Quicken 2004 Deluxe [Old Version]

I've been using Quicken for seven or eight years, and decided to upgrade from the 2001 version.

The install went smoothly. But when the program tries to start up, I get the same memory error other reviewers refer to. I can't speak to the program's new features because I can't even get it to run.

Hoping for a patch or fix, I went to the Quicken Web site. There I found a page indicating Quicken has known of this problem since at least Aug. 28, and that it is "currently under investigation."

My solution is to reinstall the 2001 version, which has a few annoying bugs [also unfixed] but at least it works. Maybe I'll upgrade to Microsoft Money; in any event, I don't want to risk losing years of data with this buggy Intuit product.

I hope I can get my money back.

One has to wonder how execs at companies like this sleep at night.


Quicken continues to disappoint in 2004   October 12, 2003
 14 out of 15 found this review helpful

I've been a Quicken user since the early 90s. Loved it in the early years, but as it became more complex, it developed quirks. This latest version immediately locks up my robust XP system if I open a browser and will lock it up after a while even when Quicken is the only program running. The only way to recover is a hard reboot! in XP!!! I used to enjoy tracking my finances, but since v2003 it has become a chore. What's worse, an upgrade still requires that you pay for support. Unless Intuit publishes a fix (and SOON!), this will be my last Quicken version. I'm switching to Money.


Don't buy this product   October 10, 2003
 20 out of 20 found this review helpful

I have nothing new to add really, except that I wanted to add my bad rating to the others so that the company gets the point. I have returned my copy for their "60 day money back" guarantee. Let's see if I actually get my money back. Like most of the others I have been using Quicken for a long time - 8+ years and I have over 45,000 transactions in over 30 accounts in my file. I think that I am using Quicken extensively and that I know my way around it pretty well.

I am having problems with the "Net Worth" graph with more than 12 months of history, the program crashes and then it will crash every time at start-up until I reboot. Some of the "Tax Planning" stuff doesn't seem to work - always pulls the wrong data in some places, and some of the return calculations in the "investment" section seem to be doing goofy things.

Intuit's support system is atrocious. I was on hold for 30min twice before I talked to someone whose response was "reinstall the software". These are not reinstall problems - these are a "let's-get-this-version-out-as-quickly-as-possible" problem.

DO NOT BUY THIS PRODUCT - Quicken 2003 works much better for me. I may reconsider buying this when there are patches available on the Quicken site. If you must buy this software MAKE SURE YOU BACK UP YOUR DATA IN A PREVIOUS VERSION AND STORE IT SOMEWHERE ELSE so you can convert back if you have problems.

I hope someone from Intuit reads these reviews.


In general it's okay, but buggy   October 7, 2003
 8 out of 11 found this review helpful

In general it is easy to use.

Negatives 1st:
They have taken out the mini portfolio from the front customizable view which was available in Quicken 2002 - 2003, in turn you have to navigate to your porfolio accounts separately or go to the investment center.

There is a serious bug in long term/short term calculations for capital gains. I reported the bug to them but there is no update yet.

The scroll bar is much slower now. The bar moves very slowly for 2-3 seconds before you can scroll up or down. Try it in the portfolio view in the investment center. You'll know what I'm referring to.

Ofcourse the home inventory is not updated again and still is using the old DOS version.

No undo

Positives:
Graphs look great, improved interface, newer investment transactions display, excellent reports and graphs section (same as 2003), excellent budget program, tons of institutions to link to, less advertising than before, easy online set-up, and now you can chat online with live tech support.


Seems like a solid program - no bugs as others reporting   October 6, 2003
 18 out of 21 found this review helpful

I've been a user of Quicken 2001 and this year decided to upgrade. After reading all of the negative reviews on here, I decided to first try MSN Money 2004. It works great, but I wasn't as comfortable with the way things are presented, so decided to also try Quicken 2004 Deluxe. Here are a few thoughts on the two programs:

1. Presentation-wise, I like Quicken better. On the view pages, boxes are lined up with each other, while Money just positions them as there is room. I also like Quicken's graphs and charts a little more, and the fact that Quicken's options allow you to see your net worth on the first page, while Money just shows account values on the first page so you have to click to another screen to see your net worth).

2. On investments, I think Money gives you a lot more information, including information about your best and worst performing investments, etc.

3. I think Money also has a bunch more features than Quicken might, and you get a lot of free options like MSN bill pay, free subscription to Money Magazine, etc.

All said, I think either program is a decent choice. After using Quicken for 3 years, I think I'm just a little more partial to Quicken just because it's more what I'm used to. Otherwise, Money I think gives you more bang for the buck.

Just to let you all know, I haven't had any bug issues with either program. Not sure if the other posters screwed things up on their own or just got early versions of the software that were buggy, but things have been smooth with respect to both programs. I also haven't experienced a bombardment of advertisements as some users are reporting.