Money 2005 update still available - but for how much longer?

I've brought up my test system this morning, removed the existing copy of Microsoft Money UK 2005 on it to test whether the update is still being served from Microsoft's servers.

I can report that it is - almost 2 months after the expected take-down of the update. During the update, it can report the expiration of features, these being the online functions, however it's still possible to get the '1105' patch.

Although it is still available, I wonder whether it will be gone tomorrow, next week, next month or if it will still be around in a year's time. It's possible that there hasn't been the need to take it away yet. However it could go at any time, and once it does, that's it, unless you've made your backup (see this article on how to make a patched CD).

My previous posting was intended to ensure those using any 2005 version made their backup. This still applies and is just as urgent as before.

Do it now!

Reminder: 1 more week to purchase Microsoft Money

Please note that there is only 1 week left to purchase Microsoft Money through online outlets. It will be discontinued from sale on June 30, 2009.

If you have an activated copy of Microsoft Money Plus, you may wish to purchase a new key to continue with full functionality after the expiration date of your current version up to the end of life on 31 January 2011. Yopu can find out the expiry date by clicking on Help->About whilst within Money.

Purchase links can be found below

• Microsoft Money Plus Deluxe
• Microsoft Money Plus Premium
• Microsoft Money Plus Home & Business

These links are no longer valid

All quiet on the Money front

It's been a little quiet on the Money front recently. As there is no new product this year, Money Plus continues to be the one to purchase if you're looking for a replacement for an expired version of Money 2006 (expired on 1 September 2008) or Money 2007 (which will expire 2 years after first installation or 1 September 2009, whichever is earlier). Of course, if you don't use any online services, you should be able to continue with these versions.

There is still no news on other products for other countries – I personally expect there never to be any now.

Money Plus online services are due to expire after 2 years or by September 1, 2011 – if you bought Plus last year, then there is likely to be some news in the spring about upgrade paths. Microsoft could release a new version or may extend the time. They possibly could introduce a subscription model, but that remains to be seen.

I've not posted on this site for a month as my job situation is now very unclear, and I may be about to lose it (I don't work for Microsoft, so if you think I am in any way connected to the team, I'm not). However, this will give me new challenges (just finding a new one will be enough of a challenge – I'm after a .NET team lead position). I'll still post here as appropriate when I hear news on the Microsoft & MSN Money fronts though.

Glyn.

Retirement of Passport (Windows Live ID) sign in for Microsoft Money 2002 - 2004

Passport (Windows Live ID) sign in is to be retired for Microsoft Money 2002 - 2004 on July 31, 2008

This will have the effect that older versions of Money (2002-4) will no longer support adding or usage of Passport credentials on Money data files.

For more information see FAQ Article 557.

PC Pro reports on the ditching of support for UK Money 2005

ON the PC Pro website, there is an article about the ditching of support for Money 2005.

Microsoft has dropped support for Money 2005 and described it as "obsolete" - even though the company claims it's still good enough for UK users.
In our online banking feature in this month's PC Pro we described "Money as a little unloved at Microsoft" after the company failed to issue a new UK version in three years, despite a US release just last year.

Some points to raise regarding this article:

• It is still possible to buy Money 2005 from Amazon.co.uk
• The product lifecycle (referenced in this article), puts the end of life for Money 2005 at 8 January 2008. This might be where the article is coming from as Microsoft probably use this date in the UK also. I blogged this back in January (End of Support for Money 2005).
• Online services relating to download (see Article 306) originally expired on 1 September 2007. However, the MSN Money website showed a new date of 31 December 2009. The page is still active.
• If all else looks lost, you can get hold of US versions in the UK by digital download (see this article).

End of Support for Money 2005

According to the support lifecycle for Money 2005 (see this page), support ended for Money 2005 yesterday, January 8 2008.

It isn't clear from the lifecycle whether this is all regions, but I would expect so.

Note that quote downloads for Money 2005 for UK users should continue until December 31 2009, as stated on the Money UK Pages

Money 2007 (also 2006) Online Service Expiration

If you see a message that indicates that your Money 2007 or 2006 online service is expiration, then you should ignore it.

