Showing posts with label office management software. Show all posts
Showing posts with label office management software. Show all posts

6/02/2012

G7 Productivity VC08-2791 Versacheck Gold 2008 Review

G7 Productivity VC08-2791 Versacheck Gold 2008
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I've used VersaCheck for a long time, beginning with the 2000 edition. The product has always been extremely difficult to use and has almost no support from the publisher. I've managed to develop work-arounds for nearly all of the weird or frustrating behavior of the program, continuing to use it because it is a much lower-cost solution for printing small business checks than Quicken. The product also supports check safety features and [supposedly] postal address features that Quicken does not provide.
I've been locked in a totally unproductive struggle with Customer Support for almost four months over the matter of printing postal bar codes. It is my assertion that since VersaCheck does print bar codes when it is used as the checkbook for a business, it also should print bar codes when intercepting a print data stream from Quicken that contains a correct ZIP+4 code. It took nearly two months before VersaCheck Customer Support would acknowledge that the program would not print postal bar codes with Quicken check data. During that time, all responses to my support requests were the same: a brief tutorial on how to print from Quicken, totally ignoring my issue.
Eventually I developed a work-around that partially works, by importing a QIF file from Quicken (a function which receives several pages of treatment in the Help files!) Unfortunately, that also deletes entries from the VersaCheck address book, necessitating manual editing of each payee address every time a check is printed for a payee. Instead of acknowledging that QIF file importing was not working properly, it took six weeks to obtain a response that said "...newer versions of Quicken do not support QIF files." Duh! Quicken 2007 certainly DOES export QIF files for other programs. You'd think that for a product which is supposed to integrate with Quicken, the developers and Customer Support might actually have used the products.
Also in the 2008 version, there is a new metered usage scheme for printing checks... after you've exhausted the licensed count, you must pay G7 Productivity Systems a fee to unlock the program so you can print more! This seriously changes the economics of using the program.
Other annoyances include: A much-touted feature is the verification of US addresses against a commercial ZIP+4 code database--but without warning, the service was terminated in August 2007. Their high-capacity magnetic ink toner cartridges do NOT work successfully with several H-P printers in common use, as as the G85 All-in-One series and the DeskJet 870 and 890 series, but once the cartridges are opened and tried (unsuccessfully) in one of those printers, G7 will not accept returns. Once I received a package from G7 containing a purchased new version of the program which had an old CD in the package: G7 refused to accept a return as the CD envelope had been opened. In another instance the package label and documentation contained an INVALID serial number and G7 refused to accept a return. In both these cases, I had to pay an upgrade fee to get a current CD and serial number.
Summary: the program is difficult to setup properly to use with small business checks, especially if you wish to include logos. Help files are almost useless except for the simplest How-To entries. Despite misleading packaging and product descriptions, the product does not print postal bar codes for checks written with Quicken. Customer Support of the product is essentially non-existent, based on their total unresponsiveness to my issues. G7 quality control on software development, product packaging, and supplies is atrociously bad.


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5/17/2012

Timeslips by Sage 2009 Review

Timeslips by Sage 2009
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Overall a robust and reliable product, but:
Expect to spend another couple hundred dollars a year for support, either on a plan or at ~$50 per call.
Doesn't run on Linux. That's a huge downfall for a business product. If you want the stability of running on a dedicated Windows server instead of a user machine, it'll cost you an additional user license for the server in addition to each user.

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5/10/2012

Church Office Pro (4 CD-ROM) Review

Church Office Pro (4 CD-ROM)
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I find this very useful at church, it makes a lot of the things I used to do manually simple and quick, and changes are quick too.
One thing is missing, which my daughter gave me and works great. OpenOffice.org, which is like Microsoft Office and opens all of my Word documents but is absolutely free. So our church council had no trouble approving it!
So yes, get this product, and get OpenOffice.org (here on Amazon, the OpenOffice.org Resource Kit book and CD), and you will have an excellent set of software.

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This four-CD set is designed to help organize any church library or office. It helps put in order the vast quantity of materials the average pastor can accumulate: meeting notes, biblical passages, prayers, hymnals, etc. Includes useful information such as "Preacher's Illustrations and Jokes," a library of sermon ideas, and a variety of clip art for church newsletters.

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4/01/2012

Marketing Plan Pro 6.0 Review

Marketing Plan Pro 6.0
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
I am a professional marketing manager, and this product was a great disappointment. We purchased it because of the great reviews, but I found it to be very cumbersome. The entire program is created in some sort of Web design software, and your documents are formatted in HTML. If you do not like the plain-jane layout that it offers you, YOU MUST GO IN AND EDIT THE HTML CODE to change it. In addition, the entire program was designed around marketing PRODUCTS so if you have a service based industry, or combination, you will spend great amounts of time deleting and adding categories. I finally gave up on the program and transferred everything over to Word. The only thing good about this software is the samples it provides, which I could have obtained free from a textbook. I wish I had my money back.

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Marketing Plan Pro 2003 features everything you need to write a detailed marketing plan quickly. Built-in PlanWizard walks you through creation of the plan, and forecasting worksheets help you plan out your revenue and expenses for each program. Build your strategy and implement it. Include your own graphics, automatically develop full-color, 3-D charts, and complete Microsoft Excel-like financials. Then run the numbers using the thousands of built-in industry profiles. Marketing Plan Pro includes 70 sample marketing plans.

