Julie

It makes sense to me to put the reviews in dedicated subforums. I know I'm not the only one looking at TRX, and before the summer's out I'm sure I'll be looking at Drake and probably at least one other software package. At the moment, Drake comments aren't interesting to me, but they will be later. Being able to find other people's comments in one place will be very helpful. (I test the software by trying to do all the things someone else said it wouldn't do!)

Interesting...just looked at the site...the difference between the two seems to be in the 706/709/990/5500. ATX and Taxwise are also missing from the 2008 conversions. I'm wondering what, exactly, they're trying to do here. One thing is certain: they need to train their sales staff better. Between your experience and Mike's, it seems like they're trying to run off potential customers. One note: Intellitax/Orrtax is listed as a Calif-approved software provider, but TRX is not.

Does anyone know whether the "intellinotes" notes or the descriptions in detailed list entries carry forward to the next year?

I had no trouble finding the mortgage points amortization worksheet in the TRX demo I have. It required hitting the + symbol alongside the Sch A entry.

The splash screen on my demo has "preparation" misspelled. Carelessness can be dangerous in this biz.

Hmmm...I guess you could try tying the trap down, on the off chance it hasn't learned to untie knots. Or you could try bribing it (it seems to like bananas) to go outside, then closing up the hole it came in through. I'd think a frikkin big raccoon needs a frikkin big hole, perhaps bigger than your attic ought to have? A few weeks ago, while I was waiting for a bus home at 11pm here, I saw a pair of them running across Broadway. Right in the middle of town. We haven't had problems with raccoons here, though. Just rats and sometimes possums.

Apparently not....but I think you can get a separate program just for those, like the ones from Medlin or CFS, without spending anywhere near the difference as that between TRX and ATX. Not advocating anything, still evaluating TRX.

Marilyn, Looks like Bart has already put up instructions....but if you need more, just ask. You can use any image you like, but you'll want to make sure it looks okay reduced first.

Go ahead and resubmit it. Tomorrow is the last day to resubmit rejects. In your position, if I were still worried, I'd do both. (Sometimes IRS allows postmarks up to a week late. Worth taking the chance.)

Amy, I, too, missed what was said to you, and I have no idea what Booger was thinking. My best guess is that he's wondering that himself these days. But I have used a real picture of myself here for quite a few months now. After what you've been through, I may yet substitute the dog. (She's cuter than I am anyway.) (Not that I haven't been the subject of gratuitous insults, but those were a few years ago, on the original ATX community board. I spent a few days crying over those and had to force myself to come back to defend myself. Still hurts, though.) Julie

Hmmm....does that mean I have to go find a real high school picture, then? I was 24 when that one was taken. Here's my take on the avatars, though, and the reasons I chose to use a real picture: (This, of course, comes from the only person on the old ATX community to routinely sign all posts with a real email address, so maybe my perspective is a touch naive.) One meaning of avatar (there are several) is the living incarnation of a deity. A stand-in, so to speak. A human being who contains the spirit of that god or goddess. The images called "avatars," then, metaphorically, stand in for the real person at the other end. We are all, to each other, disembodied words on a screen. To that extent, we become abstracted ideas, as opposed to other humans with whom a conversation can be conducted and whose feelings can become hurt by a moment's thoughtlessness. (I've been on both sides of that one.) The "avatar," then, is a stand-in, an image we can imagine speaking those words, a face we can associate to them. Personally, I would like to be able to attach faces to the people I'm talking to, to make them more real in my own eyes. So I put my own pic up there as an example, hoping others would follow suit. At least so that if we ever have the chance to meet, we'll know one another. (It's not like I cut my hair or anything!) With love to all, Julie

Check out Medlin for payroll and the like, too. You can buy just what you want and the price is reasonable.

Thanks for reminding me why my office is not at my house. We've only had Sassy for a couple months now, and she's nowhere near housebroken yet. And she's still too afraid of people to be loose among clients.

I hope I can say that in forty years.

I downloaded the demo yesterday. Tried to do it Tuesday night while I waited for my last client to wander in, but their website was down, according to the phone message I received yesterday morning. They left another message today wanting to know if I got it okay. I am not here in the mornings. Period.

