All Business and productivity

The Bottom Line: Office for Mac 2008 may be the best pick for business users, but most people can get by with less costly alternatives.

Specs: 1 PC, Complete package, Apple MacOS X 10.4.9 or later, 500 MHz, DVD-ROM, XGA monitor, 500 MHz, MacOS

The Bottom Line: Once again, we don't find this upgrade necessary, although some might come to rely upon the new Insights views of finances, and uber-organized users can link transactions to images of checks and receipts.

Specs: 1 PC, Complete package, 300 MHz, 1 GHz, CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, Internet connection, 300 MHz, 1 GHz, Windows

The Bottom Line: Once again, we don't find this upgrade necessary, although some might come to rely upon the new Insights views of finances, and uber-organized users can link transactions to images of checks and receipts.

Specs: 1 PC, Complete package, 300 MHz, 1 GHz, CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, Internet connection, 300 MHz, 1 GHz, Windows

The Bottom Line: Once again, we don't find this upgrade necessary, although some might come to rely upon the new Insights views of finances, and uber-organized users can link transactions to images of checks and receipts.

Specs: 1 PC, Complete package, 300 MHz, 1 GHz, CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, Internet connection, 300 MHz, 1 GHz, Windows

The Bottom Line: QuickBooks Premier 2008 remains the top small-business accounting program. Its guidance for novices is top-notch, and it comes in a variety of editions tailored for specific industries. Version 2008 isn't an essential upgrade for QuickBooks 2007 users, but it's a good buy for users of earlier versions, and for anyone new to accounting software.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Microsoft Windows XP SP2 or later, 1.8 GHz, 2 GHz, 4x CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, 1.8 GHz, 2 GHz, Windows, Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0, Internet Explorer 6.0 or later

The Bottom Line: QuickBooks Premier 2008 remains the top small-business accounting program. Its guidance for novices is top-notch, and it comes in a variety of editions tailored for specific industries. Version 2008 isn't an essential upgrade for QuickBooks 2007 users, but it's a good buy for users of earlier versions, and for anyone new to accounting software.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows Vista, Microsoft Windows Server 2003, Microsoft Windows XP SP2 or later, 1.8 GHz (Microsoft Windows XP), 2.0 GHz (Microsoft Windows Vista) 1.8 GHz, 2 GHz, 4x CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, 1.8 GHz (Microsoft Windows XP), 2.0 GHz (Microsoft Windows Vista), 1.8 GHz, 2 GHz, Windows, Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0, Internet Explorer 6.0 or later

The Bottom Line: QuickBooks Premier 2008 remains the top small-business accounting program. Its guidance for novices is top-notch, and it comes in a variety of editions tailored for specific industries. Version 2008 isn't an essential upgrade for QuickBooks 2007 users, but it's a good buy for users of earlier versions, and for anyone new to accounting software.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows XP, Intel Pentium II 500 MHz, Intel Pentium III 1.2 GHz (Microsoft Windows Vista) 500 MHz, 1.2 GHz, Printer, 2x CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, Internet connection 56k, Intel Pentium II 500 MHz, Intel Pentium III 1.2 GHz (Microsoft Windows Vista), 500 MHz, 1.2 GHz, Windows

The Bottom Line: Quicken 2008 is a solid finance package and a great choice for novices, but there isn't a compelling reason to upgrade from the 2007 version.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows 2003, Microsoft Windows Vista, 300 MHz, 2x CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, 300 MHz, Windows

The Bottom Line: Quicken 2008 is a solid finance package and a great choice for novices, but there isn't a compelling reason to upgrade from the 2007 version.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, Microsoft Windows XP, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows 2003, Microsoft Windows Vista, 300 MHz, 2x CD-ROM, SVGA monitor, 300 MHz, Windows

The Bottom Line: Although Microsoft Office 2007 offers deeper features, particularly for number crunchers, Apple iWork '08 is a strong Mac productivity package and a pleasure to use.

Specs: 1 user, Complete package, 500 MHz, CD-ROM, 500 MHz, MacOS