Accounting Technology articles from January 2003

Accounting Technology archives from January 2003

Putting tax prep on the web. (Editor's Note).(Column)
January 1, 2003... The dot-com bust and slow market acceptance delayed the move of many business functions, including tax preparation, onto the Internet. But like it or not, functions once completed on the accountant's desktop are increasingly moving to the Web....

Taking firms to the web.(preview of contents)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Publishers of tax and accounting software have attempted to drive the CPA community online with bargain-priced Web-site-creation deals. Now they're throwing branding opportunities and remote accessibility into the mix. So is it working,...

Street talk: reader views.(spam)(Letter to the Editor)
January 1, 2003... How big a problem is email spam, and have you found anything to help reduce the volume? Filters can help, but they also can block valid emails. Opting out of the emails that allow it can help for a time, but they catch up again and it...

Eide retools tech arm. (Practice Development News).(Techwise Solutions)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Eide Bailly has reorganized its technology business under Techwise Solutions, an operation that employs 54 people in four major technology areas. The Fargo, N.D.-based CPA firm dissolved its previous affiliate, Webb Information Services,...

Wipfli grows IT unit. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Wipfli, Ullrich, Bertelson has expanded its technology consulting services with the acquisition of the Sycamore Group, a Milwaukee-based consulting firm. The acquisition adds 20 consultants to Wipfli's Information Technology and Business...

Rothstein Kass hires IT head. (Practice Development News).(Stuart Siegel)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Rothstein Kass has hired Stuart Siegel, formerly CIO for the Fortress Group, as director of information technology services for the firm's National Real Estate Group. He will be based in Beverly Hills, Calif. Siegel has more than 18 years...

Harnish joins Plante & Moran. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Michael Harnish, who served as COO of CPA2Biz in 2000 and 2001, has become manager of the technology, consulting & solutions practice of Plante & Moran, based in Southfield, Mich. As a manager, Harnish is responsible for building practice...

Paychex offers CPE. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Paychex has entered an agreement with WiseGuides through which the payroll service provider will offer self-study CPE online for free at www.paychex.com. CPAs and other accounting professionals can take a different one-credit course each...

Microsoft spiffs up MCP. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Microsoft has enhanced the Microsoft Certified Partner program by redesigning the Microsoft Resource Directory to allow customers to search among more than 35,000 MCPs. MCPs can access the Online Concierge Service, Web-based chat, that...

AICPA/CIS swap kudos. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... The American Institute of CPAs and the Center for Internet Security have agreed to recommend each other's system security and reliability programs to CPAs. The agreement involves the AICPA's SysTrust and WebTrust program and the CIS...

Hewitt back in channel. (Practice Development News).(Jim Hewitt joins Brandywine Computer)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Jim Hewitt, who recently parted company with his long-time partner, Mark Keller at the Cincinnati firm of Keller-Hewitt, has joined the Mason, Ohio-based reselling firm, Brandywine Computer. Brandywine was purchased by Zanett in May for...

Society adds job service. (Practice Development News).(New York State Society of Certified Public Accountan)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... The New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants has added a job center to its Web site in a partnership with CareerBank.com. The NYSSCPA Career Center enables job seekers and employers to access job postings. The center is...

Projected IT Hiring First Quarter. (Practice Development News).(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
January 1, 2003... Projected IT Hiring First Quarter Increase 11% Decrease 3% No change 86% IT hiring will remain steady in the first quarter, according to a survey of 1,400 CIOs in companies with more than 100 employees each. Source:...

SBM 7.0 launches. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Microsoft has shipped key modules of the low-end Small Business Manager 7.0, additional modules that many resellers believe are needed to kick start the flagging product. MBS added sales order, purchasing, and inventory features modules to...

Acctrak hires Dickson. (Accounting News).(Michael Dickson)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Acctrak21, a Pacific Rim-based accounting software vendor, has named Michael Dickson as senior vice president of channel development for the United States. Dickson, chairman-elect of the Ohio Society of CPAs, will report to president Wayne...

SalesLogix honors VARs. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Emerging Market Technologies, an Atlanta-based reseller, has been named Rookie of the Year for its sales of SalesLogix by Best Software's CRM Division. Also honored was Mike Spragg of el Business Ltd., based in Winchester, United Kingdom,...

