Tuesday, September 10, 2002

Check out tax software, before you're pushed

SANDRA BROWN KELLY

    Although the deadline hovers like a hooded cobra for anyone who got a second extension on filing 2001 income taxes, most Americans left this pressure behind months ago. In either case, whether you have a mid-October final deadline or you're in the easy months between IRS party times, now is a good time to look at tax preparation software.

    Plunging into this software also encourages you to use a budget-financial product like Money or Quicken. Once set up, these software packages are like magic for updating accounts and transferring data from your bank records online into your computer records at home. (Always check with your bank to make certain the product you choose is compatible with its files.)

    I spent the past few days getting to know TaxCut's Platinum Home and Business version, from H&R Block. The installation was easy, including the downloading of state forms. The wizard that helps in this process is friendly, even reminding you that if it appears nothing is happening on the bar that shows progress in a download, don't worry, the download is working. The wizard was right.

    ConsumerSearch.com, which compiles reviews from sources such as Consumer Reports and PC World, found more reviewers gave TaxCut the highest rating of the tax products available. Even better, it cost about $20 after rebate.

    Other software to consider includes Quicken TurboTax Deluxe and TaxAct 2001. TaxCut works with both Money and Quicken financial software; Turbo (you can tell by the name) has a terrific partnership with Quicken, and TaxAct, the least expensive, will work fine for simple returns and is cheaper than the others.

    The key guideline for purchasing tax software is to select what best serves your needs. The salesperson at Staples recommended the Home and Business version of TaxCut for me because I am self-employed and have all of those interesting forms to file. It works well with Money software, which I also have. Users of Quicken or QuickBooks would find Turbo Tax the most compatible with these packages, reviewers said.

    TaxCut promises, however, that not only can it import data from Money and Quicken, it can also import data from a previous year's federal return prepared with the competing TurboTax.

    It could benefit you, too, to visit www.irs.gov in this tax lull time and look at changes for 2002. This will give you plenty of time to consider how to take advantage of them.

    Sept. 11

    The search engine Google has created a collection of data on searches relating to the terrorist attacks last year. You can access this at www.google.com/press/zeitgeist/9-11.html.

    Faster computer startups

    Smart Computing's most recent Learning Series magazine, Practical PC Tactics, holds a wealth of tips for anyone who wants to know more about his or her computer and wants ways to improve its use. The current issue on the newsstands has a handy two pages on speeding up a computer startup. If, like me, you discover the newer your computer the slower it boots up, the tips here can help. The following change can be done in your Control Panel (Go to Settings, Control Panel):

    In Windows 98 and Me, you can disable the check for the floppy drive, which isn't necessary on a desktop. Just select System, the Performance tab, then File System and Floppy Disk and remove the check next to Search for New Floppy Disk Drives.

    Another interesting discussion in this Learning Series issue has to do with cleaning off a hard drive to free up space. Even if you don't do anything with the information, it's educational. For example, if you use Netscape, you might think you can uninstall Internet Explorer, but the Windows Operating System uses Explorer too for some of its operations, so you don't want to remove it.

    You can reach free-lance writer SANDRA BROWN KELLY at sbk@rev.net.

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