Strange but true. When the Macintosh was being promoted as the "computer for the rest of us" in the United States it was being pushed as the best machine for business DTP in Europe. So where the mass market for Macs was home users, schools and design and publishing there, its predominant use here was in the corporate world.
Bizarre then that the urban myth arose which says finance and business enterprise software for the Mac is unnecessary. Some companies that should know better, like Intuit, have believed the bulls**t and refuse to produce localised or Mac versions of their otherwise excellent finance and bookkeeping software. Thank God therefore for Best!Ware, Inc. and M.Y.O.B. 6! . Although 7.5 is here now.
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M.Y.O.B. Version 7.5 ON THE MACINTOSH PLATFORM
Macintosh users will now be able to take advantage of the power of M.Y.O.B. 7.5’s new AppleScript support to automate the import and export of customer, supplier and transaction information. For instance, the import routine for point of sale transactions can be automated to update M.Y.O.B.’s nominal journal, making the process smooth and simple. Using AppleScript scripts, users can transfer information from M.Y.O.B. 7.5 to database applications, e-mail programs and the like.
"We’re happy to be able to leverage the power of AppleScripting in our product, and it’s great to be able to offer it in a dynamic new member of our product line," said Lee. "We know that the Macintosh community relies heavily on M.Y.O.B. for their accounting solutions and we’re confident they’ll find the entire feature set of M.Y.O.B. 7.5 exceptional."
M.Y.O.B. takes all the pain out of double entry bookkeeping and makes it possible for regular folks like you and I to properly Mind Your Own Business, or should I say our businesses. With the current exponential growth in freelance, contract, small and home-based enterprises there is even more need for good business software and most of these people are not going to be able to afford the high maintenance and tech support bills that Windows / DOS machines lovingly bestow upon you.
M.Y.O.B. 6 is a cross platform application, virtually identical whether you are using it on a PowerMac or Windows machine. As such aspects of its interface look a bit IBM sometimes – maybe it is the blue and grey and the chunky icons. But do not let that put you off. It has transformed me from a double entry accounting idiot into an accounting power user. And I have not had to bend my brain into knots to do so, thanks to M.Y.O.B.
M.Y.O.B. helps you dive right into the deep end with a very handy accounting tutorial that covers most of the typical situations that you will encounter in your own business life. It shows you how make entries, generate reports, handle leasing, purchasing and all the other joys of life in enterprise.
M.Y.O.B. thankfully handles VAT! And you can if you wish, print out your cheques and other documents on customised stationery obtainable from Best!Ware's UK office.
From what I have seen of the alternatives, software packages that only an accountant could love or even hope to begin to understand, M.Y.O.B. is the best choice you could make for managing the books for your freelance occupation or small business.
At the end of each financial year, impress your long-suffering accountant with a slickly presented set of accounts and slash his bills too.
