Quicken, You Really Frustrate Me.

You know how people sometimes joke about new products and say "Now with Less!" Well, it's no joke, apparently, if you're talking about Quicken for Mac.

As I've mentioned in many posts, I track my expenses religiously, using a combination of Quicken on my Mac, and Pocket Quicken on a series of Palm OS devices, currently a Treo. I got an email from Intuit recently touting their latest version of Quicken for Mac, and hoped it might offer some improvements, but when I looked into the details, I found it completely bizarre.

They're introducing an "all-new Quicken Essentials for Mac" sometime this month. They say it's improved and redesigned, but on the "using a prior version of Quicken Mac?" tab, they give these caveats:

We're very excited about the all-new Quicken Essentials for Mac. Not only does it solve the core Quicken jobs better, it also provides the ease of use and elegant user interface Mac customers have come to expect from their applications.

Our Quicken Mac 2007 and earlier users should note that this is a brand new product, so some of the features you've grown used to may not be included.

Gee, what might those not-included features be?

1. Can I track my investments?

Yes, Quicken Essentials for Mac allows you to track the overall value of your investment accounts and the value of your specific holdings. It will not, however, track investment buys and sells, nor will it provide some advanced investment performance reports. If you need more more advanced investment features, try Quicken Mac 2007.

2. Can I export my data to TurboTax?

Quicken Essentials for Mac does not support that capability. If you'd like that functionality, we recommend trying Quicken Mac 2007.

3. Can I pay my bills within Quicken?

While you cannot pay bills within the product itself ("direct bill pay"), you can track your bills and make sure you have enough cash to pay them when they're due. A few alternatives available include using Quicken Mac 2007 or using the bill pay functionality on Quicken Bill Pay.

I happen to like tracking my buy and sell transactions and performance in investments accounts, though I don't use the TurboTax import or direct bill-pay. Maybe not everyone needs these features, but it seems very lame to introduce a new product-- for $60-- that takes so many steps backward. And I continue to be frustrated by their approach to mobile devices.
Palm OS seems to be fading away (though apparently you can run old Palm apps on the new Pre smartphone with a software add-on). My Treo is a few years old now and I'm worried it's going to die one of these days. I keep thinking it would be nice to have an iPhone, but one of the main things holding me back is that the Quicken iPhone app does not synchronize with any desktop versions of Quicken, only the stripped-down online version (which is now merged with Mint.com). Aren't paid-for, premium versions of software supposed to give you MORE features than free online versions?

I'm not sure what my financial record-keeping future will be. I have so much history in Quicken, I'd really like to stick with them, and I would happily pay for new versions of the software as they update it. But not being able to enter new transactions on the fly is a major deal-breaker for me. I'll be continuing to research new options for expense tracking-- for instance, Wesabe seems to offer the ability to enter cash transactions on the iPhone, but I haven't played around with it to see if it will meet my other needs. I'm sure I'll write more about it in a future post, but would welcome suggestions from readers in the meantime!

My Money Weekend

I was out and about in Brooklyn this weekend, and that always provides fodder for thoughts about money.

On Sunday, I went out for brunch with Sweetie and Mortimer. Brunch is something I always have problems with-- I think it's a nice time to have a social meal with friends, and I always enjoy the food, but it pisses me off that it's so expensive! Brunch has to be the restaurant meal with the least value for the customer and the most profit for the restaurant.
We went to Sidecar, a great restaurant in Park Slope, where I paid $11 for "migas," which is scrambled eggs with guacamole, chilis, cheddar cheese, tomatoes and tortillas. It was absolutely delicious, but spending $11 for gussied up scrambled eggs just seems crazy!

After brunch, we went strolling through Park Slope for a while. At one point, we ducked into Ollie's cafe so I could use the bathroom. We didn't buy anything, but on the way out, I found a $5 bill on the floor. It wasn't obvious who it might belong to and I was tempted to keep it, but instead I stuck it in the tip jar.

Our next stop was the Brooklyn Flea, which has moved indoors for the winter, at the fabulous location of One Hanson Place. This is the old Williamsburg Savings Bank building, a striking landmark when you see it from the exterior, and even more fabulous within. The main lobby of the old bank seems to have been almost completely preserved and the flea market wares are spread out in front of and behind the old teller windows, and on thick glass counters that still have holes for inkwells, where people used to endorse their checks and fill out deposit slips. It's just a gorgeous space, with cathedral-like ceilings and elaborate windows. The rest of the building has been converted into condos, but I'm not sure what they do with the lobby space when the flea market isn't there.

Once you get past the architectural appreciation, the flea market is a blast. There are lots of great vendors with jewelry, vintage clothes, records, books, art, furniture and all sorts of random stuff. And "random stuff" is my favorite! I ended up spending $32 on a variety of old tobacco and medicine tins, which I collect. In a way, this seems just as crazy as spending $11 on scrambled eggs. I mean, what am I going to do with these tins? They'll just sit on my shelf with the rest of my collection, making it even more of a pain in the ass to dust. It's so purely materialistic to buy stuff that has absolutely no purpose... but I just love them. I love looking at them and wondering where they've been and who owned them, and I love the old-fashioned designs. In the larger scheme of things, $32 for a bit of decorative pleasure seems quite reasonable. Which makes $11 for the pleasure of eating a yummy brunch pretty easy to rationalize too!

Speaking of food, that's the other fun thing about the Flea-- there are quite a few food vendors. I don't know how Mortimer managed to be hungry again after his omelette, but he got a plate of pupusas. I found myself wishing I had room for a lobster roll, or some Greek pastry, but only managed to sample a bit of a pickle and some salted caramels, and Sweetie and I each had one mini chocolate-pistachio cupcake, which cost $1 each.

After the Flea, we walked along 4th Avenue to get home. I am always amazed at how much new construction there is along there-- over the last few years, it's changed enormously as they've knocked down some smaller tenement-style apartment buildings and replaced them with these massive high-rises. Every time I go by there, I feel like I notice something new that looks almost ready for people to move in... and I wonder how long it will take for all these buildings to fill up. I have no illusions about selling my apartment easily in the next few years-- hopefully I won't need to. I still think I could rent out my condo for a little more than it costs me each month, but seeing all these big empty buildings reminds me I'll have more and more competition, closer to Manhattan than I am.

The latter part of my Sunday, of course, was spent watching the SuperBowl. And for the first time, I wondered if any of the shots of the crowd would show some friends of mine, Richard and his partner. Are they big Saints or Colts fans? No, quite the opposite. They don't care about football at all, but one of their fabulously wealthy clients invited them to the game and even flew them down to Miami in a private jet. One of our other friends said Richard made over $2 million from his business last year, and I don't doubt it. It's kind of fun to observe the way he lives and the luxuries he enjoys, some paid for out of his own pocket and some by his clients. I'm happy for him, but sometimes it makes me smack myself and wonder why I don't have his life! I realized recently that I'm not jealous of his lifestyle per se-- I'm jealous of the fact that he is so successful precisely because he is doing exactly what he loves and is passionate about. That's what gives him his drive and makes him good at what he does. I think he would do it no matter how much he was paid. I am fairly content with my job, but I don't love it the way he loves his-- I wish I could find that perfect combination of satisfaction and financial success.

Whew-- all that squeezed into one Sunday! Now back to my Monday...