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2/19/2012

WinZip 15 Standard Plus Review

WinZip 15 Standard Plus
Average Reviews:

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I am old enough to remember using PKZIP on DOS machines and several early WinZip versions for Windows. Starting with the previous version (14) WinZip would work with Windows 7, so what does this newer version bring to the table? Basically you get a cleaner interface, a desktop "gadget" which allows you to drag and drop files on your desktop, faster speed for video encoding (extremely useful in this YouTube age!) and more email integration, including GMail and others. You can also define multiple e-mail addresses and accounts. The price is quite reasonable, but you can try it out first for a trial period before deciding to register and unlock the program. WinRar, a competing program lets you use the free version without a time limit, but adds annoying "nagware" reminders which get in the way of smooth operations. The Pro version, for $20 more, adds more file manipulation inside the zip folder, especially for photos and graphics files, but I doubt most people will need that extra functionality.


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2/08/2012

Adobe Acrobat X Professional Upgrade Review

Adobe Acrobat X Professional Upgrade
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I have been a user of Adobe products for 20 years. I have upgraded my Creative Suites from its origin to its current CS5 Design Premium. I have recently had trouble installing updates to Illustrator -- and after 6 hours with customer service and technical support was told to uninstall and reinstall, which I did and did NOT solve the problem. They have no answer. I was having the same problem with Acrobat 9 Pro and spent additional WASTED hours. Finally, I decided to upgrade to Acrobat X Pro. I purchased it from Amazon. I tried to install it on my laptop, put in the X serial number and copied the 9 serial number from my registration page at Adobe -- and it did not recognize my serial number as valid. So deleted the 9 serial number and typed it in exactly as it was on the Adobe registration page -- and still not a valid serial number! I finally called Adobe customer service, who could do nothing, and transferred me to technical support. After 45 minutes (!) on the phone, I was given a pin number which activated my Acrobat X Pro on my laptop. I told them that I did not want to keep calling to get a pin number for an installation on my desktop computer and for a new laptop I planned to buy shortly. They said they would look into solving the problem so that my own installation would automatically activate the program. I got a call back from technical support in India and was told that I could only install by calling technical support every time and get an activating pin number. This is TOTALLY INEXCUSABLE! Imagine your hard drive crashing and having to reinstall and spending waiting time, often over 20 minutes and then head time of around 10 minutes just to activate a program from a company whose products you have used for 20 years! The new Acrobat X Pro is NOT WORTH THE TROUBLE!

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Upgrade to Adobe Acrobat X Professional To install an upgrade version of Acrobat X Professional software, you must have an eligible earlier version of Adobe software:
Adobe Acrobat Professional 7, 8, or 9

The Latest Version of Adobe Acrobat: Acrobat X Professional
When it comes to creating and sharing professional-level PDF files—with audio, video, and rich media—there's Adobe Acrobat X Pro, and then there's everything else. Acrobat X helps you increase your productivity and deliver better, more polished work. It's so much more than just a simple PDF creation tool. Also confidently store and share documents through easy-to-use services at Acrobat.com.
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1/19/2012

Microsoft InfoPath 2007 Review

Microsoft InfoPath 2007
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This is a great program for creating forms and collecting data for statistical information. We've just started using it in our agency and it works so well, we'll convert many of our old forms to this format.

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InfoPath 2007 makes it simple to develop XML based data entry forms. Use it to author and view XML documents with support for custom-defined XML schemas. Thenconnect to external systems using XML Web services, for effective sharing, reusing and repurposing of information. InfoPath is the right tool for spreading improved collaboration and decision making throughout your organization.Publish forms to a shared network folder, a Web server, Windows SharePoint Services or as email attachmentsFeatures automatic, silent update downloads

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1/18/2012

QuickBooks Point Of Sale: Pro Version 8.0 With Hardware Review

QuickBooks Point Of Sale: Pro Version 8.0 With Hardware
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
The worst customer service ever in the history of mankind! Most importantly, you do not own anything. Do not think you are purchasing an asset here. You cannot transfer the license after you purchase it. I had to close my business due to the economy, but luckily found someone to purchase my hardware and software. Intuit/Quickbooks will not allow a you to transfer the license, even though they have a form to do so. It is a automated decline. You will not have an sucess getting a person to call you when you respond to their email declining the transfer. They are cocky and rude and will jerk you around telling you to call here and there. As a matter of fact, that is what they do any time you call customer service. Google "hate quickbooks" ort "quickbooks rip off" and see just how many people agree with me.
Their own customer support folks don't seem to know that you cannot transfer the license or anything else when it comes to this software company. I think they keep them in the dark on purpose.
I have dealt with some horrid companies in my time, but these folks take the cake. Stay away from Quickbooks and all Intuit products. They reel you in then they rip you off!

Click Here to see more reviews about: QuickBooks Point Of Sale: Pro Version 8.0 With Hardware

You ring up the sales and Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale Pro takes care of the rest: automatically keeping track of your detailed inventory, customers, sales orders, layaways, and employee commissions.

