Customer Reviews

QuickBooks Premier 2006 [Old Version]

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I've been beta testing Quickbooks for many years and often will recommend an upgrade for my clients and friends....this version will be the first that I recommend that everyone upgrade to. The interface is more intuitive than ever, the program works quickly and best of all the new customer [and vendor] centers easily provide a snapshot view of any customer in an instant. Integration with Outlook is also seamless.

This is definitely worth the cost to upgrade, and if you are using other software you really want to check it out.

My first impression of this new release is positive - the new centers provide concise information in a snap shot manner that is very easy to use. As a Mac user I have been running QB Premier 2005 in Virtual PC environment for a year or so with no problems. The upgrade to 2006 is a bit more challenging. When you try to run the main "setup.exe" I received an immediate error message and the install program crashed. The "work-around" to this is to open the folder on the CD called "QBOOKS" and run the "setup.exe" program in the folder. For whatever reason that one works in Virtual PC while the other one does not. Intuit will not support Virtual PC questions so don't even waste your time on hold... good luck.

I believe it is important to say that I am a QuickBooks ProAdvisor. As a technical consultant to small businesses, I began supporting QuickBooks several years ago after I saw how it benefited my clients.

I began useing QuickBooks myself in 1999 for my business. This version is one of the best advances I have seen. The new home page shows the various work-flows in an easy to understand format, making it easy to get to the form I need with one click. I really like the new "Centers" for customers, vendors and employees. Most of the information I need when looking for history with a customer or vendor is available when I click on the customer or vendor name. With one more click I can easily see the original transaction. I used to have to go through several screens to get to the information I needed.

The industry customization in the Premier Edition is a great addition and well worth the additional investment. I have a client using the Contractor Edition. The Contractor Center provides a quick glance at how the business is doing. The Job Cost reporting is an excellent tool to help better manage the business by comparing actual to estimated costs. They have been able to improve their estimates based on the information QuickBooks makes available to them.

The key to having the information you need is to make sure you get it setup properly in the beginning. Spend some time reviewing the excellent on-line training and help before you setup your company files. If you don't like reading the instructions, another option would be to get the help of a local QuickBooks ProAdvisor for assistance.

I highly recommend it.

Nice features, much easier to see all customer or vendor information at a glance. No longer have to go to different screens to see contact information and ledger histories. Time savings for this alone are worth upgrading.

I am a solo family medicine physician and have been using the Quickbooks Pro series since 2003. At first, I was a little upset with being forced to upgrade my QB Pro 2003, however once I installed the new Premium 2006, I must say I am very pleased.

From the beginning, everything has changed just a small bit, however in a very good way. In my past version of QB Pro 2003, I had to toggle between different screens in order to move from deposits to writing checks, etc. In Premium 2006 this is no longer the case. A very easy to use and intuitive home page shows everything you need to use. Each different tool is one simple click away. I very much like the new enhanced payroll option in that I can now print out my state tax forms along with my federal forms. In the past, it would take an hour or two out of my family time in order to fill in those little boxes and double check each figure with my CPA. Now I print out each form and am finished in less than 10 minutes.

I would highly recommend this product to any solo or small group practice. The versatility and power found in Quickbooks Premium allows me to keep track of my finances personally. The added convenience of the payroll services just makes this product an even better buy. Yes, there are enough subtle differences between the Pro and Premium version to justify spending a few extra dollars. I would definitely buy this software title again.

I have been supporting QuickBooks as a financial and technical consultant for small businesses for over a dozen years. This year's version added a neat feature that allows you to see all of your customer's invoices, payments, estimates, - all in the same window - just by clicking on a customer in the list. No more multiple clicks to create customer reports. It is just plain easy, and the information pops up on your screen immediately. Congratulations to Intuit on a job well done!

Building on the Intuitive QuickBooks Pro interface and SQL database, QuickBooks Premier enables firms to scale - merely by clicking on a button and paying the difference. This ensures no work is lost. There is a whole new menu dedicated to specific Industries. While the estimate can have multiple options, when the customer places an order, the Sales Order function enables QuickBooks to saddle up for the ride. It generates Purchase Orders with the click of a button, and when goods are received, keeps track of who it is for. Invoices are generated from the sales order as well, and partial invoicing keeps track so I don't leave money on the table. I use the email function all the time, sending pdf attachments and cc:g myself so there's a time stamp.

To address the problem of sharing large files, there is a new Portable Company File (much like a Zip file) which compresses files for emailing.
I have also grown to appreciate the online banking auto-reconciliation function - I log in to the bank every morning, and watch as transactions appear and then get matched with my books, leaving me only unreconciled transactions.

QuickBooks also enables integration with third party software - there is a legion of industry specific solutions that help with core business operations. With 2006, QuickBooks has moved from being a software to a Business Operations System.

I use this program daily and it is awesome! It has lots of great new features especially the new home page that has the customer, vendor and employee centers where you can now see all of the information in one place. The features and functionality of the program are everything any small to mid size business needs to run their company from a financial point of view. Great improvements over previous versions.

The title pretty much says it all.

The on-line update feature never worked. Intuit's technical support couldn't figure out why and gave up. The on-line payroll update feature failed for the same reason.

After 7 months of use, the E-mail Forms function quit working. The technical support representative didn't know what the PDF files were, and repeatedly had to ask for help. The final "resolution" was to blame my computer instead of explaining the Amyuni 1796 error.

All of this has cost more than 5 hours of being on the phone with Intuit's technical support and no resolution of the software problems.

I will not recommend any of Intuit's products based on their non-resolution of these software problems.

The fact that they call this premier is a little overdone. The reality is that this is the "Pro" version with a few bells and whistles which in most cases do not warrant the additional price.