To Buy Or Not To Buy?

That is the question that vexes travelers seeking air tickets--buy, or wait in hope of a price drop? Thanks to computer scientist Oren Etzioni, an answer may be just a few mouse clicks away. Etzioni's site Farecast.com original name was, of course, Hamlet--provides the lowest fare on a route, a 90-day price history and, using a novel predictive algorithm, a tip to "buy now" or "wait," along with a figure indicating how confident Farecast is in its advice. (Flyers buy directly from the airlines.) Boston and Seattle are currently the only searchable points of origin at Farecast, which launched...

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