Replace your cash register with a complete retail management system. We've teamed Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale software with four "must-have" retail hardware peripherals that work together to help you ring up sales and track inventory quickly, easily and accurately.
The Bundle Package Includes:
Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale software.
Bar Code Scanner Make the sale and track inventory all in one by scanning bar codes. No typing saves time and minimizes mistakes.
Receipt Printer Print sales receipts, gift receipts and duplicate slips for credit card signature.
Credit Card Reader Process credit transactions quickly. One swipe enters info into the system where it's automatically submitted for approval.
Cash Drawer Lockable drawer opens automatically when you enter a sale.

Why a complete system?
Software and hardware that were designed to work together A retail management system isn't convenient if the pieces aren't guaranteed to work together. With QuickBooks Point of Sale, your end-to-end needs are covered with one integrated system that automates key processes for you.
Great value We bundle together key point-of-sale hardware items that help you run your store. Sold together at a bundle price that is a better value than purchasing each item separately.
Reliability guaranteed A Point of Sale system doesn't do you any good if it goes down. So we stand behind our system. If something happens and your hardware goes down, our Rapid Replacement Program will replace it fast. And free. It's a service we provide free to customers who purchase the QuickBooks Point of Sale hardware from Intuit.
Support available We offer a variety of support options, both Self-Help and Assisted Resources.
Risk-free Try the integrated system for up to 60 days and if you are not satisfied, you can return the system for your money back.
Additional Hardware Available Additional hardware peripherals are available to extend your functionality.
How Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale Pro 8.0 Can Help You
Get the information you need to run your business See what's selling, what needs restocking, and more with easy one-click reports.
NEW! Inventory Turn Statistic With Point of Sale you now have insight into how quickly you sell through items with the new Inventory Turn Statistic. The Inventory Turn Statistic is a commonly used retail statistic that measures the performance of an item and refers to how often an item "turns over."
See inventory items on hand for any date you choose Simplify your monthly, quarterly and yearly closing procedures. You can easily view quantity on hand and inventory valuation for any date you choose. Improve your cash flow by purchasing the right merchandise in the right quantities at the right time.
See what's moving, what's low, what's on-order See inventory levels for each item as you ring it up. Run real-time reports that show what you've got, what's hot and what you need to reorder. See which items are selling the most now, and whether or not an item's sales have been increasing or decreasing over time. Generate reports to help you keep your most popular items in stock and help you see which items need to be discounted.
Run sales reports for everything you track Break down sales by day, item, employee, payment type and more. Enter commission rates by employee and Point of Sale automatically tracks sales transactions entered by each associate and calculates the correct commissions.
See your most important business information in one customizable view The dashboard gives you access to key business metrics at a glance--all on one screen. Now you can customize the dashboard to only show the information you're interested in. You can add, remove or modify reports; even change the layout and add additional pages.
Automatically track inventory as you ring up sales Point of Sale automatically adjusts inventory figures every time you make a sale, order, or return--which helps you keep your customers' favorite items on-hand without overstocking.
IMPROVED! Suggested Reorder Quantities You now have options how to set reorder quantities in Point of Sale. You can set reorder quantities manually, reorder quantities to the reorder point plus add some additional quantity or choose how may days of supply to have in stock. From there, Point of Sale is able to automatically generate POs based on how you have set your reorder quantities.
Include pictures of inventory items You can now easily upload item pictures directly into Point of Sale. Use them on your web site or to jog your memory when ordering. Pictures can also help prevent loss by catching price tag switching.
Track layaways and sales orders Let customers pay for big-ticket items over time, and track their incremental payments. Create sales orders to track orders that aren't yet paid for, such as backorders or special orders, without impacting your books.
Automate your inventory tracking by scanning barcodes Scan barcodes in batches with our optional Physical Inventory Scanner. This handheld, battery-operated scanner goes wherever you keep your merchandise--even off-site. Bring it back to its cradle, and it updates your Point of Sale inventory records instantly. For items without barcodes you can print your own barcode labels right from the software.
Create and e-mail purchase orders automatically Email purchase orders as PDF files directly from Point of Sale--no printing, faxing, mailing or waiting! Set minimum inventory levels for each item. When inventory reaches that level, Point of Sale automatically suggests creating a purchase order. And you can generate purchase orders with one click.
Ring up sales faster Point of Sale makes ringing up sales a lot easier so you can keep your lines moving quickly.
NEW! Simple Sales Receipt View The new Simple Sales Receipt View provides a simple to learn and use interface designed specifically for the daily use of sales associates that do not need full access to Point of Sale. It features an "all in one" screen workflows, user friendly touch-screen and easy access to common tasks.
NEW! PIN Pad with Signature Capture The new PIN Pad with Signature Capture enables customers to sign for credit card transactions directly on the PIN pad. An electronic copy of the signature is recorded for later retrieval in case of contested charges, and the retailer enjoys improved security and reduced paper clutter. Requires an Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale Merchant Service account.
Barcode scanning saves time and reduces errors Use our Bar Code Scanner to record items in sales receipts instantly--your inventory is automatically updated when the sale is completed. With Point of Sale, you can create bar-coded tags for everything you sell, ensuring you ring up the correct item and price--and keep your inventory up to date.
Accept credit and debit cards with an integrated merchant service Authorize credit card and PIN debit card purchases automatically--and collect tips on credit payments--as you ring up sales. All you need is Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale and an Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale Merchant Service Account.
Web Store