Open Systems inks SCO. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Open Systems, the Eden Prairie, Minn.-based accounting software vendor, has entered a formal partnership with the Linux SCO Group. SCO will provide marketing assistance and exposure to listings of vertical market developers and third-party...

Accpac U opens. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Accpac International has launched Accpac University, an online training and certification center for its resellers and consultants. The site, open at www.accpacuniversity.com, offers courses that begin at $169 each. Besides offering courses...

Epicor buys Clarus. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Epicor has agreed to purchase a variety of product lines from Clarus, which makes procurement, sourcing, settlement, and analytic software, for $1 million. The assets to be acquired consist of intellectual property, customer lists,...

Exact launches e-Synergy. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Exact Software North America has introduced e-Synergy, an online enterprise relationship management system, into the North American market after more than six months in the field in Europe and test marketing in the United States. The...

Best picks VP. (Accounting News).(Al James)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Best Software has named Al James as vice president of sales for its Specialty Products Division, which markets packages including the Abra HR and payroll and FAS fixed assets line. James, who will report to division president Jim Foster,...

NetLedger program launches. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Online software vendor NetLedger has introduced revamped programs for influencers and resellers who want to be involved with its Internet-based software offerings. The three channel tiers include the Solution Provider Program, for systems...

Serenic renames App. (Accounting News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Serenic Software, a developer based in Lakewood, Cob., has changed the name of not-for-profit accounting software to Serenic Navigator. The name was changed from Fund Accounting for Navision after Microsoft acquired Navision.

CCH vet joins CSI. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Arthur Ruzzano, a long-time executive at CCH's ProSystem operations, has joined Creative Solutions as senior strategist, sales and marketing. Ruzzano left CCH in the late spring, after more than 20 years with that company. He was vice...

Paychex names Ops VP. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Payroll provider Paychex has named Martin Mucci, formerly CEO of Frontier Communications, to the newly created post of senior vice president of operations for the Rochester, N.Y.-based company. Mucci, who joined Paychex in March, has...

Advent releases WealthLine. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Advent Software has released WealthLine, a Web-based service, that enables financial professionals to collaborate with their clients. WealthLine integrates investment data and financial reports from Advent's applications and the Advent...

CPA2Biz shifts execs. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Erik Asgeirsson)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... CPA2BiZ got its second CEO and second COO in its short history as the company shuffled its founding top executive, Brett Prager, out of day-to-day responsibility. Sales and marketing vice president Erik Asgeirsson became CEO, a position...

CSI chooses aggregator. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Creative Solutions has selected By All Accounts to provide account aggregation services through its private client portals that are available through the Net Connection program. CSI will not use aggregation services to provide financial...

Orrtax name fades. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... The Orrtax Software name is being phased out as the company is integrated with its parent, Houston-based TRE-Financial Services. The company's www.orrtax.com URE has been replaced by www.intellitax.com, named after the tax preparation line,...

Brokering site opens. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Business Transitions has opened an online succession planning program for accounting professionals called CPA Transitions, the third in a series of such sites, that lets professionals buy and sell businesses. Located at...

Intuit retools sites. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Intuit has revamped the Web sites for its ProSeries and Lacerte tax preparation software operations by offering tracking of e-filing transmissions and the ability to access customer account information. The company says it has streamlined...

Schwab rolls out platform. (Tax & Financial Planning News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Schwab Institutional is rolling out Portfolio Center, portfolio management system for investment advisors, developed by Schwab Performance Technologies Centerpiece operations. The Schwab unit, formerly known as Performance Technologies, has...

Burgum sells stock. (Financial News).(Microsoft Business Solutions' Doug Burgum)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Doug Burgum, president of Microsoft Business Solutions, sold 195,459 shares of Microsoft stock late last year, receiving about $11.2 million in proceeds. It was his second major sale of stock. MBS sells the Great Plains, Solomon, Navision,...

Sage results up. (Financial News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Sage Group, which owns Best Software, reported an 11 percent increase in earnings on a 14-percent increase in revenue worldwide for the year ended September 30, with even stronger results in the United States. U.S. revenue hit $409...

Active losses continue. (Financial News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Active IQ Technologies, which owns the Champion and Red Wing Software lines, says it may sell assets as the company continued to lose money. Revenue was $3.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, up from $1.05 million the prior...

