Excel in Excel

(sorry, couldn't resist!)

Accounting web has a nifty article with "2-minute Excel tips". The tips are from a guest columnist, David Carter, affiliated with the UK version of accountingweb. He's more of an IT guy than and accounting guy, apparently, and is full of good advice. Here's a few more tips I found in a quick search of the UK site.

For a non-numbers person (Dy, NOT Candy, lol) I'm pretty good in Excel, and I learned something new.

Online is Growing Up

Online advertising, that is.

Last November we passed on some info about online ad revenue breaking 4 billion. The industry was showing an annual income increase of 33% from 2005 to 2006.

Apparently, estimates of the growth of this industry were conservative. 2007 is not quite half over, and new numbers from PWC indicate that online ad spending will hit or break $20 billion this year.

Online spending wouldn't be going up so incredibly fast if it didn't work. Kind of makes that ad in the online yellow pages look better & better... lol.

KeyJnote: Presentations for Dummies?

So... You need a presentation and don't have PowerPoint or the time to mess with Impress. What can you do?

Try KeyJnote. At least, that's how it comes across in this recent Linux.com article. Investigating the software's homepage gave me a different impression, though.

Basically, you make your own presentation, using (ideally) standard presentation software. KeyJnote looks like not much more than a compiler - it adds spiffy slide transitions and a few in-presentation features.

I don't give presentations, well, ever, and haven't been called upon to edit more than the text of one in years, so I may not be the best judge of this particular tool. Tom?

To me, it's an unnecessary add-on. Spend less time playing with transitions, more time checking for typos (my personal presentation peeve)!

This is really cute

I figure it's time to put some fun up here before we bore you guys with all the accounting nerd talk...

Stay with it, once you hit 1 minute you know it's going to be funny...

Minimum Standards Improving

It passed.

Just before breaking for the Memorial Day holiday both houses of Congress passed a minimum wage increase plan and sent it to the president.

On May 25, 2007 President Bush signed the law.

This is the first raise in the federal minimum wage in a decade, and will eventually result in a $2.10/hour increase for affected employees.

The current federal minimum wage is $5.15/hour. Over the next two years it will increase to:

$5.85 on July 24, 2007
$6.55 per on July 24, 2008
$7.25 per on July 24, 2009

Obviously, I am a fan of this. For more on my feelings about the federal minimum wage, check out last year's blog post "Minimum Standards".

Foxit!

Yea, I am waaay behind the times on this one. Still, we thought it worth sharing.

Have you heard of Foxit? They make alternative tools for reading and manipulating pdf files. Some, like their reader/annotator, are currently free, others, like their editor, are pretty reasonable at $99 ($200+ less than Adobe's Acrobat...).

If you want to try before you buy they also have evaluation versions of all their paid software available for download.

I'm off to play with the reader now, and test out the editor to compare it to the one I bought in April.

More Green to Go Green

According to some recent reports, the balance of power is shifting in the energy markets. More and more American consumers are expressing a willingness to pay more for renewable and sustainable (green) energy. You can find the article at Energy Central.

I went digging through Deloitte & Touche's site looking for the original report the above article was based on and couldn't find it. That's okay, though, I found something even better. This nifty report about the results of a survey D&T conducted among owners of oil and gas stocks. In a nutshell, a lot of them say fuel diversification and going green is the way to go.

Personally, I've been a nutty little recycler and light turner-offer for years, so I find this encouraging.

Green energy for a green world :-)

The IRS is Here to Help

And if you believe that, I have this great bridge for sale...

Seriously, this news is a few days old, but still important. It's a virus alert. The virus comes in the attachment of an email claiming to be from the IRS offering mediation services for a complaint filed against your business.

Yes, your business. It is usually directed to the correct first and last name and business name, making it seem fairly legit. Here is what the IRS has to say about it. Here's Symantec's rundown on it, which includes the full text of the email that is being sent out and a geekily in-depth explanation of what it does to your computer when you click the attachment.

This is scary because, while I am sure there have been others, this is the first virus/phishing scam I've seen that specifically targets not just businesses, but, from the looks of things, small businesses and solo operators.

Having said all that... Who on Earth really thinks a US government agency is going to offer to mediate for them? I'm just sayin'....

To Avoid Tax Headaches, Stick Close to Home

If you cross a state line to go to work each day, are you paying the right taxes to the right people?

A recent article in the Annapolis, Maryland paper "The Capital" highlights the growing tax headache many commuters face, particularly in the areas around the nation's capital and major metropolitan areas near state lines, like New York City and Kansas City. Issues like different tax rates between the work and home states, different ways of determining tax brackets, and just generally determining how much to pay and to whom make this a potentially sticky tax situation.

If you commute for work, it may be time to talk to a tax pro, before it becomes a problem with your state's income tax enforcers*.

*I'm sorry, I live in one of the seven states that doesn't have a state personal income tax, and have lived here all my working life so I have no clue what such an entity would be called, though I've no doubt they're out there, like the boogeyman... lol.

Book Review: Virtual Assistant, The Series: Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA (Virtual Assistant) by Ennen and Poelker

I am almost embarrassed to say that I'm just getting around to reading this book. It's one of the most popular books for/by Virtual Assistants on the market today. I found a few things that apply to me now, but the book is written mainly for those that are just looking at getting started as a Virtual Assistant. Extraordinarily valuable for those that are thinking about starting a practice or are just taking those first few steps. A must read for that group. Well done, Ms. Ennen and Poelker!

You can order it at http://www.va-theseries.com/

Just a little side note: It's very large. It had large type (which is great for my old eyes), but hard on the hands. I hope they release the next version in a trade size or paperback size.

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Product Description
Virtual Assistant - The Series: Become a Highly Successful, Sought After VA sets the stage for starting, operating, and growing a successful and PROFITABLE virtual assistant business. This book has already helped thousands of administrative assistants, word processors, and other office professionals realize their dreams of becoming an entrepreneur.

The book covers all the business nuts and bolts including business and financial planning, pricing your services, billing, and setting up your business. Plus, it offers information on creating your web site, daily operational procedures and most importantly, how and where to find clients. Discover how to put your existing skills to work for clients around the globe and apply them across many different industries.

Still working full time? You can still do it! We'll show you how to ease into your practice while working full-time AND continuing to care for your family.

Along with their personal experiences, the authors also include recommendations from virtual assistants across the land. These are the real pros that are now running successful businesses. You will find their suggestions in the "In Their Own Words" section at the end of each chapter and featured throughout the book. This will enable you to see how others are making their businesses successful and provide you with a blueprint on how to do the same with yours.

Cited as a "must have tool" for the VA industry, Virtual Assistant - The Series is currently used as training material for VA courses including: Virtual Assistance U, an online training center for virtual professionals; Red Deer College's VA Certification Program (in Canada); and other higher level learning organizations and colleges who are recognizing the potential for growth and continued education in the VA industry.