Is ACT! by Sage 2007, “junk”?
November 23, 2006 by Travis
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I recently received and email from a subscriber of http://www.whatsnewwithact.com/. I thought I would publish it here, as perhaps he is part of the few bold enough to ask these questions, yet many might benefit from this discussion…below is the text and my reply.
I have since read several reviews that ACT 2007 is junk. I believe it because I have been a user since version one and upgraded annually. I bought vs. 2005 and also 2006 but returned both. I had hoped that 2007 would fix the slow buggy product. I think they should fire all the software engineers and start over.
I am currently using vs. 6 but want to update. Any suggestions on what I should try?
Here is my reply:
Indulge me for a moment, and allow me to encourage you to consider another approach.
1.) All software has bugs, unfortunate but true.
(http://weblog.infoworld.com/gripeline/2006/03/21_a378.html)
2.) Pick your poison.In accepting these realities, you will be in a better (not bitter :-)) position to make your choice. Make sure you pick the software that meets your business objectives first, and verify you can deal with the bugs, AND that the company will be around long after your purchase.
I’ve found that the people who have a bit of distaste in their mouth with ACT! (or any piece of software) are more often ‘technical’ in outlook than ’sales oriented’. Those who have a ’selling’ outlook seem to get over the technical hurdles a bit easier.
Now if you are still reading, to take you forward, I would setup a test system, or at a minimum test the migration of your v6 database, and see how it does, so that you know what to expect when you want to migrate for real.
As a last resort, you may want to see about hiring someone to migrate the database if it gives you fits, this may be a good investment, even for the most tech savvy.
Visit: www.act.com/acc to find a consultant in your area.Hope that helps.
Warm Regards,
TravisPS: I hope you find my review of the software
to be helpful in your decision making process.
What about you? Have you completed the upgrade? Done a migration, or are you sticking with an older version? If so, why? Feel free to comment from your own experiences.
Happy Thanksgiving,
Travis
Thanks for all the information. After reading everything I could on “why I should upgrade from Act 6.0 to the new Act 2008″- I am soundly convinced to buy the new MS Outlook 2007.
Instead of solutions in speeding up the new SQL and .Net framework - I hear excuses. Instead of seamless Windows Mobile compatibility - I hear excuses. Instead of seamless email integration - I hear excuses.
Frankly- my customers would never put up with excuses like these. I have writtten two (professional and kind) letters to Sage about the dissappointement of my initial upgrade from Act 6 to Act 2006. I never received a response (at all). Read my letter below.
Yes- all software has bugs- but usually when introducing new software and company does not go backwards. Act has turned entropy into a science.
I am open minded to beng convinced back into ACT- after all- I will still use Act 6.0 alongside Outlook to that it communicates properly with my PDA.
But it is a hassle.
ACT 2008 people- Do you hear my cry for help??????
*****************************
my previous letter to Sage:
I am an Act 6.0 user and had used all previous versions of ACT almost since its inception.
Several years ago I upgraded to Act 2006 (by Sage) excited about the stated improvements. I was so overwhelmingly disappointed by the massive resources it devoured on my computers that I reluctantly re-loaded the previous version using the older SQL language. ACT 2006 had slowed my otherwise blazing fast computer down to a halt. (long wait times to open screens, memory depletion, etc). I was using 2GB of RAM at the time.
Since then I have continued to get ACT 2007 and now ACT 2008 offers via email and mail. I would like to upgrade to the new version of ACT but am fearful of what it will once again do to my computer, laptop and PDA.
I even emailed ACT several years ago when I reverted back to ACT 6.0 with a list of all the problems, but I never received a response. To this day I read terrible reviews all over the web about ACT 2007 and frankly am disappointed at the non-response to my concerns (and the concerns of many users who’s reviews I have read).
I am aware of all the bells and whistles of the new ACT but until I can be assured that the new version will not cripple my computer I see no reason to upgrade.
******************
Mark-
Sorry to hear you have had such a rough go of it.
I’ve responded numerous times to similar posts on this blog….so I’ll give others a chance.
Anyone want to chime in regarding Mark’s concerns?
