Did some thoughtful soul give you Internet access for the holidays? If so, there’s great news. Sprynet is sponsoring a series of free classes that can help you learn everything from Web basics to creative writing.
The classes, offered by Spectrum Virtual University at http://horizons.org, are held in cyberspace via Web browsers and e-mail. They’ll start next week, but the registration deadline is 9 p.m. Friday. It’s worth mentioning that several classes also have limitations on how many people can sign up. So, if you’re interested, sign up–now. It’s first-come, first-served.
What’s offered?
There’s a personal computer basics class that covers the gamut, from figuring out how your modem works to understanding what random access memory is all about. It decodes those cryptic error messages. And, if you’re thinking about upgrading, the class can help you determine what bells and whistles are worth buying.
Other offerings will lead you through Internet basics, from a primer on exploring on your own, to a primer on using Web browsers. There’s also a class on building your own Web page, and one on “fun things to do on the Net.” In addition, there’s a creative-writing class and self-help courses, including one called “Converting Crisis into Creation,” which offers steps to combat compulsive and self-destructive behavior.
Wondering what the future holds for the stock market? Some 53 percent of the 259 brokers and financial advisors surveyed by MBIA Insurance Corp., a leading municipal bond insurance company, expect a significant market drop to come within six months.
The bulk predicted that the Dow Jones industrial average will end 1997 about 9 percent below the market’s all-time high set in 1996.
In addition, an increasing number of brokers say their clients will be looking for yield and safety over capital appreciation next year.
Does that mean you should get out of the stock market? Hardly. For 30-somethings, brokers still advise that you maintain roughly 82 percent of your assets in stocks. Those in the 46-year-old age range should have about 70 percent in stocks, while a 60-year-old investor should still maintain about a 50/50 ratio of stocks and fixed-income investments.
In other words, despite anticipated “corrections,” the stock market is expected to follow historic patterns and handily beat the performance of other types of investments over long periods of time. If you’ve got a long time until you need your money, tomorrow’s market activity is trivial.
Westcore Funds of Denver has launched a contest on its Web page at http://www.westcore.com that involves taking a 10-question quiz. Those who answer all the questions correctly are entered in a drawing to win $1,000 worth of shares in the Westcore fund of their choice.
But there’s no financial acumen required. All the answers are provided somewhere in the Web site. The fund company, which offers eight no-load mutual funds, is using the contest to get you to cruise all the way through their Web site.
On a similar note, Liberty Financial, sponsors of the Young Investors Fund, launched a Web site to teach kids about money. The site, at http://www.younginvestor.com, includes games, advice and information.
Several changes to the nation’s retirement laws were passed late last year in a flurry of legislative activity.
These laws boost the amount that non-working spouses can contribute to individual retirement accounts, provide a window to withdraw so-called “excess distributions” from pensions and allow for penalty-free early withdrawals from IRA accounts when the money is used to pay for certain medical expenses.
These changes, widely supported by mutual fund companies, are explained in more detail in the November “Financial Focus” newsletter, which is provided to participants in the AARP Investment Program by Scudder Stevens & Clark, a major mutual fund company.
Scudder is also providing the newsletter for free to other interested parties. To get a copy, call 800-424-2430, extension 8934.
