On-Line Services Are Helpful if Correctly Used
If you’re looking for a steady source of financial information, gaze directly into your computer screen. With the right hardware and software, any personal computer can go on-line with a service that provides timely information about companies, industries, markets or the economy in general.
When used prudently, the services provide extremely useful information. When used carelessly, they can be a waste of time and money.
The usage fees range from a one-time charge of $45 to more than $120 an hour. You also need a communications program and a modem to connect your computer to a phone line. Signing up can cost as much as $50, but if you get a coupon from your software dealer you can avoid that charge.
What you pay frequently depends on the time of day and the speed at which your computer is communicating with the service. Most personal computer modems transmit at 1,200 bits per second, or about 120 characters per second.
CompuServe is the most popular dial-up computer information service. Its 370,000 subscribers have access to a wide variety of information databases, including several that specialize in personal and corporate finance.
Although most services charge extra for use during working hours, CompuServe recently established a uniform rate of 21 cents per minute at either 1,200 or 2,400 bits per second, making it a daytime bargain. Many of the financial features, or databases, carry a surcharge, but some are surprisingly inexpensive. A stock price quote, for example, costs 2 cents per issue on top of the per-minute rate. The stock quotes lag the official ticker by 15 minutes.
CompuServe provides information on no-load mutual funds, stock histories and commodity markets. There also are several investment newsletters including the Donoghue MoneyLetter. In addition, you can use the service to communicate with several banks and brokerage houses, allowing you to pay bills, transfer funds and make investments.
CompuServe recently added “S&P; Online,” providing information on earnings, dividends, stock splits and major corporate developments for 4,700 companies. There is a surcharge of $1 per session on top of the normal CompuServe charges. CompuServe’s toll-free number is (800) 848-8199.
The Source, based in McLean, Va., offers databases providing commodity news, Dow Jones averages, prices of gold and other metals, Standard & Poor’s hourly stock indexes and stock and bond quotes from the New York and American stock exchanges as well as the over-the-counter market. For 1,200-bit-per-second service, Source subscribers pay 43 cents per minute during so-called prime time or 18 cents during evenings and weekends. There are surcharges for some of its databases and a $10 minimum monthly charge.
Source’s Stockvue database provides information on more than 3,500 stocks. You may create a portfolio of your holdings to monitor the performance of several stocks at once. Another database covers mutual funds, allowing you to evaluate a single fund or a collection of funds.
Investext, a Source database that costs an additional $1.50 per minute, provides information and analytical reports on companies and industries. Although designed for investors, it can be useful for other research purposes. Source can be reached at (800) 336-3366.
Dow Jones News/Retrieval is the most comprehensive service for on-line financial information, offering 40 databases. It is also the most expensive. The cost per minute, at 1,200 bits per second, ranges from about 40 cents during the evening to more than $2 during prime time.
One of its most popular databases, Current Quotes, allows you to get stock quotes and other financial data. Quotes lag market activity by 15 minutes unless you pay an extra $18.50 per month for a feature providing up-to-the-minute information.
DJN/R can pull up the full text of articles from, among other publications, the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Forbes and Barron’s. (You can even read that day’s edition of the Wall Street Journal, but it’s a lot cheaper to buy it from a newsstand.)
DJN/R Disclosure service provides detailed information about publicly traded companies including profiles, five-year sales summaries, net income and background on key executives, board members and major shareholders. For more information, call (800) 257-5114.
If you have cable-TV service, you may not even need to use your phone line for financial data. In some areas, you can access financial information and news services by cable.
For a one-time fee of $45, subscribers of participating cable companies can access Xchange, from Xpress Information Services of Golden, Colo. The fee includes software and a special modem that connects your computer to the cable. The service works with the IBM PC, Apple II, and Commodore 64 and 128. A Macintosh version has been announced. There are no monthly fees or use charges other than that for your basic cable TV subscription.
Xchange provides stock prices (updated only three times per day) as well as business news, general news, sports, entertainment news, weather and editorial features from various U.S. and overseas news services. It’s the most economical way I know of to get the latest news from the Soviet Union, People’s Republic of China, Japan, Canada, Mexico, France and West Germany. The data comes into your computer at a steady stream, and you use the provided software to capture information you need.
The company also offers an executive service ($19.95 per month) for investors who need stock information that is updated throughout the day. If you’re a regular user, that’s an incredible bargain compared to any of the dial-up services that charge by the minute.
For more information, call your local cable company or Xpress at (800) 446-4266.
On-line services can be rewarding and interesting, but they are not for everyone. Before you invest in any technology, consider such low-tech alternatives such as your stockbroker, newsletters or the newspaper’s financial section.
Computer File welcomes readers’ comments but regrets that the authors cannot respond individually to letters. Write to Lawrence J. Magid, 3235 Kifer Road, Suite 100, Santa Clara, Calif. 95051, or contact the L. Magid account on the MCI electronic mail system.
