Money

Last autumn, I shared a list of essential personal-finance e-books. These books covered a variety of topics, and many of them were free. Today I want to draw your attention to two new e-books that you may want to consider.
Consumer Action Handbook
First up is the 2010 edition of the Consumer Action Handbook. I’ve mentioned this book before, and I’ll mention it in the future. This book is from the Federal Citizen Information Center, that small department of the U.S. government in Pueblo, Colorado, which distributes free and low-cost consumer publications.
The 2010 Consumer Action Handbook is a 172-page guide to becoming a savvy consumer, and includes information on buying a car, purchasing a home, preventing identity theft, shopping from home, creating a will, and handling unsatisfactory transactions. And much, much more.
This book would be a good buy at $10 or $15, but it’s freely available from the U.S. government. (Technically you’ve already paid for it [...]

By Linsey Knerl

How do you know which products are worth buying? Do you ever rely on product reviews for your guidance? With all the blogs and websites offering reviews and opinions on which are the best, how can you know who to trust?

We want your feedback on blogs and bias. Do you think that there is a way to tell if a review is honest? If not, is this something you’d like to see in the future? What would it look like? As part of an upcoming SXSW session on FTC compliance and blogs, Wise Bread will be addressing these issues in an effort to get a better idea of what the online community really wants. We’ll be discussing ways to ensure accountability and transparency.

Share your thoughts, either below in the comments or on Twitter, and you could be entered to win one of two Amazon gift cards! And remember, if you’re going to be at SXSW, it’s not too late to RSVP to our session at: http://www.wisebread.com/trustblog#rsvp. You can meet Wise Bread writers Adam Baker, Thursday Bram, Linsey Knerl, and the Wise Bread founding team!

Don’t forget — you can also win during our specially-scheduled Twitter event.  More details can be found on our Twitter promotion page.

Win a $20 Amazon Gift Certificate

We’re doing two giveaways — one for random comments, and another one for a random tweets.

How to Enter:

1. Post your answer in the comments below, or
2. Tweet your answer. Include both "@wisebread" and "#WBAsk" in your tweet so we’ll see it and count it.

If you’re inspired to write a whole blog post, please link to it in the comments or tweet it.

At the end of the drawing, we’ll update this post to include (and link to) all of your helpful responses.

Giveaway Rules:

• Contest ends Friday, March 12th at 11:59 am CST. Winners will be announced after March 12th on the original post and via Twitter. Winners will also be contacted via email and Twitter Direct Message.
• You can enter both drawings — once by leaving a comment and once by tweeting.
• Only tweets that contain both "@wisebread" and "#WBAsk" will be entered. (Otherwise, we won’t see it.)

Good luck!

Permalink | 44 comments | Linsey Knerl's blog | Channel: Giveaways

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By Dina Marie

Our family has made a major life change in leaving the corporate world to begin a vineyard in west Texas. With a large family (10 children, 8 still at home) living on savings until our house in Alabama sells, frugal living is a necessity. Having never been a gardener, I have learned from those who have had successful gardens by asking many questions. One piece of advice repeated many times is the importance of planning before starting.

So, here it is, time to start thinking about and planning your spring and summer vegetable garden! Yes, it is still cold outside, but now is the time to begin. Before we know it, we will be having fresh-from-the-garden produce, fresh tomato sandwiches, and fresh cucumbers and…I know what you are thinking, to get to that point there is a lot of hard work. But, even before the hard work comes the all-important planning stage. There are several factors to consider before planting your garden.

Space Availability

One consideration when beginning to plan is the amount of space which is available for your garden area. If space is limited, priority should be given to family favorite vegetables which would afford the most savings. If space is not an issue, then what vegetables does your family enjoy? Which do you like to eat and cook!

Growing Zone

Certain plants are adapted to particular areas of the country more so than others. Charts are available from various seed companies and on the backs of individual seed packets. These charts specify in which growing zone that particular seed grows well. These growing zones are based on temperatures, daylight hours, and general climate. It is important when making your selection to keep in mind your growing zone.

Seeds vs. Plants

Do I buy seeds or plants? In many instances, time is a key factor in deciding between seeds and plants. Some seeds may be sown directly into your garden soil. Others must be started indoors and once established, transplanted to your garden. These seedlings must be started early enough to be transplanted in a timely manner to your garden (usually after all danger of frost is past). Although more expensive, if indoor space for starting seeds is limited and time is short, plants are probably the better choice.

Where to Purchase

Once you decide upon seeds, plants, or a combination, the decision must be made as to where to purchase them. Local stores often carry seeds and plants specific to your local growing area. They may also be ordered from various companies. The advantages of ordering from a “seed company” are several. They deal exclusively with products specific to gardening thus the quality tends to be better. Also, often their customer service is available to answer any questions you may have and guide you in your decisions so that you will be a loyal satisfied customer. Once satisfied with service, you will be a returning customer.

