What's new in NoteSmith 2011?

Details about the features of the 2011 release appear below. The 2011 version is available for license by first time customers during the last quarter of 2010 and to renewal subscribers in January, 2011. During the third quarter of 2010, only the 2010 version is available for license. Upgrades from 2010 to 2011 are not free, so if you are a potential new customer and need the 2011 program, either order 2010 and renew in 2011 (because you need loan servicing now), or wait until 2011 is released (to save a few dollars).

New for all NoteSmith2011 programs

• Support for 32 bit and 64 bit Windows7 versions
• Support for the new Dodd Frank Act, known as the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, HR 4173, effective 1/1/2011, implements significant changes to reports and correspondence sent to debtors
• Use of Windows7 SegoeUI font and Aero effects
• Toolbar uses icons and words; resizes with the main window; size and position memorized for next start up
• Print Options offers Email choice
• Email directly from within NoteSmith® to individual accounts or automatically in bulk to All Remaining for account reports, tax forms, and mail merged letters; optionally view attachments before sending; account Notepad is marked when email letter is sent
• Year end annual technical support invoice can be printed directly from the Help menu to avoid postal issues
• Technical support is available weekends in January to help with installation issues, importing older data, and new version questions

Revised and updated for all NoteSmith2011 programs

• Online filing of IRS 1098s or print the entire 1098, 1099-A, or 1099-C payor/payee B and C copies on blank paper; only the new NoteSmith® can submit files or fill in the new IRS forms due January 2011
• Updated IRS 4419 application for electronic filing for those without a current Transmitter Control Code number
• Windows7 image file sizes are huge; IRS tax form resolution adjusted to balance clarity with file size to speed printing and manage video memory
• File, Online duplicate functions removed for clarity; upload confirmation is displayed
• Checking the company pays box on Accounts, Edit reformats the tax number field to TIN from SSN
• Deleting one payment pops up a warning box; attempts to delete multiple payments requires two confirmations
• Reports, Portfolio, Register Totals/Balances honors investor code and filter for net report totals
• Breakdown of PI and TI, by note and by average monthly, appears on Reports, Portfolio, Payments Expected
• Reports, Miscellaneous, Exceptions tests for proper formatting of SSN/TIN with 1098/1099-INT
• Late fee on coupon moved off the extension line giving payor the benefit of the doubt that they will pay timely; late fee up to $9999.99 can be printed on coupon
• New Text File Editor replaces the former Text menu, keeping the standard menu visible
• Merging form letters to Payor2 revised for printing both names on one letter or two letters for each co-payor
• ISO 8601 date format of yyyy-mm-dd added; all date formats can show a long character date on merged letters
• Numerous minor features added based on user feedback; more detailed instructions, warnings, and error messages

New for NoteSmith2011 Pro and Net

• Print labels to PDF for use by your commercial printer
• Loss of network connection allows user to end the program gracefully

Revised and updated for NoteSmith2011 Pro and Net

• Electronic filing of 1099-INT, plain paper printing of B&C copies of 1099-INT and 6252 due January 2011
• Save 1098/1099-INT A and C copies as archival PDFs
• Grid headings on Record window reflect application of payment categories when leases are selected
• Bulk Pay recording, formerly Pay Payables, now handles Receivable notes, useful with Automated Clearing House (ACH) accounts
• QuickBooks moved to Tools menu; when copying accounts, the QuickBooks export flag is unset to allow exporting from the new copy
• Freshening program files on workstations can be done directly from a freshened server, even under Windows7

What was new in NoteSmith 2010?

Details about the features of this new release appear below. First time customers can order NoteSmith during the last quarter of 2009. Discounted renewal announcements for NoteSmith 2009 customers will be mailed in the last half of November, 2009.

New for all NoteSmith2010 programs

• Self-healing data: the program will restore, repair, or recreate most corrupted data files automatically
• The optional online backup is now available for all users, non-Pro, Pro, and Net
• Support for installation under 64 bit versions of Windows
• Window sizes are adjustable for appropriate modules, such as Lookup, Record, and Notepad
• Adjustable window positions are memorized as are grid column widths in Lookup and Record
• Closed accounts report added with date range and account type option
• Arrearage history for delinquent payors shows running tally, missed payments, and how arrearages develop
• Totals & Balances Register summarizes annual principal and interest payments plus starting and ending balances for each account, all on one report
• Email field added to escrow screen to contact insurance companies and taxing authorities
• Comments field and various bankruptcy fields were added to credit bureau window for each account
• Deactivating an activated installation prints a "Deactivation Receipt" to help avoid losing a valid activation
• Annual technical support invoice can be printed directly from the Help menu to avoid mailing address problems
• Technical support will be available Saturdays and Sundays during January to help with installation issues, importing last year's data, and new version questions

Revised and updated for all NoteSmith2010 programs

• Online filing of IRS 1098s or print the entire 1098, 1099-A, or 1099-C payor/payee B and C copies on blank paper; only the new NoteSmith® can submit files or fill in the new IRS forms due January 2010
• Pop up notepad (F2) displays a confirmation box on closing if changes were made and not saved
• Pop up payment history (F3) shows at least 8 payments regardless of the current date and calendar year settings
• Histories re-ordered so due date displays year; check number moved closer to payment terms and was widened; history and receipts were modified to more closely match each other
• All phone number fields were widened to 20 characters to accommodate extensions and other notations
• File, Company Configuration, IRS and the viewable IRSTAX report modified based on the latest requirements
• The Seasoned report was heavily modified to make totals and averages easier to understand
• Three portfolio reports coordinate to show all types of accounts: New, Seasoned, and Closed
• Coupons show full breakdown of regular payment, escrow, service fee, and late fee on 3-up and 4-up coupons
• Calendar year and fiscal year fields modified to ensure valid date entry
• Certain credit bureau fields are made accessible for data storage to non-Pro users
• Importing of last year's data is automated for the new C:\Users\Public\Princeton\NoteSmith folder
• When sending email, a test is run that the selected email program is properly installed and accessible; optional warning message explains why emails fail
• Support for choosing web mail instead of an installed email client program
• Unspecified, unanticipated Program Errors trap the exact module and line of code, then send the information to Errors.txt for emailing or faxing to technical support
• Numerous other minor features were added based on user feedback
• The manual was re-sequenced so that page numbers in the paper version match the PDF version under the Help menu, allows jumping to the correct page under Adobe Reader and full text search capability