Thanks for the tip, Cat. I show 23 "validated" returns, some from yesterday. First time this year the acks have taken more than a few hours.

I still have one to go...should be here any minute. I am wayyy too tired. Fortunately, it's just a sign-and-efile, because I don't think I'm competent to prepare taxes. Three days of rest and I'll be fine.

Thanks to all for confirming my feelings in this regard. And of course I'll pass it along to the trustee/executor. I'm adding onto my fee for having sorted it all out anyway.

I haven't done one like this in a long time. Taxpayer died in November, leaving a large portfolio with stocks, CDs, and a lot of tax-free muni bonds. I have already pulled out the dividends received after death to go on the 1041. I am not doing the 1041, only the 1040. Some of the payers were notified in time to correct the 1099s, others were not. So I already know what amounts should be taxable on the 1040. So my question is: do I put the entire amount on the Sch B (for example), with a negative entry for the 1041 amount, or just correct the numbers on the 1040 to the pre-death amount (which does not match the 1099)? I think I've done the latter in the past, but I'm wondering about the IRS matching...does the date of death on the front page mean they'll wait for the 1041? At the moment, I'm leaning toward the negative entry.

Ask to see his pay stubs. On the drivers I've seen, a great deal of the pay was withheld for expenses (but included on the 1099). Expenses like fuel and rent for the company-owned truck. Yes, this is illegal on the part of the employer. If you're in California, the state would like to know about this, too. But yes, use the new form (is that the 8819?) to get an opinion from IRS regarding his former employment status.

Wonder if it was just a programming error..... that they meant simply to not send bills to those who owed a small amount, and they accidentally changed it to say that the amount was not owed at all?

The loss of formatting mangled your reply, changing the meaning somewhat. Not that it's clear anyway....read it carefully, because condition 1 is a double negative. I have fishing clients and you actually had me confused for a bit. Let's see if it works better this way: Fishing crew member. If you are a member of the crew on a boat that catches fish or other water life, your earnings are subject to SE tax if all the following conditions apply. You do not get any pay for the work except your share of the catch or a share of the proceeds from the sale of the catch, unless the pay meets all the following conditions: The pay is not more than $100 per trip. The pay is received only if there is a minimum catch. The pay is solely for additional duties (such as mate, engineer, or cook) for which additional cash pay is traditional in the fishing industry. [*]You get a share of the catch or a share of the proceeds from the sale of the catch. [*]Your share depends on the amount of the catch. [*]The boat's operating crew normally numbers fewer than 10 individuals. (An operating crew is considered as normally made up of fewer than 10 if the average size of the crew on trips made during the last four calendar quarters is fewer than 10.) You are not subject to SE tax if you are under age 18 and you are working for your father or mother. Perhaps not...it doesn't like my nested lists....Eric, is there some way to get a decent outline format, with the second ordered list indented and type="a" instead of "1" These conditions apply to nearly all West Coast commercial fishermen (although in Alaska there are boats who would violate condition 4.) The normal mode of pay is strictly share-of-catch, and meets all those conditions. I have never heard of anyone on a fishing boat meeting condition 1c., although that might happen on a very large boat.

I would be doing that if the new clients weren't insisting on 10am appointments. If I can get 'em to come in AFTER noon, I happily work well past midnight.

Are you sure yo have the right basis? Counting all improvements? IRS will probably declare the debt uncollectible. Have them pay what they can this year, then after a year or two, ask IRS for relief from the debt. They're never going to pay it anyway.

Just so long as your clients actually report their income, just in case the "employers" (You do explain that part, don't you?) get caught and have to tell IRS whom they paid. Gifts given in business are limited to a $25 deduction per recipient. This is common practice in real estate, for example, and I know of a notary who routinely gives her clients $50 bottles of liquor. She can only deduct $25 per client. (Exception is for items costing less than $4 and that have her name on them. She can give her clients as many emblazoned pens, letter openers, etc. as she wants.) I am not buying the argument (intriguing that it might be) that an expense becomes a gift when no 1099 is issued. For one thing, expenses under $600 do not require the 1099 in the first place, where gifts are limited to $25.