THE METHOD BEHIND MALL MADNESS -- It doesn't matter if you've been naughty or nice this holiday season, retailers are still looking for your dollars. And, with less than two weeks left until Christmas, nothing is sacred, says Richard Lancioni, chair of the marketing department in Temple's Fox School of Business & Management. Retailers, Lancioni says, maximize the buying power of consumers by playing upon their emotions. "Retailers create a buzz around certain products, toys, specialty items, electronics...and the perception among consumers is that these items are absolutely 'must haves.'" Although no one product has really jumped to the forefront this year, such as the Cabbage Patch dolls of the past, shoppers are still fighting over DVDs, Chicken Dance Elmos, Barbies, and the Bratz Pack. So why do we have to have these "must haves"? Lancioni says the ability to give this type of item is more or less a badge of accomplishment. "Because the demand for these products is so high during the holiday season, to be able to give this product as a gift means that much more." And what becomes of these products after the holidays? "Nothing, really, because there is little to no demand for them."
'TIS THE SEASON TO BE STRESSED... -- How will we ever manage all of the stress that goes with buying, wrapping, prevailing over "some assembly required," wrestling to prepare a 25-pound turkey, and spending way too much time with the in-laws? This holiday season, take a deep breath--and don't buy into the hype, says Denise Walton, senior psychologist for Temple's Tuttleman Counseling Services and an expert on stress management. "My mantra for the holidays is always 'advertisement resistance,'" says Walton, a member of the International Stress Foundation. "Don't let the ads about what the holidays should look like and feel like be your indicator. The best way to deal with the stress is to reflect on what the holidays truly mean to your family. What do you want this to be? And what do you want it to mean?" And as you think about what you'll be doing to make the holidays merry for others, don't forget about yourself, says Walton. "Go out to breakfast instead of cooking at home. Stick to your gym routine. It's not a luxury. It's a necessity."
WINDOWS-LESS COMPUTER DOESN'T LEAVE YOU IN THE DARK -- A computer retailing for $199 at Wal-Mart may not have the bells and whistles of computers costing 10 times as much, but it can meet most computer users' needs, says Temple computer and information science instructor Peter Cook. "The point of these machines is to exclude anything Microsoft on the computer, thus making it a lot cheaper," says Cook, an expert in consumer computer technology. "Instead of Microsoft, it uses the Lindows, which is a Linux-based operating system." Cook says that most of the Lindows office programs are compatible file-wise with Microsoft. However, he warns, Microsoft's Windows cannot be added to the machine because the computer's processor is not an Intel or AMD chip. "I have used Lindows," concludes Cook. "These cheaper machines work, just a little differently."
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