Product Reviews

Well, it had to happen I suppose - with just about every other category of software being launched with a big and bold 97 on the box, it was only a matter of time before accounting software got in on the act!

First on the scene seems to be the new Sage Instant Accounting 97, now (as you might expect from the numbering) featuring the latest in 'Microsoft Office 97' look and feel. To keep up with current fashion trends, you also get an icon to launch your favourite Internet browser - although how much accounting there is to be done on the world wide web is debatable.

Of more interest to some folk, I am sure, will be the built-in year 2000 compliance, this being the first version of Sage Instant Accounting that can take you to the millennium and beyond. While you are busy posting into the next century, other new features you might find useful are the enhanced report writer and much-improved graphs and charts. Sage have also opted for Quicken-like alternate colours for each line of the display screens, so upgraders from this package ought to feel more at home now.

Unlike personal finance products such as Quicken and Microsoft Money, Instant 97 is actually the first rung on a ladder to proper business accounting, being designed specifically for the initial switch to computerised accounts. The idea seems to have been to include all the bits you might need from their range, and deliver a small business set of accounts in one box.

For a start you get built-in invoicing linked to a basic product file. Although stock quantities aren't tracked, you can still store default item descriptions, prices and analysis codes, inserting these into the invoice as required. For plumbers, decorators and other non-product related types, the service invoicing routine will probably be of more interest. Here you can type as much text as you like, and once

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you have waffled on at length, the price can then be entered against the analysis line you require.

For the backroom bookkeeper, a proper sales ledger hides behind the 'customers' icon, as does a purchase ledger behind the 'suppliers' button. Sage presumes you will be running your business on credit, although cash accounting can still be handled effectively for those that need it. Customer information stored includes name and address, plus default financial data like credit limit and settlement discount information. To simplify the opening balance situation, the software includes a button that allows the direct entry of historical information - usefully this means you can create the account and add the opening balance all from the same screen.

Invoices and credit notes already prepared by hand can be entered in batch mode from these customer or supplier screens, and likewise you can view aged debt details, account activity, sales graphs and other account-related data all from the same place. Having the software set out in this fashion based on areas of responsibility at least keeps everything related in one place and easy to find.

Likewise, direct postings in and out of the cash or bank accounts that don't necessarily effect customers or suppliers are all dealt with by the built-in cashbook facilities. On-screen reconciliation with the real paper bank statement can also be handled here, as can recurring transactions for standing orders or direct debits and the like.

Eventually, everything you enter arrives at the nominal ledger - the final clue that this is a fully operational double-entry accounting system. Here you can enter both sides of a double-entry journal manually, and create your own analysis reports using the built-in report writer. An icon labelled 'financial' provides easier access to management and statutory reports such as Profit & Loss, Budget and Balance Sheet - the VAT report even comes complete with the appropriate numbered boxes ready to update the Customs and Excise paper version.

Sage Instant Accounting 97 is very good value for money, and an ideal starting place for the first-time user or small business looking to computerise their manual records. For those with an eye on the future, the time spent with this proper accounting system won't be wasted when they are looking for bigger and better things - the built-in upgrade path to the rest of the Sage Sterling range is always there.