I am considering investing in fuel cell technology, now that the oil industries are starting to become increasingly unpopular and unaffordable (and forseeably will continue to do so). I am aware of the fuel cell tech basics, and am also aware that the technology is on that magical cusp where it's just starting to be market-available and will no doubt sooner or later start snowballing down that investment dream-slope of exponential market growth.

Here's what I need - who has it (salable fuel cell technology and production capabilities) now and who is likely to become VHS and not Beta, as it were. I know that the Ballard fuel cell is (or at least was) the gold standard. Does Ballard Electronics still own it and in what incarnation do they currently exist as a company? Is GE the way to go, being the country's largest producer of power and power-sucking appliances (hey, supply and demand in one company is what makes Microsoft investers very happy), or is it simply to "blue-chippy" to increase radically enough in value, despite the prospective fuel cell boom, to make it worth my while? What's the deal? Who's got any idea of where I should probably invest my money to turn a handy profit (not gunning for an island in the south Pacific, or anything - just enough to keep the rest of the world off my back without breaking said spinal column).

Computer question - you know those little drop-down thingies that have your e-mail address and login name and so on in them? The ones you click to get to to save re-typing your screen name every time you come to a form? Yeah, those. How do I delete old, unused, misspelled, or embarassing addresses and names from them and can I do it without simply deleting the whole bunch of them and starting over? I've tried the two or three things that my computer-weenie brain could think of, to no avail. Any help, oh masters of the geek universe?

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), September 23, 2001

Answers

Soni, can't help you with the investment advice, other than to say I think it's still a little early to say which way the technology will go, if or when.

On those little drop-down list thingies, it's EASY, it's SO SIMPLE. Don't TELL me you don't know how? Well, they don't tell you, and I didn't know either until a month or two ago. Simply bring up the list as if you were going to use it, slide the highlight over the one you want to delete (say you've got Sonik there, next to Soni, highlight Sonik), then hit the delete key. Done.

-- Don Armstrong (darmst@yahoo.com.au), September 23, 2001.

I can give you a list of tickers to research from. Ballard (BLDP) is still very much in business and the big player. Their stock had a great day on Friday, up 18% that day. It's a very volatile sector and news sensitive. Along with fuel cells you might want to look at some of the microturbine companies, similar concepts and good future. Capstone (CPST) is the one with the best prospects and good management. Investing in fuel cell companies is still high risk speculation so be cautious. Fuel Cell Energy (FCEL) is another big player and popular momentum stock in the sector. Same with most of the following

ENER, HPOW, IMCO, MCEL, PLUG(some joint ventures with GE), SATC.

-- Dave (something@somewhere.com), September 23, 2001.

Soni, I'm curious why you think fuel cells are the wave of the future? You are aware, I assume, that they require a hydrogen source to operate, usually propane or natural gas. I had an interesting conversation with a gentleman promoting hydrogen/fuel cells at the Common Ground Fair in Unity, Maine, over the weekend. He grudgingly admitted to me that it's more energy efficient to burn the propane or natural gas in an efficient internal combustion generator than it is the run the same fuels through a fuel cell, in terms of the electricity produced. The ONLY advantage he could cite for fuel cells was that they are less polluting, although not by much since burning those gases is already relatively innocuous compared with gasoline or diesel. So it seems to me that, based on that, the future market for fuel cells is pretty limited. If I want a unit that will power my house, why wouldn't I buy a propane-fueled generator instead of a fuel cell that uses more propane to produce the same amount of electricity? What you need is a cheap source of energy to create the initial hydrogen -- wind or solar power, for example, to power an electrolysis cycle with water. And I frankly don't see energy getting any cheaper in the near future.

-- Cash (Cash@andcarry.com), September 23, 2001.

that's a good point Cash. Those fuel cell stocks are great trading vehicles because they are volatile and favored by momentum traders but I wouldn't be so quick to be a long term investor. Capstone CPST is a maker of microturbine engines and generators like you described. I'm not saying I'd load up on any stock for an investment right now but anyway, here's their website; www.microturbine.com

-- Dave (something@somewhere.com), September 24, 2001.

Cash, here's why: because the fuel cell is EASY. The American people are not excatly known for their love of hard physical work, and when fuel cells go marketable, the general public is who will be buying most of them. The generator may produce more electricity for it's fuel usage, but it's loud, makes more visible pollution (what you don't see, you don't think about usually) and some of them are hard to start. They have moving parts that go bad, need work, and you have to call in a mechanic who knows generators. Fuel cells have no moving parts (except for an exhaust fan), and are predicted to last about 20 years (probably longer than a gen, but I don't know about that. Certainly longer than a gen will go without repairs), don't have to be "winterized" and seasonally pampered, and your kids can play around them (and even on them) safely.

Plus, the average American would feel much more "statusfied" showing off their brand new natural gas fuel cell, sitting silently in the corner of their basement/family room, gleaming in the fancy recessed lighting, than taking Biff and Buffy Jones trudging out to see the generator housed in the shed out back, roaring its way through their supply of fuel and pouring out exhaust.

Also, fuel cells are plug and play, or will be by then. No fancy gadgetry to figure out, no bizarre and arcane formulas to headscratch over (it'll all be done for them by the time they make it marketable - if your house uses this much a year, whatever it says on your electric bill, get this size cell. Free Installation!).

Fuel cells look and feel "high-techie" and forward thinking, very cutting edge and futuristic. Having a generator makes you look like some weirdo, isolationist, home-schooling hermit-type you read about in those "She Went Back to Her Roots - and Stayed!" articles in Family Blather magazine. Shudder shudder.

Thanks for the drop-down hint. IT WORKED! Cool. Learning all the time.

-- Soni (thomkilroy@hotmail.com), September 24, 2001.

wow, nice day so far in these and the market in general. CPST up 20% just today, I'd hate to chase these at this point though if I was an investor. Probably settle back a bit. This may just be a short-covering rally.

-- Dave (something@somewhere.com), September 24, 2001.

Same question, Soni. If you don't want a clean, quiet, efficient generator running in the backyard, sending excess power into the grid or a battery bank, why not just pull the power off the grid in the first place? Seems to me it would be more efficient energywise. Again, I don't see propane or natgas getting any cheaper. In fact, current events seem to indicate that we'll see all forms of petro-energy getting a lot more expensive.

-- Cash (Cash@andcarry.com), September 24, 2001.

To clear ALL entries in the drop down lists in Internet Explorer, choose Tools...Options from the menu at the top of the browser.

Choose the Content Tab.

Near the bottom of the form there is a "Auto Complete" button.

Click it and you will be shown another form that has buttons to "Clear Forms" and "Clear Passwords".

You can also set whether or not you even want this feature as well as if it prompts you to save passwords. Hope that helps.

-- Tonya Bednarick (tbednarick@hotmail.com), September 25, 2001.