I saw @Berylline launch a serious giftkrieg this morning. Helpless and out of ammo was my assumption so I sent in an innocent looking friend request while planning treachery.
Anyone reading the thread knows how this ends. Not helpless. Not out of ammo. I was felled by Half Minute Hero before getting off a single shot. The look of utter confusion and disbelief on my face was surely something to behold.
Thank you very much, but know that your credit card is going to run out sometime. I'm coming back and I'm bringing all of my friends with me next time].
One of the very best items I've gotten from Steam is You Need a Budget. (The only reason my "playtime" isn't a ridiculously high number of hours is that I've set it up to launch separately from Steam.) On the one hand, I can see what I've done and exactly how much I've spent. (I wasn't originally intending to do this. I had about 5 people I was going to gift. I might have gotten a bit carried away. I absolutely and unquestionably fail at the Steam rule of "Set a budget for the sale and stick to it.") On the other hand, I know exactly what I'm doing. "I can shift a bit of money from this non-essential rainy day category into fun Steam sale money..." That's not to say that my credit card is going to be cool with these repeated payments to Steam Wallet, but that's another issue.
Anyway, that's my little commercial for You Need a Budget, which is 50% off right now. $30 is a lot to pay for anything on Steam, but it's well worth it at this price. It's been awesome, and not just for Steam Sale reasons.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
I can understand that. They do work in slightly different ways. YNaB makes you "give each dollar a job" and put your money into categories as your paychecks come in. It's a little more hands-on, and doesn't really keep going without regular input. That may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your financial habits and personal preferences. You also don't connect your actual accounts to the software. There are plenty of articles online comparing the two and pointing out their differences, if you're interested. The YNaB method has been great for me, and I have zero regrets about purchasing it. But, Mint might very well work better for you, and if it does, that's awesome.
I saw @Berylline launch a serious giftkrieg this morning. Helpless and out of ammo was my assumption so I sent in an innocent looking friend request while planning treachery.
Anyone reading the thread knows how this ends. Not helpless. Not out of ammo. I was felled by Half Minute Hero before getting off a single shot. The look of utter confusion and disbelief on my face was surely something to behold.
Thank you very much, but know that your credit card is going to run out sometime. I'm coming back and I'm bringing all of my friends with me next time].
One of the very best items I've gotten from Steam is You Need a Budget. (The only reason my "playtime" isn't a ridiculously high number of hours is that I've set it up to launch separately from Steam.) On the one hand, I can see what I've done and exactly how much I've spent. (I wasn't originally intending to do this. I had about 5 people I was going to gift. I might have gotten a bit carried away. I absolutely and unquestionably fail at the Steam rule of "Set a budget for the sale and stick to it.") On the other hand, I know exactly what I'm doing. "I can shift a bit of money from this non-essential rainy day category into fun Steam sale money..." That's not to say that my credit card is going to be cool with these repeated payments to Steam Wallet, but that's another issue.
Anyway, that's my little commercial for You Need a Budget, which is 50% off right now. $30 is a lot to pay for anything on Steam, but it's well worth it at this price. It's been awesome, and not just for Steam Sale reasons.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
I can understand that. They do work in slightly different ways. YNaB makes you "give each dollar a job" and put your money into categories as your paychecks come in. It's a little more hands-on, and doesn't really keep going without regular input. That may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your financial habits and personal preferences. You also don't connect your actual accounts to the software. There are plenty of articles online comparing the two and pointing out their differences, if you're interested. The YNaB method has been great for me, and I have zero regrets about purchasing it. But, Mint might very well work better for you, and if it does, that's awesome.
I may not be the key demographic of YNaB, as the stated goal is to get off living paycheck-to-paycheck and that's not how I live, but I like the idea of giving every dollar a job. I'm in the fortunate position of being able to put more money onto my mortgage than I really need to at the moment, but the process really isn't optimised . It's more of a case of whatever's left at the end of the month gets hurled into the void. I'll give the demo a go after work today, see how it feels
I saw @Berylline launch a serious giftkrieg this morning. Helpless and out of ammo was my assumption so I sent in an innocent looking friend request while planning treachery.
Anyone reading the thread knows how this ends. Not helpless. Not out of ammo. I was felled by Half Minute Hero before getting off a single shot. The look of utter confusion and disbelief on my face was surely something to behold.
Thank you very much, but know that your credit card is going to run out sometime. I'm coming back and I'm bringing all of my friends with me next time].
One of the very best items I've gotten from Steam is You Need a Budget. (The only reason my "playtime" isn't a ridiculously high number of hours is that I've set it up to launch separately from Steam.) On the one hand, I can see what I've done and exactly how much I've spent. (I wasn't originally intending to do this. I had about 5 people I was going to gift. I might have gotten a bit carried away. I absolutely and unquestionably fail at the Steam rule of "Set a budget for the sale and stick to it.") On the other hand, I know exactly what I'm doing. "I can shift a bit of money from this non-essential rainy day category into fun Steam sale money..." That's not to say that my credit card is going to be cool with these repeated payments to Steam Wallet, but that's another issue.