Create a web store that integrates seamlessly with your QuickBooks POS Now it's easier than ever to expand your store to reach customers online. From designing and hosting your web store, to attracting customers, to managing all your inventory, all in one place -- Intuit Storefront for QuickBooks POS is everything you need to start selling online.
Personalize your customer service View each customer's purchase history as you ring up sales, and suggest additional purchases based on past preferences.
Track customer information that matters By tracking your customers' email and shipping addresses, you have what you need to let them know about upcoming sales or new inventory from their preferred manufacturers. Enter your customers' credit card numbers or names as you ring up sales, and see their complete purchasing histories, as well as any additional information you've captured.
Recognize customers with a rewards program Automatically track and reward your best customers with a customizable rewards program. Set up special membership pricing, offer discounts after customers spend a certain dollar amount and more.
Easily communicate with customers Quickly generate letters to your customer and vendors. Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale integrates with Microsoft Word so you can automatically create letters (from standard and custom templates) that are tied to customer orders, former receipts, purchase orders, vendors and more. Plus, you can also send letters to a pre-defined set of customers, for example your best customers, or those customers who have ordered over a certain amount from you.
Create mailing lists and labels Filter your customer lists on selected criteria, such as zip code, type of merchandise purchased or dollar amount spent, to create mailing lists for targeted mail campaigns. You can even create email mailing lists.
Works with key products and services to help you run your store front Point of Sale integrates with services that help serve your customers better and products that help make your business run more smoothly end to end.
Process credit and debit card sales automatically Process transactions right in your QuickBooks Point of Sale software as you ring up sales. All you need is QuickBooks Point of Sale and an Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale Merchant Service Account 3 It's the only credit and debit card processing service that lets you record and authorize transactions in QuickBooks Point of Sale with a single swipe--no need to re-key data.
Gift card service integration available Bring new and repeat customers into your store as they buy and redeem gift cards. Intuit QuickBooks Point of Sale Gift Card Service lets you offer this convenience without the hassles and risks of paper certificates. Just swipe the card through your credit card reader (sold separately), then enter the value. To redeem, swipe the card, then ring up a sale, and the balance is decreased automatically.
Easily transfer sales data to QuickBooks Accounting Software Use QuickBooks Point of Sale with QuickBooks Accounting Software to handle your business end to end--from managing inventory and ringing up sales to tracking finances and running reports. It's easy to set up: The first time you connect Point of Sale to the accounting software, the QuickBooks Connection Wizard walks you through getting everything set up correctly. When the two programs are linked, you can transfer inventory and sales data with the click of a button!
Send time cards to Intuit QuickBooks Accounting software Simplify your payroll process by transferring your employee time cards to QuickBooks Accounting software.
Customize everything from price tags to reports Use ready-made templates or create custom designs for your price tags, receipts, order forms and reports.
Create custom price tags, receipts, and more, without starting from scratch Start with built-in templates for price tags, receipts, order forms, and reports, and "tweak" them with the Document Designer until they're just right for your store. Print them on your standard PC printer, 40-column receipt printer or tag printer.
Customize up to 7 fields each for vendors and customers, 5 for items Custom-label up to 7 fields for vendors and customers, and 5 fields for items, to track the details you need. You can even include the information in reports.
Customize views to see just what you want Add, remove, resize or rearrange the columns in any list view to see customer, vendor, item and inventory information just the way you want it.
Get up and running quickly Answer a few questions in the simple Setup Wizard, import your inventory, customer and vendor lists from Microsoft Excel or QuickBooks Accounting software6 and you're ready to start ringing up sales.
Answer a few simple questions QuickBooks Point of Sale is so easy to set up that many retailers start ringing up sales the first day. Just answer a few simple questions about your business, enter your inventory, and you're ready to go.
Import items and customers from Microsoft Excel Import all of your customers, vendors and inventory items in one quick step from QuickBooks Accounting software or Microsoft Excel. Save hours of typing each entry by hand.
Learn by following examples in the practice file Have a question about a tricky transaction? Go into the practice file to see how it's done. We load this file with three months of sample data for an imaginary retailer. You'll find all types of transactions and situations to use as models for handling your own. You can also use the file to train new employees without putting your own data at risk.
Tutorials help you understand quickly Get up to speed fast with interactive, onscreen video tutorials that walk you through basic tasks such as accepting returns, creating sales receipts, and more.
Adobe Flash Player included QuickBooks Point of Sale includes Adobe Flash Player for quick viewing of video tutorials.
Manage up to 20 stores from one location Manage information for up to 20 stores from one location. With Point of Sale--Multi-Store, you'll know at a glance how each store--as well as your company as a whole--is doing.
NEW! Reorder Points by store You can now set reorder points by each store rather than by the company as a whole. This allows you to customize your inventory based on the sales of each store.
Easily track business, customers and inventory at multiple stores Each store tracks sales, customer information, receipts of merchandise, and merchandise transferred to other stores and sends this information to the "headquarters" store via e-mail or CD. The headquarters store runs company-wide reports, controls inventory and issues purchase orders. And all stores are kept up-to-date with current information of inventories at other locations.
Get more detailed reports It's easy to compare performance across store locations, with multi-store reports. And, if you use QuickBooks accounting software, you can use Class tracking to get a more detailed financial picture of each store.
Schedule your store data exchange Now you can schedule to exchange data between stores every day, automatically! Maintain accurate, up-to-date information at headquarters to help you make the right purchasing plans, pricing decisions, and bookkeeping entries.

