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Quicken 2004 Deluxe

Quicken 2004 Deluxe

List Price: $59.99
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Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Intuit - Get A Clue
Review: I am another Quicken user from back in the DOS days. I loved the old Quicken 6 and highly recommended it to everyone. A couple of years ago I upgraded to Quicken 2002. What a terrible user interface, retirement planner and report generater (as compared to Quicken 6). The main good thing about the program was the ability to download financial data.

I came to this website to get opinions about the latest Quicken to see if my concerns have been addressed. I guess not. Forced upgrades, i.e. incomplete backwards compatibility. Sorry Intuit - no more money from me until you clean up your act. Clearly you do not currently care about your customers, other than to attempt to take money from their pockets.

I think its time for open source financial planning software.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Call the Exterminator
Review: I'd give a negative star if I could.
I've used Quicken for many years, and this is a sorry, buggy excuse for a product. My 2002 Quicken did a better job and was easier to use. The 2004 Deluxe creates errors in data when it converts your old Quicken files, and this program can not add. The total of cash in reports does not match the total of cash in my portfolio. The helpful people at Quicken told me, "Quicken can add fine." Some help -- NOT!!! Quicken 2004 Deluxe insists on creating a fractional share of stock when recording a split (4 for 3) and the fractional share of stock is calculated to more decimal places than the program will allow you to input as a sale. Thus, I have 0.0000137 shares of a stock that I can't get rid of. The new Quicken is just a buggy piece of junk that is designed to advertise the other Quicken services and products. Don't use this product.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Quicken has really blown it
Review: I just spent an hour looking at Quicken's Web site to find out why my version of Quicken Deluxe 99 no longer would connect with Quicken's servers to download current stock prices on my holdings only to find out they no longer support my version or Quicken 2000. Unbelievable. Like a gallon of milk, Quicken software should start carrying an expiration date. They offered a "deal" to upgrade for $39.95 that I considered but after reading these reviews (they are putting their ads on the user interface? Ugh!) I feel forced to switch to MS Money instead. The decision to no longer support versions of their software that are just four years old has definitely backfired. After 14 years of using Quicken software (started in the DOS days), it's seems time to say adios to Quicken. Thanks to everyone here for warning me!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Quicken 2004 Deluxe not as bad as many reviewers state
Review: I have been running Quicken 2001 Deluxe since it came out. I hesitated to upgrade beyond this version as I wasn't quite happy with the direction Intuit was taking the product. I tried 2002 but certain features that I thought were well implemented were changed and other ones that I believed needed some work were left untouched. For instance I liked the spread-sheet style budgeting tool in 2001. But in 2002 it was changed to one that was more busy and harder to manage in my opinion. On the other hand, the Home Inventory feature has yet to be updated from the Windows 3.1 era.

The other day, however, I was looking at laptop computers and saw Quicken 2004 installed on the system, so I decided to explore. Initially, I liked some of what I saw so I set out to investigated the software in more detail. Part of the research entailed looking at the reviews from other users. I was unprepared for such negativity. Anyway, I decided to try upgrading to 2004 Deluxe inspite of the plethora of warnings.

First, I made a few copies of my 2001 files (drag-and-drop) and set them aside. Next, I uninstalled 2001 from my system, then did a clean install of 2004. The installation was simple and without incident. Third, I installed Intuit's patches to bring the software up-to-date. At that point I had a fully functioning version of Quicken 2004 up-and-running.

I ran the program, at which point it searched my system for Quicken files. It brought up a dialogue box with a specific target file to update. I selected a different file - one that I had copied onto my desktop - and told the program to import the data. Voila'! The process was as painless as can be. I was pleasantly surprised to find that my data was completely intact with nary an error. So here's the scoop.

First, I like the graphical interface. It is much more pleasant than 2001. Second, I like the way Intuit has streamlined the organization. There are three centers: Cash Flow Center, Investing Center, and Property and Debt Center. These cover the spectrum of finacial management (for me anyway). I like the way the sidebar organizes the accounts and the numbers, and how it provides a grand total to see one's net worth at-a-glance. Each center has multiple tabs that provide overviews and access to registers. Pretty nice. Next, the reports are much more useable than before. The font sizes and the way that they subcategorize and total the categories make them comfortable to view and easy to extract needed information. Fourth, the "Quicken Home" has a pie chart that breaks down yearly spending into percentages. One can easily select a report that line itemizes where the money has gone in each slice - NICE! I have wanted something like this for ages. It makes managing my finances much easier that in 2001, which had no such readily accessible report.

