Review of Peachtree's Accounting Software Input, output, expenses, taxes... what does it all mean? With Peachtree's latest editions, you can start making the numbers work for you.

When it comes to accounting, folks generally separate into two camps: those who transact, and those who analyze.

Any of the major small-business accounting programs--Peachtree, QuickBooks, Microsoft Small Business Accounting, DacEasy--will serve entrepreneurs in either camp. But if you're an analyzer, chances are you'll feel most at home with one of the just-released editions of Peachtree Accounting. That's especially true if you carry inventory. It's not that Peachtree's 2007 editions have features competitors don't. It's about depth in certain key areas and a degree of flexibility that appeals to those who--if truth be told--kind of dig accounting.

Most of us are transactors, of course, because that's the easiest thing to be. A good accounting program will take a lot of bookkeeping drudgery off your shoulders--but nothing saves time like dumping your shoebox on a paid professional. The only trouble with that particular strategy is, even if you strike gold early on, fortune never smiles on a business forever. You're bound to hit a rough patch sooner or later--sooner if competitors hear about your margins. That's when a good accounting program really comes in handy.