Anyway, that's my little commercial for You Need a Budget, which is 50% off right now. $30 is a lot to pay for anything on Steam, but it's well worth it at this price. It's been awesome, and not just for Steam Sale reasons.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
I can understand that. They do work in slightly different ways. YNaB makes you "give each dollar a job" and put your money into categories as your paychecks come in. It's a little more hands-on, and doesn't really keep going without regular input. That may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your financial habits and personal preferences. You also don't connect your actual accounts to the software. There are plenty of articles online comparing the two and pointing out their differences, if you're interested. The YNaB method has been great for me, and I have zero regrets about purchasing it. But, Mint might very well work better for you, and if it does, that's awesome.
I may not be the key demographic of YNaB, as the stated goal is to get off living paycheck-to-paycheck and that's not how I live, but I like the idea of giving every dollar a job. I'm in the fortunate position of being able to put more money onto my mortgage than I really need to at the moment, but the process really isn't optimised . It's more of a case of whatever's left at the end of the month gets hurled into the void. I'll give the demo a go after work today, see how it feels
I've been using Mint for about 6 months now and it's helped me to spend more money. I used to use Quicken in the past and it seemed to help me, not sure why Mint isn't helping. Maybe YNaB might help me get off the "living paycheck to paycheck" train.
+3
BeryllineOne Tiara to rule them allRegistered Userregular
I saw @Berylline launch a serious giftkrieg this morning. Helpless and out of ammo was my assumption so I sent in an innocent looking friend request while planning treachery.
Anyone reading the thread knows how this ends. Not helpless. Not out of ammo. I was felled by Half Minute Hero before getting off a single shot. The look of utter confusion and disbelief on my face was surely something to behold.
Thank you very much, but know that your credit card is going to run out sometime. I'm coming back and I'm bringing all of my friends with me next time].
One of the very best items I've gotten from Steam is You Need a Budget. (The only reason my "playtime" isn't a ridiculously high number of hours is that I've set it up to launch separately from Steam.) On the one hand, I can see what I've done and exactly how much I've spent. (I wasn't originally intending to do this. I had about 5 people I was going to gift. I might have gotten a bit carried away. I absolutely and unquestionably fail at the Steam rule of "Set a budget for the sale and stick to it.") On the other hand, I know exactly what I'm doing. "I can shift a bit of money from this non-essential rainy day category into fun Steam sale money..." That's not to say that my credit card is going to be cool with these repeated payments to Steam Wallet, but that's another issue.
Anyway, that's my little commercial for You Need a Budget, which is 50% off right now. $30 is a lot to pay for anything on Steam, but it's well worth it at this price. It's been awesome, and not just for Steam Sale reasons.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
I can understand that. They do work in slightly different ways. YNaB makes you "give each dollar a job" and put your money into categories as your paychecks come in. It's a little more hands-on, and doesn't really keep going without regular input. That may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your financial habits and personal preferences. You also don't connect your actual accounts to the software. There are plenty of articles online comparing the two and pointing out their differences, if you're interested. The YNaB method has been great for me, and I have zero regrets about purchasing it. But, Mint might very well work better for you, and if it does, that's awesome.
I may not be the key demographic of YNaB, as the stated goal is to get off living paycheck-to-paycheck and that's not how I live, but I like the idea of giving every dollar a job. I'm in the fortunate position of being able to put more money onto my mortgage than I really need to at the moment, but the process really isn't optimised . It's more of a case of whatever's left at the end of the month gets hurled into the void. I'll give the demo a go after work today, see how it feels
I'm usually not in the paycheck-to-paycheck category either, but it's still been a huge help for me in planning ahead and making sure the funds are there when I need them. No more, "Oh, that several hundred dollar car insurance payment is due this month? Oh..." One other heads-up about YNaB is that you do need to put a little bit of time into learning how the whole thing works, but that their website has a ton of great info on using the software. They also do regular free online classes on different aspects of the software, and give away a free full copy of the program at the end of each class.
Someone should send a letter to Steam, so we can find the records of the gifts we've already given to someone.
I'm having a hard time remembering who I already sent a gift to, and I don't want people to think I am playing favorites.
Easiest way is to go to your Email that's attached to your Steam account and search/filter for "Thank you for your recent gift purchase on Steam. Your gift has been sent to", or any variation of that.
Someone should send a letter to Steam, so we can find the records of the gifts we've already given to someone.
I'm having a hard time remembering who I already sent a gift to, and I don't want people to think I am playing favorites.
You should get an email every time. I have those auto-filtered to specific "sent/received" folders, then they're easily searchable by name, game, or date... From there, it's a simple matter to expand the data into a spreadsheet. Oh god, yes, it takes a spreadsheet...
