Intuit Readies QuickBooks 2010 For Release

The expanded portfolio of on-demand applications, what Intuit calls its Connected Services, was unveiled this week as the vendor debuted QuickBooks 2010, the next release of the vendor's popular financial applications.

QuickBooks Accounting Pro and Premier Editions are slated to ship Oct. 7. Senior product manager Laura Messerschmitt said many of the new capabilities in the revised applications focus on saving customers time and money.

The new applications offer an express install option the company said cuts in half the number of steps needed to implement the software. They also offer more forms customization options, including design templates for commonly used forms such as invoices. The new release also runs about 15 to 20 percent faster than the current version, according to Messerschmitt.

The current release offers a company snapshot feature for creating a report that provides a comprehensive view of a company's finances. But that report is static and can't be personalized. The 2010 release allows users to customize that report to fit their specific needs. The Report Center feature has been redesigned to make navigating through reports easier.

One of the new applications available through Connected Services is Intuit Check Solutions which businesses use to scan or key checks into the application and electronically send the information to a bank. That application is being offered as an add-on service to Intuit Payment Solutions.

Also new is a document management app for scanning documents into QuickBooks and attaching them to files such as customer accounts. A new marketing e-mail service helps QuickBooks users create e-mail marketing campaigns. And the Intuit App Center provides access to Web-based business applications create by Intuit and members of the Intuit Developer Network, a group of ISVs.