TaxWise differs from the tax software such as Intuit or Taxcut used by individuals in that it is designed to deal with and manage large numbers of returns.  Since speed of data entry is important, there is emphasis is reducing number of keystrokes and reading through instructions during the tax preparation process.

The major version number is 20 for 2006 (the 2005 tax year).  Minor revisions are of the form 20.xx where xx increments sequentially by 1 from 01 throughout the tax season.  The preliminary version has been shipped directly to VITA Site Coordinators and Partners in Santa Clara County.

There are several pieces that are related to each return that is prepared relevant for VITA sites:

• The return itself is a binary file that is stored in the directory of the user of that TaxWise installation, and includes the taxpayer return information
• The E-file is created after all errors that TaxWise can find are corrected.  It is a binary file that is stored within the TaxWise directory, and ready for transmission to the IRS and the State if applicable.  E-files are not created for returns that are going to be filed on paper
• The data of the returns is stored within the TaxWise database, as is the summary of transactions involving E-files with the TaxWise Service Center

At most VITA sites, a full copy of TaxWise is loaded on each desktop or  laptop.  Tax returns are prepared on individual machines, and files are transferred by floppies for printing, e-file transmission or backup.  These are standalone TaxWise installations in a non-networked environment.

At some sites, the desktops or laptops are part of a Local Area Network (LAN), and use shared printers over the LAN.   However, the full copy of TaxWise is loaded on each desktop or  laptop, and these are still standalone TaxWise installations working in a networked environment.

A few sites use Networked TaxWise, where all return information and the database for the site are maintained centrally on one machine (the TaxWise Server).   Sharing printers is easier since files are transferred over the LAN.   TaxWise State and Federal updates are installed only once on the TaxWise Server rather than on individual TaxWise Workstations.  An individual one time installation of the user interface is required on each individual laptop connected to the server.  One such site is the VITA Milpitas Community Library site.

New this year is a Web-based TaxWise, where the data is stored on a remote server on the internet, and the laptop or desktop accesses the software over the internet.

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Last modified: 01/15/06.