Cool.

Pss: Look at the “Mark as read”

The effect of scrolling…

Since I’m converting from pc to mac last 2 years (thank you god for this), I started to use Mail application instead of the Outlook then. I found it very interesting and easy to use as Mail apps has simple interface beside the nice memorable rocket sound when you send email. The navigation is quite user friendly and standard.

One thing that I found very interesting is the search function which applied in the Mail apps. Using the same Spotlight search function (Mac Os x), you can easily track any mail by entering keyword. The result will displayed with ranking.

For more info on Mail apps, please click here.

2 years later that is today, I started to use Gmail instead of Mail apps. The “thread conversation” feature (as per explained & introduced by Azwan) really change my email context function (plus, luckilly I have signed Gmail under my name last time). In a simple word, it’s like chatting by email where you can see all your sent and reply mail under one person in a same page. This means that you can track your conversation easily without wasting time to click on sent mail folder and get back to the inbox or visually confuse by text wording of the reply/foward mail. Below is an example of my email conversation with Azwan.

What is the best result of having this feature anyway? Imagine you have online business and with this kind of feature, you can easily save time doing customer support with specific order or client!

So, at the end of the day, I delete the Mail apps icon from my dock and started to use Gmail heavily.

Here are some discussion on Mail apps vs Gmail.
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Next : search in Gmail, thread in Mail apps.

One of the most difficult situations people face in life is financial difficulties. The main reason for this is poor budgeting. Often, people are not taught how to budget early enough in life to understand how important good money management is to living a debt-free life. Here are a few keys to help you begin to budget effectively:

Follow the give, save, spend rule. If you make $5 an hour, and work 8 hours in a day, you’ve made $40. What do you do with that $40? Since the government takes out about 20% (or more) of what you make, you are already reduced to $32. The best rule to follow is the “give, save, spend� rule. Take that $32 and determine what percentage each time you make the money you are going to give to your church, religious group, or a local charity. 10% is a great number—so (using this example)—you will give $3.20 to your church, religious group, or charity. That leaves you with $29.80.

How much should you save? It would be best if you can save 10% as well. If you tuck back just 10% of what you make each day/week/ etc, that will add up quickly to a nice savings account for you. So…another $3.20 takes you to $26.60. This is what you actually have to live on.

The $26.60 x 5 days per week = $133. Multiply again by 4 weeks in a given month, and you have $532 per month on which to live. The rest, remember, goes to giving and saving. From this comes your food, rent/mortgage, utilities, car insurance, car payments, repairs, groceries, and miscellaneous.

Overall, this is a great rule to follow. You are giving of your resources to those in need, you are saving for your potential future needs, and you are paying your bills and living on the rest. It’s when you do this in reverse that you get into trouble.

Review monthly income vs. output. Make a quick balance sheet of your monthly income vs. how much money is going out every month. At the top, write down what your income is, and then on the left, create a line-item list of everything you pay out each month. Once you have done this, you will see how you are spending your money, and will be able to manage your money more effectively.

Credit cards. Credit cards are dangerous. They are the promise of money with so much interest that if you do not pay them off every month, the interest rates alone will overtake the principle owed on the credit card. If at all possible, avoid credit cards. It is best to pay cash for everything that you can unless you have to use a credit card for something like reserving a hotel room or car. Just make sure you have the money put aside to pay off the credit card as soon as the statement comes to avoid finance charges and racking debt.

Loans/Lines of Credit. A loan or a line of credit is another thing to try to avoid at all costs. Most people cannot avoid a home loan—so make sure your interest rate on your home is reasonable. If not, see if you can refinance at a lower interest rate, which will decrease your payments and will enable you to better pay off the balance on the principle of your loan. Lines of credit are great for temporary situations; however, make sure to not become dependent upon them. You will pay the interest only for a period of time, and then will be forced to pay back the entire amount at a later date when the loan matures. Watch for floating interest rates as well. This can kill you from a budgetary perspective, as your monthly statements can fluctuate depending on the market itself.

Teaching your children about budgeting. One of the most important gifts you can give your children is to teach them about budgeting. Give them an allowance, and teach them how to budget to buy the things they want, while learning how to save some and give some away to those in need. Even if your child only makes $5 per week in allowance, they can learn the basics of budgeting so that when they are an adult making their own financial decisions, they are able to understand how to budget their own money effectively.

Overall, budgeting can be an arduous task that people don’t wish to think about. However, with a little concentration and determination, everyone can learn how to budget their money effectively.

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http://www.moneyinstructor.com

- Maybe you’re saving to buy your first home.
- Perhaps starting your own business is a dream.
-The costs of a college education have spiraled and you may wonder how you will pay for your child’s education.
- You will probably live longer. Additional years after retirement can cost more than originally planned.
- Your EPF may not be enough to maintain your standard of living after retirement.
- Complex financial marketplace and changing tax laws make it difficult to understand your financial picture.

Everyone needs to plan for tomorrow. At every income level, there are steps you can take to make more efficient use of your assets and to ensure a secure financial future. It helps to develop well-defined goals and to map out appropriate strategies to turn your dreams into reality. The answer can be personal financial planning.

What is personal financial planning?

Personal financial planning is a process, not a product. It is an organized, well-planned system of developing strategies for using your financial resources to achieve both short- and long-term goals. You may think of the process as helping you to answer three straightforward questions:

- Where am I?
- Where do I want to go?
- How do I get there?
- When should I start planning?

It is important to start planning for the future as soon as you can. Time passes quickly – it is never too soon to start planning for tomorrow.

What should it include?

A comprehensive financial plan – one that addresses your entire financial picture – should include a review of your net worth, goals and objectives, property and other assets, liabilities, cash flow, investments, retirement planning, estate planning, tax planning and insurance needs, as well as a plan for implementing your goals.

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http://www.ykconsultancy.com

1. Set measurable financial goals.
Set specific targets of what you want to achieve and when you want to achieve results. For example, instead of saying you want to be “comfortable” when you retire or that you want your children to attend “good” schools, you need to quantify what “comfortable” and “good” mean so that you’ll know when you’ve reached your goals.

2. Understand the effect of each financial decision.
Each financial decision you make can affect several other areas of your life. For example, an investment decision may have tax consequences that are harmful to your estate plans. Or a decision about your child’s education may affect when and how you meet your retirement goals. Remember that all of your financial decisions are interrelated.

3. Re-evaluate your financial situation periodically.
Financial planning is a dynamic process. Your financial goals may change over the years due to changes in your lifestyle or circumstances, such as an inheritance, marriage, birth, house purchase or change of job status. Revisit and revise your financial plan as time goes by to reflect these changes so that you stay on track with your long-term goals.

4. Start planning as soon as you can.
Don’t delay your financial planning. People who save or invest small amounts of money early, and often, tend to do better than those who wait until later in life. Similarly, by developing good financial planning habits such as saving, budgeting, investing and regularly reviewing your finances early in life, you will be better prepared to meet life changes and handle emergencies.

5. Be realistic in your expectations.
Financial planning is a common sense approach to managing your finances to reach your life goals. It cannot change your situation overnight; it is a lifelong process. Remember that events beyond your control such as inflation or changes in the stock market or interest rates will affect your financial planning results.

6. Realize that you are in charge.
If you’re working with a financial planner, be sure you understand the financial planning process and what the planner should be doing. Provide the planner with all of the relevant information on your financial situation. Ask questions about the recommendations offered to you and play an active role in decision-making.

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http://www.ykconsultancy.com