Accounting Technology articles from April 2003

Accounting Technology archives from April 2003

ROI spells relief for technology. (Editor's Note).(Editorial)
April 1, 2003... Every Saturday at 8 a.m., financial planner Doug Chapman wakes up an AM radio audience in Morris County, N.J., with a Good-Morning-Vietnam-style "Good Morning" to kick off the show "Your Financial Future." Chapman, a CFS who is one course...

Where are the enrolled agents? (Letters to the Editor).(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2003... The corporate description of Accountants Media Group states that its publications, including Accounting Technology, serve individual offices in the fields of accounting, financial planning, and tax preparation. Therefore, it was with concern...

Possible perils of outsourcing. (Letters to the Editor).(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2003... Nowhere in your article [January/February 2003 issue, Tax Season, Ready, Set, Prepare!] do you discuss the issues relating to client confidentiality and disclosure issues. In days gone by when service bureaus were used to process tax returns,...

Street talk: reader views.(Letter to the Editor)
April 1, 2003... What are the major technology security issues your firm has experienced or is facing? Regarding technology security, one issue appears to be who is modifying specific records. As a systems administrator, I would want to know who is...

H-P tests CPA program. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Hewlett-Packard is test marketing a bundle of professional services through Your Corner Office to five CPA firms in the Houston area. YCO will deliver H-P services via the Internet and is working with H-P's Digital Global Soft subsidiary to...

ITA starts CPA program. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... The Information Technology Alliance has formulated the ITA/CPA Referral program in concert with BKR International to provide alliances between CPAs and the ITA's Group T members. ITA president Ron Eagle says that his organization, whose...

Coaching center opens. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Convergence Coaching, a consulting organization steered by Jennifer Wilson and Jun Metzler, has opened its Coaching Solution Center on its Web site at www.convergencecoaching.com. The center provides a variety of tools that subscribers...

MIR fox loses partners. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Mir Fox & Rodriguez, a Houston, Texas-based firm, has seen two of its partners depart from day-to-day operations, about the same time the company jettisoned an online company started daring the dot-com craze. Roland Rodriguez took over as...

K2 teaches Linux. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... K2 Enterprises, a consulting firm that offers CPE courses, will launch a series of courses about Linux for the California Education Foundation in four sessions from September through February. Val Steed, K2's CEO, notes that this is one of...

Bryan tapped. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Linda Bryan, president and CEO of Tamlin Software, an AccountMate developer based in Houston, has been named as an honorary co-chair of the Business Advisory Council. Bryan received the invitation from House Majority Leader Tom DeLay...

Softline starts council. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Softline AccountMate has launched a Business Partner Advisory Group to serve as a communications link between AccountMate management and the channel. Group membership comprises two partners from each of AccountMate's three U.S. regional...

Managedops bought. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... ManagedOps.com, a Bedford, N.H.-based company that provides application hosting, has been acquired by Surebridge, a Lexington, Mass.-based outsourcer. ManagedOps grew out of the Taylor Group, a Great Plains reseller. Founder Dan Taylor,...

Epicor expands program. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Epicor Software has expanded its Partners for Growth program for resellers and authorized consultants to include the company's manufacturing applications. The Irvine, Calif.-based company is recruiting channel partners with manufacturing...

Softline snares Ryan. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Laureen Ryan, who has held the position of vice president of strategic alliances with Accpac since it purchased the former SBT Accounting Systems nearly three years ago, has taken a similar position with competitor Softline AccountMate. ...

Red Wing spins out. (Accounting News).(unnamed management group from Active IQ Technologies is buyer)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Red Wing Software, which sells Red Wing, Champion Software, and FMS Harvest Software, has been purchased by a management group from Active IQ Technologies. A company press release did not identify the managers, but they include Jim Long,...

MBS cans Stampede. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Microsoft Business Solutions is dropping the Stampede reseller conference in favor of a conference that combines the reseller show with Microsoft's Fusion reseller conference. The change comes as Microsoft announced it has combined the MBS...

Accountmate starts co-op. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Resellers for Softline AccountMate will be reimbursed in product credit for as much as 75 percent of cost for select marketing initiatives under a new co-op program. Eligible are business partners with $10,000 or more (dealer cost) in...

