• smallbusiness.yahoo.com - Yahoo's Web design/hosting site

Clark doesn’t play video games. But there are games coming into the market that could change his mind. Right now, all the video game gurus are getting together at the “E3” convention, where manufacturers unmask their goods. One new development is that X-Box game players will be able to see each other playing across the country or across the globe. Also, Sony has come out with the “PSP” – the Play Station Portable. It will have music, movies and video games all rolled into one. Nintendo has two new screens on its newest gaming device. All of these elements are designed to deal with the boredom factor. Teens get bored with certain games, so the video game manufacturers are creating gadgets geared toward adults. Women in their ‘20s and ‘30s have actually become huge video game fans.

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In other gadget news, by holiday time cell phones will be voice activated with commands. So, you can say the number or the person’s name into the phone without having it already programmed in, and it will automatically dial. These new phones will also be better equipped to hear numbers and names accurately, according to the Kansas City Star. Look for them soon!

If you have a small business and you’d like a Web site, you’ve got to remember that updating the site is a big part of the work. Once a designer hands over the site, there is still a lot of work to be done. The good news is Yahoo.com is providing very cheap Web site design and updating ability for business owners. Kevin, of Clark’s crew, used the Yahoo services to build a site for his mother’s business, and he says it’s been very easy to use. The tool is called “Site Builder” and information is available at smallbusiness.yahoo.com. Once you’ve built the site, you register with yahoo and in a few hours the site is up and online. Yahoo then hosts the site for $12 a month, so it’s very reasonable. If you want to sell stuff, it will cost you more. But the choice is up to you!

In the past three years, Americans have increased the amount of credit card debt we have by 33 percent, according to the Federal Reserve. Mortgage debt is up 50 percent! If your income has gone up $1, that means the amount of debt you’re carrying has gone up $2. We’re not dumb. So why did we feel comfortable taking on such enormous amounts of debt? Interest rates have fallen to the lowest level they had in decades, and they’ve stayed low. So, the way we look at borrowing money has changed. But we’re moving into a period of change and we need to shift our course drastically. Almost all credit cards have floating rates, but those rates are moving back up now that interest rates are rising. The same is true of home equity loans and mortgages in general. Rates are on the rise. People have also been doing lots of “cash out refinances.” This is when you get money back when taking out a mortgage. People took out $100 billion alone, according to stats compiled by the New York Times. So, as time marches forward, it’s time for you to get ship shape with finances. You may want to consider switching to a fixed rate whenever you can, but particularly on your mortgage. You’ll be paying a little more, but you’ll have a set rate and you’ll be able to handle your finances better.

Clark gets calls all the time about what kind of television people should buy and whether it’s time to buy HDTV. He’s been saying for a while now that the time is not right to go “high def,” as it’s also called. But a few months ago, Clark reported that HDTV prices had gone down and more programming was available. He also said he wouldn’t buy just yet, but if people wanted to they should go for it. Well, now he has egg on his face. Stories now say that it’s just not ready. Complaints coming in are more and more serious, and the technological challenges are still too many. Basically, there are still too many red flags, so hold off on buying for now. Over the next 18 months, more programming will be available, prices will go down and the interface will improve. You will reap the reward down the line.

People are going berserk buying brand new, ultra expensive appliances, especially for the kitchen. Turns out, it’s a complete waste of money, according to the June issue of Consumer Reports. Inexpensive washers did just as good a job cleaning clothes as did the $1,600 models. And, better yet, they’re more reliable. Clark doesn’t get why it’s such a big deal to have a prestige brand. Consumer Reports’ “Best Buy” dryer is a Frigidaire at $310. The other two “Best Buys” are about $400; one is a Kenmore and one is a Whirlpool. Yet, people are spending a fortune. The most expensive brands tend to have trouble, according to the report. So it’s clearly not worth it.

People like Clark are on cell phones so much we wonder if they need help. At gas stations, you may have seen signs telling you not to talk on a cell phone while filling up. But Clark has ignored that – until now. A recent story claimed that a flash fire broke out at a New York gas station when a man flipped open his cell phone while pumping gas. It caused the station to catch on fire. Thank goodness the fire was quickly extinguished and the man was okay. But the story said sparks caused by the cell phone almost certainly caused the fire. Some have disagreed that the phone actually caused the fire, but better safe than sorry.