These portfolios are geared to hands-off investors having neither the time nor the interest in selecting and rebalancing individual funds.

Not that I care very much what they are, anything from Euro-dollars to stock 'in suitably selected off-shore funds.

Now there is another way to select funds, or to run a reality check on the other methods - computer software for investors.

Financial advisers are increasingly turning to no-fee brokerage services as a means of selecting funds for customers.

Typically, investors can select funds that keep fixed proportions of stocks and bonds.

The tricky part is to select the right stock mutual funds.

Q. What advice do you have for investors trying to select mutual funds?

Nevertheless, most investors rely heavily on track records to select funds.

Fee-only financial counseling can help a client select the right fund or funds, with no loads to pay on the amount invested.

(It selects certain funds for you and charges you 1 percent a year on top of the funds' fees.)