I Screwed Myself BUT GOOD!

Steven Reiss

Oh gosh, I may have really done it to myself. Hope that you geniuses can help. I've been running Quicken For Mac 2007 for years and years. Never upgraded the OS beyond El Capitan for other reasons. Today, decided that I would move into the 21st century and get myself a new Mini running Catalina OS. Fine, downloaded the $34.99 version of Quicken for Mac because I knew that this was necessary to run on the newer os BUT wanted to still use my old Mini/El Capitan until the new system was here and set up. I opened and installed the downloaded version of Quicken and it asked about using my existing Quicken for Mac 2007 files as a starting point. Foolishly, I agreed. NOW, I find that all of my my files from 2018 thru this year are gone....as in they don't exist. I checked BOTH of my external SSDs and the same thing is there..........and also my MacBook Pro also running El Capitan. How badly did I screw myself up? Can I ever get the pre new Quicken version back again or transferred into the new version so I can pick up where I left off????? Is suicide an appropriate path for me. We run a small home business and it's just one bank act that we have used in Quicken 2007 for taxes and the like BUT to redo the file means 2 years of deposits, etc,. that I'd have to go back to.......Yes, in the scheme of things, it's nothing BUT it sure made me feel like a jerk. Why did I have to upgrade QUICKEN TODAY??? Makes no sense at all........help an old man PLEASE!

Thanks to you all,

Steve

Steven Reiss

I should add that the old interface of Quicken 2007 is gone and replaced by something new and scary. All I wanted to do was to be able to run Quicken manually, no imports from my bank accounts, just one simple-assed act that I could continue to use for our business.........my advice, don't get old. These things seem like much more than they may be.....

jacobs

Steven, take a deep breath and stay calm, and try to unpack the issues one by one.

It is highly unlikely the new Quicken Mac just lost two years of your transactions. And it certainly shouldn't have affected your existing Q2007 setup.

Let's start with the latter point first. When you import a Quicken 2007 data file into Quicken Mac (2020), it only makes a copy of your Q2007 data file; it does not alter/update/remove your Quicken 2007 data file. So if you want to go back to Quicken 2007 on your old El Capitan Mac Mini, there should be nothing interfering with this; your Quicken 2007 app is still there, along with your Quicken 2007 data file(s).

In terms of the new Quicken Mac, when you launched it, it asked for you to point to a Quicken 2007 data file to import. If the result was missing the last two years of transactions, it's almost certain that you imported an older version of your Quicken 2007 data file.

Since you're saying you're missing your current data in both Quicken 2007 and Quicken Mac 2020, it sure sounds as if you're not finding your most recent Quicken 2007 data file. I'd encourage you to do some more sleuthing on your hard drive(s) looking at every .qdfm file you can find. With Quicken 2007, it's not apparent to a user where the file they are using is located, so it's easy to find an older file and assume it's your current one.

I'm assuming from your description that you don't have a Time Machine backup of your Mac? That would be the easiest way to go back in time a few days to hunt for your current Quicken 2007 data file.

As for the differences between Quicken 2007 and Quicken Mac 2020, yes, it's an all-new design and interface which seems pretty jarring to those of us who have used the old interface for decades. That doesn't mean it's worse; it's just different, and there's a bit of a learning curve. I have found some things I didn't like on first impression now impress me as being better than the venerable old Quicken I was used to. And there are some things which the modern program doesn't do as well. But if you're using it for manual entry, I think you'll find that the modern Quicken will be fine once you get used to it for a while.

But go back to searching for a Quicken 2007 data file that has your most recent transactions as your first step. Make sure you check your Trash. It just couldn't have spontaneously disappeared.

Steven Reiss

Jacobs!!! I searched the .qdfm file with the previous file name and it popped up...........incredible. For whatever reason, it seems like the file I was able to find only was reconciled to Jan 1 of this year BUT who cares???? All I have to do is enter and reconcile 6 months worth of not much activity and my file is then up to date.....man, you are GOOD........

Thanks so much for saving me....again. Eventually, once I get the new Mini set up and switch over, I should be fine.........and you are right, the old interface with its checkbook looking design was easy and intuitive BUT I should be able to figure the new one out.

Thank you again for your patience.......I used to use a slide rule in my past so I'm one of these guys who straddled a couple of tech upgrades thru the decades......it gets harder as I get closer to that final ride down Splash Mountain but trying to stay somewhat current is the only way I can keep my head above water....that and having guys like you to ask for help.

Thank you...and stay well and safe!! and have a good 4th!

Steve

jacobs

Steve, I had to pass a slide rule proficiency test in order to be allowed to use one of them newfangled TI calculators in high school!  Good luck in moving forward, and come back to this forum if you have questions as you get used to the new Quicken.

Steven Reiss

Ahhh, the Ti calculators. Almost forgot about them. My tool of choice was the Pickett slide rule which was my proudest possession....wielded it like a sword......did NOT attract the ladies though, sadly.

I'm going to update the old Quicken register file tomorrow and then should be good to go again.......and THANK you!!!

Stay safe, my friend.

Steve (A second beer is coming as a treat!)

Rocket J Squirrel

Steven Reiss said:

Ahhh, the Ti calculators. Almost forgot about them. My tool of choice was the Pickett slide rule which was my proudest possession....wielded it like a sword......did NOT attract the ladies though, sadly.

I had to slide-rule my way through Electronics Lab 1 freshman year of college. Where does the ****ing decimal point go? The HP-35 came out the following year. I wore it proudly in its belt-loop case, but for some reason it also failed to attract any ladies.

jacobs

@Steven Reiss If you're going to import from Quicken 2007 again, let me offer one more suggestion...

Make a copy of your Quicken 2007 data file. Launch Quicken 2007 and re-index your file: press Command-Option-B. This can fix corruption that sometimes sneaks into Quicken 2007 data files. Use the re-indexed file to import into Quicken Mac (2020).

Steven Reiss

The reason that your HP-35 didn't attract the ladies is the same reason that my Pickett had no affect on my love life.........the chicks were interested in the muscled-up goofs NOT an engineering type..........story of my life as it turned out!!

Steven Reiss

Thanks for that tip, Jacobs! Great idea, I have to input 6 months of bank statements into the Quicken 2007 ledger that your suggestion helped me locate anyway, after doing that I'll use that tip to re-index and THEN and only then will I import into the new Quicken Appl.........

Thanks for thinking of that. Tomorrow, I'm ordering the new Mini running Catalina and then, it'll be a slow but steady install of the various plug-ins another appls. that I'll be using again in the new system.......good to be able to have my old Mini right next to the new one so I can continue working thru the week while setting the new Mini up......

Stay safe and well, all of you!

Steve (the Elder)

Steven Reiss

....and I just updated the old Quicken act file, all balanced and then did the re-index of the file so I'm ready to import to new Quicken when I'm feeling more brave!!

Thanks to you all!

Steve (STILL the Elder!)