Peachtree Complete Accounting 2002

Rating:
Summary: Best Value, Bugs can hamper you
Review: I have a financial services company that includes bookkeeping and have used Quickbooks and Peachtree extensively. For the smallest businesses either product will do the job. However, Peachtree has in my opinion a much stronger product for the price. I have switched several customers from QuickBooks to Peachtree but never the other way. I am not surprised the person had conflicts with his network installation. I did find a few bugs with the newest version of Peachtree(mainly related to G/L reporting) and will watch closely to see how quickly they have updates. In the past they have been really good with updates, however, with new ownership I do caution what kind of tech support and "customer first" service you will receive. The person that wrote that its competition is NOT Quickbooks is mostly right. It is the OTHER product in the price range and the "best marketed" and will do the job for most mom and pop operations(though after seeing what people do in QB that have no bookkeeping skills you could be better off with using a paper system, believe me) Quickbooks is poorly designed and set up in comparison. I consider QB a PRO version of Quicken in its design and use of "registers". Peachtree is much more powerful and offers alot more to people that want to expand there accounting system in the future. However, both programs slow down considerably over the network when your company size gets very large(Over 20 MB etc.). Another Caveat is Complete accounting is not compatible with the other 2002 versions. I have some clients that don't need the extra features and network compatibility BUT I set up there books on my Peachtree, backed it up and brought it to them to restore and WAS INCOMPATIBLE. Not sure if that effects anyone else but just a mention. Overall it is comparable to the features you find in products I've seen bought for $10,000+++. The only thing you really get for the extra thousands is the ability to handle more than 5 workstations and better database management. Also learning Crystal Reports can take some time but with it you can do anything with Peachtree as to reporting. By far best value in the price range.

Rating:
Summary: Check your network settings before buying this product!
Review: I have been sucessfully using a multi-user Peachtree accounting program for 2 years on my existing network. Recently I received a notice from Peachtree stating that they would no longer support the version I was using. Therefore, I upgraded to the 2002 version.

Installing Peachtree Complete Accounting 2002 caused my network to crash. There was an SQL database engine compatibility problem. Evidently, I have another (very important dental practice management) program that uses a newer version of SQL than this product uses. Therefore, they can't be installed together. I have since learned that this is a well documented problem with Peachtree.

My business was severely impaired. We spent the entire day fixing the network and re-installing key programs.

Most frustrating were my interactions with Peachtree's help desk. Finally they said, "Peactree won't work on your network." They told me the only way to fix the problem was to install their product on another computer separate from the network. Duh! That negates having a networked Peachtree program!

I wish they had told me this before selling me an incompatible program.....I wouldn't have wasted my money. (To date they have not refunded my purchase either.) I also was forced to purchase a tax update which seemed excessive since I had just upgraded to the new version. This happened about 1 month after they sold me the new product!

I have since been told that Quick Books Pro is a better product and that it does not have this problem. I am seriously considering switching programs despite the cost and headaches involved with doing so. You may consider researching this product before buying Peachtree 2002. At least check with all of your current software vendors before purchasing this one!

Rating:
Summary: A GREAT software for small businesses
Review: I have worked with over a dozen accounting packages over the last 15 years, including beta testing such products as Open Systems, Great Plains, and Profit. I have used Peachtree versions 2 - 2002 for my own company and I have set up the program for innumerable clients over the years. Peachtree is the BEST program for smaller businesses - bar none. It has a terrific payroll module, good a/p and a/r, and the ability to evaluate your business standing right now, not next month when your CPA finishes the books.

The key to the program is to have the program set up by an expert and to have occasional maintenance on the system. After setup, my customers have me out about twice a year to perform updates, create permanent backups, fix minor problems, and answer questions.

Just because the software costs less than $... (multi-user versions), doesn't mean that you can get by with only spending $... for a class to become an expert. Look for someone to come in and tailor the program to your exact needs. This is a more expensive process, but considering that Peachtree's real competitors (NOT QuickBooks) start at thousands of dollars, you are still better off financially-- and you will have REAL financial information to boot....

Rating:
Summary: Addendum to
Review: In an earlier note about Peachtree I expressed displeasure that PCA 2002 no longer permits editing the "Global Tax Tables". It is true that this option apparently has been removed. However - one CAN still edit "Company Tax Tables" (Peachtree maintains two sets of tax tables - Global and Company - in case books are maintained for multiple companies, some of which require different calculations for the SAME type tax. If there is an entry in the Company tables with the same name as a table in the Global tables, the system will use the Company table.) And one CAN use these tables for all payroll computations, therefore, my original ire at Peachtree has moderated. Will install PCA 2002 after all. (My guess is that it is the custom of the majority of users to just spring the $$ for the payroll tax update service rather than try to figure how to update themselves. For me, I want the option to do it myself for nothing.)

Rating:
Summary: Addendum to
Review: In an earlier note about Peachtree I expressed displeasure that PCA 2002 no longer permits editing the "Global Tax Tables". It is true that this option apparently has been removed. However - one CAN still edit "Company Tax Tables" (Peachtree maintains two sets of tax tables - Global and Company - in case books are maintained for multiple companies, some of which require different calculations for the SAME type tax. If there is an entry in the Company tables with the same name as a table in the Global tables, the system will use the Company table.) And one CAN use these tables for all payroll computations, therefore, my original ire at Peachtree has moderated. Will install PCA 2002 after all. (My guess is that it is the custom of the majority of users to just spring the $$ for the payroll tax update service rather than try to figure how to update themselves. For me, I want the option to do it myself for nothing.)

Rating:
Summary: Good product but overly mercenary company
Review: My company has been a user of Peachtree Accounting for seven years and it has been easy to use and flexable. However, since Peachtree has been purchased, my opinion is that the new owners seem to concentrate on how to squeeze the most money from their clients. For example, tax upgrades can only be purchased if you upgrade the entire system and expensive enhancements deliver minimal benefits. In short, its a good product but beware: you may become hostage to a vendor that knows it is difficult to change once committed and thereby takes every advantage of the situation.

Rating:
Summary: Stick with Version 8
Review: Since the first version in the early nineties, I've used every version of Peachtree Complete for Windows, upgrading as each new version was issued. And I came within a smidgen of making the mistake of installing Peachtree Complete Accounting for Windows 2002 over version 8.0.02. Fortunately I read an insert included in the packaging just in time.

Peachtee has always aggressively marketed their payroll service, as do other publishers of accounting software, but to Peachtree's credit they also provided a way for the customer to edit his own tax tables. With an IRS Employer's Tax Guide in hand, it was easy to do - took only about 10 minutes. But with PCA 2002 the
greedy devils have eliminated that option REQUIRING tax updates to be purchased from Peachtree. Not only that but they insult the intelligence of the customer with the following transparent prevarication:

"In Release 2002 Peachtree has made modifications to the software to protect your investment in a subscription to the Payroll Tax Service. Peachtree will begin requiring customers using the Payroll module to purchase and register a tax service subscription before they can access the global tax tables."

Protect my investment??? What baloney!! They are simply following the lead of the likes of Microsoft, Intuit, etc. ALL it does for me is increase the cost of using their product.

When it was released, version 8 was far and away the most functional and flexible small business accounting system for the money and it does everything I need. Though I've already purchased it, I don't plan to install 2002. My advice for anyone using version 8 is to stick with it; if you are looking for a new accounting package, try to find the latest build of version 8 - surely there are some still on shelves.

Rating:
Summary: No email based invoicing.
Review: They must still be using clay tablets or something.