Rating: 
Summary: And that's one star too many
Review: I've had it! After using Quicken for how-many years, watching it become more bloated, less functional, more frilly, I'm outa here. NO e-mail support, web "support" that's plain unsupportive, phone support at $60/hr (I didn't try THAT) -- all set against plenty of problems that call for support. Cluttered, non-standard interface; frightful report writer; other features that who needs? My copy is headed for the bit bucket as soon as Microsoft Money arrives. Even though I've never used MM, I KNOW it'll be better. It's gotta be better.Intuit used to be an accomodating company with a functionally straightforward and elegant product. Somewhere along the road, they've lost their way. Too bad.
Rating:
Summary: Worst Quicken in a long time
Review: I've used Quicken 2000, 2001, 2002, and now 2003. This is by far the worst version of those 4. The UI is even more cluttered than before and it's more difficult to find stuff than in 2002. I then take a look at my investment portfolio and it freezes - turns out Quicken is using up 533Mb of memory and busily swapping away. It now requires registration to use the online update feature, which is annoying, but okay, I do it so I can patch the software. I got the latest patch (release 3) - still 533Mb used. I've never had a memory problem with any previous versions of Quicken. I go online to check if others are having the same problem as I, and it turns out many other users do (see reviews of Quicken Deluxe here and cnet). The box says 32Mb minimum - hah! I doubt anyone could seriously use it for long in just 32Mb. Intuit's support site doesn't give any indication of this problem - that gives you an idea of their level of product knowledge. Because of this memory problem , I've went back to using 2002.
Rating:
Summary: Quicken 2003 is a downgrade
Review: I've used Quicken for a number of years, and it generally worked OK. The interface was always a little quirky and you had to learn that certain operations never worked quite the way it seemed they should. However, I spent a few years overlooking that, until I decided to start using the online banking option. I bought the new version, Quicken 2003, and couldn't be less satisfied. My only serious gripe is that over half the time I select "Update Now", to download new transactions and upload new bill payment orders, Quicken crashes! I religiously patch it, load a web page first to make sure my cable modem hasn't gone to sleep, I stand on one leg, but to no avail: I invariably get a popup with the text "An OLB error has occurred in the last task .." I press OK and it crashes. Not exactly how you want the software handling your banking to work! My recommendation: don't upgrade or buy something else.
Rating: 
Summary: A Quicken User Since Version 2.0!
Review: I've used Quicken since 1994 when I bought my first computer and Quick 2.0 came preinstalled. Since then I've tried MS-Money twice. I keep going back to Quicken. It's intuitive, logical and makes reconciling the check book a breeze. I admit that my finaces are fairly simple and others may need the deluxe or small business versions of the program, but I think for the average person the basic program is perfect. I don't upgrade every year. I don't think there's a need to. I upgrade about every two years. So, if you haven't upgraded recently or have never used Quicken give this version a try. The program is very stable. I haven't had problems with bugs or crashes in any version. I recommend it.
Rating: 
Summary: One upgrade that I regret.
Review: I've used Quicken since it's first windows based version (and even a dos version before that). I upgraded from Quicken Basic 1999 to the 2003 version because of the hefty rebate when purchasing Turbotax. The basic register works well, and I got to like the scroll down account list to the left, but reconciling is more of a hassel, and for me the straw that breaks the camel's back is the reports. In my contracting business I use a variety of reports to track job expenses to various clients using categories and classes to sort them out as needed. The reports frequently lock up, so you have to reboot when you use the "customize reports" feature. They display on a small screen so they are difficult to read, they do not print out as cleanly, and the program memorizes and saves your reports in a totally crazy manner. If you quickzoom on an item you have to restart the original report when you go back. After 6 months of aggrivation I put my old version of Quicken 99 (itself not without some flaws)back on, but I cannot get it to recognize my data. I'll call for technical support sometime, but it seems that they work the same hours as I do (except I'm out in the field, not in front of the computer). Also, since my work computer does not have an internet connection, the frequent prompting for internet services and the constant display of the useless internet buttons is annoying. At this point,however, I wish that I had not smashed the Quicken 2003 CD up and thrown it into the ... can.
Rating:
Summary: One upgrade that I regret.
Review: I've used Quicken since it's first windows based version (and even a dos version before that). I upgraded from Quicken Basic 1999 to the 2003 version because of the hefty rebate when purchasing Turbotax. The basic register works well, and I got to like the scroll down account list to the left, but reconciling is more of a hassel, and for me the straw that breaks the camel's back is the reports. In my contracting business I use a variety of reports to track job expenses to various clients using categories and classes to sort them out as needed. The reports frequently lock up, so you have to reboot when you use the "customize reports" feature. They display on a small screen so they are difficult to read, they do not print out as cleanly, and the program memorizes and saves your reports in a totally crazy manner. If you quickzoom on an item you have to restart the original report when you go back. After 6 months of aggrivation I put my old version of Quicken 99 (itself not without some flaws)back on, but I cannot get it to recognize my data. I'll call for technical support sometime, but it seems that they work the same hours as I do (except I'm out in the field, not in front of the computer). Also, since my work computer does not have an internet connection, the frequent prompting for internet services and the constant display of the useless internet buttons is annoying. At this point,however, I wish that I had not smashed the Quicken 2003 CD up and thrown it into the ... can.
