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8:30 AM EST Tuesday, July 25, 2006: Yesterday may have been significant.The S&P did not break through its trendline, but bounced off it and went upwards. This means, in charting language, stockmarkets are going higher. Red means down. White means up.

Buying a new TV? It should work with 1080p. That's the new and top high definition. It should also receive HDMI input. That's the new way of moving high definition video signals around. 1080p is the standard for filming digital motion pictures. These movies will be shown in theaters upgraded to and equipped with 1080p digital projectors.

The inviolate one year rule: If you haven't worn it in the last year, throw it out.

$15,000 now buys you $250,000: Three years ago it cost $250,000 to put up a sophisticated web site. Now, with thanks to programmers in India, you can get one programmed for $15,000. Amazing the price reduction.

Mark your calendar: This Thursday at 11 AM, TriPath Imaging holds a conference call to discuss the Company's second quarter 2006 financials. You can listen on 888-344-3716 or on 706-634-4926. ID number 3254252.The stock was a favorite of mine for eons. But management disappointed by fluffing FDA submissions and over-estimating sales growth. Many large institutions sold TriPath in recent months because of their unhappiness with management. Things, I believe, have improved. We should hear more about FDA submissions and faster growth. One neat motivation: Their largest customer, Quest Diagnostic has millions of warrants that don't have any value until at least 50% above where TriPath's stock presently is. If things do work out, the best news is that all the companies in the health imaging business -- Digene, Cytyc, Ventana and Genprobe -- sell for much higher multiples.

Does your backup system work? 25,000 airline travelers were stranded for an hour in LA because no one tested the backup emergency generator. Ditto for commuters on the Roosevelt Island Tram in New York. What about your emergency generator? Does it have gas? What about your data backups? Have you ever tried to restore your work? PC Magazine wrote "We've heard too many stories of readers convinced they were backing up properly only to find that nothing was actually written to disk."

Hot weather preparation: Heating and cooling accounts for about 45% of your energy bill. Hints:
1. Change your air conditioner filters.
2. Clean the condenser fins on your refrigerator.
3. Buy only gadgetry with the Energy Star sticker.
4. Tighten up your home. Seal up the leaks.
5. Do laundry late at night when it's cheaper.

Thinking about advertising on the Internet? There's a useful, short summary of how Pay-per-Click search engines work. Click here.

Central vacuum cleaners are cleaner: Conventional vacuum cleaners spew dust and allergens back into the air. Central ones blow the crap outside. That's one reason the sale of central vacuum cleaners is booming.

Visiting New York? Come see the Apple Store: It's in front of the GM Building. We went last night at 9:30 PM. It was packed.

You get to the store through a huge glass cube stuck in the center of the GM Building's erstwhile empty terrace.	This is what the store looks like straight on.
The actual store is one floor below the street. You can get to it via stairs or by this cool glass elevator.	Take your computer problems to the Genius Bar. They'll solve your problems. They all look like nerdy geeks. And they probably are. They're unbelievably helpful.
This is me holding one of Apple's big screens.	Another brilliant idea. A lower desk designed for children. The store is open 24 hours a day. Cool.

History Lesson: The suicide bombing of our Marine barracks in Beirut in October 1983 which killed 241 Americans was perpetrated by Hezbollah

A wonderful cartoon, from a recent Readers Digest:

Perhaps there's a coincidence?
Having looked the other way for weeks, the boss finally called Smith into his office for a sit-down.
"You know, Smith," he said, "I've noticed that every time you have to take your dear old aunt to her doctor, there's a home game over at the Stadium."
"Wow, sir, I guess you're right," Smith answered, "I didn't realize it. You don't think she's faking it?"
-- from Readers Digest.

This column is about my personal search for the perfect investment. I don't give investment advice. For that you have to be registered with regulatory authorities, which I am not. I am a reporter and an investor. I make my daily column -- Monday through Friday -- freely available for three reasons: Writing is good for sorting things out in my brain. Second, the column is research for a book I'm writing called "In Search of the Perfect Investment." Third, I encourage my readers to send me their ideas, concerns and experiences. That way we can all learn together. My email address is . You can't click on my email address. You have to re-type it . This protects me from software scanning the Internet for email addresses to spam. I have no role in choosing the Google ads. Thus I cannot endorse any, though some look mighty interesting. If you click on a link, Google may send me money. Please note I'm not suggesting you do. That money, if there is any, may help pay Claire's law school tuition. Read more about Google AdSense, click here and here.
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