BeryllineOne Tiara to rule them allRegistered Userregular
I mean, you guys may not want my opinion or advice on anything financial, as you've all been present in this thread over the past few days. But, using the program has definitely played a part in allowing me to make these choices and is the main reason I'm not currently worried about still having enough money for family Christmas gifts, future bills, and whatnot.
And I promise I'm not getting a commission from them. I just really like the program.
And that's all for tonight. Thank you all for making today ridiculously classy.
Jesus! What in the bloody hell is happening to me!?
I go up to the Steam counter, ready to buy Sleeping Dogs, only to find that I already bought it! Not even remembering that I did just earlier....
Either Steam Sales are doing something weird to my brain, or I am being possessed by an impulsive poltergeist.
Someone either get me a psychiatrist or an exorcist!
STEAM ID: Firebird
XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
Playstation: FirebirdXR
Jesus! What in the bloody hell is happening to me!?
I go up to the Steam counter, ready to buy Sleeping Dogs, only to find that I already bought it! Not even remembering that I did just earlier....
Either Steam Sales are doing something weird to my brain, or I am being possessed by an impulsive poltergeist.
Someone either get me a psychiatrist or an exorcist!
An exochiatrist? Prescribes holy water for everything.
EmberquickMaster of DungeonsDeep UndergroundRegistered Userregular
edited November 2013
Not a bad sale so far!
Bought'd day 1:
Space Hulk! Been waiting a long time for that sucker to go on a significant sale.
SPAAAACE HULK!
Bought'd day 2:
Sanctum 2 Season Pass (ALMOST missed the fact that this was 80% off in addition to the main game.)
Sleepy Dawgs DLC: Wheels of Fury
Antichamber (Best price I've seen so far.)
Bioshock Infinite (From Gamefly with coupon code, but still a Steam key!)
Not to even mention the gifts both given and received. :-)
Off to a strong start--but man, I'd better pace myself!
Someone should send a letter to Steam, so we can find the records of the gifts we've already given to someone.
I'm having a hard time remembering who I already sent a gift to, and I don't want people to think I am playing favorites.
You should get an email every time. I have those auto-filtered to specific "sent/received" folders, then they're easily searchable by name, game, or date... From there, it's a simple matter to expand the data into a spreadsheet. Oh god, yes, it takes a spreadsheet...
I can attest to this. You can make graphs with the data. I make a lot of graphs.
Honestly, once you have more than a few friends it's going to take some effort to keep track of who got what, and even then there are only so many dollars to go around. Just do the best you can, and gift forward without breaking the bank. Any friend worth having won't be worried about balanced distribution (usually because they'll be too busy hitting F5 on the store page).
One bit of general advice I'd like to put forward: don't be shy about straying from a wishlist. Check what people are actually playing and look for something similar, or offer up something that you recently had fun with. I've had more than one pleasant surprise from games not on my list; one, in fact, before I even had a list, which is still rather impressive. It's all part of the fun
So my haul was XCOM: Enemy Within with the two micro DLCs, Sleeping Dogs and some DLC, Trine, Superbrothers: Sword and Sworcery, Gunpoint, and Dawn of War: Retribution.
I think that the internet has been for years on the path to creating what is essentially an electronic Necronomicon: A collection of blasphemous unrealities so perverse that to even glimpse at its contents, if but for a moment, is to irrevocably forfeit a portion of your sanity.
Xbox - PearlBlueS0ul, Steam
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
By the by, does anyone know if Gamefly's Brave New World keys work for Mac steam as well as PC steam? I want to gift it to a friend of mine who loves Civ to death, but the silly bugger only has a mac computer.
By the by, does anyone know if Gamefly's Brave New World keys work for Mac steam as well as PC steam? I want to gift it to a friend of mine who loves Civ to death, but the silly bugger only has a mac computer.
I mean, you guys may not want my opinion or advice on anything financial, as you've all been present in this thread over the past few days. But, using the program has definitely played a part in allowing me to make these choices and is the main reason I'm not currently worried about still having enough money for family Christmas gifts, future bills, and whatnot.
And I promise I'm not getting a commission from them. I just really like the program.
And that's all for tonight. Thank you all for making today ridiculously classy.
Hey, if it works for you, that's what's important
Putting in spoilers because I'm going off on a personal tangent.
Finances have never really been a "thing" for me, I guess? I was always a "save up and buy" sort of person - I actually saved my allowance so much that some months, when my family's finances got tough (my parents used the "envelopes of cash" method, and it worked for them for the most part, but they were loathe to swap between the different envelopes unless they had to) my parents would actually borrow money from me in order to, say, get the last week's groceries, and then immediately paid me back.
