When I downloaded my Turbo Tax DeLuxe for Macs I received the message "cannot use application Turbo Tax DeLuxe with this version of Mac OS X" What should I do?

Dear Bob, I have been reading these posts about Mac OS problems with TurboTax. We are having a problem with our software. We upgraded our computer once we found the teeny-tiny print on the side of the box about which version we needed. We have used TT for years and this is the first we've seen problems. We bought the product at walmart) not online. TurboTax Deluxe 2012 specifically was bought because state was provided for free. After installation we kept getting the message that we needed to purchase 'state.'

Finally after a couple of hours we noted that the forms page lists the deluxe software as "Basic" We contacted the TT Cusotmer service..after several hours they downloaded a new Deluxe...The forms still say TT Basic. Is this a technical defect in the software for Mac? We put it in a windows computer and it provides the deluxe version..This is a huge problem for us. Thanks for necessary assistance.

artfad... I would not characterize the previous posts as "problems." The issue is simply that TurboTax does not support 32-bit Macs and I have responded extensively on this subject.

As for your issue of it showing "Basic", I have never seen this before and I don't believe it is a disc mixup. The fact that when you install the same CD on Windows you see Deluxe tells me that the disc is probably fine. I'm led to believe that you may be calling up a prior year TurboTax Basic program you may have installed in the past. I'm not sure, but i have witnessed many people loading the wrong year. So please do this.

1. What does the Application icon say? Does it say "Deluxe" or "Basic" and does it say "2012"?

2. Run TurboTax by clicking on the icon from within the Applications folder. Do not click on any TurboTax icon you may have placed in the dock. Any different behavior?

If you can grab some screen shots of this and send them to me along with your response, that would help. You can contact me at "turbotax_advocate" + "@intuit.com".

Thanks.

Bob Meighan, VP TurboTax

Bob,

Although I appreciate your participation in this forum, some of what you say doesn't seem to ring true. For instance, you suggest that your hands were tied because "to make TurboTax for Mac available on the Mac App store (and every software developer needs to be there), we had to use tools that support 64-bit only." But that appears untrue. There's lots of software on the Mac App store that does not require a 64-bit processor, including, for example, Intuit's Quicken Essentials for Mac. TurboTax appears to be one of the few programs I can find on the Mac App store that does require a 64-bit processor. Moreover, as I noted before, the latest version of MS Office doesn't require a 64-bit processor. So your suggestion that everything requires 64-bit these days appears unfounded.

Notably, you still haven't identified any particular features that are enabled by the 64-bit requirement. I suspect the software completes the tax forms largely the same way it always has.

Finally, when publicizing this change, you should have anticipated that many users with OS 10.6.8 would be using 32-bit processors because that's the last version of the OS that supports 32-bit processors. Users with 64-bit processors are likely to have upgraded to 10.7 or 10.8. Perhaps you should have said that at least 10.7 was required.

John_1851... What I had posted earlier said that the development tools we use support 64-bit only. We could have gone with other development tools but they would have compromised functionality for 95% of the other TurboTax Mac customers. With that said, please also keep in mind that we have a fine migration path for those that are on 32-bit Macs. You can use TurboTax Online or if you have an iPad you can use TurboTax for iPad.

Bob Meighan, VP TurboTax

Bob,

In your earlier post, you DID say what I quoted you as saying above, i.e., that you couldn't offer TurboTax on the Mac App store unless you made it 64-bit only. That now appears to be untrue because most software I see on the Mac App store does not require a 64-bit processor (including other Intuit software). Moreover, you have yet to identify a single feature that requires 64-bit, so it's unclear how functionality would have been "compromised." The old versions have always worked just fine, so it's hard to see what new features would be needed (especially where so much other software still works on 32-bit processors).

Instead of making stuff up or denying what you said earlier, it would be better to just apologize for the situation and move on. I'll find a way to use the new software and get over it, but your defensive tone, untrue assertions, and denials of your earlier statements are a bit frustrating.

By the way, if you felt that TurboTax Online or TurboTax for iPad are such great alternatives, you wouldn't have continued to develop the stand-alone software at all. There's a lot of demand, though, for the stand-alone version, I believe.

Regards,

John

Please advise what other tax programs people are using for 2012 besides TurboTax. I've been a loyal TT user for over ten years but their abandoning of support for all but the latest and most powerful models is disturbing. Glad I found this forum before ordering. Upgrading the system, even if I had a 64 bit processor, seems foolish, as it will upset the stability I have enjoyed for four years. TurboTax, you blew off this customer this year.

RomyfromNY... Thanks for your perspective. I hope you take the time to read my responses above that discuss why we made the decision we did. Most customers are using TurboTax Online where they can preserve their entire TurboTax history with us, which means they can transfer 2011 information. Plus, you can use your existing Mac as is.