Objacct goes XML. (Accounting News).(ObjAcct XML Accounting Server)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Object Business Systems of Bowling Green, Ohio, has released the ObjAcct XML Accounting Server, which the company claims is the first XML Web Services-based accounting system. The system, which uses n-tier, Soap, and XML Web Services, is...

Ex-accpac prez offers stock. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Accpac International has amended its plans for an initial public offering to reflect the proposed sale of 105,000 shares by former president Frederic (Rick) Wysocki. Wysocki was fired by Accpac early in 1999 shortly after the company filed...

Exact Software sales drop. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Although overall revenue rose, software license revenue for Exact Software, which markets the Macola Progression line, fell to $69.5 million for the year ended December 31, down 13.6 percent from $80.4 million for 200l. Total North...

Claim scuttles epicor profit. (Accounting News).(Epicor Software)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... A dispute with a vice president who claimed he was forced out caused Epicor Software to take a charge that wiped out the company's fourth quarter profit after it had to restate earnings. Epicor took a $4.3 million charge after it agreed...

Some big earners in tax and accounting.(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Some Big Earners in Tax and Accounting Person/Company Pay Period Stephen Bennett, $4.25 M FY 02 CEO, Intuit Lorrie Norrington, executive VP, $2 M FY 02 Intuit Hugh Yarrington,...

CSI takes lead. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Creative Solutions will take the lead in offering trial balance and engagement software products over the next few years in offerings from Thomson companies. CSI and its sister company, Practitioners Publishing Company, have both been...

CashEdge gets funding. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... CashEdge, which makes account aggregation tools, has raised $5 million in a fourth round of funding, which will be used for developing sales and marketing efforts. The New York-based company, which makes the Online Money Movement and...

Forefield gets picked. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Three financial planning application companies have agreed to link their software to Forefield, which provides real-time sales, education, and client communication tools for financial advisors. Forefield, based in Marlboro, Mass., is...

Morningstar tools up. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Investment research company Morningstar has developed the Morning star Ownership Zone, a tool that lets investors use graphics to picture a mutual fund's holdings. The Ownership Zone plots a mutual fund's holdings within Morningstar's...

Advent intros platform. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Advent Software and its new Techfi operations have launched Advent/Techfi for Broker Dealers, which provides a variety of programs for independent broker/dealers to provide services to their representatives. The Advent/Techfi platform...

RIA signs outsourcers. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... RIA has entered relationships with two companies to enable tax preparers who use RIA's GoSystem RS to outsource preparation of tax returns. The company has formed relationships with Outsource Partners International, based in New York City,...

Intuit tax apps rise. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Revenue for Intuit's Professional Accounting Solutions group, which comes largely from its Lacerte and ProSeries tax packages, rose to $158.5 million for the second quarter ended January 30, up 9 percent from last year's corresponding period....

CITP in danger? (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... The Certified Information Technology Professional designation, one of the credentials from the American Institute of CPAs, may not be supported by the Institute as it studies the credentials it has created during the last few years. The...

A secure business: everyone needs computer security and accountants can profit by providing it.
April 1, 2003... For David Cieslak and the Information Technology Group, deciding to provide security services to clients, including CPA firms, seemed unavoidable in California in the post-Enron era. "We can hear the sound of the distant train coming," says...

CRM: up front and center: microsoft has got a lot of mid-market customers thinking about the front office--finally.(Buyers Guide)
April 1, 2003... We ever else the industry has to say about Microsoft's newly-launched CRM offering, there's solid agreement on this point: it will bring much-needed attention in the middle-market to the value of customer relationship management. Microsoft...

Managing a portfolio: a sluggish economy boosts the value of these tools.
April 1, 2003... This hasn't been the easiest time for vendors of portfolio management software. The boom of the Nineties brought a crush of competitive products into the marketplace, forcing companies to invest more heavily in the development of their products...

What's new with newsletters? Resellers and accountants, with encouragement from their vendors, are using newsletters as an effective marketing tool.
April 1, 2003... While some may see newsletters as old school marketing, many resellers and CPAs are finding both print and electronic newsletters are the EXTRA tool they need for their marketing programs. They fit right into people's busy...

Account aggregation: making it count; accountants are under siege to remain the financial advisor of choice.
April 1, 2003... Once upon a time--just about two or three years ago--consumers were scrambling to greenline to check their steadily climbing noteworth via aggregation tools they could access on their My-prefixed personalized home pages. Now consumers are...

