Newbie to Stock Market

Alright, I am trying to get into the stock market. Figure it is actually a good time and since I was laid off 2 months ago and still looking for a job, I have the time during the day to follow the ups and downs.

My goal is to buy in on something that looks good on a Monday and sell that Friday or maybe sometime in the next week.

For the past 2 weeks I have been paper trading. This past Thursday I saw a few tips here and there about NVAX and the whole Swine Flu scare…it was at .80 Thursday night I believe. Hit 3.80ish early this morning. Would have been nice to have 500-1000 in that one.

That is kind of the stock I am looking for except I know getting a huge gain like that is unlikely. I only have a small amount to invest at first (like I said, I am currently unemployed and looking) so if I could make a couple hundred bucks a week or every two to pad my wallet- that would be nice.

Any tips or advice? Any good forums or blogs that give good advice.

Oh, also…will the market EVER recover like it was in the early 2000s? Is it something that is inevitable? It just seems that companies like GM or United Rental or all these others that are at 2 and 3 dollars…when they were at 30-80 bucks 5-10 years ago- why not put money there? How long as a good recovery took in the past?

Sorry for long post but I am interested in getting into this, especially with my unfortunate free time. Thanks guys.

Personally, I think the stock market is a waste of time and money. I lost 50% of my IRA last year. Also, when you make money in the stock market you spend it all in taxes. You should look into maximum funded life insurance contracts or real estate. I can help you with the real estate part. As for the investment grade life insurance, you should look in to that in your spare time. Thats just my 2 cents.