New for NoteSmith2010 Pro and Net

• Interest only, adjustable rate notes can be recalculated without amortizing when bulk adjusting
• Window sizes are adjustable for Collections and Tickler and positions are memorized
• Closed Accounts report displays both notes and leases
• The currently active filter is used when posting account information for optional online display
• Create multiple data folders from File, Setup at any workstation onto a Locked Closet Server (LCS)

Revised and updated for NoteSmith2010 Pro and Net

• Electronic filing of 1099-INT, plain paper printing of B&C copies of 1099-INT and 6252 due January 2010
• Reminder added to IRS 6252 tab to print in loan number order since the IRS does not require payor names
• Month to month rentals do not need a balance and the Record module ignores those zero balances
• Freshening program files on workstations can be done directly from a freshened server, even under Vista
• Credit bureau module overhauled to make exporting easier, create a password encrypted export file for safety when emailing, copy to removable media including FlashDrives, directions in manual are more specific

What was new in NoteSmith 2009?

Details about the features of this new release appear below. First time customers only can order NoteSmith 2009 at this time. Renewal announcements for NoteSmith 2008 customers will be mailed in the last half of November, 2008.

New for all NoteSmith2009 programs

• Full Windows Vista compatibility, with data installation to Vista read/write folders; manifest added to the main program file to allow installation and use as a true Vista program while maintaining Windows XP compatibility
• Pay date check added to Exceptions report to help eliminate incorrect typing of future payment dates
• The Record window has a new warning to ask for confirmation of pay dates more than 90 days in the future
• F3 pops up the true, printable payment history, instead of the spreadsheet used in previous years, from Accounts, Edit and other places in the program

Revised and updated for all NoteSmith2009 programs

• Electronic (online) filing of IRS 1098s or print the entire 1098, 1099-A, or 1099-C payor/payee B and C copies on blank paper; only the new NoteSmith can submit files or fill in the new IRS forms due January 2009
• All Accounts option was added to Print Options for all relevant reports
• Aging report was designed as a portfolio report, but shows enough detail to make collections calls
• All portfolio reports print in a useful, optionally selectable sequence with standard, consistent column headings, including a new Order subtitle to display user options selected
• All coupons use the same double window envelope layout for 3 up, receipts, and invoices
• Detailed receipt shows due dates and page totals in both form letter and statement format
• Bankruptcy B-10a modified so graphics match other payor reports, yet coordinate with B-10.
• Capital Gains report shows loan numbers as well as names
• Letters can be unlocked for bankrupts by an administrator
• Regulation Z: Program calculates APR when there are finance fees added to the loan
• Standard bold non-serif font used for legible reading down to 75% zoom or less on all portfolio reports
• Accrued Interest report adds choice of displaying by name or loan number
• Reports that are printed to a file appear in a folder accessible to others on your local area network
• To ensure greater data stability, the Notepad functionality was rewritten; issues with power surged Notepad data will not impact the ability to record payments or run reports; all Notepad data and features are available, with up to 750 pages of densely packed text accessible for each account
• Administrator check so that privileged computer actions, such as freshening the Program Files folder or installing a PDF printer, are honored according to Windows XP and Windows Vista settings
• Data is now stored in a folder outside of the Program Files folder and can be moved as desired
• Importing of last year's data is automated, even if Windows Vista moved it to a "Virtual Store" folder
• Email Technical Support directly from the Help menu, optionally attaching a backup of your data
• Numerous other minor features were added based on user feedback
• The manual underwent the most extensive re-write in its history; updated and expanded to allow for Windows Vista installation; is available from within NoteSmith in PDF format, allowing full search capability
• Deactivation routine allows you to move your primary installation to a new computer
• More detailed on-screen instructions, warnings, and error messages
• One additional program activation for a flat, discounted fee

New for NoteSmith2009 Pro and Net

• Customer copies of IRS forms can be emailed; the customer consent letter follows IRS guidelines
• New custom report to display NSFs recorded by date range
• Email any payor-style report or form letter to the payor's email address
• Email any portfolio-style report to the recipient of your choice, including Custom Reports and Graphs
• Email support for Outlook, MAPI clients (Outlook Express, Eudora), and limited support for other email programs
• Email a NoteSmith® to Word merged document right from the Print Options window
• New filters to highlight or hide payors with email addresses; new No Filter button added to save time resetting the program

Revised and updated for NoteSmith2009 Pro and Net

• Electronic filing of 1099-INT, plain paper printing of B&C copies of 1099-INT and 6252
• Collections report was completely revised, strictly designed for making collections calls, adding all account phone numbers, notepad information, reminder date, promise date, last late letter sent
• Credit bureau module overhauled to make exporting easier, directions in manual more specific
• Optionally print second payor contact information on the Collections report
• Optional online backup and restore can be completed from a single button
• QuickBooks exporting displays classes twice as long as previously to allow more meaningful QB reports