Alpha Five. (New Products).(Alpha Five/Qlinker)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Alpha Five/Qlinker allows users to move data back and forth between QuickBooks versions, including the Pro Edition, QuickBooks Premier Edition 2003, and QuickBooks Enterprise Solution 2.0, and the Alpha Five database software. The Alpha...

Fraud Risk Assessment. (New Products).(Guide to Fraud Risk Assessment, Implementing SAS 99 (Consideration of Fraud in Financial Statement Audit), and Related Guidance)(Book Review)
April 1, 2003... PPC's Guide to Fraud Risk Assessment, Implementing SAS 99 (Consideration of Fraud in Financial Statement Audit), and Related Guidance was developed to help accountants implement SAS 99. The Guide provides technical guidance, staff training,...

Bizmanualz. (New Products).(Bizmanualz Accounting Policies, Procedures and Forms: How to Quickly Create an Accounting Management System with Editable Internal Controls, Policies, and Procedures )(Book Review)
April 1, 2003... The Bizmanualz Accounting Policies, Procedures and Forms: How to Quickly Create an Accounting Management System with Editable Internal Controls, Policies, and Procedures teaches practitioners practices for eliminating uncollectable receivables;...

Business Alerts. (New Products).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Business Alerts software automatically monitors business data to provide real-time event, exception alerts, workflow monitoring, and executive summary reporting. Alert messages can be configured in HTML, Text, RFT, and XML formats between...

Technology Best Practices. (New Products).(Book Review)
April 1, 2003... The book, Technology Best Practices, provides a road map to selecting, implementing, and managing technical systems. Authors Dr. Bob Spencer and Randy Johnston pay attention to security and other concerns regarding remote technology,...

SmartDraw. (New Products).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Accountants can create flow charts and data-flow diagrams by choosing among more than 50,000 ready-made symbols, templates, and example drawings in SmartDraw. With the SmartDraw Explorer users can search for symbols by name and keyword. In...

e-Form RS. (New Products).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... e-Form RS now includes pass through capability from the Checkpoint product, additional search capabilities, and daily content updates with the ability of Checkpoint users to log into e-Form RS without entering an extra ID or password. ...

Money Tree Suite. (New Products).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Users can enter client data from a specialized data questionnaire, and then have the data automatically used by each of four applications in the Money Tree Suite. The four programs, Easy Money, Golden Years, Retirement Solutions, and Money...

PayCycle accountant version. (New Products).(PayCycle 2003)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... PayCycle utilizes XML standards that are made available by the IRS to reduce payroll paperwork and enable direct electronic interaction with small business employers. Version 2003 adds electronic filing of Form 1099-Misc, and electronic...

TimeReporter 4.0. (New Products).(TimeReporter 4.0)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... TimeReporter 4.0 assists the handheld user with billing clients and keeping track of time and expenses. Validation lists, such as clients, projects, and tasks, can be enabled, disabled, added, removed, or renamed as needed. The linking...

Advantage Series 5.1. (New Products).(from Accpac)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Version 5.1 of the Web-based Accpac Advantage Series includes component packaging and pricing designed to make it more cost-effective for small to mid-size businesses to create business management solutions. With Series 5.1 the...

NetCRM. (New Products).(and NetSuite from NetLedger)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Flexible opportunity management helps organize information about deals as they move through the sales pipeline in NetCRM and NetSuite so sales teams can track when they expect deals to close, who the key decision maker is, and the competitors...

CMS Open. (New Products).(Applied Technology Group's CMS Open )(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... CMS Open uses Applied Technology Group's QuickImage technology to manage documents and files associated with financial transactions so that firms can manage paper generated by financial transactions and to streamline document retrieval and...

Online shopping cart. (New Products).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Merchants can provide customers with instant stock availability data using a shopping cart solution for small and mid-sized firms needing real-time integration with their back-office accounting systems. The Store Generator module...

Best brings it all together. (Channels).(Best Software)
April 1, 2003... Best Software seemed to have as many channel and accountant programs as it had product lines. Its Peachtree operations had AccountCare. The Mid-Market Division, which markets the MAS line, had the Best (formerly Sage) Accountant Alliance. ...

