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Sage Software — Peachtree Premium Accounting for Nonprofits 2006

800-428-9980www.peachtree.com

From the October 2005 Review of Not-for-Profit
Accounting Software

Peachtree Software continues to be a staple in the small business accounting
software arena and has just recently released its new Accounting for Nonprofits.
Now owned by Sage Software, Peachtree Accounting for Nonprofits is designed
specifically for the small to midsize nonprofit organization.

EASE OF USE/FLEXIBILITY — 4 Stars
Peachtree Accounting for Nonprofits’ main menu has a drop-down menu bar
at the top that provides access to system functions such as tasks, analysis,
options, reports and services. A series of navigational icons line the bottom
of the main screen, and clicking on one of the options will take you to that
particular navigational screen. New company information is set up under the
File option. When setting up your new organization, make sure you choose the
proper company type. You can choose from Day Care Center, Educational Institute,
Nonprofit Organization, Nursing Home, Religious Organization or Theater. The
company type you choose will be reflected in your chart of accounts. The system
will then create the data files that your organization needs to run. This takes
about 10 minutes at the most. After your new organization is established, you
are taken directly to the Peachtree Setup Wizard that assists you with entering
the rest of your organization’s information. If you get stuck, tutorials
are available as is a demo company. Smart data-entry capability fills in “remembered
data” from saved lists. I found the data-entry screens to be clean and
uncluttered.

MODULES/SCALABILITY — 4 Stars
Peachtree Accounting for Nonprofits includes GL, AP, AR, Payroll, Fixed Assets,
Cash Management, Inventory, Financial Statements, and three years of budgeting
capability. A multi-user version is available, as well. If an organization finds
itself outgrowing the capabilities of Peachtree Accounting for Nonprofits, it
can easily migrate to Sage Software’s MIP Fund Accounting (see page 67)
using Sage’s dedicated software migration center.

FEATURES/FUNCTIONALITY — 4 Stars
Peachtree Accounting for Nonprofits contains both chart of accounts based on
the United Way and a Unified Chart of Accounts. The Maintain Customer/Prospect
feature lets you track information on donors and contributors. The industry-specific
chart of accounts is what makes this version of Peachtree different from the
regular accounting version. Ideal for a small resale shop, Peachtree Accounting
for Nonprofits offers excellent customer and inventory tracking, along with
customizable screens. Templates are available in the Mail Merge module for donation
receipts, fundraising letters, outstanding pledges, fundraising letters, new
customer welcome and outstanding member fees. Budget amounts can be entered
for the current fiscal year, as well as for two additional years.

The program’s accounting functions continue to perform admirably. The
analysis tools provided include Cash Manager, Collection Manager, Payment Manager
and Financial Manager, and each provides an instant summary of system and financial
activity. Customization tools are found throughout, from the toolbar customization
to navigational screens and reports. The Memorized Transaction feature lets
you save common information in the system in order to avoid duplicate data entry.

REPORTING — 4.5 Stars
Peachtree Accounting for Nonprofits comes with more than 145 fully customizable
reports. It also features several nonprofit-specific reports including the Statement
of Revenues and Expenses, Budgeted Statement of Revenues and Expenses, Statement
of Financial Position, and a Donor/Grantor Summary List. Also included is the
Crystal Reports Custom Report Designer. I really like the Internal Accounting
Review feature, which lists out daily transactions and suspected mistakes or
conditions that may need correction.

SUPPORT/HELP — 5 Stars
Peachtree Accounting for Nonprofits 2006 has some of the best support options
available in the industry. In addition to a variety of support plans, the company
offers online support and support from local, certified Peachtree personnel.
The Freedom Support Plan includes unlimited telephone and e-mail support for
one year and 24/7 access to Peachtree’s online knowledgebase. Peachtree
Premium and PeachCare Support are also available. Numerous training options
are also available, including use of self-study guides; local, authorized training;
and the accounting tutorials mentioned earlier.

RELATIVE VALUE — 5 Stars
Peachtree Premium Accounting for Nonprofits is an excellent product for those
already familiar with Peachtree who are looking for a specialty product without
spending a lot of money. At $599 for a single user, this is an affordable program
that offers Peach-tree’s traditionally excellent accounting functions,
along with basic nonprofit features.

2005 Overall Rating — 4.5 Stars