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For starters, Peachtree has bolstered the software's integration with Microsoft Office, thereby countering the threat from Microsoft's Office Small Business Accounting. Other improvements include a new and more powerful back-end database that's similar to Intuit's upgrade in QuickBooks 2006. The late beta version of Peachtree Premium 2007 that I reviewed also enhances the user interface by adding a Business Status Center and by making it easier for you to view account lists.

Users of recent versions (2000 or later) of Excel and Outlook will welcome Peachtree's closer links to Office. You can export data from Peachtree into Excel with a new option that retains the layout and the format of the Peachtree report, along with the accounting numbers. Your export retains formulas, too, and you can keep report headers and frozen panes for easier scrolling of on-screen financial reports.

Creating a budget within Peachtree is easier, too. The software now operates more like a spreadsheet. Once you've set up synchronization, your Outlook and Peachtree contact information for customers, vendors, and employees will automatically be kept up-to-date in both apps.

Sage replaces the Btrieve database it used in Peachtree 2006 with the more robust Pervasive 9.1 database. Single-user businesses with relatively few transactions likely won't notice much performance improvement with the upgrade, but companies with many transactions or with multiple users should experience a nice performance boost--and fewer multiuser lockups.

The app simplifies organizing and looking up information by including 25 lists for sorting by customer, vendor, inventory, employee, and so on. You can quickly sort each list in several different ways just by clicking on a column, which makes it easier to find the information you want.

Even the main Peachtree screen has a new streamlined look. The new Business Status display, which replaces the Peachtree Today screen, packs more usable information onto the screen in a format that's easier to understand.

As usual, Peachtree comes in several editions. I reviewed the $500 Peachtree Premium, a five-user-ready application for businesses that require such advanced accounting features as departmentalized financial statements, serialized inventory, progress billings, and company consolidation. If you don't need these Premium frills, the single-user Peachtree Complete (priced at $270) may be a better match for your company's needs.

Peachtree Premium 2007's improved user interface and tighter integration with Office make it a worthwhile upgrade for all current Peachtree users.

Sage SoftwarePeachtree Premium 2007

Good small-business accounting app now offers better Microsoft Office integration.
Price when reviewed: $500 for one user (Peachtree Complete 2007 costs $270)
Current prices (if available)