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1/06/2012

WinZip 15 Professional Single User CD EN DVD Review

WinZip 15 Professional Single User CD EN DVD
Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)
Note: the Pro version is the same as the Standard and Plus versions, with these additions:
* Display, rotate, and resize images within Zip files using built-in image viewer
* Transfer and backup pictures from supported cameras by clicking a button
* Customize, schedule and automate backup tasks, burn to CD or DVD, upload via FTP
* Email log files on completion of backup tasks
* Set or disable encryption methods
* Zip your email attachments automatically with WinZip Courier (also included with Plus version, but not standard version)
The additional features of the Pro version will be useful to some power users and system administrators, but most people will do fine with the standard version.
PROS:
* an essential tool for most Windows users
* allows you to create a complete set of related files in one file, while retaining the original directory structure, if any
* makes it easy for sharing files by keeping them all together, and by compressing them so they can be transferred faster
* includes an encryption capability to set a password to retrieve files you want to keep confidential
* includes a very useful shell extension for extract, add, or create a new archive
* a Mac edition of WinZip allows you to exchange files with a Mac user who has this program
* extracts from most common archive formats besides zip, including RAR, 7z, TAR, ISO, CAB, and several others
* single-user license agreement allows you to install on a second machine (for non-simultaneous use only), handy for users who have a laptop and a desktop
* can open and view a file in a zip archive without extracting it, by right-clicking on the file and selecting Open.
* works correctly with files made from my older WinZip 9 (standard zip file format), as I expected it would
* the enhanced zip file format - which cannot be read by older versions of WinZip - has a new extension, zipx, to avoid confusion
CONS:
* a couple of very minor inconveniences, described below
UPDATE: I am biased by my habit of using pkzip and WinZip for decades. Some of my friends prefer to use WinRAR and 7zip, so I have added a section describing Alternatives near the end.
WINZIP IS NEARLY ESSENTIAL...
WinZip is one of those tools that I think most PC and Mac users would find essential. The Pros above sum up the reasons. Though disk space is relatively inexpensive these days, and though Windows allows you to compress parts of your file system, it is incredibly useful to be able to create an archive of any number of related or inter-dependent files, including complete directory structures of files, for backup purposes, etc. While compressed media files (jpg, mp3, etc) do not always become smaller in an archive, it is still great to be able to keep a set of files together.
If you want to exchange files, it is convenient to have one file that contains all of the ones you want to share, and compressing it makes the transfer time (via Internet, or a thumb drive) faster. The ability to password-protect an archive makes it safe and convenient to exchange confidential files - for example, getting reports from a financial adviser using a mutually-known password.
Although the zip archive format is essentially a standard on Windows, WinZip extracts files from several other archive standards, including some that are common on Linux. And for Mac users, there is a Mac edition, so you can exchange files with either Windows or Mac users.
For people who need the features I have described, and don't have a program to do it at present, WinZip is a five-star utility.
...BUT IS IT WORTH UPGRADING TO THIS VERSION?
I have been using a licensed copy of WinZip 9.0 for several years. It does everything I need, and I consider WinZip an essential tool. So why would I need to upgrade? I decided to find out when I was offered a chance to review WinZip 15.
First and most important, the newest version still supports the original zip file format, which means that you can still provide archives to others who have an older version of WinZip. However, you need to make sure you select the option to do that, as the newest zip format is not backwards compatible.
Media files such as jpg and mp3 are already in a compressed form, and with my older WinZip 9 (and most other compression programs), it is not possible to compress them further. It is convenient to put several files into one archive, and doing that can make disk storage more efficient and use less space, even without compression. But the newest zip format claims to compress jpg files by 20-25%. I tested it with 714 pictures from India, totalling about 690 MB, and it saved 21% space, but took about twice as long (I did not time it). This only works with the zipx format. The original zip format does not compress jpgs, but it stores them more efficiently than separate files, so it saves 1% compared to separate.
MP3 files are compressed about 1% with either zip or zipx compression. For mp3, zipx takes longer to archive than zip with no obvious benefit.
A folder with 145 MS Office (XLS, PPT) and PDF files totalling 383 MB was compressed by 17% in 73 seconds to the original zip file format. The same folder was compressed by 20% in 143 seconds (almost twice as long) to the new zipx file format.
Actual performance will vary depending on files, but these results represent typical files for me. I ran my tests on a laptop with duocore processor on WinXP. I don't have the previous version of WinZip, so I cannot comment on whether the new zip engine in this version "creates Zipx files 30% to 50% faster than the previous version". Since installing this version also uninstalls previous version, it is not convenient to compare performance with older versions, and I did not. Subjectively, WinZip 15 to zip (standard) format about as WinZip 9, and somewhat slower (with somewhat more compression) for the new zipx format.
The package claims that WinZip has a streamlined interface with more intuitive menus and icons. Except for newer icons, the interface is similar to what I was used to. I don't think it is easier to use, but it was good before, and is still good.
For people who need the features I have described, and don't have a program to do it at present, WinZip is a three-star upgrade, considering benefits to price. WinZip 9 would still be good enough for me, but now that I have WinZip 15, I'll use it instead.
MINOR ISSUES
Windows allows you to select a custom directory to be used for "My Documents", for example when you want to have your home directory on a different drive from the system directory. Most programs correctly locate the new "My Documents" directory if you change it, but WinZip 15.0 does not. But this is never a problem for me, as I normally start WinZip by right-clicking on an archive or a file I want to compress, then selecting WinZip from the popup menu. It always finds the correct directory in this case.
WinZip 15 installed from the CD, and next time I used it, it offered an update for a better compression engine. When it downloaded, it also offered me an unwanted download: Kaspersky Security. Because this is enabled by default, you could get it downloaded and installed by mistake, potentially causing problems for an existing anti-virus program. If you are alert, you can easily decline. Personally, when I'm installing a program, I don't want to be offered a different program, especially when it is a trial version that will nag you to buy an upgrade later. If I wanted that program, I'd go to the Web and download it. This is effectively a paid ad, and I don't want it. But I won't encounter this often, so who cares.
WINZIP COURIER 3.0 INCLUDED
WinZip 15 Pro edition includes a program that works with a few email systems that is said to make it easy to use zip compression with email. This program supports Microsoft Outlook, Yahoo! Mail, Hotmail, and Gmail. But because it does not support my preferred mail client, Thunderbird, I have not tested it. It is easy enough for me to open zip files from Thunderbird with WinZip, so I can already do everything I need, and I don't know how this program could make things easier than they are already.
ALTERNATIVE ARCHIVE PROGRAMS
Zip has been a standard archive format for PC since the DOS days and PKZIP. It is a defacto standard that many people use. However, there are two others worth considering, and they also support the Zip format.
WINRAR is shareware available online. It is compatible with the Zip file format, and offers a few more features over WinZip that will be of use to some power users - advanced self-extracting archive features, additional security features, and support for more human languages. It costs about the same as WinZip Standard.
7zip is a free, open source archive program also available online. It can pack many archive formats (including its native 7z, Zip, and Linux formats) and unpack many others. It claims to offer better compression in Zip format than WinZip. It is localized into even more human languages, self-extracting archive capability, and has most of the other features of WinZip.
Both WinRAR and 7zip have at least some support on Mac and Linux, which is helpful if you need to move files between these platforms and/or Windows.
If I did not already have WinZip, I would be looking at 7zip, and you might want to as well.
BOTTOM LINE: I consider WinZip to be an essential tool for most users, and all power users. But if you are already happy with an older version of WinZip (such as version 9), it may not be an essential upgrade, unless you need to compress jpg files.