Fast forward to college, and my parents had been making me set aside literally half of all the money I'd ever gotten (gifts, job, whatever) into savings and/or stock purchases in my name. I had to sell off all my assets, but that coupled with all of the savings bonds I'd gotten as gifts from my grandparents over the years got me out of college debt-free. (They got me Halliburton as one of my stocks. Dick Cheney paid for my college )
And now I work for Intel, so....yeah. I use mint to "manage" my finances, track things, make sure that I'm not getting overly disproportionate to any specific degree, but I still stuck to the "don't really go out and spend a ton, be frugal, save up and get big things." But instead of "big things" meaning a $50 dollar game, now I take interesting vacations. However, even with that, over the years I've still been too miserly when it comes to myself (I donate to charity and such, and have actually gone back to every scholarship I got and paid back 1.5x as a "pay it forward" sort of thing) - my parents have started pushing me to spend more just to make life more enjoyable for myself and those around me. For example, I've had a lingering knee injury that I've done the whole "medical" thing with, but have also started getting occasional therapeutic massages just because they feel good. Similarly, it was after they pushed me for that that I started doing all the gifts in this thread, so you can feel free to thank my parents for that :P
Anyway, things being what they are, I've never approached it from the "make sure every dollar counts" angle - if that's the approach which works for you, mint is probably too lax for what you need.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
Thank you for finally getting me to sign up. I've meant to do it for years, but finally did it tonight because of this post.
It's a fun little thing, but it's actually more useful in terms of catching fraud than anything else - you've got to train it, but some of the categories are kinda broad, and your expenses will vary from month to month (ie, Entertainment - okay, I'm getting tickets to a hockey game which is 3 months from now and they cost $250 together. But next month I'm not really doing anything which "entertainment" instead of "shopping." Oops, I'm over-budget. But not really).
On the flip side, since I check regularly, I ran into a case where some person had gotten my CC number and was using it to order vacuum cleaners and ship them to someplace in Ohio (no, I have no idea either). I was actually able to get it locked down while the charges were still pending, before the fraud alert section of my CC company caught it. So that's pretty great.
Wait, was Papers, Please already a part of the Flash Deals once during this sale?
Because if it has, I might as well go buy it now, otherwise I might as well wait for a price drop.
EDIT: OK, @Akajaybay is some sort of goddamn wizard, because I didn't even finish typing this before he gifted it to me.
Firebird on
STEAM ID: Firebird
XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
Playstation: FirebirdXR
+9
KoopahTroopahThe koopas, the troopas.Philadelphia, PARegistered Userregular
Wait, was Papers, Please already a part of the Flash Deals once during this sale?
Because if it has, I might as well go buy it now, otherwise I might as well wait for a price drop.
EDIT: OK, @Akajaybay is some sort of goddamn wizard, because I didn't even finish typing this before he gifted it to me.
God damnit, DJ Firebird. If something is a daily, it most likely will not be lower price during a flash. I can 99.9% attest to this.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
Thank you for finally getting me to sign up. I've meant to do it for years, but finally did it tonight because of this post.
It's a fun little thing, but it's actually more useful in terms of catching fraud than anything else - you've got to train it, but some of the categories are kinda broad, and your expenses will vary from month to month (ie, Entertainment - okay, I'm getting tickets to a hockey game which is 3 months from now and they cost $250 together. But next month I'm not really doing anything which "entertainment" instead of "shopping." Oops, I'm over-budget. But not really).
On the flip side, since I check regularly, I ran into a case where some person had gotten my CC number and was using it to order vacuum cleaners and ship them to someplace in Ohio (no, I have no idea either). I was actually able to get it locked down while the charges were still pending, before the fraud alert section of my CC company caught it. So that's pretty great.
and now no one in Ohio has clean floors because of you
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
Thank you for finally getting me to sign up. I've meant to do it for years, but finally did it tonight because of this post.
I'm currently signing up due to YOUR post.
Though I don't feel like thinking about my finances right now.
I come from a family of economists. I'm the black sheep of the family, which is to say I'm the only child without a degree in economics. The most formal of a budget I've had is to pay the big stuff up front and live off the rest. The information I've gleaned off of helping to proofread economics textbooks can lead to a healthy and wealthy life in a few simple steps.
1. Start with income. You need one.
2. Pay mandatory bills - mortgage/rent, savings/investments, car loan, student loans, electrical bill, water bill, etc.
3. Pay optional bills - food, cable, interwebs, booze, illegal drugs, 2am takeout, etc and discretionary spending
4. Have something left over from the first three steps
5. For the love of God, don't add anything to step 2 unless it's paying more on the mortgage or adding to the savings/investments
The secret is that step 1 and 5 are the only important ones.
Less of a secret is that food gets pushed into step 3 because it's dirt cheap to eat well with a touch of planning and a cookbook.
The secret we don't want to admit is that serving the Newell falls into step 2, not step 3.
