If you’re feeling nostalgic about the days when you drank Pabst Blue Ribbon beer because it was cheap, not trendy, a new online tool from the Social Security Administration will take you on a walk down memory lane.

On May 1, Social Security launched a feature on its website, www.social security.gov, that allows workers to view an online version of their Social Security earnings and benefits statements. The program also allows you to estimate your retirement, disability and survivor’s benefits.

You can use this tool to show your kids how little you made when you started working (after you’ve reminded them that you walked five miles to get to school, without an iPod or cellphone). But more important, it can help you receive all of the benefits you’re due and make smart decisions about when to claim them.

Social Security used to mail workers an annual earnings statement but suspended those mailings last year to save money. Starting in February, Social Security resumed mailing paper statements to workers 60 and older who aren’t already receiving benefits. Later this year, it will mail paper statements to workers in the year they turn 25.

Before you can review your online earnings statement, you must go to www.ssa.gov/mystatement and create an account.

The program will ask you a…………… continues on Indianapolis Star

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Make Money Online- 67 Real Companies That Pay You To Work In Your Pajamas
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Tax guru Barbara Weltman explains the options available for obtaining capital for your growing ecommerce business. In Part 1, she discussed the pros and cons of borrowing money (debt) vs. taking in investors (equity) – see Raising Funds for Your Online Business: Debt vs. Equity. Today, she discusses where to look for debt and equity financing and some pitfalls to avoid.

Show me the money? Whether you’re looking for investors (equity) or plan to borrow (debt), there are a variety of places to look.

Family and Friends
In the old (pre-smartphone) days, people seeking capital first turned to their Rolodex to tap who they knew. Today, you can use your contact list to approach relatives and acquaintances to ask for money. Here are some factors to consider when getting into bed with those you know:

• Determine whether you can work well with a relative or friend. If things go badly, will the person’s lifestyle be impacted by your inability to repay what you’ve borrowed? If the person goes into partnership with you but fails to perform as promised, can you part ways while still maintaining a relationship that lets you sit down to Thanksgiving dinner together?
• Keep things formal. While you may have a person…………… continues on Auctionbytes

Ted Crow, The Plain DealerWhile 97 percent of Americans look online for products and services, 58 percent of the country’s small businesses have no website, according to a survey by Google and Ipsos, a global market research firm.

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Change is constant at a family-run tool-and-die business started 46 years ago in Cleveland. Instead of using a manual boring mill, Tom Kiefer’s son now cuts an 8,000-pound cast iron clutch with a computer-driven machine.

But one thing remains the same after nearly five decades: Kiefer Tool & Mold Inc. does not have a website.

“It’s been a word-of-mouth type of referral business,” Kiefer said. “We generally have an adequate workload coming in our door. But having a website would definitely benefit us.”

The family-owned business is in good company. While 97 percent of Americans look online for products and services, 58 percent of the country’s small businesses have no website, according to a survey by Google and Ipsos, a global market research firm.

Google’s research shows that small companies (250 employees or f…………… continues on Plain Dealer

Special to The News/
Cumberland County LibraryCumberland County Library

BRIDGETON — The Cumberland County Library last week announced it was jettisoning its county-wide online library system, called CLUES, in favor of the  Gloucester County-based Login — a move that will save tax payers here $ 60,000, officials said.

In the past, the five libraries here in Cumberland County have all used an electronic book catalog system called CLUES. With the CLUES system, the Cumberland County College Library and the Cumberland County Library, as well as local libraries in Bridgeton, Millville and Vineland all had access to the same system and could share books.

“The Cumberland County Library Commission is looking forward to  joining the neighboring, nonprofit consortium, Login,” said Gail Overdevest, chair of the Cumberland County Library Commission. “We feel that it is necessary to plan for the future as opposed to being bound by the past, so that we can provide the best service for all in Cumberland County. We are looking forward to added efficiencies, having access to a greater pool of books, and sharing new ideas”

Cumberland County Library…………… continues on The Bridgeton News – NJ.com

After all the hype and anticipation, Facebook’s initial public offering turned out to be a disappointment that may bode poorly for investors in the company’s richly priced shares.

Facebook (ticker: FB) sold 421 million shares Thursday at $ 38 after bumping up the price range from the original $ 28 to $ 35 per share. The stock began trading above $ 42 Friday morning and came under pressure in the afternoon, spending much of the final half hour just above $ 38 before finishing at $ 38.23. (The stock traded as high as $ 44 in the private market in March.) Without reported support from the deal underwriters, the shares might have fallen below $ 38 in what would have been a big embarrassment for Facebook and Wall Street.

ELKINS -

In the last few years many Americans have become victim to the struggling economy. Some have lost jobs, took significant pay cuts or failed to find a job.

John Miller was one of those victims, and he’s spent the last few years trying to get back on his feet.

He lost his six figure paying job, his home and confidence in finding another job.