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11/30/2011

BMM - Business Management Model IE 11.11; 1 User; 1 Business Scenario Review

BMM - Business Management Model IE 11.11; 1 User; 1 Business Scenario
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BMM allows - when compared with conventional methods - an entirely different approach to plan, steer and control Programs and Projects in the context of business planning.
Project deliverables and their delivery dates and cost/benefit aspects play the key role. Business case calculations, project performance and capacity planning are easily performed.
The clear and precise definitions of project organization, organizations of the external suppliers and their appropriate management roles and responsibilities give substantial support for the project and issue management.
With BMM, we have at the same time for all deliverables close control of delivery dates, quality, resource consumption and cost, budgets and cost/benefits.
BMM controls the interdependency of deliverables amongst different programs and projects, whereby projects can be owned by different companies.
BMM is in perfect coexistence with the project management tools in use by the different projects. For international projects, the concurrent use of multiple languages and the automatic conversion of currencies improve the efficiency of project management.
The learning effort which went into the tutorial was well spent.


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11/19/2011

WinZip 15 Standard Single User CD EN DVD Review

WinZip 15 Standard Single User CD EN DVD
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NOTE: look at prices for various WinZip versions on Amazon. At the time of this writing, a Plus version of WinZip 15 was available at a lower price than this standard edition.
PROS:
* an essential tool for most Windows users
* allows you to create a complete set of related files in one file, while retaining the original directory structure, if any
* makes it easy for sharing files by keeping them all together, and by compressing them so they can be transferred faster
* includes an encryption capability to set a password to retrieve files you want to keep confidential
* includes a very useful shell extension for extract, add, or create a new archive
* a Mac edition of WinZip allows you to exchange files with a Mac user who has this program
* extracts from most common archive formats besides zip, including RAR, 7z, TAR, ISO, CAB, and several others
* single-user license agreement allows you to install on a second machine (for non-simultaneous use only), handy for users who have a laptop and a desktop
* can open and view a file in a zip archive without extracting it, by right-clicking on the file and selecting Open.
* works correctly with files made from my older WinZip 9 (standard zip file format), as I expected it would
* the enhanced zip file format - which cannot be read by older versions of WinZip - has a new extension, zipx, to avoid confusion
CONS:
* a couple of very minor inconveniences, described below
UPDATE: I am biased by my habit of using pkzip and WinZip for decades. Some of my friends prefer to use WinRAR and 7zip, so I have added a section describing Alternatives near the end.
WINZIP IS NEARLY ESSENTIAL...
WinZip is one of those tools that I think most PC and Mac users would find essential. The Pros above sum up the reasons. Though disk space is relatively inexpensive these days, and though Windows allows you to compress parts of your file system, it is incredibly useful to be able to create an archive of any number of related or inter-dependent files, including complete directory structures of files, for backup purposes, etc. While compressed media files (jpg, mp3, etc) do not always become smaller in an archive, it is still great to be able to keep a set of files together.
If you want to exchange files, it is convenient to have one file that contains all of the ones you want to share, and compressing it makes the transfer time (via Internet, or a thumb drive) faster. The ability to password-protect an archive makes it safe and convenient to exchange confidential files - for example, getting reports from a financial adviser using a mutually-known password.
Although the zip archive format is essentially a standard on Windows, WinZip extracts files from several other archive standards, including some that are common on Linux. And for Mac users, there is a Mac edition, so you can exchange files with either Windows or Mac users.
For people who need the features I have described, and don't have a program to do it at present, WinZip is a five-star utility.
...BUT IS IT WORTH UPGRADING TO THIS VERSION?
I have been using a licensed copy of WinZip 9.0 for several years. It does everything I need, and I consider WinZip an essential tool. So why would I need to upgrade? I decided to find out when I was offered a chance to review WinZip 15.
