Track your spending

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David Uffington

Dollars and Sense

Updated: Dec 16, 2010, 3:51 PM

Published: Dec 16, 2010, 3:53 PM

If you have a computer and really don’t know where all your money goes, your life can be easier if you invest in personal-finance budget software. Nearly all of the finance programs have reports that you can customize and generate. Want to know how much you’re spending for groceries? Or how much miscellaneous cash went to coffee in the morning? The program will tell you. Your bank statement will include the debit-card amounts, which you’ll need to add in, but not the cash you spend. You’ll need to enter that as well.
Be cautious about the features of any software you buy. There is one brand-name software that will accumulate all of your information in one place. The ads say it can combine your bank accounts with your credit cards and investment accounts — by going into those accounts and extracting the information for you. Another software will make your payments for you automatically. Beware. While it’s a given that they’ve gone all-out to provide security for their servers, not all servers are equal. Do you really want to have every single transaction you make available to potential thieves?
Equally important, do you really want to give up that much control of your money? If you come across a deal that you shouldn’t pass up, knowing that you still have two more weeks to pay the utility bill, what are you going to do when the computer automatically spends your money on that utility bill?
Caveat: If you plan to use an Internet-connected computer for your finances, don’t download any personal-finance software from the Internet. You don’t know what’s in it. Instead, pick a name brand that comes in a box at the store. And when you enter your information into the program, don’t put your account number or even the real name of your bank.
Best bet: Use an old computer for all your financial information — and don’t hook it up to the Internet. Test some of the free basic-software programs to see which you like best. What you want is a simple program that will categorize your spending, reconcile your accounts (including retirement or investment) and possibly allow you to print out checks.

Uffington does not personally answer reader questions, but will incorporate them into his column whenever possible. Write to him in care of King Features Weekly Service, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475, or send e-mail to columnreply@gmail.com.

Record April boosts Savannah's container trade at port

The Port of Savannah moved 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units in April, an increase of 7.1 percent. - photo by Provided

GardenCityTerminal — The Port of Savannah moved 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units in April, an increase of 7.1 percent. - photo by Provided

Bryan County News

Updated: May 23, 2018, 1:59 AM

Published: May 23, 2018, 2:00 AM

The Georgia Ports Authority's busiest April ever pushed its fiscal year-to-date totals to more than 3.4 million 20-foot equivalent container units (TEUs), an increase of 8.8 percent, or 280,000 TEUs, compared to the first 10 months of fiscal 2017.

"We're on track to move more than 300,000 TEUs in every month of the fiscal year, which will be a first for the authority," said GPA Executive Director Griff Lynch. "We're also anticipating this to be the first fiscal year for the Port of Savannah to handle more than 4 million TEUs."

April volumes reached 356,700 20-foot equivalent container units, up 7.1 percent or 23,700 units. As the fastest growing containerport in the nation, the Port of Savannah has achieved a compound annual growth rate of more than 5 percent a year over the past decade.

"As reported in the recent economic impact study by UGA's Terry College of Business, trade through Georgia's deepwater ports translates into jobs, higher incomes and greater productivity," said GPA Board Chairman Jimmy Allgood. "In every region of Georgia, employers rely on the ports of Savannah and Brunswick to help them become more competitive on the global stage."

To strengthen the Port of Savannah's ability to support the state's future economic growth, the GPA Board approved $66 million in terminal upgrades, including $24 million for the purchase of 10 additional rubber-tired gantry cranes.

"The authority is committed to building additional capacity ahead of demand to ensure the Port of Savannah remains a trusted link in the supply chain serving Georgia and the Southeast," Lynch said.

The crane purchase will bring the fleet at Garden City Terminal to 156 RTGs. The new cranes will support three new container rows, which the board approved in March. The additional container rows will increase annual capacity at the Port of Savannah by 150,000 TEUs.

The RTGs will work over stacks that are five containers high and six deep, with a truck lane running alongside the stacks. Capable of running on electricity, the cranes will have a lift capacity of 50 metric tons.

The cranes will arrive in two batches of five in the first and second quarters of calendar year 2019.

Also at Monday's meeting, the GPA Board elected its officers, with Jimmy Allgood as chairman, Will McKnight taking the position of vice chairman and Joel Wooten elected as the next secretary/treasurer.

For more information, visit gaports.com, or contact GPA Senior Director of Corporate Communications Robert Morris at (912) 964-3855 or rmorris@gaports.com.

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