden upon the financially strapped. The truth is that now, coupled with high interest rates, these new debts have the potential to drown any hope of a quick rebound from the recession.
If gas prices climb once more, these new debts upon the wallet of the American people have the potential to cause financial devastation. There will not be a bailout for tax payers. If this economy is to avoid collapse, it will do so only from the hard work and efforts of the American public. By adjusting their spending habits and working when a job presents itself, the public has the opportunity to turn this recession on its ear by paying off debt when possible. By reducing personal debt, more disposal income will be available. Then, with more cash available, consumers will again drive this economy forward. There are roadblocks to this possibility and one of those is the high interest rates charged by the banks on credit card debt. If banks could lower this interest, the debts could shrink faster and the recovery of the economy will be quicker. All of this can occur if the public demands it to be. If not, the year of 2009 could be the year of the great credit card collapse.

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Practicing Credit Card Safety

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Some of the easiest ways to avoid credit card fraud may seem obvious, like keeping your cards in a safe place and only using them with reputable businesses. Except, there is a lot more you can do to keep yourself, and your credit card numbers, from landing in the hands of a scammer:

Safety Tips :

Always sign the back of your credit card. Some people mistakenly think that by signing their card, they are making it easier for a crook to copy their signature. Instead, by leaving the signature space unsigned, someone who steals or finds your card can sign your name using their own handwriting, making it much easier for them to match the signature when they sign a receipt. Instead, a great trick to protect your card is to add a small line above your signature that states “Please Check Photo I.D.” This will encourage cashiers to check your driver’s license each time you use your card and prevent a thief from pretending to be you!

Keep only one or two cards with you. Even though many Americans have ten active credit cards, you probably do not need them all every time you go out. Pick just one or two to keep in your wallet, then leave the rest in a safe place at home.

Review your bills carefully. As soon as you get your monthly statement, look it over carefully for any unknown charges. Your bill should have a phone number on it to report any suspicious activity. Even if you see a questionable charge that is only for a few dollars, call the credit company immediately. Crooks often make a small charge on an account to see if the card is active. If you let the small charge go, you may miss the opportunity to prevent them from making larger ones.

Avoiding Credit Card Fraud :

Never give out your credit card number just because someone asks for it. This includes telemarketers, websites, and emails. Unless you contacted the company yourself to make a purchase, you should never let anyone talk you into sharing your credit information. A reputable company should always have alternate means of accepting payments.

Don’t leave credit card numbers where others can find them. Keep your card out of sight when you are in a store, handing the card directly to the clerk to make your purchase. As soon as you get the card back, put it in your wallet. Always take the time to shred your credit statements before throwing them out, a simple way to avoid credit card fraud.

Keep code numbers and other security information separate. If you have a hard time remembering your personal identification number, it may be tempting to write it on your debit or credit card. Instead, keep it somewhere else in your purse or wallet and do not identify what the number is. Better yet, take the time to memorize the number or ask your financial institution for an easier number.