IN THE 1990S,

the big online brokerages promulgated the notion that all you needed to trade like a Wall Street pro was a computer and an Internet connection. Ironic, then, that they've done so little to offer their customer the sort of unvarnished, independent stock research that would help them do just that.

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Consider the paltry offerings at E*Trade Group, the nation's third-largest online brokerage, which bills itself as a diversified online financial-services firm. It's true that E*Trade customers can buy not only stocks and mutual funds online, but also certificates of deposit from the broker's online subsidiary E*Trade Bank. Yet when it comes to independent stock research, all E*Trade supplies its customers is free access to stock and market reports from Standard & Poor's, one of the big three corporate credit-rating agencies. An E*Trade spokeswoman says customers can also get financial advice by subscribing to E*Trade Financial Advisor, a joint venture with the accounting firm Ernst & Young. But that service costs $149 a year for customers with less than $100,000 in assets. And much of that advice is geared toward issues like asset allocation or tax planning, not picking stocks.

In the wake of Enron's collapse and the mushrooming investigation into the conflicts of interest between stock research and investment banking on Wall Street, there's a growing cry coming from Main Street for more and better independent stock analysis. Will the online brokers rush in to fill the gap? Don't bank on it. As we pointed out recently, most independent research shops charge so much for their reports often five and even six figures that only institutional investors or wealthy individuals can afford to buy them. And online brokers aren't willing to dip into their own pockets to boost their research offerings. The seven we contacted for this story either wouldn't comment on that prospect or said they had no current plans to do so. For the time being, then, here's what they offer:

An Independent Broker Is Hard to Find
A look at the independent stock research that can be found at several leading online brokerages and made available to all customers.
Brokerage	Independent Stock Research Offerings	Description
Fidelity
	Computrade/MarketEdge	Trading tip/strategies
	Standard & Poor's	Stock reports
	Argus Research	Stock and market reports
	Thomson Financial/First Call	Various research reports
TD Waterhouse
	Ford Investor Services	Stock reports and graphs
	Argus Research	Stock and market reports
	Thomson Financial/First Call	Various research reports
	Standard & Poor's	Stock and mutual fund reports
	Standard & Poor's	Stock reports
	Thomson Financial/First Call	Various research reports
	Schwab Center for Investment Research	Stock research and reports
Harris Direct
	Standard & Poor's	Stock reports
	Morningstar	Uses star system to rate mutual funds and stocks
	Zacks Advisor	Stock reports and ratings
	Computrade/MarketEdge	Trading tips/strategies
	Morningstar	Uses star system to rate mutual funds and stocks
Datek Online*
	Standard & Poor's	Stock reports
	Standard & Poor's	Stock reports