Softline revenue up. (Financial News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... South African-based Softline, which owns Business Vision and AccountMate, saw an improvement in operating earnings for the half ended September 30, but lost $13.7 million because of an investment write-down. Operating income was $4.2...

PayCycle gets funds. (Financial News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... PayCycle, which provides payroll processing services via the Internet, has secured $11S million in Series C funding, proceeds that will be used to fund the company's growth and product development. The current round was led by Conning...

Intuit payroll booms. (Financial News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Payroll services at Intuit boomed, with revenue rising 39 percent over a year ago, for the first quarter ended September 30, and accounted for 21.1 percent of the company's revenue for the period. Revenue from payroll, which includes both...

Insynq moves to Nevada. (Financial News).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Insynq, a provider of online accounting services, has moved to reincorporate from Delaware to Nevada by merging with a subsidiary, a move the troubled company hopes will improve its operations. The company, based in, Tacoma, Washington...

MBS Losses Revealed.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... MBS Losses Revealed Microsoft Business Solutions reported a $68 million operating loss for the first quarter ended September 30. The figures reflect Great Plains, Solomon, and some Navision sales. The year-ago revenue and loss precede...

Intuit Results Rise.(Illustration)
January 1, 2003... INTUIT RESULTS RISE First Q Ended Oct. 31 Loss Revenue 2001 $92.4M $168.7M 2002 $54.7M $223.3M Intuit narrowed its loss in the third quarter, one in which it usually loses money, as revenue rose 24.4 percent...

Crafting a web presence.(Industry Overview)
January 1, 2003... Jim Schaefer is almost surprisingly candid on the point: "We have never obtained a new client through our Web site." Even more surprising, he doesn't mind a bit. "There's an assumption that a Web site is a magnet to attract new clients. We...

The state of CPA programs: CPAs play a critical role steering clients to software.(Industry Overview)
January 1, 2003... Leslie Capachietti, principal of Automated Financial Services located in Winchester, Mass., believes strongly in the power of CPA programs. In fact, she says 40 percent of her annual revenue comes from being a part of Intuit's CPA program...

Payroll biz booms: resurgence of payroll requires new tools. (Software Review).(Buyers Guide)
January 1, 2003... A popular movie trilogy many years ago was the Back to the Future series, whose basic premise was how changing the past (via time travel) impacts the present and future. If today's CPA firms were able to go back in time, say about 25 years,...

Tax season: ready, set, prepare! here's a final look at some of the tools hitting the market.(Buyers Guide)
January 1, 2003... More forms? Greater ease of use? Tighter integration with other accounting office applications? Sure, tax accounting soft ware promises those things. But the biggest trend looming for tax practices may not be any of those. Looming on the...

HR software angles for a promotion: automated employee tracking becomes more than just a Payroll tie-in.(Industry Overview)
January 1, 2003... Human resources automation, both on the desktop and the Web, is strutting its versatility these days, making the case it's a crucial part of any back-office suite and not just an adjunct to the payroll module. Amid suggestions that...

Red Wing payroll 7.0. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Version 7.0 of Red Wing Software's payroll module, developed by Aatrix Software, and opened from within Red Wing's Payroll Reports Menu, displays state and government tax forms exactly as they will print. Forms are already filled out with...

Millennium practice blue 3.0. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... MPBlue 3, Commercial Logic's time and billing solution for firms using QuickBooks Pro, reads clients, jobs, staff, and items from QuickBooks, and returns Client or Job invoices to QuickBooks. It provides time and expense entry, WIP...

Professional55 Version 1.2. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Professional55 Version 1.2, time tracking software, captures time spent in Adobe Acrobat and Acrobat Reader to enhance productivity. Version 1.2 also now captures recorded as appointments in Microsoft Outlook. Phone calls are tracked using...

ProConnection. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... ProConnection, an online suite, features tips, best practices, and tools to help accountants better serve their clients. A free service, ProConnection offers a monthly email newsletter with "how-to" tips, best practices, and strategies for...

IdentiRisk. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... IdentiRisk for SysTrust Security uses the SysTrust Principles and Criteria developed by the AICPA, to pinpoint security problems in information systems. After a user completes a diagnostic survey, the application produces a graphical...

