Saving money Archives

How I shop on Black Friday

Dave Farquhar Saving money November 22, 2011November 23, 2016black friday

Tonight I was getting my hair cut, and the stylist asked if I shop on Black Friday. I said I have in the past, but probably will sit this year out. She asked what it’s like, especially in light of the trampling incidents in recent years. I said it can get kind of crazy, but it’s bearable with a plan. Here’s how I shop on Black Friday.

Dave Farquhar

David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He has written professionally about computers since 1991, so he was writing about retro computers when they were still new. He has been working in IT professionally since 1994 and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He holds Security+ and CISSP certifications. Today he blogs five times a week, mostly about retro computers and retro gaming covering the time period from 1975 to 2000.

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An easy way to change your power plans in Vista and Windows 7

Dave Farquhar Saving money, Windows November 11, 2011December 5, 2015Click Finish, Click Next, keyboard shortcuts, vista, windows 7

If you need to change power plans to manage your computer’s power usage, here’s the easiest way to do it without fumbling around in control panel. This works in either Windows 7 or Vista.
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Dave Farquhar

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Don’t let debt cripple you

Dave Farquhar Saving money October 18, 2011December 5, 2015car payment, debts, extra money, minimum payment, mortgage, paying off debt, student loans, windfall

Sometimes people ask me for help with their finances. And I’ve seen the effects that debt can have on people. I believe having no debt is best. Having debt that you’re paying off is second-best. Festering debt, however, is crippling. That’s what you want to avoid, before it catches up with you. Not only can bad debts keep you from borrowing more money, it can also make it more difficult to sign a lease or get a job.

Here’s how to make a plan to pay off that debt and improve your credit score.

Dave Farquhar

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Advice on scraping by

Dave Farquhar Saving money October 17, 2011December 6, 2018Aldi, cable tv, estate sales, garage sale, garage sales, Meals, pennies on the dollar, saving money, Value Village

Here’s a good, timely Google search query: scraping by advice.

I looked, and I’ve never written anything that matched that query well. I know a lot of people are hurting right now. I’ve been in some tight spots and I’ve gotten out of some, so let’s talk about what I would do, on a really practical level, if I ran into another tight spot next week.

Dave Farquhar

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Review: The Utilitech Pro 430 lumen 7.5 watt LED bulb from Lowe’s

Dave Farquhar Saving money October 13, 2011November 30, 2022

LED lighting is slowly getting cheaper. Home Depot has its 40W equivalent bulbs under $10 now, and Lowe’s countered with a $13 40W equivalent. The Lowe’s bulb uses less wattage, so I think that’s the better value.

I bought some.
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Dave Farquhar

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Can you afford that house or apartment?

Dave Farquhar Landlording, Saving money September 25, 2011July 12, 2017interest rates, Meals, mortgage

Declining incomes have more people paying a higher percentage of their income in rent than in the past. I blame the recession. And what caused the recession? People getting in over their heads, buying more house than they can afford. I blame the big banks for that, because I personally experienced it. If I’d bought the kind of house loan officers were telling me to buy in 2002, I’d have been foreclosed on, too.

Here’s a very easy way to figure out whether you can afford a particular place. Read more

Dave Farquhar

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Is that price a good deal or not?

Dave Farquhar Saving money September 17, 2011September 16, 2011amd, firefox, HO, kingston, phenom

So you’re shopping online, and want to know if you’re getting a good deal on something. It’s pretty easy to shop around, and check multiple web sites to see how they’re pricing an item. But sometimes prices change over time, and wouldn’t it be nice to know if pricing on the item is relatively stable, or if it’s something that frequently goes on sale for less?

Enter the Camelizer.
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Dave Farquhar

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Should you sell your stock in 2011?

Dave Farquhar Saving money August 22, 2011July 12, 2017buying stock

I see this question coming through on Google all the time: Should I sell my stock in 2011?

Two letters: NO.

There. That was easy. But I’ll explain why.
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Dave Farquhar

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And no, don’t bother trying to time the market

Dave Farquhar Saving money August 10, 2011buying stock

I’m not hearing as much rumbling in the hallways about pulling out of stocks, but I’m hearing a lot of rumbling about waiting until the market bottoms out before putting anything in.

Here’s the problem: What if it bottomed out today? I’m not saying it did. But it’s possible. Nobody knows.
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Dave Farquhar

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Oh. And don’t go panic and sell all your stocks.

Dave Farquhar Saving money August 8, 2011February 25, 2020bond fund, index fund

The Googles have spoken, and people don’t come here for financial advice, but I’ll say this anyway. The markets have been going bonkers for the last week, but don’t panic. Don’t go dumping your stocks and bonds. Seriously.

Just look at what happened in 2008.

Dave Farquhar

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