Much thanks to JLP from AllFinancialMatters, for sending me an invite to try out Google Spreadsheets. I was interested to evaluate the web tool because many financial bloggers like to use, design and share spreadsheets. Google spreadsheets could be a great way to share such information! I looked around, tried a few features and even uploaded one of my own spreadsheets. After playing around for about 30 minutes, I decided to send Google a feedback. I thought I would share what I wrote:

I’m stunned by what I’ve just read; all I can say is WOW!
Recently, the blogosophere has been on all cyclinders talking about buying vs. renting, and many calculator spreadsheets have also popped up. But my vote has to go to Julie Ali who is guest-blogging at Jim’s Blueprint for Financial Prosperity. Her writing is absolutely terrific in its depiction of the emotional issues of buying vs. renting.
[...] There is a rental cycle that is the diagrammatic opposite to the house buying cycle. When people are madly engaged in a …

Doesn’t it warm your heart seeing those kids grow up right in front of your eyes? I remember when mutual funds were plain-jane investment vehicles. Then came sector/industry funds, followed by asset-allocation funds, fund-of-funds, life-cycle funds. Each evolution becoming more exotic than the last incarnation — not as a way to provide better returns for investor, but as marketing gimmicks to attract investor capital.
ETFs are now heading down the same path. Arriving first on the scene were boring old index ETFs, then came currency ETFs, fixed income ETFs, and precious …

I was worried when I checked MightBargainHunter around noon today, but felt relieved just now realizing that my submission to the 23rd edition of the Carnival of Investing came through last minute. I must have been blind to not see it mentioned this afternoon. Much thanks goes to MBH for hosting this week!
I must also admit that my submission, “The 20-Bagger That Got Away“, is not the usual flare you would find at Investorial. This is not a blog focused about my experiences and personal investing exploits. But when the …

Welcome to the readers from the Carnival of Personal Finance!
2Million, the host for the 48th Carnival of Finance, was kind enough to accept my submission to the carnival. This was actually my first submission to any carnival. I won’t be submitting an article every week because I’d rather submit quality posts and stay on topic. But every once in a while, I feel a need to share!
For new readers to Investorial, this is a blog whose mission is about exposing media influences and discussing their effects on its audience. We’ll …

After my previous blog on Jim Cramer, you may feel that I have a strong opinion of the person and the show. I thought I should perhaps sit through an entire show of Mad Money to justify my decision, and guess which show I saw? It was funny watching the students at the University of Michigan egg on Jim; turning the show into a financial version of Jerry Springer with all the hooting, hollering and let’s not forget the booyahs.
Obviously my opinion has not changed regarding Cramer. But I realized …

Of all that days that I receive an offer from CBS Marketwatch to buy Investorial, it had to be April 1st! I’m so happy! I can’t disclose the details of the deal as yet but suffice to say I’ll be selling out my soul from here onwards.
Why is CBS Marketwatch buying me? Because I made 2 glorious reviews of one of their star columnists Herb Greenberg here and here. Simple ain’t it?
Sorry Canadian Capitalist and Investing Intelligently! I’d say I’ll watch out for an opportunity to get you a deal …

It’s only a matter of time when somebody exposes Principal-Protected Notes for the shady investment vehicle that it is. I’m glad that Duncan Hood was able to write a nice piece examining why Principal-Protected Notes (PPNs) are not a good idea.
In the end, I wouldn’t avoid PPNs just because they’re largely unregulated or because their “Information Statements” are so poorly written that even Glorianne Stromberg, a securities lawyer and former commissioner at the Ontario Securities Commission, admits she can’t understand them. I would avoid them because you can find better …