Money matters: personal finance software gets down to business - includes related article on new financial software versions, a brief summary of findings and a glossary - Software Review - Evaluation

Home Office Computing, Nov, 1994 by Wayne Kawamoto

THE TERM PRESONAL FINANCE SOFTWARE IS A MISNOMER. Today's packages for Windows, DOS, and the Macintosh can manage small-business as well as personal finances. Also, the accounting power such software offers is far easier to implement than packages that use a lot of CPA doublespeak.

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At the core of every personal finance program is a computerized checkbook register. Each time you write a check, the program records the transaction and lets you assign the expense to a category, such as food. This way, at the end of a fiscal period, you can view expenditures by category and compare them with budgets you've set in the program. In addition, all of these programs can split transactions among several categories, print reports and traditional financial statements, and display data in helpful graphs.

Their features also save time by memorizing and executing checkbook transactions, printing your checks, simplifying reconciliation, and performing calculations. At bill time, you just sign the check and mail it. Many packages also support online services, such as Check-Free and Bank On-Line, that let you pay bills electronically (at extra cost), and they'll even remind you when bills are due.

Although full-fledged accounting programs are more powerful, typically providing general ledgers, invoicing functions, and inventory management, personal finance software can do the job for many small businesses, especially those without inventory. Most of the manuals explain how to use the software to perform payroll functions and track accounts receivable and payable. These features are usually work-arounds that stretch the program's capabilities and are not formally part of the packages.

Some packages go further, however, offering built-in business modules or optional add-ons for payroll, invoicing, and other areas. If you want to track both business and personal finances, all the personal finance programs here let you manage different groups of accounts in discrete data sets or files.

Beyond checkbook management, personal finance software can track investments, and financial calculators will help you plan for retirement, estimate loan schedules, and assist you in finding a way to send your baby to college. These programs also come in handy when dealing with yearly fiscal responsibilities. All will create tax summary reports, pegged to Schedule C deduction categories, for example, and some will actually estimate your tax bill.

For your small-business and personal finances, at least one of the 12 packages in this review is right for you (unless otherwise noted, prices given are list). Reviews are listed by type (multiplatform, Windows, and Macintosh).

Managing Your Money

WIN

Rating: *** 1/2

Version Reviewed: 1.0

DOS

Rating: *** 1/2

Version Reviewed: 10.0

MAC

Rating: *** 1/2

Version Reviewed: 6.0

As the Mac and DOS version numbers imply, Meca's Managing Your Money (MYM) is a longtime powerhouse in the personal finance field that offers adequate business capabilities and the most thorough investment tracking of any of the packages here.

MYM's strong checkbook and register functions memorize transactions, set recurring transactions, and fill in dates, check numbers, and names of payees--you simply type in the first few letters. All versions, except Windows, will pay bills electronically through the CheckFree online service. The DOS and Windows versions can track subcategories, which lets you check expenses in more detail, and can create payment reminders.

MYM finally made its way to Windows this year. The SmartDesk menu disguises the program's interface in a shallow office facade; clicking on various drawers and pictures lets you access program features. If this feels corny, you can still use the standard pulldown menus. Another Windows plus is the balloon help that's always a right-mouse click away.

For small-business needs, MYM for Windows includes a helpful chapter in the manual that explains ways to push the program to handle accounts receivable and payable, depreciation, and payroll. These are mostly useful solutions. The DOS version, on the other hand, offers no advice on business use.

MYM for mac's interface, the Navigator, is quite different from the other versions, but with its large buttons for accessing program functions, it's easy to use. Of the three packages, MYM for Mac is the only version that offers a dedicated manual explaining how to use the program for business, including accounts payable, accounts receivable, depreciation, and partnerships.

The DOS version offers the most comprehensive features set. Since it can't use Windows's calculators and notecards, MYM for DOS provides its own card file, appointment tracker, and limited word processor.

For tracking stocks, assets, bonds, and mutual funds, MYM's investment modules are the most comprehensive of all the products reviewed. It can maintain price histories, remind you of maturity dates, display price alerts, and track investment tax liabilities. MYM also considers such details as risk levels and liquidity--perfect for the hardcore Wall Street Journal reader. The Mac and DOS versions can update prices electronically through CompuServe (the Windows version requires an add-on to do this); the Dow Jones News/Retrieval service can be accessed by the DOS version.