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Complete listing of June 1996 reviews
By Joel T. Patz
MICA IV, a high-end accounting program for midsize and large businesses, has gained a following among DOS users. MICA IV Windows sticks to its DOS guns but offers its users a transition to the Windows environment.
In the Accounts Receivable module, you can automatically generate recurring invoices, which is especially useful for processing fixed-payment contracts. You can track sales and calculate commissions, and post them directly to the Payroll module. Return sales, bad checks and layaways are easy to deal with, and there's a standard set of tracking reports such as Receivable Aging and Customer Status.
The Accounts Payable module analyzes purchase history to help you take advantage of the most favorable credit terms. MICA IV Windows can distribute invoices to an unlimited number of GL expense, cash and payable accounts, and it can project cash requirements. The system can also handle prepaid purchases and one-time vendors, and interface with the Job Cost module.
You can use a variety of costing methods in the Inventory module, including LIFO (last in, first out), FIFO (first in, first out) and Weighted Average. You can specify start and end dates for special sale items, set quantity discounts and process transfers, returns and write-downs. Sales Order Processing, Purchase Order Processing, Job Cost and Bank Reconciliation modules are also available.
MICA IV Windows' accounting strength is overshadowed by its nonstandard Windows behavior. Scroll bars don't work as expected, menu options are unusual and often require a series of selections, and there's no customizable toolbar. Major modules offer look-up options, but I couldn't extract details on invoices using just the invoice number. The program's limited drill-down capability makes it difficult to find other information.
The software does have a number of amenities, such as a pop-up calculator that lets you run sophisticated financial calculations. It also has a handy snapshot feature that summarizes account status. Its printed documentation is generally accurate and very useful.
MICA IV Windows works under Win95 and its functionality cannot be faulted, but it still has some ground to make up in the Windows arena.
Info File
MICA IV Windows
Price: Applications Manager, $395 (single user), $795
(999 users); Bank Reconciliation, $395; other modules, $1,195
each
Pros: Breadth of features
Cons: Nonstandard interface
Platforms: Windows 95, 3.1x(16-bit)
Disk space: 32MB
RAM: 4MB (8MB recommended)
MICA Accounting Software
800-448-6422, 409-983-2051
WinMag Box Score: 3.0
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