This new type of investor makes their own decisions and picks stocks through their own experiences and research.

The feature that is most valuable is that each topic is presented in tutorial form with a number of small articles linked together to explain the issue or term in full.

The approach is a balanced and fair one, with the pros and cons of each action laid out and accurately described.

Buying on margin for example is something that is usually best left to an experienced investor. Comments such as "It is also a good idea to ask your broker whether it makes sense for you to trade on margin in light of your financial resources, investment objectives, and risk tolerance" are very impressive because a lot of web sites "forget" that each investor is different and that investment objects vary considerably.

Upon entering the investor education center you are likely to read an article called "Stocks - basics". The article is anything but basic as it is littered with terms and concepts a true beginning investor would not be familiar with. However, the article does provide insight on certain subjects (i.e stock brokers) that would help a beginning investor see the financial industry in the proper light.

There are two main problems with this site are as follows:

Investment advice is not appropriate in this setting. One article lists five mutual fund companies and their telephone numbers. Given that there are hundreds of mutual fund companies, it raises serious questions as to the unbiased nature of the information if, for example, Fidelity has paid to be a part of the article.

The second problem is simply that the articles are not in a format that makes for an A to Z approach to investing. A tutorial format would be far more valuable than the mixed bag of articles presented here.

The feature that might be most valuable are the financial calculators and quizzes designed to help an investor determine what type of investments are right for their situation. These questions are the same that would be asked by a financial advisor and represent a fair and balanced approach that can be relied upon to give a user a good idea of where they are in comparison to where they would like to be.

Articles are presented on a "by topic" basis which makes for easy access to any subject that is of interest to the user.

The only drawback is the same one found on virtually every site. An article titled "investing with $100 or less" gives names of companies and telephone numbers. While this is not necessarily a negative, an education site is better left without any specific recommendations as to where your money should be invested.

One quote says it all in regards to this site "If you have a few thousand dollars to invest, consider starting with a diversified mutual fund, perhaps Vanguard S&P 500 Index or Vanguard US Growth (VWUSX)". This is totally inappropriate and should never be seen on an investment education site.

The author of that quote Gary Schatsky who is the Chairman of the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) should know better than to make any comment in regards to specific investments. The goal of a financial advisor is to understand an individuals financial situation and make recommendations specific to their needs. Since Mr. Schatsky has never met you, I doubt he has the ability to recommend any investments, let alone a specific fund or fund company.

Generally, the articles on this site are littered with recommendations and opinions that should not appear in this format.

Table

Margin (beginning of each article)

Investopedia.com

Imagine this, you're sitting at the blackjack table - you're doing so-so, but then the dealer throws you an ACE! You have the chance to double your bet but you are a little short on cash. The dealer won't wait for you to run to the bank machine so your buddy offers to spot you $50 and you can pay him back after. Sounds tempting? What if you don't get that magical blackjack? then you lose your bet and you owe your buddy $50...not good. But what if you win, then you get $200 and you can pay your buddy back his $50...what a deal.

About.com

There's nothing like playing in a high-stakes poker game with borrowed money to focus you attention on the game. I've never actually done that. Nobody I know is foolish enough to lend me money to play poker. But, I'm sure you can imagine that knowing some gorilla was ready to bust your kneecaps if you can't pay back the loan is a great incentive to play your best. Buying stocks on margin is not quite in the same league, unless your stock broker works out of the back seat of an older model black Cadillac.

ABC News

With a margin account, you can sell shares that you don't own, borrowing them from a broker. This gives you a short position in the stock. You benefit with a decline in the share price, since you can buy these shares at a lower price and return the shares you have borrowed, thereby making a profit.

Yahoo