Seriously, if you can put more into mortgage/savings/investments, the discretionary spending sorts itself out. If you get a raise, put it into the aforementioned categories before you get used to having the extra cash around. If you get your mortgage paid off before you're retired, you suddenly have extra thousands a month you can send to Gaben instead of the bank. Compound interest is magic - paying a few extra bucks a month in the first years of your mortgage or putting $50/month into savings in your 20s makes such an incredible difference you'll need an economics or math minor to realize it.
Mint and budgeting software will help with the small details, but compound interest is the important concept. Save as soon as you can, pay debts (especially mortgages) as early as you can, and try to avoid taking on new debt whenever possible. Buy your games at 75% off.
I think that the internet has been for years on the path to creating what is essentially an electronic Necronomicon: A collection of blasphemous unrealities so perverse that to even glimpse at its contents, if but for a moment, is to irrevocably forfeit a portion of your sanity.
Xbox - PearlBlueS0ul, Steam
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
Thank you for finally getting me to sign up. I've meant to do it for years, but finally did it tonight because of this post.
It's a fun little thing, but it's actually more useful in terms of catching fraud than anything else - you've got to train it, but some of the categories are kinda broad, and your expenses will vary from month to month (ie, Entertainment - okay, I'm getting tickets to a hockey game which is 3 months from now and they cost $250 together. But next month I'm not really doing anything which "entertainment" instead of "shopping." Oops, I'm over-budget. But not really).
On the flip side, since I check regularly, I ran into a case where some person had gotten my CC number and was using it to order vacuum cleaners and ship them to someplace in Ohio (no, I have no idea either). I was actually able to get it locked down while the charges were still pending, before the fraud alert section of my CC company caught it. So that's pretty great.
Speaking of hockey, Mint has pointed out that aside from my WHL tickets exactly how much I'm paying in parking and concession fees. I was perfectly happy ignoring that information.
The budgeting is a bit weird. Apparently I'm doubling my budget for transportation by driving to work each day in a vehicle that's not too bad on fuel economy. The clothing budget at $30 per month seems a bit bizarre - if I'm a lineman, I'm going to need so expensive clothing to keep me warm. If I'm a professional, $30 isn't going to buy me a single piece of office clothing unless I find an amazing sale.
I think that the internet has been for years on the path to creating what is essentially an electronic Necronomicon: A collection of blasphemous unrealities so perverse that to even glimpse at its contents, if but for a moment, is to irrevocably forfeit a portion of your sanity.
Xbox - PearlBlueS0ul, Steam
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
Thank you for finally getting me to sign up. I've meant to do it for years, but finally did it tonight because of this post.
It's a fun little thing, but it's actually more useful in terms of catching fraud than anything else - you've got to train it, but some of the categories are kinda broad, and your expenses will vary from month to month (ie, Entertainment - okay, I'm getting tickets to a hockey game which is 3 months from now and they cost $250 together. But next month I'm not really doing anything which "entertainment" instead of "shopping." Oops, I'm over-budget. But not really).
On the flip side, since I check regularly, I ran into a case where some person had gotten my CC number and was using it to order vacuum cleaners and ship them to someplace in Ohio (no, I have no idea either). I was actually able to get it locked down while the charges were still pending, before the fraud alert section of my CC company caught it. So that's pretty great.
Speaking of hockey, Mint has pointed out that aside from my WHL tickets exactly how much I'm paying in parking and concession fees. I was perfectly happy ignoring that information.
The budgeting is a bit weird. Apparently I'm doubling my budget for transportation by driving to work each day in a vehicle that's not too bad on fuel economy. The clothing budget at $30 per month seems a bit bizarre - if I'm a lineman, I'm going to need so expensive clothing to keep me warm. If I'm a professional, $30 isn't going to buy me a single piece of office clothing unless I find an amazing sale.
Oh, does it give recommendations for what starting budgets are now?
I used it for a couple months, saw what my "normal" expenses were, and then just kinda....crafted it from there. "Okay, this is what I normally spend on fast food/restaraunts. Let's trim that down and up the grocery budget so I'll cook more. I want to keep my shopping under X amount." That sort of stuff.
OK way to fast thread. There is only one way to do this. With spoils. I'm full, I got a thanksgiving dinner given to me at work to. So I'm sleepy and can't go to bed because I have to watch a building. That is ok though. Here we go. Oh yeah, and get @Berylline@Luchaire - You started the pinkuisition, and lost the ability to gift back
Also, in light of the direction that this thread has taken since the sale started, I humbly suggest that there needs to be a United Steam Thread @Berylline Counteroffensive... Because goddamn.
If you classholes can collectively drop 173 games on me in the course of one measly summer sale, surely some devastating backlog damage can be heaped on the innocent-looking but clearly dangerous bunny person this time around?
Just saying. And customer service didn't help for a while.
Also, in light of the direction that this thread has taken since the sale started, I humbly suggest that there needs to be a United Steam Thread @Berylline Counteroffensive... Because goddamn.
If you classholes can collectively drop 173 games on me in the course of one measly summer sale, surely some devastating backlog damage can be heaped on the innocent-looking but clearly dangerous bunny person this time around?