Experience

Have you ever gardened before? If not, you might want to start small with easy to grow vegetables such as pumpkins, squash, tomatoes, cucumbers, corn, and beans. I had no experience, but asked questions of those who did. As a result, I had a large successful garden which has provided food for our family.

Resources

Search out resource persons among your friends, family and acquaintances. Do not be afraid to ask questions. Most people are more than happy to provide information about a subject they are familiar with and even expert in. Read books on the subject of gardening. These are readily available at your local library, bookstores, and online. Another great resource is your local county extension agent. They often have quality information on all areas of gardening and are also willing to answer questions.

Crop Rotation

Crop rotation is generally thought of in relation to the large farmer. However, it is also important to the backyard gardener also. Some plants are more susceptible to certain insects and viruses. Rotating the crops discourages these from being harbored in an unnatural concentration. An example of this is the squash bug. Different crops also use nutrients from the soil in different amounts. Rotating the crops helps prevent soil depletion.

Are you ready to get started planning your garden?

By Julie Rains

If you’re considering online studies, don’t underestimate the workload, discipline, and communication skills needed to succeed. Here are tips on excelling as an online student.

Choose courses carefully.

Make sure that you have the time to commit to classes, especially if you are pursuing a degree. Don’t let the lure of flexibility fool you into thinking that you can easily fit studies into an already full schedule. Some classes may take a few hours each week; others may require several hours weekly plus extra time to complete projects. And, beware that new degree programs and courses may be particularly difficult as content and technologies are in the process of being perfected.

If you are interested simply in learning a specific skill rather than earning a degree, consider online classes through the community college or specialized training offered by professional associations.

Become familiar with online learning technologies.

Try to do this before class starts or as quickly as possible after the session begins. Some tasks, such as uploading assignments to a designated location on BlackBoard, can be intimidating on a first try but simple after you’ve done them a couple of times. The less exertion expended in mastering online tools, the more effort you can place on learning course content.

Read recommended materials.

I know this advice may seem incredibly obvious. But many lecture-format classes require students simply to show up and listen; even if you complete the reading according to the syllabus, having an instructor provide you with context and give explanations makes it easier to glean pertinent information from written materials. Many online classes require students to react to materials in forum discussions, which is difficult if you haven’t done the reading.

Participate in discussion forums.

If you are the first to post in the forum, you can share basic observations to start the conversation; but if you arrive later in the discussion thread, then you’ll need to offer deeper, unique insights.

Don’t presume that classmates share what you might perceive as cultural norms. Framing comments with mentions of professional and personal life experiences, or sharing these experiences when introducing yourself at the start of each course, can help classmates to understand your perspective and avoid antagonizing them.

Finally, don’t be a hit-and-run poster who visits the forums just once a week, makes comments, interacts with no one, and then exits. This approach may mean that you comply with course requirements but doesn’t really advance your knowledge. Even if you are an expert in a topic, you can learn from the uninformed perspectives of newbies. Just getting insight into what other people understand about a topic is useful — you can then tailor your communications in class forums and outside of these forums more effectively.

Turn in assignments on time.

Online classes may place more emphasis on projects rather than tests so you’ll need to plan your workload carefully. While you might be able to cram for a final exam, most people can’t wait until the last minute to get topics approved, find credible sources, compile research, and collaborate with project partners.

Try to turn in projects ahead of time so that if something unusual happens — a snowstorm-induced power outage or even a brief loss of broadband — you’ll still meet deadlines. You might be able to fudge a turn-in time in the offline environment but, online, time-stamped submissions of uploaded research papers and PowerPoint projects make it difficult to hedge on when you actually turned in an assignment.

Serve as project manager.

You can influence the direction of projects and add to your leadership skills. If you don’t think you can handle planning and leading projects, be an active participant by contributing your talents, completing project tasks on time, and helping the project manager with compiling components into a finished report.

Create a portfolio of your projects.

Showcase your knowledge and skills. Some potential employers and clients may not fully grasp that an online degree is just as valuable as one earned in a traditional setting. The portfolio is evidence of your work, and can help you land deals for similar projects and serve as a point of conversation in interviews.

I experienced the demands of online learning when I earned a graduate-level Certificate in Technology and Communication at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a longstanding brick-and-mortar institution of higher learning. And, recently, I spoke with a 20-something female about her degree studies at the University of Phoenix, well-known for its online programs. Despite the differences in our backgrounds and universities, we had similar encounters as online students.

Permalink | Comments | Julie Rains's blog | Channel: Career and Income

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This article is from Wise Bread.