Netbooks have become very popular lately, almost  every pc maker  has one, but what is it, and how does it differ from a notebook computer.  The truth is, a netbook is just a smaller, lighter cheaper notebook computer.

The chart below shows the general differences between a netbook and a notebook:

Differences between a netbook and a notebook

As you can see a netbook is basically a smaller, lighter, less expensive notebook computer.  Many applications will run slower on the a netbook, and some won’t run at all. Besides, if you follow the sales, you know that you can  get a pretty decent laptop on sale for between $450 and $600.  So, why get a netbook?  There are two reasons:

1. You travel a lot and want a small computer to check mail, surf the web, and give presentations on.  A netbook is great for this, since it’s small, it doesn’t weigh you down or take up a lot of space, and it won’t break the bank if it’s lost or stolen.  You still need full sized laptop or desktop PC to use when you are not on the road.

2. You run your business on a desktop, but sometimes need a computer to take with you to clients’ offices, or to do lite work off-site.

In either case, the netbook will do better for you of you have a lot of web based apps (google, salesforce.com, etc)  to use.  But remember, DON’T BUY A NETBOOK TO BE YOUR PRIMARY COMPUTER–the keyboard is too small, the monitor is too small, and stuff runs too slow (or not at all) on it.

Before you buy a netbook make sure you check the following:

1. Try out the keyboard – can you type on it?

2. Is the monitor big enough for you to comfortably use?

3. Will the Operating System installed on it run the applications you need. (Linux won’t run Windows applications)

4. Does it have enough disk space to store your data?

5. If you are using it for presentations, does it have the proper video outputs, and resolution?

Leave me a comment and tell me what you think about netbooks.

I mentioned in a post Friday that Microsft is no longer going to support MS Money after Jan 2011.  So now what do you do? This may be a time to re-evaluate  at your accounting software in order to figure out what will meet your needs, and how they can be  best met.

If you are like me, when you started your home business, you used your current personal financial software, I used Quicken, but both Quicken and Microsoft have business features. Now, you have a  couple of options, replace MS Money with an equivalent copy of another brand of financial software, or upgrade to a full-fledged accounting software package. Here are some questions you need to ask yourself to help make this decision:

1. Does your Accounting Software handle expense/revenue categories the way you want?
2. Is it difficult to enter transactions?
3. Are you able to easily get accurate reports on profit and loss, net income, and margin?
4. Do you need online integration with a web store?
5. Do you need customized invoices/easier email delivery?
6. Do you want to better segregate business and personal activities?
7. Do you need to track inventory?
8. Do you need to support double entry/accrual  accounting?

Some options to consider are (this is by no means a complete list)

Outright — Fee basic online accounting. (Well reviewed)

Quickbooks Online (Both Free and Paid Versions)- A next step from personal financial software. (I use this for my consulting business)

Quickbooks – Also free and paid versions — Also easy to transition to, lots of free templates and wizards

Peachtree – More advanced for a businesses that need full support of double entry/accrual accounting

If you have an accountant,  consult him or her, before you make a decision about acounting software (I’m not an accoutant so they will know better then I.) Also since this is in no way a complete list, so please feel free to add your own suggestions in the comment section.

According to CNET Microsoft has announced that they will discontinue Microsoft Money. Their schedule is to stop selling it by the end of June 2009, and stop supporting it  as  of January 31, 2011 (19 months from now). The software will still work, but  it won’t be able to download data from banks  after Jan 31 2011.  Here’s a link to the CNET story.

Time to look for a replacement. Quicken is the obvious choice, but you may also want to look at Mint, a free online personal banking app.