About the question on ETF's, Exchange Traded Funds are somewhat like mutual funds in the sense that the fund value depends on the stock/commodity it owns. But unlike mutual funds ETF's are NOT managed and the underlying stock/commodity remains fixed similar to an index like sensex or nifty. You can trade ETF's like futures.
Correct me if i'm wrong but i think the NIFTY future that we trade is an ETF similar to the SPY (aka SPIDER) of united states which is based on the S&P index.
advantages of an ETF:
1) Not Managed (well that could be a disadvantage for some)
2) Commissions and other fees are low compared to mutual funds (no paying fund managers etc.)
Hope this helps
Happy New Year 2010 to all
-neil