With respect to negatives, I still think the budgeting tool is a little busy and needs refinement. I also think Intuit definitely needs to do something about Home Inventory!

I have experienced none of the stability problems reported by other users. In fact Quicken 2004 seems very stable. I have noted that there are certain discrepancies in the numbers that are presented in certain reports and features. I have yet to find a way to correct these in the customization areas associated with the reports or features. Intuit should check into this.

All-in-all. I like what I see. It is by no means a perfect program, however I think Intuit has something to work with here. I think Quicken 2004 is a step forward from Quicken 2001. Candidly, I'm not sure why others have had such a bad experience with the program.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Not worth the hassle
Review: I've been a quicken user for years and this version has got to be the worst yet. I don't know why I even bother to try and get support since it's virtually non-existent. Though if you want to see all the Intuit Product Ads all over the place you'll really like this program. I just wish that I was able to back-up my files like I used too.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Upgrade from Quicken 2002
Review: I took ver 2004 out of my computer and reverted back to ver 2002.
The 2004 version screen is full of junk that takes up 71% of the screen area. It is designed for novices and financial idiots.
My advice is not to buy and hope Inuit come up with a usable version in the future.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Long Time Quicken User
Review: I want to state that I've been with Quicken since the DOS Version.

Quicken Deluxe 2004 does appear to have some problems. After installing it it locked up once while attempting to customize a report. Also after backing up the data it puts a icon "Q3" on my desktop?

If you currently have Quicken Deluxe 2003 I would suggest that you stay with that version for another year. (...).

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Easy to use and Install.
Review: Here's the scoop:

Installation was quick and easy. It unistalled my old version and converted data without a single problem.

Registration did force me to create a Quicken.com account (at least I didn't find a way to bypass it) but it does not force you to upload data or account information there. Just create a dummy account and forget about it if you don't want to access your accounts from Quicken.com.

It did put a couple of Icons on my desktop that are links to quicken websites and services. Just right click and delete. gone. period. Most software packages put some icons on the desktop. Annoying and common but easily taken care of.

The interface is clean and easy to read and use. I was using Quicken 2001 previously and it only took a few minutes to get used to the new interface. There are no banner ads or advertising on the interface and it's easy to customize and resize.

There are no hidden folders or spyware installed. I've run several spyware programs, searched for suspicious services and folders and found none.

Not sure why there are so many negative reviews. Maybe some people are still upset with the copyright protection fiasco with Turbo Tax last year.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Used Quicken since 1980s - This is the Worst
Review: I usually don't write reviews that merely repeat others' writing, but this product deserves it. The advertising is intrusive and pervasive. It is not just spread out on the desktop at installation, which is easily deleted, but is disguised as "instructions" or as the "next step," and you can't delete it.
The interface has a giant space for check number and a small space for a memo, and you can't change it. The "forced upgrade" is not just annoying but deserves a class action as a violation of consumer protection laws in our state (check with your attorney general's office or office of consumer affairs). Installation changes your data so if you use the product for a while with the thought that it might be customizable enough to be acceptable, you can't go back (other than to a backup of the old data) once you realize what a dud this is. The installation process requires going online, and sent us into endless loops.
In short, I recommend avoiding this product. I would not use it even if it were free.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Switch to Money! I did.
Review: I switched to Microsoft Money 2 years ago, after a horrible experience with Intuit's tech support.

At first I didn't like the interface as much as Quicken's, but I soon got used to it. In addition, every new version of Money has improved the interface and features to the point that I now prefer Money. Plus, you get a number of free offers with Money, including free bill pay for up to 2 years; that alone pays for more than the price of the software.

And don't forget, Money has free tech support. You can download a free evaluation copy from Microsoft's web site.

It's too bad, but Intuit seems to have stopped caring about its customers. I wish Andrew Tobias's "Managing Your Money" was back.


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