POSitively Business Version 3.0. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... POSitively Business, a point of sale system written for Yes! I Can Run My Business, comes with source code for Access 97, Access 2000, or Access 2002 (XP). Users can add new database objects, such as tables, fields, and forms, creating new...

Navision 3.60. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Navision 3.60, formerly known as Attain, provides a Warehouse Management System (WMS) for organizing warehouse layout and an automated data capture system (ADCS) that uses radio frequency technology to track all inventory in stock. WMS...

Tabs III tutorial. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Video clips can be accessed via Tabs Ill's Help Menu as well as from the STI CD-ROM Browser. Clips cover more than 80 topics and include over six hours of learning materials. Mobile professionals can install the Tabs III Tutorial on their...

Lexmark W812. (New Products).(wide-format printer)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... The Lexmark W812, an A3 (wide-format) printer, meets the distributed printing needs of Asian markets and the special application requirements of small and medium businesses. The W812 prints at 26ppm, provides duplexing capability, handles a...

Guide to Religious Organizations. (New Products).(Book Review)
January 1, 2003... PPC's Guide to Religious Organizations provides guidance, real-life examples, and checklists for CPAs who deliver services to religious organizations. The Guide addresses contributions, faith promises, fixed assets, capital campaigns,...

Peachtree Direct Deposit. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Integrated with the Peachtree Accounting 2003 product line, Peachtree Direct Deposit enables small business owners to provide employees with this compensation option. Users run payroll as they normally would in Peachtree, completing...

E suite. (New Products).(e by Epicor suite )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... The e by Epicor suite delivers financial accounting, distribution, warehouse management, human resources, customer relationship management, enterprise services automation, business intelligence, and e-commerce capabilities to mid-market...

Complete Payroll. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Complete Payroll downloads data in QuickBooks, giving them the ability to store payroll data and accounting information in a single place. By automatically populating the correct fields within QuickBooks, data-entry errors are eliminated,...

Complete Tax Pro. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Complete Tax Pro, an online do-it-yourself tax prep affiliate program, can be linked to accounting firm Web sites via a CCH secure server. Firms can customize CompleteTax Pro by adding their own names and logos to selected pages via the...

Checkpoint 5.1. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Checkpoint 5.1 instantly links between federal and state issues with Compare. It for the United States Tax Reporter (USTR). CompareIt provides code-based researchers with a table of contents that mirrors the print version USTR, and a go-to...

FRx Online Training. (New Products).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... FRx Training Online, a series of prerecorded product usage and installation tutorials, 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...

Choice: all about options. (Channels).
January 1, 2003... Choice Technologies probably isn't a household name--yet--to many firms. But the Spencer, Iowa-based company says it offers a viable alternative to QuickBooks, along with reselling and recommending opportunities you don't get with that...

Frank Stitely: training guru. (Accounting Technologist).(Stitely, Karstetter & Greenfield)
January 1, 2003... Ask Frank Stitely why his practice performs so well, and two reasons immediately spring forth: Peachtree Software and paperless technology. Chantilly, Va.-based Stitely, Karstetter & Greenfield, is the only authorized Resource Center for...

Money...money...money! (Editor's Note).
January 1, 2003... Groucho Marx may have had it right. "Money frees you from doing things you dislike. Since I dislike doing nearly everything, money is handy." The features in this issue of CPA Wealth Provider take a real nuts and bolts look at money when...

Uncovering risks. (Tech Tools).(Risk 4.0 for Project )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Risk 4.0 for Project uses Monte Carlo simulation to uncover risks and opportunities in Project modules. It analyzes risk by allowing for ranges of values to be entered for uncertain tasks or resources in Project. And, then it stimulates...

Express Business valuation. (Tech Tools).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Designed for Microsoft Office, Express Business Evaluation provides CPAs with comprehensive analysis, optional valuation databases, on-line video tutorials, and free telephone training. Express Business Valuation can download nine valuation...

Minimum distributions planner. (Tech Tools).(Pension Distributions Planner 6.02)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Pension Distributions Planner v. 6.02 includes features found in the Pensions Distributions Calculator, such as exhaustive treatment of required minimum distributions and pre-distributions. Multiple beneficiaries are also handled. The program...

Viewing multiple schedules. (Tech Tools).(Visual Group Planner)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Visual Group Planner helps coordinate staff, increases schedule communication, and productivity. The system gives businesses the power to view multiple schedules simultaneously, view schedules hourly, daily, or weekly by position, department,...