First and most important, the newest version still supports the original zip file format, which means that you can still provide archives to others who have an older version of WinZip. However, you need to make sure you select the option to do that, as the newest zip format is not backwards compatible.
Media files such as jpg and mp3 are already in a compressed form, and with my older WinZip 9 (and most other compression programs), it is not possible to compress them further. It is convenient to put several files into one archive, and doing that can make disk storage more efficient and use less space, even without compression. But the newest zip format claims to compress jpg files by 20-25%. I tested it with 714 pictures from India, totalling about 690 MB, and it saved 21% space, but took about twice as long (I did not time it). This only works with the zipx format. The original zip format does not compress jpgs, but it stores them more efficiently than separate files, so it saves 1% compared to separate.
MP3 files are compressed about 1% with either zip or zipx compression. For mp3, zipx takes longer to archive than zip with no obvious benefit.
A folder with 145 MS Office (XLS, PPT) and PDF files totalling 383 MB was compressed by 17% in 73 seconds to the original zip file format. The same folder was compressed by 20% in 143 seconds (almost twice as long) to the new zipx file format.
Actual performance will vary depending on files, but these results represent typical files for me. I ran my tests on a laptop with duocore processor on WinXP. I don't have the previous version of WinZip, so I cannot comment on whether the new zip engine in this version "creates Zipx files 30% to 50% faster than the previous version". Since installing this version also uninstalls previous version, it is not convenient to compare performance with older versions, and I did not. Subjectively, WinZip 15 to zip (standard) format about as WinZip 9, and somewhat slower (with somewhat more compression) for the new zipx format.
The package claims that WinZip has a streamlined interface with more intuitive menus and icons. Except for newer icons, the interface is similar to what I was used to. I don't think it is easier to use, but it was good before, and is still good.
For people who need the features I have described, and don't have a program to do it at present, WinZip is a three-star upgrade, considering benefits to price. WinZip 9 would still be good enough for me, but now that I have WinZip 15, I'll use it instead.
MINOR ISSUES
Windows allows you to select a custom directory to be used for "My Documents", for example when you want to have your home directory on a different drive from the system directory. Most programs correctly locate the new "My Documents" directory if you change it, but WinZip 15.0 does not. But this is never a problem for me, as I normally start WinZip by right-clicking on an archive or a file I want to compress, then selecting WinZip from the popup menu. It always finds the correct directory in this case.
WinZip 15 installed from the CD, and next time I used it, it offered an update for a better compression engine. When it downloaded, it also offered me an unwanted download: Kaspersky Security. Because this is enabled by default, you could get it downloaded and installed by mistake, potentially causing problems for an existing anti-virus program. If you are alert, you can easily decline. Personally, when I'm installing a program, I don't want to be offered a different program, especially when it is a trial version that will nag you to buy an upgrade later. If I wanted that program, I'd go to the Web and download it. This is effectively a paid ad, and I don't want it. But I won't encounter this often, so who cares.
ALTERNATIVE ARCHIVE PROGRAMS
Zip has been a standard archive format for PC since the DOS days and PKZIP. It is a defacto standard that many people use. However, there are two others worth considering, and they also support the Zip format.
WINRAR is shareware available online. It is compatible with the Zip file format, and offers a few more features over WinZip that will be of use to some power users - advanced self-extracting archive features, additional security features, and support for more human languages. It costs about the same as WinZip Standard.
7zip is a free, open source archive program also available online. It can pack many archive formats (including its native 7z, Zip, and Linux formats) and unpack many others. It claims to offer better compression in Zip format than WinZip. It is localized into even more human languages, self-extracting archive capability, and has most of the other features of WinZip.
Both WinRAR and 7zip have at least some support on Mac and Linux, which is helpful if you need to move files between these platforms and/or Windows.
If I did not already have WinZip, I would be looking at 7zip, and you might want to as well.
BOTTOM LINE: I consider WinZip to be nearly essential for most users, and all power users. But if you are already happy with an older version of WinZip (such as version 9), it may not be an essential upgrade, unless you need to compress jpg files.