“In the course of about two and a half years ended up losing our home into a foreclosure, retired all stocks, bonds, IRAs, savings and moved to Elkins, West Virginia,” said John Miller, owner and president of Certainty Stores in Elkins.

When Miller moved here, he took a leap of faith and started his own business.

It started with nothing but a few tables and the side of a road.

“I started a business by selling a box of knives on the side of a road. And two and a half years later we bought this facility,” Miller said.

Now, he’s serving customers in Elkins, across the U.S., and even overseas.

“We have obtained a high rate of success with our customer base, we have approximately 15,000 customers world wide now,” Miller said.

Certainty Stores provide a wide range of merchandise. From costumes, to camping gear and biking gear, even home goods.

“We take the department store approach, where every few months a diffe…………… continues on WBOY-TV

Teaching. In spite of George Bernard Shaw’s now infamous “those who can’t do” proverb, teaching is one of the most important professions out there. Even for the many self-taught coders out there, at some point along the way, we’ve all had our lives shaped by a great teacher — in the classroom, or out. That’s why, on the whole, teacher compensation in the U.S. is embarrassing. To pick on marketers, some might see the fact that the average marketing manager makes twice the average salary of just about every type of teacher as just a wee bit backwards.

Luckily, there are a number of startups that are starting to change that, thanks to the Web and the growing popularity of open, online educational platforms. For example, Udemy, a web platform that allows anyone to host and take online classes, this morning announced that its top ten instructors earned a combined $ 1.6 million over the last 12 months.

Of the top ten, all made over $ 50K in the last year, with hig…………… continues on TechCrunch

BOSTON (CBS/AP) – In 2004, days after Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg launched his new website, thefacebook.com, he told the Harvard Crimson that he had no intention of making any money off of it.

“I’m not going to sell anybody’s e-mail address,” he told the Crimson in 2004. “At one point I thought about making the website so that you could upload a resume too, and for a fee companies could search for Harvard job applicants. But I don’t want to touch that. It would make everything more serious and less fun.”

The Harvard undergrad had just launched the site and had already seen 650 students sign up.

“I’m pretty happy with the amount of people that have been to it so far,” he reportedly said at the time. “The nature of the site is that each user’s experience improves if they can get their friends to join it.”

Eight years later, Zuckerberg is one of the world’s youngest billionaires. Scores of others have become overnight millionaires thanks to the site Zuckerberg put together in his college dorm room.

Those who have seen The Social Network, have a rough idea about the story behind Facebook.

The 2004 Crimson…………… continues on CBS Local

The practice of crowd funding is exploding in interest, and being hailed by many as today’s hottest new form of high-tech investment. It’s easy to see why too: Anyone can launch a new product, startup or business right from their kitchen table.

Using fundraising sites like Kickstarter, RocketHub and IndieGogo, aspiring startups and inventors can essentially post project pitches online and solicit financial pledges from everyday Internet users in exchange for merchandize or uniquely personalized experiences. (In other words, no equity changes hands – a great deal for entrepreneurs, who can begin generating capital with as little as a prototype or preproduction assets, and without giving up a share of ownership.)

With the recent passage of the JOBS Act, qualified investors will soon be able to back new ventures in exchange for equity as well, making it useful to know how to crowd fund any business going forward.

But before diving into the wild world of crowdfunding, it’s important to remember: With dozens of rivals competing for users’ time and mindshare, you’ve got to connect with contributors within 30 seconds or less. Start by reading our expert guide to raising money online to continues on LifeGoesStrong

Miguel Hernandez, the founder of a company specializing in explanatory videos for startups, said he spent about three hours a day for three weeks making an online video course explaining his craft. But, last year, that one video series earned him nearly six figures on the online course platform Udemy. This year, now that he’s created a second course for students (on “How to Create an Awesome Online Course,” of course), he said that if momentum keeps up, “I’ll be making more money selling online courses than through the studio.”

And he’s not the only one finding a new stream of income from Udemy. This morning, the San Fransciso-based startup released the salaries of the top 10 instructors on the 2-year-old platform. In total, the group earned $ 1.65 million in the last year, with all of them bringing in more than $ 50,000 on their own and the top individual making more than $ 200,000. All of the instructors’ top courses focus on Web development…………… continues on GigaOM

Author Maria Perez is director of news operations at ProfNet, a free service for journalists in need of expert sources.

The American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA) recently held its annual Writers Conference, which featured more than 80 sessions covering a wide variety of topics, from how to write a book proposal to how to break into magazines.

One session, “Breaking Through to Online Business Markets,” offered an inside look on what editors from Fortune.com, CNNMoney and DailyWorth.com look for and how you can get their attention.

Here are some highlights of the conversation:

Scott Olster, Fortune.com

Olster is an editor at Fortune, where he oversees the management page of Fortune.com.