Rating: 
Summary: Problems With Quicken 2003 Are Now Overcome
Review: In the spring of 2003, I upgraded from Quicken 2000 to Quicken 2003. I have used various versions of Quicken since the DOS days. Immediately after this upgrade I had many problems running the reports. My entire computer would freeze and I would need to shutdown and restart Quicken. I most cases I was unable to get the information I need from Quicken. Recently, I purchased a new laptop with Microsoft Money was installed on it. I moved the Quicken 2003 data file onto the laptop and used Microsoft Money to gather some of the detailed information I needed to prepare my tax return and the financial aid application for my kids. I was about ready to trash Quicken and use Microsoft Money until this week when I upgraded the operating system of the computer that the Quicken 2003 was installed on. After upgrading from Windows 98 second edition to Windows XP Home edition, all of the reports work and work well, apparently the functionality of Quicken 2003 on Windows 98 is not as compatible as desired or expected based upon the wording on the Quicken 2003 product packaging. Since all is now working well I am going to stay with Quicken for now.
Rating:
Summary: Problems With Quicken 2003 Are Now Overcome
Review: In the spring of 2003, I upgraded from Quicken 2000 to Quicken 2003. I have used various versions of Quicken since the DOS days. Immediately after this upgrade I had many problems running the reports. My entire computer would freeze and I would need to shutdown and restart Quicken. I most cases I was unable to get the information I need from Quicken. Recently, I purchased a new laptop with Microsoft Money was installed on it. I moved the Quicken 2003 data file onto the laptop and used Microsoft Money to gather some of the detailed information I needed to prepare my tax return and the financial aid application for my kids. I was about ready to trash Quicken and use Microsoft Money until this week when I upgraded the operating system of the computer that the Quicken 2003 was installed on. After upgrading from Windows 98 second edition to Windows XP Home edition, all of the reports work and work well, apparently the functionality of Quicken 2003 on Windows 98 is not as compatible as desired or expected based upon the wording on the Quicken 2003 product packaging. Since all is now working well I am going to stay with Quicken for now.
Rating: 
Summary: Not intuitive (no pun), Intuit-centric, but does the job
Review: Like many (most?) Intuit products, Quicken is written in the "be reasonable - do it our way" philosophy. The learning curve is steeper than it should be for such a simple product. And if your bank (like mine, Bank of America-WA) isn't listed but provides Quicken .QIF files for download, you can't download them via Web Connect (which Quicken designed for exactly this purpose). Or how about if you want to track PayPal transactions? You have to set PayPal up as a "Cash" account, with no provision for .QIF file downloads (which PayPal supports) via Web Connect. Dumb. Now, in both of these cases you can download the files separately and import them into Quicken (which is what I did), but the whole idea of Quicken is to automate that process. Bank reconciliation is not well-designed for the case where you forgot to enter a transaction. The program appears to force you to cancel the reconciliation process, enter the transaction, and start over. There's a way around this (to add a transaction without exiting the reconciliation process), but it's non-intuitive (no pun intended). Quicken is designed around the idea that you will PRINT your checks on your computer. If you hand-write a check, there's no way to directly create a check-register entry with a check number; you have to create a check TO BE PRINTED, and then, instead of printing the check, you go back and EDIT the check register entry to include the check number. Not very user friendly if you don't want to "do it Intuit's way" (print checks on your computer). I bought Quicken because it's essentially free with the rebate that comes with TurboTax. Although Quicken is useful to me and I will continue using it, I wouldn't pay much for it.
Rating:
Summary: It All Depends On What You Want To Do.
Review: This program works if you are not planning on doing complicated banking procedures at home. I use it only for balancing my checking, saving, credit cards, loans and updating my useless stocks. In other words, I do not use it for anything else, like PAYPAL or check printing, which some people have had problems with. Why did I even buy this? I upgraded to Windows XP which, surprise, surprise, does not "recognize" Quicken 2000. I spent the extra bucks and am now happy. It's fine for the basics. Unfortunately, when you upgrade one Microsoft, you have to upgrade another. That's why they are rich are we are poor. One last item which caused me to give 3 stars - support is virtually non-existent. There is no (800) number and intuit just doesn't get back to you with anything other than advising you to check your HELP sections. It's only money, right?
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