Equity+Ease. (Tech Tools).(from CCH)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... With CCH Equity+Ease, administrators can manage and track any type of stock options plan, and create performance-based incentive plans, and manage ESPP information, transactions, and reporting. Equity+Ease is a modular system, which allows...

Advisor sales tool. (Tech Tools).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Vision, the leading Web portal for financial advisors, has enriched its value to advisors by providing integrated access to FMA Advisor, provided by Forefield. Combining a powerful client presentation tool and a current, concise, and compliant...

Reverse mortgage. (Asset Builders).(information from Suze orman)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... You have to be 62 to qualify for a reverse mortgage, says Suze Orman, personal finance editor for CNBC. She notes that a person who takes out a reverse mortgage usually owns a home outright, but is looking to tap into the built-in equity....

Cost control. (Asset Builders).(Watchdog Software's Unemployment Cost Control Software)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... For the first time, a professional unemployment compensation tracking software program is now available to assist employers who control unemployment cost in-house. Watchdog Software (Pittsburgh) has developed and is now marketing Unemployment...

Driving efficiency. (Asset Builders).(from Optika)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Optika (Colorado Springs, Colo.) provides imaging, workflow, and collaboration software. Its Acorde family of Enterprise Content Management solutions allows companies to manage complex business processes and transactions. According to Dru Anne...

Examining financial planning firms. (Asset Builders).(Financial Planning Association's study, 2002 FPA Financial Performance Study of Financial Advisory Practices )(Brief Article)(Industry Overview)
January 1, 2003... While the financial markets continued their downturn in 2001 and early 2002, financial advisors were able to offset the erosion of assets with new clients, according to a recent study conducted by the Financial Planning Association, sponsored...

Accountants as wealth managers. (Practice Growth).(Book Review)
January 1, 2003... Accountants and other financial professionals are being pressured to keep up with their affluent clients by becoming "wealth managers," but few know what that means or how to effectively make the transition. Now they have a handbook for change....

Retirement plan for self-employed professionals. (Practice Growth).(OnePersonPlus)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Metavante Corporation (Milwaukee), the financial technology subsidiary of Marshall & Ilsley Corporation, has introduced OnePersonPlus, a new defined benefit retirement plan for business owners and self-employed professionals that offers...

Cross-selling enters pro services. (Practice Growth).(Cross Selling Success)(Book Review)
January 1, 2003... CPAs, management consultants, and other professionals have been loath to "sell" their services but faced with an evaporating pool of new business opportunities, they may have to become more active in their "rainmaking" efforts. Specifically,...

Adding defined contribution solutions. (Practice Growth).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... SEI Investments (Oaks, Pa.) has announced that its defined contribution solutions have been included in 40lKonnect's online marketplace. 401Konnect is a leading online marketplace that automates the marketing and sales of retirement products...

New lease-based pricing. (Practice Growth).(Internet Accounting Software)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Internet Accounting Software (Melville, N.Y.) has unveiled a new lease-based software licensing plan that makes acquiring professional accounting software more cost-effective for businesses than the traditional software licensing models...

Wealth management partnership. (Partners).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Adhesion Technologies (Charlotte, N.C.) and netDecide (Tysons Corner, Va.), a developer of Web-based wealth management software, have formed a strategic partnership to bring to market a wealth management solution consisting of their combined...

Adopting investment standards. (Partners).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Omaha based QA Financial Corporation has signed an agreement with the Pittsburgh based [invest.sup.mgt] and the Center for Fiduciary Studies to provide its professionals with Web-based tolls and training on investment practice standards and...

Integrated fundraising solutions. (Partners).(Cougar Mountain Software, Campagne Associates)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... Cougar Mountain Software (Boise, Id.) and Campagne Associates (Manchester, N.H.) have formed a strategic partnership that will provide one of the industry's complete fundraising and accounting software packages. "This alliance represents the...

Offerings for small businesses. (Partners).(Brief Article)
January 1, 2003... NetLedger (San Mateo, Calif.), makers of Oracle Small Business Suite, says that it will team with Sprint to provide small and mid-sized businesses with Sprint FastConnect DSL and Oracle Small Business Suite, a widely used small business...