The feedback I've already received from those making the migration to TurboTax Online has been very positive. I'm confident you will also be pleased.

Bob Meighan, VP, TurboTax

John_1851,

From the way that you're speaking, it seems to me that you're not a software designer or programmer, and that you therefore don't quite understand the limitations and difficulties associated with using development tools. As a programmer myself, I understand what Bob is saying and do sympathize with the position the TurboTax team is put into by Apple's continuous "move forward" policy regarding their OS releases.

If there is anything to be blamed here, it is not the TurboTax team; it is Apple, for continuing to advance their operating system's features and capabilities while choosing not to support their old hardware for nearly as long as Microsoft does. If Apple had continued to support technologies like Rosetta, or made it mandatory for developers to continue supporting 32-bit apps, perhaps the situation would be different. However, the new version of the development tools that TurboTax's developers use clearly does not support 32-bit apps.

When you choose to use a set of development tools, you're essentially "locked in" to that set of tools. Upgrading to a new version of development tools usually requires quite a bit of work, even if no functionality is added to your program, but to completely switch to different development tools is such a massive undertaking that it is usually not at all cost-effective.

That said, TurboTax's developers clearly had to choose this year between upgrading to the new version of the tools they were using, or to stay behind. It was clearly not an easy decision, but their bean-counters (who, mind you, have access to full statistics that we don't have) obviously decided that the benefits of upgrading to the new tools--which included the added exposure and accessibility provided by the Mac App Store--clearly outweighed the drawbacks. Do other sets of Mac OS X development tools allow for both 32-bit support AND Mac App Store support? Perhaps they do, but since TurboTax's tools do not, it's out of their control. Development tools are, like other software, sold as a set package. One customer can't just ask for a new feature to be added that would benefit only them, regardless of what software product we're talking about, because it's just not cost-effective...therefore, TurboTax cannot ask their tools provider to add 32-bit support.

I'm sure the fact that old customers would be left behind was considered, but please realize that the company IS providing alternative methods to obtain their services, in the Online and iPad versions. Apple, on the other hand, does not provide a way to install newer OSes on their older hardware, including your Mac. TurboTax should be praised for supporting your Mac, even after Apple themselves abandoned it. However, because of Apple's "move forward" philosophy, this will be one of many new products you'll find yourself unable to run because you are using an older Mac. I will be shocked if any new software products support OS 10.6 two years from now, and I say this as an OS 10.6 user.

~Aaron

Aaron... I appreciate the independent perspective you brought to this discussion. It is thorough and actually represents exactly what we had to consider, trade-off and deal with as we moved to a new development toolset. Yes, it was a very big development effort just to get to parity year-over-year and I'm delighted we did it and then added more functionality. We are positioned now to deliver more and better features moving forward.

For those who may feel left behind, I want you to know that TurboTax Online and TurboTax for iPad are ideal solutions that leverage all your historical TurboTax data today and going forward. I have personally helped many, many customers who have posted here and I can honestly say that they have been extremely happy with the alternatives.

Thanks.

Bob Meighan, VP TurboTax

P.S. I have no idea who Aaron is and his feedback here was unsolicited.

FWIW, I've used TT and it's predecessor, MacInTax, since it originally shipped, and, although my two iMacs have 64-bit processors, I'll never relegate my personal tax info to TT Online. It, like all cloudy storage stuff, might make sense to some people, but IMO it is not an ideal solution.

Baltwo... And for you and others that believe that, we can offer TurboTax for iPad. Your data file is stored locally.

Bob Meighan, VP TurboTax

I've no problem using TT on my iMacs and have no need for an iPad .😉

So I bought the software from my local Target unaware that it would not be compatible with my macbook. I have opened the software so they will not take it back. I am now out $50. Is Turbo Tax offering any type of compensation for this or free online download? I have the deluxe version and I have used Turbo Tax for years. I am upset that this wasnt marked clearly on the front of the box.

ladk25... I'll be happy to help you. Contact me at "turbotax_advocate" + "@intuit.com" just like those above you have done.

Bob Meighan, VP TurboTax

Bob,

I purchased the Mac version last night from the Intuit TurboTax website. The requirement for 64bit processor was less then obvious. (if even stated during the purchase process). It's important enough of a change by Intuit that there should have been an explicit step in the process drawning attention to the change.

I know its been stated there was an "email announcement" which is a great CYA by Intuit, but in the age of "information overload" the point of sale is the place to make it perfectly clear of this fundamental change.

I plan to attempt to refund for the windows version. The question I have is will the Windows version of Deluxe 2012 inport the data file produced by last years Mac Version?

Thanks

Tim

PS, I have no interest in black cloud computing for personel information, nor do I have an iPad, nor the cash to throw hardware at chasing the software rabbit.