Customer Reviews

QuickBooks Pro 6.0 2004 for Mac

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

 

 

While it's great to see Quickbooks on the Mac OS X platform, the program has two fatal flaws that most Mac users should think seriously about prior to purchasing and expecting it to work back and forth between Windows and Mac (roud-tripping) -

First, it won't allow for the download of credit card or bank statements like each Windows version since 2002. I suspect that was a very highly requested feature since it was touted at the beginning of the beta period but has not be implemented. Why?

Second, if a Windows file is open in the Mac, any downloaded credit card or bank statement information that was present on the Windows file that has not been input into the chart of accounts is lost when the file is open on a Mac (and therefore not even available on Windows when the file is sent back from a Mac to a PC). At least Intuit could have put that info in a "holding" location for use when the file got back to Windows rather than stripping it out completely.

So much for cross-platform compatibility and round-tripping.

Small business owners need to be aware that this program uses Aatrix Top Pay for the payroll function. The payroll package has a goofy user interface, but what bothers me is that you need to pay Aatrix about $130 a year to get tax table data updated. The program has no options to the tax table information. It strikes me pretty steep to pay $130 yearly for updates to the tax tables. The payroll function also makes mistakes on printouts of the check stubs when checks need to be reprinted. It also drops summaries of amounts paid year to date when something like a bonus is not included in a pay period. Aatrix did not reply to eMails regarding these bugs. I have searched for another pay package that can be used with QB Pro 6 for the Mac, but no one else provides a solution.

The Aatrix gets by on payroll, but has definite problems and you will pay over a hundred a year for software updates. There are no other software options for Payroll in Quickbooks Pro 6 for Mac.

A nasty little secret - Intuit does not support multi-user access in Quickbooks for Macintosh, so a small business with 2 - 3 people can't all have the financials open - must use one at a time, have to close out to let someone else open the system. Very disappointing! They seem to have no interest or commitment to fixing this flaw.

Also the web version only works on PCs, so that isn't an option either.

Good package overall, but this is a killer problem for us - we're looking to switch to something else - MYOB, etc.

As a long-time small business owner in the technology sector, I have seen my share of good and bad software and Quickbooks Pro 6 for Mac ranks right up there with the worst of the rollouts. The program is chock full of bugs, it is unstable, and although all of this is well documented, there are no fixes or workarounds provided by Intuit.

The interface for the payroll program that accompanies this software is quirky, counter-intuitive, frustratingly temperamental and the tax table costs are above and beyond the operating cost of the software and they are excessive. Although the software can be made to work, it is an arduous, tedious, and mind-numbing experience.

Intuit's "support" of this product is maddeningly incomplete and difficult to use unless you pony up the cash to purchase a kinder and gentler experience from them. Personally, I strongly object to this situation where the software has mission-critical bugs and crashes on a regular basis with or without loss of data and yet Intuit essentially forces you to purchase support by holding out the hope that you can get the software working properly through some personal assistance.

Despite my misgivings, I certainly gave this software the boyscout try--dutifully purchasing "support" and trying all of the inane solutions the support team could come up with--all to no avail. I'm told that their team is working on my problems and a solution will hopefully be available in an upcoming release--whenever that may be. Unfortunately, I have a company to run, so I am writing off all of my time and effort and retreating to other more reliable solutions. So, after a long and frustrating journey, I am writing this to serve as a lighthouse to others so that you may perhaps avoid crashing on Intuit's rocky coastline like I did.

Running Aatrix payroll is anything but user-friendly. Aatrix goes out of their way say how Mac-friendly they are, yet the integration into QuickBooks is not seemless. I gave up, and switched my license to Windows 2000 running under Virtual PC on my Mac.

QuickBooks for Mac itself is the same as it's always been - a very forgiving accounting program with a decent interface. If you don't need payroll, I'd give it 5 stars.

The Mac version (6) just doesn't work like it should. I tried updating my company files from the windows version 2002- it took a great deal of time with tech support and there was no way it could be done by just reading the manual.
The fatal flaw however is with the payroll module by Aatrix. This thing is horrible. I might as well use a spread sheet. It would be easier!

Not a bad software, but the caveat is that you MUST pay every year to upgrade in case you are planning to get new TAX TABLES. After your software is only one year old, it WILL NOT run the new TAX TABLES. Believe it or not.

Firstly, I must say that I have no problems with the functionality of Quickbooks 6. It works fine for what I need, I've experienced little to no bugs or problems, and I actually like it. This review is written for those who will need to do PAYROLL, and is therefore aimed at the Aatrix part of the package:

I rarely ever write reviews, but felt compelled to do so after seeing that I am apparently one of many who have been beaten to a pulp by Intuit's (for Mac) use of Aatrix Payroll software.

A few weeks ago I resorted to searching the web for answers to my MANY Aatrix issues as my recent support calls to Aatrix regarding THEIR BUGGY SOFTWARE GLITCHES had me on hold for 3 hours (but only a mere 45 minutes the next day). And no, it was NOT an 800 number. The tech staff was very nice and helpful, but 3 HOURS ON HOLD????? I'm NOT exaggerating. Thank god for speaker phones, but it still ruined my day. What I did find on the web was LEGIONS of people having the same woes as me.

I do give Aatrix credit for stepping in when Intuit failed to support the Mac community by not including this basic payroll function in their for Mac products. However, after using (and being abused) by Aatrix for the past 5 years, I finally reached my limit and searched for a Mac-based payroll alternative. Believing that I was somehow stuck with Aatrix, I was thrilled to find another company that not only makes one, but makes a far cheaper, easier, and IMHO superior program:

CheckMark Payroll. They even sell it here at Amazon.com

And the best part is, YOU CAN IMPORT TO QUICKBOOKS. So far all my pay data has landed safely and perfectly in QB6. I could go point-for-point and compare, but please take my word. It is SOOOOOOO much simpler to use. No more jumping through hoops, no bugs, no missing numbers, no crashes, works like a charm, AND CHEAPER. Yes the Aatrix comes free now if you buy QB (I stuck to my old classic QB4 merely to avoid having to do tax reports and forms and such all in Aatrix, and therefore have paid probably $1000. in version and tax table updates), but you'll want to bash your head against the nearest concrete wall before too long. My head still hurts, by the way. My advice would be to buy the QB6 if you want it, but forget Aatrix all together. You'll waste far more time (=money) on this "initially free" program than the cost of buying CheckMark.

Thank you CheckMark. Thank you, thank you, and thank you!

Data is constantly corrupted causing Quickbooks 2006 to constantly and eventually crash on Macs. I recommend steering clear of all Intuit products until they manage to keep data integrity. Nothing like being unable to use your accounting software because it keeps crashing despit data verification and rebuilds. You have been warned. I wish I was.

I have been using version 5 for a couple of years now but would like the ability to download my bank statements since my banking institution is offering this for free for a year. However, after reading centuryvii's review I don't think I will be upgrading since Pro 6 doesn't offer this feature as well.
I was on the phone for quite some time with QuickBooks/Intuit but never did get a straight answer to this question.
I was hoping that downloading would be able as it is with Quicken but unfortunately...