Quicken 2004 Deluxe [Old Version]

The upgrade seemed to go OK at first, and the setup reported it had all data converted. But as soon as the program ran for the first time, I was in for a surprise! First of all, the program didn't even show up. Then, I relized that it was simply positioned somewhere off screen, so I couldn't see it. I can maximize it through the task bar, and sometimes, I can move it using the keyboard. But doing this every time it starts up is a pain!

Also, many things just do not work. For instance, the net-worth graph is totally broken if you show more than a year of data. And if you dare to change the date range more than once or twice, the program crashes to the desktop. If you do that a few times, you have to reboot your machine, because Quicken crashes on startup!

Also, I just plain hate how Quicken now keeps make you do certain things a certain way. This seems to get worse with every version. It tries to upload all your financial data to the web. It also tries to sucker you into all kinds of other deals Quicken offers. There are advertisements all over the place. And there are a number of dialogs that come up every time and you can' get rid of. Reconcile a credit card account and it asks you ever time whether you want to write a check. No, I don't, thank you! (I am paying my CCs online). Next time again: "Do you want to write a check?" NO, I DON'T! And on the third card you enter, again: "Are you sure you do not want to write a check?" YOU ARE DAMN RIGHT I AM!

Aren't those types of things standard these days? They are in all the apps I build...

And finally, Quicken just doesn't seem to improve the way I want it to. I guess that's just because my needs are not mainstream. Or are they? I had been hoping for a way to automatically update currency exchange rates. I had also hoped for a way to indicate that I only own a certain percentage of a property, so it shows up right in the net worth calculation. I had also hoped for better ways to analyze my portfolio with much easier ways to see how well each holding does year-by-year, rather than all-time. This is especially true for stock I have all sold, but I still would like to go back and see how well it performed and (more importantly) how it developed since then to see whether I made the right decision. I would also like a better stock-wish-list feature that would allow me to track much more information about stock I am considering to buy.

Those would all be nice features. Of course right now I would be happy if the thing would run for more than 3 minutes without crashing. Maybe I should switch to MS Money after all...


A previously loyal Quicken customer who is fed up   September 20, 2003
 21 out of 21 found this review helpful

I recently installed Quicken Premier on a very stable computer running Win XP. I am appalled at the number of bugs in this program and the extreme difficulty in contacting Intuit or even finding any answers in their so-called support FAQs and databases. I am experienced with Quicken, having used it since the mid '90's and am very computer-tech savvy. I've experienced multiple program halts and crashes in the middle of simple transaction sessions. Frequently the Home page loads as a blank page or loads only some images. Despite customizing multiple reports and saving them, they continue to open without the custom changes. The 'income report' insists on showing transfers between accounts as income, despite checking the box that "excludes internal transfers" on or off.
Here's the WORST of it and the problem that will bring the fund companies down on Intuits neck: When you run the program, it analyzes your mutual funds, brings up an alert box telling you all about your funds and takes you to the Intuit Brokerage site to show you how other funds have much lower expenses than yours. Most of this information is extremely erroneous. It lists 'Load' funds as having no expenses, it lists some funds with significant expenses as having '0' expenses and it told me that some of my funds charge as much as 2.5% annually in fees, which was bunk - I checked other fund sites and the Fund companies own sites. This is astonishing and libelous. Do not buy this program. And don't think that Quicken support is available in any meaningful way without a fee.


Worst Quicken Yet   September 14, 2003
 24 out of 25 found this review helpful

This version of quicken is by far the worst release yet. I will not purchase the program again.The program has several bugs...the more serious one forces the user to shut down the program in the middle of transactions and reboot quicken. A call to quicken revealed that Intuit is well aware of this bug and the rep told me "they are working on a fix" Apparently the program was not fully tested prior to its release.At least not enough to find this bug.

To add insult to injury, intuit has the nerve to place annoying advertising within the program. There is a button with the quicken mastercard logo. If you click on that button you will be taken to the quicken services home page where they will attempt to sell you other quicken services such as quicken bill-pay and quicken mastercard. The programs user interface, in my opinion, is gaudy, much too busy and not at all professional looking....hardly the kind of user interface that would inspire confidence in the softwares ability to handle my financial transactions in a safe, secure and professional manner. Quicken has obviously lost sight of the value of simplicity. The interface is jamed with information whick requires the user to be extremely cautious (slow) least you click on the wrong button and delete your files. As a used of prior versions of quicken I am quite familiar with the program and can remember when quicken was streamlined, concise and fun to use.

Anyone considering the purchase of the program should first try the trial version so that unlike me, if you do not like the software you will not be stuck for the purchase price.


Terrible Product & Company!   September 14, 2003
 13 out of 16 found this review helpful

I wish I would have read these reviews first. MS Money can't convert this 2004 version yet and I know I can't go back to Quicken 2001. Trust all of these bad reviews!