It appears that you may have experienced a problem which shouldn't have manifested itself with Money 2006 or Money 2007, and occurs due to a convoluted scenario based on the file you have, whether it has been upgraded and the last time it was used online

I am reliably informed that this problem is fixed, and a simple close/reopen should be sufficient.

Of course, if you know different, please let me know.

grxcy

Microsoft Money 2005 Online Services Expiry on 1 September 2007

On September 1st, most people using Microsoft Money 2005 Online services will have found that these expired. This is per the Online Services Policy that you would have accepted when you first used the product.

Microsoft® Money 2005 includes up to two (2) years of Internet-based Services. You will be able to use the Internet-based Services in Microsoft Money 2005 for a period of two (2) years from installation of the product or until September 1, 2007, whichever is earlier. After expiration, if you elect not to upgrade or are unable to upgrade to a version of Microsoft Money that continues to support Microsoft Money 2005 Internet-based Services, you will not be able to automatically update your accounts and investment values in Microsoft Money 2005. You will still be able to view and edit your financial data in Microsoft Money 2005 and to manually update your accounts and investment values. Microsoft may from time to time without notice, automatically download and install onto your computer updates for Microsoft Money, including updates necessary for you to continue to use the Internet-based Services.

Some of the features of Online services can be found at FAQ Article498

To work around this issue, you must upgrade to a later version (Microsoft Money Plus is the latest version).

Note: Microsoft Money UK products did not expire on this date. They will now expire in December 2009.

Money 2005 and Expiration

The following words are written in the licence agreement (EULA) for the UK version of Microsoft Money 2005:

IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE MICROSOFT MONEY INTERNET-BASED SERVICES POLICY LOCATED AT http://money.msn.com/Money/2005/GBR/IBSP.asp, YOU WILL NOT BE ABLE TO USE THE INTERNET-BASED SERVICES OF THE SOFTWARE TWO (2) YEARS AFTER YOUR ACTIVATION OF THE SOFTWARE OR SEPTEMBER 1, 2007, WHICHEVER IS EARLIER.

Note the date - 1st September 2007 or 2 years after product installation. They also say they have the right to withdraw or modify these services at any time.

Money 2005 was released in late 2004, and so a good proportion of users will have had their 2 years already. Fortunately for them, the 2 year rule has not (yet) been implemented and they continue to be able to download stock price quotes and statements from their bank.

Those people who have tried the scenario mentioned in FAQ Article 354 will have noticed that nothing happened when setting the clock date forward - this would imply that the cut off is also on the server and not totally reliant on the desktop installation of Money.

So, what is going to happen? That is still an unanswered question. The guarantee of Microsoft Money says:

Microsoft guarantees that (a) for a period of 90 days from the date of receipt of your license to use the software or the shortest period permitted by applicable law it will perform substantially in accordance with the written materials that accompany the software

Therefore it has to work for 90 days - Microsoft have an obligation to provide substantial functionality for that amount of time (one can definitely argue that download capabilities fall into this category - and it does mention these on the packaging). If you take 90 days from today (Monday 14th May 2007), this takes us to mid-August, about 2 weeks before the cut off date in the EULA.

In addition, Money is still being sold in the UK by retailers such as Amazon.co.uk, so unless that stops within the next two weeks, then Microsoft will need extend the service (at least for these new purchasers) beyond the 1st September 2007.

Of course, how does Microsoft know that someone buying the product, say in June, has never used 2005 before? Simply by the file conversion date which can then be used to determine when the 90 days are up. However, if someone had bought 2005 before and buys it again for an extension to the online service (unlikely, but possible), then there would need to be a way that they could know this. It is easier to keep it going for all, rather than revisit 3+ year old code and implement a timeout service again coping with this scenario.

When 2005 was released, it probably hadn't been envisaged or decided that there wouldn't be a 2006 or 2007, so Microsoft have managed to get themselves into a position which perhaps is undesirable.

So, in conclusion, it is most likely that before the service is shut down (if it is), we'll have to see it being stopped from sale for 90 days. Only then will we know for sure... this is similar to how Quicken was withdrawn.

One final thought - if we were to see another version - the 2005 version could be immediately withdrawn from the market and servers changed (after 90 days) to allow only the new version to connect.