QuickBooks Online For Dummies. Elaine Marmel

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      FIGURE 1-5: QBOA while working in QBO Desktop.

      If you compare Figure 1-5 to Figure 1-1, you’ll notice that, once again, QBOA users have the same additional options in QBO Desktop that they have in a browser. The menus at the top of the screen are the biggest visual difference between QBO and QBOA in QBO Desktop and QBO and QBOA in a browser. If you’ve been a QuickBooks Desktop product user, you know that you can use the menus to navigate. Under the hood, QBO Desktop offers some options that you won’t find readily available in a browser, such as the ability to work in multiple windows.

      Understanding QBO mobile apps

      At no additional cost to you, mobile apps are also available for iPhones, iPads, and Android devices. The iOS and Android apps are optimized for touch interaction and on-the-go workflows like customer management, invoicing, estimates, and signatures. You also can use the mobile apps to track the status of invoices, take payments, reconcile bank accounts, capture expenses, and check reports. And, you’ll find Pinch and Zoom functionality in the mobile apps and in browsers on mobile devices.

      You can get the mobile apps here: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/accounting/mobile/. In addition to using the QBO mobile apps for iOS and Android, you also can access the QBO sign-in page and your QBO account from your mobile device’s browser at qbo.intuit.com.

      New features are added often to the mobile apps. For example, you can customize invoice templates from the browser-based QBO and from QBO Desktop. You can customize templates from mobile devices but not using mobile apps; instead, use the browser-based QBO on your mobile device.

      So, take your choice; you’re not limited: Work in a browser, work in QBO Desktop, or work in a mobile app, depending on your needs at the moment.

Understanding the Cloud

      Just to make sure we’re on the same page here, we’re defining the cloud as software and data housed securely in remote data centers (not on your office premises) and accessed securely using the Internet. Working in the cloud can increase your efficiency by offering you the opportunity to work anywhere, communicate easily with others, and collaborate in real time.

In the traditional model of software use, you buy software and install it on your computer. Or you might buy the software and install it on a vendor’s server. QBO and QBOA fall into the category of Software as a Service (SaaS). You typically don’t buy SaaS software; instead, you rent it (that is, you purchase a subscription).

Because SaaS software is typically web-based software, you (also typically) access SaaS software over the Internet using a browser. A browser is software installed on your local computer or mobile device that you use to, well, browse the Internet, looking up cool stuff like what the stock market is doing today, what kind of weather can you expect on Friday when your vacation starts, how to get to your boss’s house for the party he’s having, and — oh, yes — to work with web-based software such as QBO and QBOA. In the case of QBO and QBOA, you can work with these web-based SaaS products using a browser, QBO Desktop, or an app you download to your mobile device.

      Using web-based software can be attractive for a number of reasons. For example, using web-based software, you have access to that software’s information anywhere, anytime, from any device — stationary or mobile.

      In addition, web-based software like QBO and QBOA promotes collaboration and can help you save time. Using QBO and QBOA, accountants, bookkeepers, and clients can communicate about issues that arise, as described in Chapter 14.

      Then there’s the issue of keeping software up to date. Desktop software such as traditional QuickBooks typically receives a major update once each year, along with periodic software patches that must also be installed. Unlike their desktop cousin, QBO and QBOA are automatically updated every two to four weeks — meaning there’s never a new version to install or patches to deal with.

Should You Move to the Cloud?

Before you make the move to the cloud, you should consider the needs of your business in the following areas:

      Beyond the advantages described in the preceding section, the particular needs of a business might dictate whether you can use QBO. For example, QBO won’t work for you if your business has industry-specific needs or is mid-sized and needs to use ODBC-compliant applications. In addition, QBO won’t work for you if you need to