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11/10/2011

WinZip Mac Edition 1 Review

WinZip Mac Edition 1
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As long as there have been computers, there have been ways to compress files. One of the earliest compression programs available to consumers was PKZip, named for its developer, Phil Katz, and "zip" for speed, as in Zip Code. The PKZip format is now celebrating its 22nd birthday and is easily the most popular compression technique for the average computer user. One reason for that is that Phil Katz released the process into the public domain and also allowed any file compression program to use the word ZIP in its own name.
Enter WINZIP. WINZIP was first released in 1991, 2 years after the release of PKZip. Developed and released by Nico Mak Computing (who later changed its name to WINZIP Computing), the product is now owned by Corel Corporation. This review covers WINZIP 1.0 for Mac OS X, Snow Leopard edition.
Installation is a breeze. I chose to let it run the setup wizard, which made it even simpler. Once done, it asks for your registration code. If you don't have one, then it lets you use the program for 45 days free of charge. As I understand, the program will continue to work after that time, but with reduced functionality. Since I have not had it installed for 45 days, I can't comment on what actually happens at that time.
Once installed, the program lurks until needed. Double-clicking on a zipped file opens it. Creating a new zip file is exceedingly fast. The first time I did it, I kept looking for the "ZIP IT NOW" button only to realize that it was automatic. The file was already sitting on my desktop. A nice little feature is the "Zip It, Mail It" feature that streamlines the process of compressing files and sending the resulting archive to a friend. It's not a big deal, but it's nice.
Apart from that, there's not much to say. WINZIP works, and it's easy. Zippity doo dah.


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WinZip Mac Edition
Small, safe, swift & simple! View larger.

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QuickBooks Premier Professional Services 2011 Review

QuickBooks Premier Professional Services 2011
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This software is perfect for me - I can track my time, accounts receivable, accounts payable, import my PNC Bank information and even my credit card info. It just takes a little exploration to familiarize yourself with the program if you've never used a recent version of QuickBooks.

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Financial software from QuickBooks offers client-based businesses an easy set of accounting, time tracking, and management tools to help the business be more profitable.
Whether your company has several departments or locations, you can now track the data separately within a single, easy to access report.

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11/02/2011

QuickBooks Credit Card Processing Kit 2010 Review

QuickBooks Credit Card Processing Kit 2010
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Personally speaking, a little confusing to set up. But once everything was in place as it should be it has been a true work horse for me. Wonderful. Thanks Amazon, for your competitive pricing.

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Intuit QuickBooks Credit Card Processing Kit is the low-cost, easy way to get paid. Accept all major credit cards using your computer.

Low cost
No set up fees
No monthly minimum payments
Only $14.95 per month
No terminals to lease/purchase
No long-term contracts or commitments

Accept payments anytime, anywhere Process transactions from your PC Internet connection or call for a voice authorization.
Accept all major credit cards Including Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover, Diners Club/Carte Blanche, and JCB
Technical support LIVE support, available 24/7/365! Have questions? Call us anytime at 1-800-558-9558. We'll walk you through the process step by step.
Money back guarantee Money back satisfaction guarantee: If you're not satisfied, return it within 60 days of purchase with your dated receipt for a full refund of the purchase price.
Invoice/estimate capability Create customized estimates and invoices for your business.
Billing/tracking capability Bill your customers regularly and track payments.
How it Works Accepting credit cards has never been easier.
Enter payment data into the Payment screen. Simply click the box titled "Process Credit Card When Saving" to charge your customer's credit card. You can also record and process credit card transactions through the Sales Receipts screens in a similar method.
Verify Credit Card Information After entering the amount of the sale on the Payment screen, you will be prompted to enter your customer's credit card information. Once this is done, simply click Submit and the credit card will be processed.
Face-to-face If you do face-to-face transactions, use our card reader. Credit card data will be automatically transmitted to the Intuit QuickBooks Credit Card Processing Kit you can take advantage of our low 1.79% card-swiped rate.
After the Card is Processed
Each business day, your transactions are sent to Intuit QuickBooks Merchant Service for processing.
Usually within two to three business days, the funds will be released and deposited into your bank account. Transaction fees are debited at this time.
Each month, you will receive a statement with your account activity.

Credit Card Processing Fees

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10/29/2011

Timeslips by Sage 2009 Multiuser 5 Workstations Review

Timeslips by Sage 2009 Multiuser 5 Workstations
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First, we've been using an ancient version of Timeslips when I though we should upgrade (I'm taking over my father practice)
From my experience in time and billing software in other medium-size NYC accounting firms, I thought this would be relatively straight forward.. it's not. I've read most of the owner's manual and talk to support twice, and I've gotten as far as entering 2 months worth of time for 4 employees using their spreadsheet template call "Time sheet slip entry" (a spreadsheet data entry system as compared to a slip entry) and it's been a nightmare.. very frustrating.
Instead of a straight forward approach, the programmers made this product too complicated..
Someone using the "Slip Entry" method may be simpler, but for employee's ease, the "Time sheet slip entry" is/should be a lot faster.
I will write a second review later when I work through the billing process..
PS: You can download a trial version from the Timeslip's website and try it for 30 days..

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9/24/2011

Microsoft Visio 2000 Professional Edition Review

Microsoft Visio 2000 Professional Edition
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Dragon's Goodies sold me a visably and functionally defective software disc, then refused to issue a refund. Buyer beware.

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9/08/2011

The Print Shop: Business Invoices 2009 Review

The Print Shop: Business Invoices 2009
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As noted in other reviews, there is no help available for this product. Also, my security software indicates that the installed product contains a trojan -- Trojan.Win32.swisyn.akng. When the trojan is deleted the program will not run.

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