I just read the previous entries as I too was an Act user from the beginning, was extremely disappointed with the upgrade to Act 2005 version 7 and, perhaps, because of echos of past satisfaction with earlier versions and my investment in the soft ware in terms of learning how to use it over the years since I first got into it many years ago, (probably 1990), would like to believe Sage has mended its ways and produced a usable product that I could now upgrade to, but it doesn’t sound like it from what I’m reading.
Nick-
ACT 2008 isn’t perfect, but it is fair to say it is leaps and bounds better than ACT 2005. The biggest problem I’m seeing out there, is 1.) Installation issues, and 2.) Data Migration issues.
I’m trying to help people with both issues…
One of the things customers get when purchasing ACT software from my site is my “From the Trenches” installation best practices video.
I don’t have the video yet for sale on the site as a standalone product, but check there periodically as I might change my mind
Since every database is unique, I haven’t found a way to replicate migration practices in a video… I’ve only been able to handle these on a case by case basis. If you don’t have a relationship with an ACT certified consultant, you can find one in your local area by searching under the “Partners” menu at act.com. Be sure to ask them about there experience migrating ACT databases to the latest version.
Oh, be sure to review this post prior to upgrading ACT software…
Act is CRAP, plain and simple. I have bought 3 versions, the latest being 2007. It’s buggy and ridiculously slow, even on my current, powerful PC with 4 gb ram. It’s a pain to get contacts to sync with my PDA. I was actually entertaining installing a SQL server to speed it up when I came to my senses. Why have I put up with this? I am dumping ACT for good. Now I have to find something that will export the contacts back to Outlook 2007. Anybody have one?
Tracy,
Hey, whoa, lets keep this good for family reading, ok?
You might want to try ACT! 2008 on a test system, I find it pretty stable, and supports Vista and Office 2007 without any special treatment. If you want assistance, check out the LIVE-REPLAY review site mentioned on this ACT Software Help page.
If you really are going to throw it out entirely, yes you need to get your data out. There are tools that will do that, you might want to contact an ACT Certified Consultant to make sure it gets done properly. If you prefer to do it yourself, let me know via http://www.TravisHelpDesk.com and I can point you in the right direction.
Hope that helps…
Tried it; hated it. Look, don’t get me wrong, if it functioned properly, this would be the best software in the biz, being “sales-oriented” as Travis pointed out; but the problem is the program’s clunkiness. It’s just terrible. I agree with the above comment that the software engineers should all be fired, and ACT! should start over with a new product. It doesn’t readily interact with Outlook. It doesn’t readily integrate with Vista. It doesn’t readily load (*too much debugging - I was at it for 4 hours). It doesn’t export worth a tinker’s dam. And it’s a memory hog. The only thing it does manages to do well (when it’s not freezing up all of my other programs/computer) is organize well. But I can do that on a spreadsheet, or even a Roladex! And with the extra time it takes to debug this clunky useless program, I could be making sales calls, and writing down the info in my Day-Planner. I hate old school ink and paper, but your program DECREASES my EFFICIENCY, not increases, with all the tech issues. And your support is, as many point out, nonexistent. I took mine back to the store for a refund. It’s sad because I had such high expectations, which the program COULD HAVE MET, BUT FOR THE SOFTWARE BUGS! Shame on you for releasing this product on the unsuspecting public.
Rory
We have been running ACT 6.0 on a Dell server with 6 users for a couple of years. We love the layout, features and function, but would like to improve the performance. We prefer to remain with 6.0 rather than risk an upgrade. The program freezes sometimes on some computers and crashes sometimes on some computers. The performance can vary on the same computer. Sometimes one computer is better than another and sometimes the other way around.
Here’s what we’ve tried already: 1. regular database maintenance including reindexing etc., 2. deleting unnneeded contacts, 3. deleting cleared activities, 4. making sure that the virus scan excludes ACT, 5. making sure the field sizes are not larger than necessary. 6. Increasing RAM on the PCs to 2.0 gig. These things have helped a little at times, and I recommend them to others, but the overall performance remains a permanent problem.
Does anyone have other suggestions? I once saw that there is a way to reduce the frequency with which ACT updates the database while being used, but I don’t know how to do that or if it will help. Can anyone suggest anything that might help?
Thanks,
Ben
Ben-
What operating system are you running it on? As you likely know, v6 is no longer supported… It will be tough to get support on it going forward.
That being said, you might try disabling all security software on the clients and server, and see how that impacts performance.