Practical and innovative resources from accountantsWorld. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)(Directory)
April 1, 2003... www.AccountantsWorld.com Join the 60,000 strong community of independent accountants. Receive the widest array of free tools, services, training, education and other innovative solutions to completely manage and grow your practice. ...

ACCPAC. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... www.accpaconhine.com ACCPAC International, Inc. provides mid-market businesses a complete range of end-to-end business management applications designed to enhance competitive advantage and increase profitability. ACCPAC offerings include...

CaseWare International, Inc. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... wwwcaseware.com CaseWare Working Papers www.caseware.com Completely automate the entire compilation, review and audit engagement. Includes a centralized document manager, drag and drop mapping, imports from major accounting...

Creative Solutions. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... www.creativesolutions.com Creative Solutions offers a complete line of seamlessly integrated write-up, payroll, trial balance/audit, client accounting, depreciation, tax, tax planning, and practice management software for practicing...

Online resources from practitioners publishing company. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... www.ppcnet.com Order PPCs guidance, resources and solutions online 24/7 at PPCnet, for accounting, auditing, tax, financial planning and consulting engagements plus get PPC's helpful views on the latest news; and access many of PPC's...

CrossLink Tax Software. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... www.petzent.com CrossLink Professional Tax Software offers user-friendly products that fully integrate Tax Preparation, Electronic Filing & Financial Services. For a FREE copy of CrossLink software, visit our web site or call (800)...

Drake Software. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... www.drake-software.com Complete 1040, 1041, 1065, 1120, 1120S tax preparation software for the tax professional. Check out package options, sales and demo information.

Database Creations, Inc. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... www.accessaccuntingsolutions.com Customizable accounting software for Microsoft Access - includes source code! Exchange data with other Office applications. As good as the $20k packages at 1/20th the cost. FREE trial version - visit our...

Web CPA. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)(Directory)
April 1, 2003... www.webcpa.com WebCPA is the premiere Internet resource for tax and accounting professionals. WebCPA offers you the profession's only source for daily news written exclusively by accounting editors.

Financial MicroSystems. (Internet Directory).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... www. clientledgersystem.com Financial MicroSystems, Inc, offers innovative client write-up software designed to meet the needs of CPA's and accounting professionals. Client Ledger System[TM] software easily accommodates a growing practice...

Genovation, Inc. (Internet Directory).
April 1, 2003... www.genovation.com Universal keypads for notebook computers. Genovation offers a dynamic variety of numeric keypads for notebook and desktop computers. For more information call (800) 822-4333.

HG Professional Forms Co. (Internet Directory).
April 1, 2003... www.hgproforms.com Premier supplier of quality workpapers, tax forms and unique office supplies for the accounting, insurance and legal professional. Request our catalog and receive 20% off your first order. Go online or call today...

MicroMash CPE and Exam reviews. (Internet Directory).
April 1, 2003... www.MicroMash.com MicroMash offers over 100 CPE courses with the ultimate flexibility and portability. Download your selection; take a course over the Internet; have a disk delivered to your door! Visit our website and preview Capital...

Phoenix Phive Software Corporation. (Internet Directory).
April 1, 2003... www.phoenixphive.com Everything you need for your payroll and 1099 processing: software, checks, MICR supplies and W-2 and 1099 forms. Download a free demo or call 1-877-601-1555.

ProSystem fx Site Builder. (Internet Directory).
April 1, 2003... tax.cchgroup.com/sitebuilder Build a professional web site with ProSystem fx Site Builder and provide clients 24/7 access to financial information and tools, including CCH's Premium Content and Tax Notebook online tax organizer. Take...

ProSystem fx. (Internet Directory).
April 1, 2003... www.prosystemfx.com The ProSystem fx Office is an award-winning suite of integrated tax and accounting software from CCH. Visit our web site for product information, demos, free downloads, and more, or call us at 1-800-PFX-9998.

STFB Inc. (Internet Directory).
April 1, 2003... www.stfb.com Web-Based and Client/Server Accounting Systems with Source Code Included for Visual Basic, Access, SQL Server, JavaScript & More! Visit STFB Inc. at http://www.stfb.com

Jane Johnson: live on the web. (Accounting Technologist).
April 1, 2003... Jane Johnson, CPA and president of CoActive Consulting Group, has found an effective way to keep existing clients happy: Web-based seminars and training. Located in Wakefield, Mass., CoActive hosts a series of approximately ten Webinars...