There are three primary pillars of content on Fortune.com: finance, technology, and leadership and careers, the latter of which covers anything to do with the workp…………… continues on Reynolds Center

By Andy Yates, Huddlebuy

PUBLISHED: 10:30 EST, 16 May 2012 | UPDATED: 10:30 EST, 16 May 2012

This is Money has teamed up with Huddlebuy.co.uk, Europe’s largest daily deals site for entrepreneurs, businesses and homeworkers to provide a great new series that explains how you can become an online hit – and can take on the world without it costing the earth.

Andy Yates of Huddlebuy, and an experienced entrepreneur and advisor, gives you top tips on how to turn your business dreams into reality.

Going online can put really put any business on the map. Over this comprehensive series, we have provided some practical and easy to implement top tips to help you make money and save money online.

So anybody from ‘wantrepreneurs’ desperate to give up the day job and turn themselves into entrepreneurs – right through to…………… continues on The … – This is Money

In the United States, two out of every three searches go through Google, which serves up a total of three billion search queries per day. “Googling” has become so ubiquitous that the company has become a verb in English (and in other languages, too).

Given that most of us use Google several times a day and may also use it to send e-mail, to plan our calendar, and to make phone calls, questions commonly arise about how all of that data is used. Google has said that it needs access to such large amounts of data as a way to “make it useful” and to sell personalized ads against it—and to profit substantially in the process.

However, a March 2012 study from the Pew Internet and American Life Project found that two-thirds of Americans view a personalized search as a “bad thing,” with 73 percent of those surveyed saying that they were “not OK” with personalized searches on privacy grounds. Another recent poll of

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SPRINGFIELD ——

Senate President John Cullerton floated the idea Tuesday of making Illinois an Internet gambling hub, suggesting the state could organize a major online poker game and gain worldwide popularity.

The Web-based gambling plan comes with little more than two weeks left until a scheduled May 31 adjournment and was rolled out as supporters of expanded casino gambling consider another push.

Cullerton, a North Side Democrat, said in a letter to his fellow legislative leaders and Gov. Pat Quinn that legislation to create a gaming division within the Illinois Lottery would help the state maximize the amount of money it could collect.

“Certain forms of iGaming, especially poker, rely on large pools of potential players, and states that move swiftly to design a system that captures the widest audience of participants will have an advantage in terms of long-range success,” Cullerton wrote. The goal is to make the state nimble enough to adjust to new Internet gambling approaches, Cullerton said.

Cull…………… continues on Chicago Tribune

Gov. Jan Brewer on Monday vetoed a bill that would have enacted sweeping changes to the state’s online-education system.

The legislation would have made it easier for Arizona junior- and high-school students to take online courses, which likely would have pushed further growth in the system. The bill also would have boosted accountability by creating a master list of approved courses and a state ranking and evaluation of each course.

In addition, Senate Bill 1259 would have required students to take final exams in online classes in the presence of another person to help prevent cheating.

In a letter accompanying her veto, Brewer said she was concerned about the appropriateness of the state “or an entity on behalf of the state approving online courses or curriculum.”

She also cited a provision that would have paid online schools more state funding per student if the student mastered a course. “I strongly support moving toward funding outcomes; however, ADE (the Arizona Department of Education) may not be able to implement the system…………… continues on Arizona Republic

The YouTube Money Machine- How To Make Money Online With YouTube
Urgent Information Exposes How To Use Online Video with the Power of the Internet to Create Money Machines Instantly. Plus If You …

How Can I Make Money Online: A Simple And Fail Proof Way To Extra Income From Home
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How to Start an Online Business in 30 days, a new Kindle book, has been authored and released by the experts at Marketer’s Black Book. This helpful and information-packed book is designed to help anyone start an online business in less than a month with little to no startup cash.

New York, New York (PRWEB) May 15, 2012

How to Start an Online Business in 30 Days is a new Kindle book authored and released by the Internet marketing specialists at http://www.marketersblackbook.com. Starting and running an online business is a dream shared by many people, but the traditional costs required to start a business might prevent someone from starting their own company online. Marketer’s Black Book has utilized their expert knowledge of business and Internet marketing to author and distribute a resourceful book for online business creation. This book was designed for the complete beginner and there are no experience requirements for someone to get started. According to the

File photo

LANSING, MI — Business groups applauded Gov. Rick Snyder’s endorsement of federal legislation to let states collect sales tax from out-of-state online and catalog retailers, though readers had mixed reactions.

Snyder, in a letter to Senate leadership last week, said he supports the Marketplace Fairness Act as a way to level the playing field between brick-and-mortar shops and online retailers like Amazon.com and Overstock.com.

Retailers with stores or other facilities in Michigan already charge the 6 percent sales tax for online purchases. Sales tax may not be charged if the item is purchased through certain catalogs or websites like Amazon.com. Michigan residents are required to pay a 6 percent use tax on those online purchases through their income tax returns, but many people either don’t know about the requirement or ignore it.

The International Council of Shopping Centers on Monday released survey results that show 56 percent of respondents support federal legislation allowing states to collect sales tax from out-of-state online retail…………… continues on MLive.com