Quick Poll - MYOB or Quickbooks

[nominal]

Originally Posted by Rhys

1. A couple of people make the comment that you should find out what your accountant uses, and use that. I disagree.

Excellent - I love it. I think you've made a very strong point in this first section. I am seriously thinking of using this in my marketing... does a public post have copyrights? I wonder :-)

Originally Posted by Rhys

... benefits of being on the cloud leave all of the server based applications for dead.

I was actually thinking about our Online vs Desktop accounting discussion the other day, I was sitting in my hotel room using a wireless dongle to go online and do some work on PayPal... It was painfully slow and made me feel sorry for all these 'cloud' users that have to go through that when they're using slow connection like that.

The whole point was that you can access it from anywhere right? so that got me thinking, what is more likely that I will be with my laptop and without fast connection, or without my laptop and with a strong internet connection.

The answer for me was clear, I go everywhere with my laptop, to work, on the train, on the bus, on plain, overseas, to meetings, on vacation, everywhere. But in most of these places I don't have a fast connection, if at all. The conclusion for me was one, the so called 'freedom' can actually be a limitation.

True story.

Perhaps I should have added this to our other thread, sorry.

[fredfarcle]

Great thread, I've use both the major desktop brands including for payroll and hated both of them.
E record from the ATO, was OK for my size business but I think I saw on their site it's being discontinued.
I'm currently experimenting with a cloud based ERP (cloud based enterprise planner), they handle everything from initial sales enquiry through to profit and loss, even can be used for warehousing and logistics. EVERYTHING in one application, not stuff everywhere in different applications and you can customise for your business model.
You can DIY, or get supported plans for about the same money being quoted here for annual licence update fees.
No maintenance or back up issues, no updating of the application.
As for the access online issue, I think you need a better data provider or have your laptop checked and what happens if you drop it or have it stolen or don't maintain a secure environment (like many I know) and a virus eats your data.
I actually think most desktop applications are dead in the water, user's hate them but they will use a browser interface because nearly everyone knows how.

[RapidEntryBiz]

As an addendum to my previous post;
the quality of the Help Desk cant be underrated, for me its usually a deal breaker. I'm a recent fan of Quickbooks but and this is a big but, since making several calls recently to Quickbooks help by phone and getting Malaysia with
big communciation (communication of problem) issues,
big knowledge (having to get advice from someone else, putting me on hold) issues and to top it off
displayed no consideration for my time when I emailed them a screen shot of the issue (using windows, dumping it into a word doc) and then they reply that the only format they accept is tiff (I think it was).
I've never had an issue with Indian help desks and expected much better service.
MYOB excels in this area with a fantastic knowledge base on the my.myob web page/ great with the email reply and good with the phone backup (sometimes the wait can be long, but this is understandable).

is it too early for feedback on Xero and Saasu helpdesks?

[King]

Bought MYOB once - sold it within a week to some other poor soul.

Any program that expensive that then wants you to for out heaps more for training....no thanks.

Looked at QB, but then went with another on the advice on my accountant. Won't give its name because I am not happy with it.

I agree with whoever said ignore your accountant (except maybe for a short-list) Any decent sized accounting firm should have experts on every package out there and be able to handle them. After all the numbers are all the same - as long as it is set up correctly.

If they say. we are a MYOB only firm tell em to go back to their spare room in their house because really, that must be how small a form they must be.

Yes the user uses it every day, so THEIR needs is the one to be addressed first.

Shame this thread did not have access to a simple poll module tho...

[Dardee]

So this is where my comments got pulled from. March 2009.

A lot has changed in that time. Anything written 2 years ago regarding software is mostly redundant now.

[APG]

I always love these kinds of questions (CPA Australia member's forum currently has a similar thread running).

The use of a particular software package for accounting/bookkeeping needs, and whether one is better than the other is really a subjective question based on so many factors including (but not limited to):

1. what you are used to and comfortable with.
2. when you change from one package to another did you invest the same training time in the second as you did the first (you've probably forgotten how much time it took to learn the first one)
3. how you interact with your accountant. Accountants pay for subcriptions for MYOB/quicken. If they don't using one or the other can be more difficult than it needs to be.
4. General hype about a particular package - often we are swayed by what others think.
5. the biggy - whether the package actually suits what we need rather than us tyring to "fit" to the program. One of the things I find really frustrating about the accounting/bookkeeping professions is lots of people tend to recommend clients use a package because the person recommending it understands it rather than because it is best suited to the users needs.
6. And possibly bigger - who is going to "run" the package. Software is great when operated by someone who is well trained (not just in using the software but also the underlying skills) and has the time to devote to the task to get it right. Giving bookkeeping/accounting tasks to someone who isn't qualified is just like buying a large road train (truck with three trailers) and asking them to drive from point a to point b without killing anyone. Yes they could possibly work out how to drive it and complete the task in a fashion, but if anything unusual happens are you prepared to bet your life on their new found skills?

I would be interested to know how many people sat down and wrote out what they need their accounting package to do and then went to the effort of comparing their list of "needs" to the packages capabilities, comparing several before purchasing, as oppposed to those that bought their package off the shelf because it was the one everyone used or recommended. I bet the number of people who assessed their package properly before use are a select group and their satisfaction levels would be higher than the others.

Regards,
Andrew Green
APG Accounting

[APG]

Originally Posted by King

Bought MYOB once - sold it within a week to some other poor soul.

Any program that expensive that then wants you to for out heaps more for training....no thanks.

Looked at QB, but then went with another on the advice on my accountant. Won't give its name because I am not happy with it.

I agree with whoever said ignore your accountant (except maybe for a short-list) Any decent sized accounting firm should have experts on every package out there and be able to handle them. After all the numbers are all the same - as long as it is set up correctly.

If they say. we are a MYOB only firm tell em to go back to their spare room in their house because really, that must be how small a form they must be.

Yes the user uses it every day, so THEIR needs is the one to be addressed first.

Shame this thread did not have access to a simple poll module tho...

Don't ignore your accountant - if your in that position - get a new one. Accountants are like all other service providers, some are great, some are ok and some aren't. Changing accountants is a relatively easy exercise, especially when you move to a good one. Be prepared to shift rather than stick with poor advice. Be prepared to interview your new accountant to find out if they are going to fit your needs/expectations. Also, don't be afraid to provide feedback about the service you are getting. If they aren't interested in hearing it, again, change accountant. Your accountant can be the best source of business information and support, not only providing direct support, but also being able to recommend you to those that can support you when the work is outside their scope of experience/skills. Too many people accept poor or under expectation service from accountants - be brave and change when you don't get what you want.

Regards,
Andrew Green CPA
APG Accounting.

[Bizzy]

Quick Poll - MYOB or Quickbooks?

Hmm neither thank you very much :-P