Quicken slips again!

It's been a while since I've checked in... Decided I'd stop by Intuit's site and see if there's any news about our favorite vaporware, and there's this note on their site (posted 7/13/09):

We anticipate releasing our next version of Quicken for Mac (formerly Quicken Financial Life for Mac) in February 2010.

This same page says that pre-orders will start in October 2009.

Let's review the history here:

• The latest version of Quicken for the Mac is Quicken 2007. Like car model years and Madden football, the '2007' in the title means that it was released in late 2006.
• January 2008: at MacWorld Expo, Intuit announces the next version of Quicken, titled "Quicken Financial Life for Mac".
• The public beta started in September 2008, and at the time they anticipated a ship date of "this winter" (meaning, presumably, sometime between December 2008 and March 2009).
• We got our hands on the beta around December 2008 (after Intuit had initially said that public response to the beta was "overwhelming"). In December 2008 they announced that QFLM would be released in Summer 2009.
• Now here we are in the dog days of summer '09, and the word from Intuit is that the product (no longer called QFLM) will ship in March 2010.

Assuming that the March 2010 deadline sticks (and there's really no reason to believe this, but let's pretend), this will mean that almost four years will have passed between versions of Quicken for the Mac.

The folks at Intuit have a blog posting discussing this latest slip/ship date; the comments on it are fairly scathing.

Truth be told, I'm not surprised that the date has slipped once again. I didn't post anything about the QFLM beta we got our hands on because there was so little to talk about -- huge gigantic features were just not there (but, boy, was there cover flow!). Calling it beta was generous at best.

The Suckage is Official!

I just got this email from Quicken:

We expect to release Quicken Financial Life for Mac in summer 2009. If you have an immediate need for a Quicken product for the Mac, we would encourage you to check out our current Mac offering, Quicken for Mac 2007.

Given that it was supposed to ship in Fall 2008, and it didn't, should anyone hold their breath for Summer 2009? I for one, won't - I've gotta find something more usable before then.

And just to pile-on the complaints, their email contained this bit:

Due to overwhelming interest in the beta, at this time we cannot accommodate your request to participate. We’re sorry that we are not able to accommodate everyone who was interested in joining.

That's a fine sentiment, but why did they send this four months after I signed up? Why couldn't they send that out sooner, even if the didn't know their release date? IMHO they seem to have some serious problems with time and schedules, which is all the more reason why I doubt Summer 2009.

Update: AppleInsider posted release notes from the current beta software. Not much to see there - just one screen shot.

No Extended Validation Certificate Support

Here's a story that's been buzzing on the Interweb, especially after it was linked to from Slashdot: Quicken for Mac Lacks Extended Validation Certificate Support. The short story is that many banks are adding extra security to their web sites (extended validation certificates) and Quicken for Mac doesn't support it, nor is it planned until Quicken Financial Life for Mac.

One interesting tidbit from the article: "This new package [QFLM] is due in mid-2009; it's in beta testing now." First of all, I didn't know the date had been slipped to mid-2009. Secondly, if it's in beta, why hasn't anyone I know who registered for the beta gotten it yet? Alternatives to Quicken are sounding better and better.

Quicken Financial Life for Mac Slipping...

Ars Technica has a posting titled "Wither Mac Quicken?" The title is a bit more dismal sounding than the apparent reality. Checking out Quicken's FAQ page for QFLM, the schedule does seem to be slipping:

1. We will be releasing the product this Winter.
2. The public Beta of Quicken Financial Life for Mac will begin this Fall.

They also say that they won't have online bill pay, but that's not important to me personally.

My biggest complaint is they say the beta will "begin the Fall", but I haven't heard anything directly from them after having registered. Pedantically speaking, Fall doesn't begin until the equinox, but then again, it doesn't end until the solstice, either. I hope "Fall" doesn't turn out to mean December 20th.

On The Front Page!

Quicken Financial Life for Mac has made Intuit's front page, but it's still just an invitation to join the beta program. Being on the front page is encouraging, but the fact that the beta program doesn't seem to have advanced (i.e., actually begun) is disappointing. Who knows?

Update: Bad link before -- now fixed!

Quicken Financial Life for Mac

Rumor has it that there will be a non-sucking version of Quicken sometime soon(?). Supposedly, it will be called "Quicken Financial Life for Mac" - rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?

Around the time of MacWorld 2008, there were reports of a brand new version of Quicken in MacRumors, ArsTechnica, and AppleInsider, just to name a few. That was January, but we've heard nothing since. Granted, all the reports said it wouldn't come out until Fall, but I would expect to hear some buzz.

There is a sign-up page for a mythical beta test. We've registered, but still nothing.

We will do what we can to cover this topic, but in the meantime, the silence is deafening.