[rotuts]

Hello0
I got and used TurboTax '04 for the first time. amazing! those worksheets and AMT were driving me crazy.

I have a dial up and eventually put the program on a ext HD and took it over to a Friends house and got all the updates via DSL.

I also have a not completely updated version on my main HD due to dial up failre.

as my house has been broken into twice in the last few months, Id like to take TT off the ext drive with the completed forms and save in on a CD-R or so, then put it back on if I need it next year or when ever.

does anyone know all the files the program installs on the HD and where they are so I can manually take them all off and keep track of them to put that back on? Im guessing they may have 'hidden' files as they searched all of my HD for something before the initial install.

the idea here is to NOT have to use the CD's again to avoid a lenghthy dial up update that may fail if I do not have DSL access.

thanks rotut

[Millennium]

TurboTax is written so that it can always import the previous year's data. Therefore, there should be very little if any need to back up an existing install in place.

That said, it is very wise to back up your actual tax data. By default it is saved in your Documents folder. The default name for it is your own name, followed by "04" (for the 2004 tax year). When and if you get TurboTax 05, you will be able to import this data as normal; it will then be used to help you with that year's taxes.

It is unfortunate that TurboTax is a program which requires paid upgrades every year if you want to work on that year's taxes (older versions still work for previous tax years, of course). However, that is hardly Intuit's fault; tax laws change so frequently that although they don't quite have to rewrite the entire engine from scratch every year, there is a lot of code which has to change.

[rotuts]

thanks!
I don't mind getting a new turbo each year for the reasons you suggest. I just would like to keep the 04 off my HD and avoid the dial up update if I had to reinstall 04 for 'changes' etc.

it took some time on the DSL, and failed on my dial up, thats all.

but a fine program and worth it!

rotut

[CatOne]

Originally posted by Millennium:
TurboTax is written so that it can always import the previous year's data. Therefore, there should be very little if any need to back up an existing install in place.

That said, it is very wise to back up your actual tax data. By default it is saved in your Documents folder. The default name for it is your own name, followed by "04" (for the 2004 tax year). When and if you get TurboTax 05, you will be able to import this data as normal; it will then be used to help you with that year's taxes.

It is unfortunate that TurboTax is a program which requires paid upgrades every year if you want to work on that year's taxes (older versions still work for previous tax years, of course). However, that is hardly Intuit's fault; tax laws change so frequently that although they don't quite have to rewrite the entire engine from scratch every year, there is a lot of code which has to change.

TurboTax isn't that expensive and the tax laws do change substantially each year. For $30 or whatever (well $150 before rebates, but $30 after you send in the $20 rebate, and then the two $25 rebates, and the $15 rebate, and the ... argh!) it's a lot cheaper than using an accountant.

What gets my goat is the same crap for Quicken... when all they do is flip videos, for the most part :-/

[rotuts]

again I agree. I will buy for '05 Im trying to NOT need the download upgrade that I now have if I take it all off my computer, thats all.

rotut