Rating: 
Summary: Stay away
Review: I've used Money 99 thru 2002 and this latest is terrible. I liked the old programs, but this new one is filled with bugs. It has deleted one of my accounts three times for no obvious reason and I've had major problems generating reports (program locks up). Spent days trying to figure that one out and support site was not helpful at all. Additionally, when you import *.qif files from your bank, the new interface is horrible. It trys to be too smart and puts things in the wrong place and changes transactions. I liked the older versions a lot but I definately can't recommend this. I'm uninstalling this and putting my stuff back on Money 2000. FYI, I did install this on my Windows 2000 machine and it ran fine (except when the program crashed). Did the exact same thing on my Windows 98SE machine.
Rating: 
Summary: Worst piece of garbage Microsoft has released in years.
Review: Lets face it, unless you're the type that spends a lot of time sitting around finding different way to count your money, there are really only a couple of useful features for the average busy person. At least two of the features I had come to rely in the past have been redesigned requiring a rethinking on my part of how I track my expenses. In particular, the "bills and deposits" facility used to provide a way to do "what ifs" on due bills, projected up to twelve months. That functionality no longer exists, at least not in any intuitive way that I can find. The closest thing is some kind of budget planner and separate cash flow forecasting tool, neither of which is very interactive. And, trying to find a telephone number for support or even a "feedback" email was a supremely frustrating exercise. Also, the initial user interface is loaded with links to other Microsoft services and advertisements. There are more links to stuff to buy then there are menu options to manage your finances. Much like paying for a movie and getting hit with ads - lots of 'em. Lastly, with all these offers to manage my account and pay bills online, my first reaction is; why the heck would I want to let big brother know about my finances and spending habits? Sure there's probably some level of security built in but there are also encryption keys and certainly overall statistics are surly being gathered. Perhaps Microsoft should be giving the software away free since they're being provided with valuable marketing data. By the way Big Brother just passed the anti-terrorism laws.... Heellooo! I have been using this product for years and now find I am going to have to look for something new. Perhaps roll back to and older version for awhile or roll my own. Either that or Microsoft needs to "get a clue"
Rating:
Summary: Problems and More
Review: I was very satisfied with Money 99 and purchased Money 2002 with the hopes of a similar experience. Unfortunately, the program never worked properly on my computer which runs Windows 98 version 1. I could only load the program from the Taskbar as the Desktop Icon and Start Menu selection would not work. Additionally, during installation an updated Internet Explorer was installed. Afterwards, I experienced numerous lock-ups while on the internet and eventually my computer crashed and would not reboot. After reinstalling my operating system I installed Money 2002 fresh without my backup data. This time similar problems but now there was no icon on the Taskbar and absolutely no way to load the program. I'm now back to using Money 99 and my computer is again operating smoothly.
Rating: 
Summary: It's the little things that count.
Review: I've upgraded from 2001 to 2002, and have found 90% of my gripes have been fixed. If there are little things about 2001 that bug you, chances are they're fixed in 2002. One of my favorite additions is the Money SideBar, wherein you can open your transactions in Internet Explorer to compare directly with your online statement or to add transactions.
Rating: 
Summary: Windows 2000 workaround
Review: That is a problem if it won't allow you to run the application without admin privaledges, but there is a workaround. Setup the application as the admin (by hitting the setup.exe with a shift right click, run as, input the admin credentials and select the checkbox to always run as administrator). An imperfect solution for an imperfect world.
Rating:
Summary: Simply Wonderful!
Review: Money 2002 is the software you need to keep track of how you are doing money-wise. It downloads your statements, predicts cash flow, helps you keep on budget, helps prepare tax, educates you on financial matters... This list can go on and on.
I was a bit skeptical about whether I would benefit from a personal finance software, but decided to try it out. It has since then made my life easier and helped me really plan "events".
The plusses:
1> Interface - neat and intutive.
2> Download of account statements - if your bank offers it, you will not even have to key in the info, just see it!
3> Synchronization with MSN Money.
4> Planning tools - budget, lifetime,...
5> Portfolio analyser. The minusses:
1> MSN Money requires you to sign up for Passport or Hotmail.
2> I couldn't find any kind of account whose type was "CASH". I mean if I pay for something or get some money in cash, I cannot keep track of it straight away... Should be there as people still do transactions in dollar bills :) As with any software that assists you - the more and accurate information you give to Money the better it will be.
Rating:
Summary: Maybe later folks!
Review: Have read all reviews for MS Money 2002 and Quicken Deluxe and can only say this Oh My God please let me stay with Money 2000.
My Credit Union says download with Quicken. Money 2000 does not recognize it. I am happy with MS Money 2000, can track all money
matters with ease. If it isn't broke, don't fix it.
Rating:
Summary: Surprisingly Good Software for the Money
Review: I love this program. It is slick and powerful, and is now multi-threaded, so it appears to run faster than previous versions. I think this is the best version of MS Money yet. Sure, some of the neat, fringe features of previous versions are gone or dumbed down, but what remains is more than what a normal person like me needs. Obviously don't have to upgrade if you've got a previous version, or switch from Quicken if that's what you use. But this program is an awesome financial manager, despite the few caveats some users have mentioned, and is well worth the [price] or so (after rebates) that it'll cost you.
Rating:
Summary: Almost nothing new under the sun...
Review: I have upgraded from Money 2001 Deluxe to the Money 2002
Trial version (available on Microsoft's web site) and I am
quite disappointed with it. While the overall look has become
more appealing, there aren't that many new features to mention.
Perhaps this is only natural, once a software matures to
a certain stage, but then there is no need to upgrade.
If you haven't upgraded in a while you may want to check this
version out. In any case take a look at the trial version,
before you buy.
Rating:
Summary: Forget Support
Review: I've been using Quicken for nearly 10 years and decided to switch. At first I was impressed with Money 2002 and decided to scrap Quicken. Now, whenever I attempt to download information from my bank or brokerage Money crashes. Repeated messages, calls to Microsoft support don't help. They constantly suggest reinstalling many aspects of the OS, IE, etc. Which I did, and it still doesn't work. The support people have the typical attitude that you don't have a clue and that their software would never be the problem. After extensive debugging with Visual C++ I found a conflict between a device driver on my Toshiba and Money. If I run in "dumb mode" on Win Pro 2K, it works. Once I run with all the device drivers that are required for the notebook computer to be useful, it fails. MS Support is unwilling to elevate issues to development. They have a "until we get around to it" attitude. Guess that's what you get with mass market software.
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