Turbo Tax Enters a New Era with Tax Software Changes and Software wars get tough with tax time soon beginning.

Mouseprint an affiliate of Consumer World.org informed Turbo Tax users that Intuits product, Turbo Tax Deluxe, so popular with filers is changing. The schedule C (self-employment), Schedule E (Partnership Income-Rental) or Schedule D (Investment) no longer exist in Turbo Tax Deluxe. Customers now need to upgrade to the "Premier" editions and above.

The founder of ConsumerWorld.org, Mr. Edgar Dworsky expressed the change as a "Clever ploy." Take away what people consider essential, and set a higher price. The surprise from users might prove quite interesting. Some will only realize the difference while working on their taxes. Tax preparation for many people is stressful and this change will not be met with open arms.

For over $200 million, Microsoft has acquired Acompli as a possible replacement for Outlook on mobile devices. The mobile app runs on both iOS and Android and can connect to most email systems including MS Exchange. This is seen by many analysts as Microsoft moving closer to offering all office products in mobile formats. The company recently relocated its OneDrive division to work with the Office mobile and cloud groups. In a statement, Microsoft likes the technology of Acompli, the staff, and the option for the company to expand its mobile applications.

On your Android phone, the popular messaging app WhatsApp now is providing end-to-end encryption. The Open Whisper Systems technology will move to iOS soon also. Whisper Systems was purchased by Twitter four years and the Open Whisper Systems is the open source off-shoot. With over 600 million users, keeping messages and pictures save from hackers has become more important every month with the NSA and hackers getting ahold of celebrity photos from Apple cloud services.

The Boost Software team in Boston MA has been hard at work updating the company’s anti-virus program, the PC Health Boost application, and most recently; their website. The new site is not a modification to the old site but something completely new. The site was designed with easy navigation in mind. User friendly is the theme of the new site in a similar way to their PC Boost software.

Surprising analyst, Nintendo turned in a profit for the most recent quarter on Mario Kart 8 and Wii U sales. The release of the new game led to the purchase of the newer game console for consumers who had previously been reluctant to make the change. Analyst  watching the company had expected a loss of 3.7 billion yen for the 2nd quarter. But the company announced a profit of 9.3 billion yen or 86 million US dollars.

Apple’s new IPhone 6 along with iOS 8.1 features the latest feature from the technology company, Apple Pay. Touch ID combined with passbook makes Apple Pay something to take a look at. The iOS version was available for download Monday night. The feature is available on the phones and also newer versions of the iPad (air2/mini3). Apple Pay makes purchasing items on the phone easier by simply tapping the screen at/on over 200 thousand stores. If you are outside the US, you will need to wait longer for the feature but American consumers have it now.

HP 2133 Mini-Note PC (front view compare with pencil) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is  PC Healthboost -- Top Converting Registry Scanner.  If you really want genuine results through the use of PC Healthboost,  we  highly endorse PC Healthboost to suit your needs.  I maintain my laptop running brilliantly through the use of PC HealthBoost regularly.  Just Deploy PC HealthBoost on the personal computer and it'll perform its magic. PC HealthBoost is surely an innovative software program.  PC HealthBoost is a software tool that automatically fixes Personal computer registry problems.

PC HealthBoost will thoroughly clean all of the trash from a computer registry, restoring your computer to top efficiency.  How PC HealthBoost Performs  -- It's 100% Safe and sound -- Your Windows 7 computer system registry accumulates junk as time passes.  PC HealthBoost functions on Vista, Windows 7,8, XP and works with all Computer components.  Personal computer HealthBoost will not likely un-install from Windows XP Professional SrvPck 3 via the control panel or its very own uninstall.  What you want to do is to work diligently to fully remove PC HealthBoost and erase all of its pieces.

The Bitcoin logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Microsoft stole a march over Google recently, having added the world's numero uno crypto-currency, the Bitcoin, in its search engine Bing's Currency Converter. This has far reaching applications as nobody expected the commonly perceived technology laggard and sleeping giant, the Microsoft Corporation, to wake up to the potential of the Bitcoin currency much before more nimble footed technology majors such as Google and Facebook.

The Amazing Bitcoin :
Bitcoin is what is called a crypto-currency, or a digital currency that exists only on the internet. To put it simply, it is nothing but "internet cash". The Bitcoin monetary system is completely decentralized with no governing or controlling authority. It is completely managed by the consensus of millions of user all over the world connected by the internet. 2013 was an incredible year for the Bitcoin, having appreciated by a phenomenal 1500 % against the US dollar. Currently, as of the time of this writing, a single Bitcoin is worth $ 658 USD. Because of such an incredible increase in value, the Bitcoin is attracting tremendous interest from the investment community. In fact, the highly regarded Silicon Valley venture capitalist, Chris Dixon, a partner with Andressen Horowitz, a major VC firm, has stated on record that a single Bitcoin would eventually be worth $ 100,000 USD.

Bing's Currency Converter and the Bitcoin :
Bitcoin is the latest addition to the currencies supported by the popular feature of Bing, its Currency Converter. Over 50 currencies are supported by the Bing Currency Converter so far. However, Bitcoin conversion may only be made against a much smaller number of more popular currencies, including the US Dollar, the Euro, the Indian Rupee and the British Pound. User may type simple commands such as " x Bitcoin to name-of-currency " to get a conversion from Bitcoin to the specified currency. Example, " 120 Bitcoin to USD" or say "12 Euros to Bitcoin".

Skype Voice Calls Work on iPad with Everyman Headset (Photo credit: stevegarfield)

Best Online Collaboration Tools

If you are looking for the best online collaboration tools, maybe this will help you. These tools are easy to use, simple, and not that expensive. There is Basecamp, Skype, Trello, and Sync.in.

Basecamp is designed for small businesses, entrepreneurs, business groups, and freelancers. The company says it has over 4 million users who have used the program to help them with different projects. The application lets you upload, edit, store, and share files and documents online. It also provides people with an overview of their project schedule and more.

Image via CrunchBase

Technology giant and leader of the desktop operating system market Microsoft has announced that it will soon "retire" its instant messaging tool called Windows Live Messenger and switch to Skype. Microsoft already owns Skype, having bought the company for $8.5 billion about 18 months ago.

The company has announced that it will stop supporting Live Messenger by March 2013, except in China, where it will continue to support the older messenger for some more time. Since it owns Skype, this should be seen as part of Microsoft's strategy to offer a better messaging solution to its users.