Getting through the bear market. (Editor's Note).
April 1, 2003... "It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives," said Charles Darwin. "It is the one that is the most adaptable to change." It's an appropriate saying when you consider the cover story in this...

Training topics. (Tech Tools).(FRx Training Online )(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... FRx Training Online is a series of prerecorded product usage and installation tutorials that can be viewed as often as needed during a user's subscription period. It covers training topics related to the operation of FRx Financial Reporter and...

Interactive statements. (Tech Tools).(Traverse 10.0)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Traverse version 10 includes Active Financial Statements, which allow users to produce interactive statements that can be used to drill down to the underlying data. Traverse Active Financial Statements work with the statements included in the...

Timesheet software. (Tech Tools).(TrakTime 5.10)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... TrakTime 5.10, desktop timesheet software, includes expense calculator, in grid editing, FTP upload/download capability for remote timekeepers, and key repeat work codes and clients, as well as additional reporting flexibility. TrakTime is the...

Client collaboration. (Tech Tools).(Advent Software's WealthLine)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Advent Software's WealthLine, a Web-based service, enables financial planners to collaborate with their clients. WealthLine integrates investment data and financial reports from Advent's applications and the Advent TrustedNetwork data service...

Fraud Risk Assessment. (Tech Tools).
April 1, 2003... PPC's Guide to Fraud Risk Assessment, Implementing SAS 99 (Consideration of Fraud in Financial Statement Audit), and Related Guidance was developed to help accountants efficiently implement SAS 99. The Guide provides technical guidance, staff...

Managing clients. (Tech Tools).(eMoney's AdvisorPlatform )(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... eMoney's AdvisorPlatform provides financial advisors with a Web-based wealth planning tool that offers a comprehensive view of a client's financial portfolio, as well as features and functions that enable more complete planning and better...

GE's growing model. (Asset Builders).(GE Financial)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... With its GE Independent Accountants Network (IAN), GE Financial (Schaumburg, Ill) is actively recruiting the most trusted professionals in the advice business and building them into a network of high quality financial advisors. IAN has...

Most favorable charitable deduction. (Asset Builders).(Fidelity Charitable Services)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Fidelity Charitable Services (Boston) is celebrating its 10th anniversary as the pioneer in donor-advised funds, setting new records for charitable giving with $3 billion, 30,000 donors, and help for more than 71,000 charities. As America's #1...

FP education programs blooming. (Asset Builders).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards (Denver) announces that its Board of Examiners has registered 15 new financial planning education programs at 11 institutions, bringing the total of CFP Board-Registered Programs to 265 at 165...

Certified reseller program. (Asset Builders).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... The 220-odd resellers of Software Technology Inc.'s (Lincoln, Neb.) line of time and billing and practice management software can now enroll in the company's certified reseller program and reap the rewards that come with such a status. Once...

Closing in on $400 billion. (Asset Builders).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Assets held in separately managed accounts industry-wide totaled $398.71 at the end of 2002, according to The Money Management Institute (Washington, D.C.) The figures are based on a survey of managed account sponsor firms conducted by MMI...

Transfer of wealth. (Asset Builders).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Today's planners sit on the leading edge of what may be the greatest transfer of wealth in U.S. history, says Lincoln Financial Group (Philadelphia). Economists, believe that bequests of this wealth will boost the resources of the 76 million...

Professional Network grows. (Practice Growth).(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... A member firm of ING Advisors Network, Financial Network (Torrance, Calif.) has for years been providing a flexible approach for accountants who are looking to enter the financial services arena. For the past two years, Financial Planning...

Financial planning software solutions. (Practice Growth).(AdviserPlan from PPC )(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... AdviserPlan from PPC (Fort Worth, Texas), chosen as one of Accounting Today's top 100 software, allows the user to add financial planning, including investment advice, to the practice without disrupting current workflow and services. PPC is a...

An integrated answer. (Practice Growth).(from Software Technology's TABS III)(Brief Article)
April 1, 2003... Software Technology (Lincoln, Neb.) has created a package that includes its PracticeMaster case management program with its TABS III time and billing program. The integrated solution can reprint, undo, modify, and rebill statements at anytime,...