No, no, no, we had this discussion earlier. I'd very much prefer it if you just picked a random person on your friends list and giftbombed them. I have enough games to last me for I don't even know how long. Way too long.
I thought I had a picture for you, but I think Hit Bit made it. It is Luchaire buried under gifts. Waving a white flag as I remember.
I saw @Berylline launch a serious giftkrieg this morning. Helpless and out of ammo was my assumption so I sent in an innocent looking friend request while planning treachery.
Anyone reading the thread knows how this ends. Not helpless. Not out of ammo. I was felled by Half Minute Hero before getting off a single shot. The look of utter confusion and disbelief on my face was surely something to behold.
Thank you very much, but know that your credit card is going to run out sometime. I'm coming back and I'm bringing all of my friends with me next time].
One of the very best items I've gotten from Steam is You Need a Budget. (The only reason my "playtime" isn't a ridiculously high number of hours is that I've set it up to launch separately from Steam.) On the one hand, I can see what I've done and exactly how much I've spent. (I wasn't originally intending to do this. I had about 5 people I was going to gift. I might have gotten a bit carried away. I absolutely and unquestionably fail at the Steam rule of "Set a budget for the sale and stick to it.") On the other hand, I know exactly what I'm doing. "I can shift a bit of money from this non-essential rainy day category into fun Steam sale money..." That's not to say that my credit card is going to be cool with these repeated payments to Steam Wallet, but that's another issue.
Anyway, that's my little commercial for You Need a Budget, which is 50% off right now. $30 is a lot to pay for anything on Steam, but it's well worth it at this price. It's been awesome, and not just for Steam Sale reasons.
I just have a hard time justifying that when Mint is free
I can understand that. They do work in slightly different ways. YNaB makes you "give each dollar a job" and put your money into categories as your paychecks come in. It's a little more hands-on, and doesn't really keep going without regular input. That may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your financial habits and personal preferences. You also don't connect your actual accounts to the software. There are plenty of articles online comparing the two and pointing out their differences, if you're interested. The YNaB method has been great for me, and I have zero regrets about purchasing it. But, Mint might very well work better for you, and if it does, that's awesome.
I think best is try stuff out and find what works for you. I know my dad uses a custom excel spread sheet for his budget? I use quicken for mine. For ever month plan a whole month out. All my main bills. than all the grocers and gas. Than extras like car washes, hair, etc. Finally left over get left so me and my fiance can just spend when needed.
If you budget, just like Berry has said, put in a "blow account/Do fun stuff/Give away/Giftbomb steam thread" line. You can not and will not survive on a budget if you don't have money to just do stuff. YMMV, but my 2cp.
Anyway, was a fun thread. I won't get to game until, well not sure when. I'm strangely still serving the EQ II gods for some reason. Oh that and pinball, but there are some people here who scare me. Thanks for the read. Be back later.
Posts
I can understand that. They do work in slightly different ways. YNaB makes you "give each dollar a job" and put your money into categories as your paychecks come in. It's a little more hands-on, and doesn't really keep going without regular input. That may be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your financial habits and personal preferences. You also don't connect your actual accounts to the software. There are plenty of articles online comparing the two and pointing out their differences, if you're interested. The YNaB method has been great for me, and I have zero regrets about purchasing it. But, Mint might very well work better for you, and if it does, that's awesome.
3DS Friend Code: 2165-6448-8348 www.Twitch.TV/cooljammer00
Battle.Net: JohnDarc#1203 Origin/UPlay: CoolJammer00
I may not be the key demographic of YNaB, as the stated goal is to get off living paycheck-to-paycheck and that's not how I live, but I like the idea of giving every dollar a job. I'm in the fortunate position of being able to put more money onto my mortgage than I really need to at the moment, but the process really isn't optimised . It's more of a case of whatever's left at the end of the month gets hurled into the void. I'll give the demo a go after work today, see how it feels
I've been using Mint for about 6 months now and it's helped me to spend more money. I used to use Quicken in the past and it seemed to help me, not sure why Mint isn't helping. Maybe YNaB might help me get off the "living paycheck to paycheck" train.
I'm usually not in the paycheck-to-paycheck category either, but it's still been a huge help for me in planning ahead and making sure the funds are there when I need them. No more, "Oh, that several hundred dollar car insurance payment is due this month? Oh..." One other heads-up about YNaB is that you do need to put a little bit of time into learning how the whole thing works, but that their website has a ton of great info on using the software. They also do regular free online classes on different aspects of the software, and give away a free full copy of the program at the end of each class.
I'm having a hard time remembering who I already sent a gift to, and I don't want people to think I am playing favorites.
STEAM ID: Firebird
XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
Playstation: FirebirdXR
GG
No jetpack no murder.
or;
Mo jetpack mo murder.
