A few years ago, Denis Place and his two partners left their jobs at Suss MicroTec to launch their own business. Read more…

Eurozone leaders yesterday put forward a plan to provide 159 Billion Euros in new aid for debt ridden Greece, including an agreement with bondholders to exchange and buy back debt. There is some concern that such an action may be considered a technical default by credit rating agencies.

The EFSF has been given the ability to purchase government bonds, whilst providing loans to struggling countries. Although this is a significant move in the right direction, the fact that the authorities failed to increase the size of the EFSF has experts concerned over their ability to cover other peripheral nations.

In early trade CDS on Greek debt declined by a massive 500bps to a six week low, although the Euro was unable to break higher than the 1.44374, and has subsequently experienced some selling pressures. Read more…

If youre a beer enthusiast with an iPhone, Opena has created a unique phone case you will love. All you need to do is slide out the bottle cap opener and — pop — your beer is ready to drink, reports Inventor Spot.

Now, thanks to some enterprising young beer-swillers from Down Under, you can open your bottled beer with the same iPhone that you used to get to your destination station. The Opena iPhone case makes it easy to remove bottle caps from bottles, beer bottles specifically, with a sliding, stainless steel bottle opener.

Those of you more cynical martini types will likely ask, But what about the beer that gets all shaken up before being opened? Won

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There was a time when using visual aids during a presentation meant large print illustrations tacked onto cardboard and set upon a tripod. These bulky extras were a pain to create and lug around, but were a necessary evil when it came to making a punch with an important presentation to investors, clients, customers, etc.

However, then the magic of computer software came along, and Microsoft developed the saving grace to any presentation: PowerPoint. With PowerPoint, anyone can create stunning slides to give a striking visual element while making a speech by simply projecting it onto a screen or blank wall.

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New Zealand stocks rose, with Methven Ltd. leading gainers on the exchange after forecasting a 90% increase in profit in the coming year, while Heartland New Zealand Ltd. fell.

The NZX 50 Index rose 26.02 points, or 0.8%, to 3,447.36. Within the index, 31 stocks rose, 12 fell, and seven were unchanged. Turnover was $97.2 million. On the week, the index rose 1.2%.

Methven, the tapware manufacturer, rose 6.8% to $1.57 after it said it expected to make a $9 million profit for the year ending March 2012, while net debt will drop 20%.

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If you want to make some money, tap into something a starving college student will pay for. That is exactly what Amazon is doing with their recent digital textbook rental launch.

Students who cannot afford to buy their textbooks can now rent the digital version for a set price with a minimum rental period of 30 days, reports The Kansas City Star.

Amazon.com Inc. on Monday said it launched a program in which college students can rent digital copies of tens of thousands of textbooks at a fraction of the cost of buying them.

The online retailer said the rental fees could be as much as 80 percent lower than the purchase price.

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The New York Times has posted an article that discusses how a foreclosure and a short sale differ in the long run when it comes to how your credit score is impacted by losing a home. While economic factors may have been the cause of losing your home, a bad credit score can impact several areas of your life such as getting a job and renting.

A short sale where the balance is forgiven and nothing is recorded in public records can be quick and close to painless for your credit score’s recovery. As long as you pay your bills on time your score can be brought up in less than a year. Your score won’t be outstanding, but it will definitely help.

However, a foreclosure or bankruptcy can haunt your credit score for years.

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