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By John Hunter

In earlier columns I have highlighted quirky websites or websites that service a niche market. This month's column features utility sites that anyone and everyone can use. The first such site is www.howstuffworks.com.

This site is a treasure trove for the inquiring mind. Click on this website and a library of information instantly forms on the tips of your fingers. I clicked on autostuff on the main page and quickly moved to a listing for listings for automobiles and anything related to automobiles and then some.

On the first page of this section was a series of articles on cutting edge vehicles such as air powered cars, hybrid cars, fuel cells, engines, light emitting diodes and so on. Also on this page is an alphabetical listing of virtually every article on the entire site.

On the Computer Section of the site, you can click on categories such as: hardware, Internet, peripherals and security. Or you can click on top subjects and learn about CD burners, hard disc drives, home networking and lock picking. You can also access the list of alphabetized articles mentioned above.

I clicked on the general article list and found under How 529 Plans Work the following articles: The Cost of College, The 529 Plan, The Benefits, The Drawbacks, Education IRAs & Custodial Accounts. The article on 529 plans described the several options facing you if you wish to start one. For example, you can pay tuition at an individual state college at today's rates and avoid tuition increases later. According to the article, most states offering this plan do not require residency to join. But you are limited to that institution when you want to use the built up savings. An alternative is to set up an undesignated college account. Account earnings will then be free from federal taxes unless you use the money for something other than higher education. As the kids would say, “Way cool!”

With the Auto Section you can investigate how hybrid cars work and choose articles on electric cars and GMs Hywire car. You can also read articles on power door locks and turn signals. The turn signal topic includes wiring, thermal flashers and turn signals in mirrors. The explanation for mirror turn signals includes sharp pictures of the signals in operation. “Way, way cool!”

The next site is the entrance portal for all federal government websites. This site is www.firstgov.gov. The homepage lists areas for online services for individuals, for businesses, and for governments. The site provides an A-Z list of all federal agencies with links to each agency. The site also provides telephone numbers and email addresses for those who wish to communicate directly with some part of the federal bureaucracy.

Individuals can find government benefits, apply for passports and contact the Social Security Administration. Businesses can apply for an employer identification number, comment on federal regulations, find the next government auction or sale or investigate subcontracting opportunities.

You can locate federal pay tables, look for federal grants and apply for them or call up a federal directory to locate a particular individual employed by the federal government. You can also contact the IRS if you have tax questions through the firstgov.com site or you can click on www.irs.gov and go directly to the tax labyrinth. If you access the IRS from firstgov.gov, you find that you are able to complete many onerous tasks quickly and cheaply. You can file your taxes electronically for free if you compute them yourself. There are limitations placed on free filing, so check out the site if you're interested.

Another interesting federal site is the www.census.gov site. If you want to research your relatives who were counted in the 1930 census, this is the place to go. Although you cannot directly get help from the federal government to search for individuals, you will be given a list of databases and local directories you can search for this information. You can also use this site to get general information about the demographics of the country in 1930. For instance there were 123 million people in the U.S. counted in 1930. Additional information available includes the geographic centers of population from 1790 to 1990, historical statistics on the percentage on the foreign-born population of the U.S. and a statistical abstract of the United States. For example, in 1940 74,775,836 individuals reported educational achievement levels. The median school years completed for all groups totaled 8.4 years or junior high school level. Of the total number, 2,799,923 individuals reported no schooling; 10,551,680 reported completion of four years of high school; 3,407,331 reported completion of four years of college. Thus, the good old days of American educational attainment aren't as high as we have been led to believe.

As you have no doubt figured, I am hopelessly addicted to arcane statistics and other worthless trivia. If you are similarly afflicted, I encourage you to visit the census bureau site. Until next month . . .

John M. Hunter

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