Easiest way is to go to your Email that's attached to your Steam account and search/filter for "Thank you for your recent gift purchase on Steam. Your gift has been sent to", or any variation of that.
You should get an email every time. I have those auto-filtered to specific "sent/received" folders, then they're easily searchable by name, game, or date... From there, it's a simple matter to expand the data into a spreadsheet. Oh god, yes, it takes a spreadsheet...
w/ dlc (quest)
And I promise I'm not getting a commission from them. I just really like the program.
And that's all for tonight. Thank you all for making today ridiculously classy.
Oh man. I've never played this Wizardry thing, but these are supposed to be the games that primarily inspired the guy making Etrian Odyssey.
And I am fucking crazy for Etrian Odyssey.
Dammit dammit dammit.
I go up to the Steam counter, ready to buy Sleeping Dogs, only to find that I already bought it! Not even remembering that I did just earlier....
Either Steam Sales are doing something weird to my brain, or I am being possessed by an impulsive poltergeist.
Someone either get me a psychiatrist or an exorcist!
STEAM ID: Firebird
XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
Playstation: FirebirdXR
An exochiatrist? Prescribes holy water for everything.
3DS: 0473-8507-2652
Switch: SW-5185-4991-5118
PSN: AbEntropy
Bought'd day 1:
Space Hulk! Been waiting a long time for that sucker to go on a significant sale.
Bought'd day 2:
Sanctum 2 Season Pass (ALMOST missed the fact that this was 80% off in addition to the main game.)
Sleepy Dawgs DLC: Wheels of Fury
Antichamber (Best price I've seen so far.)
Bioshock Infinite (From Gamefly with coupon code, but still a Steam key!)
Not to even mention the gifts both given and received. :-)
Off to a strong start--but man, I'd better pace myself!
3DS: 0473-8507-2652
Switch: SW-5185-4991-5118
PSN: AbEntropy
I can attest to this. You can make graphs with the data. I make a lot of graphs.
Honestly, once you have more than a few friends it's going to take some effort to keep track of who got what, and even then there are only so many dollars to go around. Just do the best you can, and gift forward without breaking the bank. Any friend worth having won't be worried about balanced distribution (usually because they'll be too busy hitting F5 on the store page).
One bit of general advice I'd like to put forward: don't be shy about straying from a wishlist. Check what people are actually playing and look for something similar, or offer up something that you recently had fun with. I've had more than one pleasant surprise from games not on my list; one, in fact, before I even had a list, which is still rather impressive. It's all part of the fun
And mine is Monaco, but I'm giving it to you; so it will be yours, and not mine.
PM your favorite thief (fictional or real) for your entry.
Fifty bucks. Hot damn.
Thank you for finally getting me to sign up. I've meant to do it for years, but finally did it tonight because of this post.
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
I'm currently signing up due to YOUR post.
Though I don't feel like thinking about my finances right now.
3DS Friend Code: 2165-6448-8348 www.Twitch.TV/cooljammer00
Battle.Net: JohnDarc#1203 Origin/UPlay: CoolJammer00
But I like friends!
So I didn't die at work tonight! Yay! But I have to be back there in 8 hours! So now to bed while I farm cards to spend on games in this sale.
And resist buying that SSD on newegg.
SniperGuyGaming on PSN / SniperGuy710 on Xbone Live
Yes, Civ 5 on steam works on both PC & Mac.
Origin: KafkaAU B-Net: Kafka#1778
Origin: KafkaAU B-Net: Kafka#1778
Hey, if it works for you, that's what's important
Putting in spoilers because I'm going off on a personal tangent.
Fast forward to college, and my parents had been making me set aside literally half of all the money I'd ever gotten (gifts, job, whatever) into savings and/or stock purchases in my name. I had to sell off all my assets, but that coupled with all of the savings bonds I'd gotten as gifts from my grandparents over the years got me out of college debt-free. (They got me Halliburton as one of my stocks. Dick Cheney paid for my college
And now I work for Intel, so....yeah. I use mint to "manage" my finances, track things, make sure that I'm not getting overly disproportionate to any specific degree, but I still stuck to the "don't really go out and spend a ton, be frugal, save up and get big things." But instead of "big things" meaning a $50 dollar game, now I take interesting vacations. However, even with that, over the years I've still been too miserly when it comes to myself (I donate to charity and such, and have actually gone back to every scholarship I got and paid back 1.5x as a "pay it forward" sort of thing) - my parents have started pushing me to spend more just to make life more enjoyable for myself and those around me. For example, I've had a lingering knee injury that I've done the whole "medical" thing with, but have also started getting occasional therapeutic massages just because they feel good. Similarly, it was after they pushed me for that that I started doing all the gifts in this thread, so you can feel free to thank my parents for that :P
Anyway, things being what they are, I've never approached it from the "make sure every dollar counts" angle - if that's the approach which works for you, mint is probably too lax for what you need.
