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CNET editors' rating:
4.0
stars
Excellent
Detailed editors' rating - Average user rating: 1.0 stars out of 8 reviews
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Product summary
The
good: QuickBooks 2008 offers better help for beginners; improved integration with Google Maps, Microsoft Outlook, and online business directories; new secure server for routing QuickBooks files to accountants.
The
bad: Overall, the upgrades to QuickBooks 2008 are fairly minor.
The
bottom
line: QuickBooks Premier 2008 remains the top small-business accounting program. Its guidance for novices is top-notch, and it comes in a variety of editions tailored for specific industries. Version 2008 isn't an essential upgrade for QuickBooks 2007 users, but it's a good buy for users of earlier versions, and for anyone new to accounting software.
Specifications: License qty: 1 user ; License type: Complete package ; Min Operating system: Microsoft Windows XP SP2 or later , Microsoft Windows Server 2003 , Microsoft Windows Vista ; ; See full specs
Price range: $305.00 - $399.99
CNET editors' review
- Reviewed on: 09/28/2007
However, Intuit's annual upgrade cycle demands new features every fall, and QuickBooks' designers manage to come up with some worthwhile stuff, particularly for new users. The new Coach Tips, for instance, help rookies learn the steps necessary for specific accounting tasks, such as how to create a bid, then convert it to an invoice. The upgraded Help system offers better content sensitivity, which is a fancy way of saying that QuickBooks is now smarter at dispensing advice relevant to the task at hand. Version 2008 also integrates nicely with Google Maps, making it easy to get directions to, say, a business address in your customer database. It also works better with Microsoft Outlook, and simplifies the task of sending a QuickBooks company file to your accountant.
As in the past, QuickBooks comes in several flavors, and prices have risen for the first time in five years. The Pro edition provides a fairly sophisticated assortment of payroll, invoice, and expense-tracking tools. Premier, which we tested, comes in industry-specific versions, and it adds business-forecasting and inventory-management features. At the low end, QuickBooks Simple Start offers basic invoicing and check-writing tools--probably the best choice for start-ups or very small shops with few or no employees.
Setup and interface
A sophisticated accounting program isn't easy to master, even one as user-friendly as QuickBooks. Version 2008 has upgraded its user guidance in several ways, and the results are good. The flowchart-style main interface now features QuickBooks Coach, a help window anchored in the upper-right corner. The Coach has two buttons: View Tutorials provides one-click access to the instructional videos in the QuickBooks Learning Center; and the more helpful Coach Tips guides you through a particular task.
Say, for instance, you're not sure how to process a sales order. If you click Show Coach Tips, the main screen darkens and information icons appear. Next, click the icon beside Sales Orders, and QuickBooks highlights the steps involved in processing an order. Drag the mouse over each icon, or step, in the workflow, and a text window explains that step. Of course, longtime users may find these training wheels annoying. If so, it's easy to turn off this feature by clicking the Hide Coach Tips button.
Features
QuickBooks' core accounting tools have been honed to precision over the years. As a result, they don't change much from one upgrade to the next. Rather than fix what isn't broken, Intuit has chosen to add value by incorporating business-oriented features that expand QuickBooks' usefulness beyond its bean-counter niche.
We saw this trend in QuickBooks 2007, which added the ability to upload inventory information to Google Base, thereby increasing your online visibility. Version 2008's new WebListings feature expands on this slightly by automatically uploading your business information to top online directories, including Google Maps, Yahoo Local, Yellow Pages.com, and SuperPages.com. QuickBooks may not be a full-fledged e-commerce tool just yet, but it's moving in that direction.
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Where to buy
QuickBooks Premier 2008:
$305.00 - $399.99
| store | price | in stock? | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
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$399.99 | Yes |
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$306.50 | Yes |
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Trinity Liquidations Inc
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$305.00 | No |
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