Pay for newspaper's online content no more!

reportonbusiness.com, the Globe and Mail's online business news site is discussing the demise of subscription based online newspaper content. With the New York Times abandoning the practice of charging for content last week and Rupert Murdoch the reported suitor of the Wall Street Journal considering the same, it could be the end of the practice. While other sites have already opted for the traditional web model of banner ads and pay per click, the move of these two sites is heralded as the end of subscription based content, at least in the news paper game.

Back to School - taming the text book budget

NY Times writer Michelle Slatalla has written a great roundup on where to find used and/or cheap text books online. According to Slatalla, the average cost of new books is $700 to $1000 per year, so it's worth having a look around... particularly on a student's budget!

Webkinz stolen identities

The NY Times Bits blog is reporting that theft of the popular Webkinz plush toy's identity tags is becoming a real problem for the company who makes the toys and retailers alike. It is such a problem that some retailers are resorting to displaying the toys behind the cashiers in more secure locations. Let's make this clear, the thieves are not taking the stuffed animals, but just the uniquely numbered little paper tags that allow the purchasers access to the Webkinz website where they can play with a virtual replica of their toy. It seems that the online version is perhaps more popular than the toy itself, or at least a lot easier to pilfer.