It's a fun little thing, but it's actually more useful in terms of catching fraud than anything else - you've got to train it, but some of the categories are kinda broad, and your expenses will vary from month to month (ie, Entertainment - okay, I'm getting tickets to a hockey game which is 3 months from now and they cost $250 together. But next month I'm not really doing anything which "entertainment" instead of "shopping." Oops, I'm over-budget. But not really).
On the flip side, since I check regularly, I ran into a case where some person had gotten my CC number and was using it to order vacuum cleaners and ship them to someplace in Ohio (no, I have no idea either). I was actually able to get it locked down while the charges were still pending, before the fraud alert section of my CC company caught it. So that's pretty great.
Because if it has, I might as well go buy it now, otherwise I might as well wait for a price drop.
EDIT: OK, @Akajaybay is some sort of goddamn wizard, because I didn't even finish typing this before he gifted it to me.
STEAM ID: Firebird
XBOX Live: FirebirdLR
Playstation: FirebirdXR
God damnit, DJ Firebird. If something is a daily, it most likely will not be lower price during a flash. I can 99.9% attest to this.
Just serve the Newell already. Gawrsh.
and now no one in Ohio has clean floors because of you
For shame
@DaringDirk (i think this is the right name?) is the winner!
FOR THE EMPEROR, PURGE THE HERETIC and so on and so forth.
Origin: KafkaAU B-Net: Kafka#1778
The harder the rain, honey, the sweeter the sun.
I come from a family of economists. I'm the black sheep of the family, which is to say I'm the only child without a degree in economics. The most formal of a budget I've had is to pay the big stuff up front and live off the rest. The information I've gleaned off of helping to proofread economics textbooks can lead to a healthy and wealthy life in a few simple steps.
1. Start with income. You need one.
2. Pay mandatory bills - mortgage/rent, savings/investments, car loan, student loans, electrical bill, water bill, etc.
3. Pay optional bills - food, cable, interwebs, booze, illegal drugs, 2am takeout, etc and discretionary spending
4. Have something left over from the first three steps
5. For the love of God, don't add anything to step 2 unless it's paying more on the mortgage or adding to the savings/investments
The secret is that step 1 and 5 are the only important ones.
Less of a secret is that food gets pushed into step 3 because it's dirt cheap to eat well with a touch of planning and a cookbook.
The secret we don't want to admit is that serving the Newell falls into step 2, not step 3.
Seriously, if you can put more into mortgage/savings/investments, the discretionary spending sorts itself out. If you get a raise, put it into the aforementioned categories before you get used to having the extra cash around. If you get your mortgage paid off before you're retired, you suddenly have extra thousands a month you can send to Gaben instead of the bank. Compound interest is magic - paying a few extra bucks a month in the first years of your mortgage or putting $50/month into savings in your 20s makes such an incredible difference you'll need an economics or math minor to realize it.
Mint and budgeting software will help with the small details, but compound interest is the important concept. Save as soon as you can, pay debts (especially mortgages) as early as you can, and try to avoid taking on new debt whenever possible. Buy your games at 75% off.
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
Speaking of hockey, Mint has pointed out that aside from my WHL tickets exactly how much I'm paying in parking and concession fees. I was perfectly happy ignoring that information.
The budgeting is a bit weird. Apparently I'm doubling my budget for transportation by driving to work each day in a vehicle that's not too bad on fuel economy. The clothing budget at $30 per month seems a bit bizarre - if I'm a lineman, I'm going to need so expensive clothing to keep me warm. If I'm a professional, $30 isn't going to buy me a single piece of office clothing unless I find an amazing sale.
If you ever need to talk to someone, feel free to message me. Yes, that includes you.
Oh, does it give recommendations for what starting budgets are now?
I used it for a couple months, saw what my "normal" expenses were, and then just kinda....crafted it from there. "Okay, this is what I normally spend on fast food/restaraunts. Let's trim that down and up the grocery budget so I'll cook more. I want to keep my shopping under X amount." That sort of stuff.
@Luchaire - You started the pinkuisition, and lost the ability to gift back
Just saying. And customer service didn't help for a while.
@Luchaire @Hit Bit @Berylline - Luchaire raised the white flag via a hit bit cartoon, you can to.
Interluds
So, birthanksgivmakkuah. I missed this? When did this come up? Were is Hit Bit with the icon? Like these:
Classthulhu
Classzilla
@berylline - budjets
If you budget, just like Berry has said, put in a "blow account/Do fun stuff/Give away/Giftbomb steam thread" line. You can not and will not survive on a budget if you don't have money to just do stuff. YMMV, but my 2cp.
Anyway, was a fun thread. I won't get to game until, well not sure when. I'm strangely still serving the EQ II gods for some reason. Oh that and pinball, but there are some people here who scare me. Thanks for the read. Be back later.
lost several hours to it last night
i dunno why but these games that are just progress bars endlessly filling just hook me utter