I am frequently underwhelmed when I use some new software package, and even more so when I use hardware. I frequently complain, bitterly, about the defects in IT products that I have to use.
Today's post is about a product that works. The software is TaxCalc, the version that allows a small number of personal filings. This had a slight fault in that it would not print, but an email to the support desk soon sorted it out ('internal' printing doesn't work with Acrobat 7).
The task should be reasonably simple. I still don't understand why I have to enter all my personal data (UTR, NI No., DOB, address, etc. etc. ) when the Inland Revenue's database clearly already holds this info. However, the online filing went without a hitch, in contrast to the product I used last time (Tax Shield Solo).
The nifty thing about this kind of software, from the vendor's point of view, is that you get to sell a completely new version year after year after year. At 25 pounds is not exactly a bargain, given that the total size of the market must be in the tens of millions, but frankly I'd pay 25 quid to avoid filling in a paper form every time. Especially as they never give the supplementary pages, and there are always long delays before they deliver them.
