Invention + money making

Okay, I got two questions here, and I could really use some help.

1. What the heck am I supposed to do in the invention skill? I played through the tutorial last night, and the concept is pretty cool, but it's not clear to me what I can do to level up the skill. I'm at level 5 now, and I've discovered everything I can at this point. I can keep dismantling stuff but I'm just crawling along right now. Is it supposed to be this way, or am I missing something?

2. I had just enough cash to buy a bond and get my membership started back up for two more weeks. That means I've got two weeks to come up with the cash for another bond, to avoid selling off my bank. Before, I could count on a solid 3-5m per hour from qbd. However, my computer is nearly half my age and I don't trust it to let me play dangerous activities anymore. Until I can replace the computer, I need something safe I can do to earn gp. I'm maxed, other than invention, so just about anything else is on the table.