Q I want my screen to display as much as possible of an Excel worksheet. I’ve gotten rid of my Ruler, Message Bar and Formula Bar. Now if I can only hide the tabs on the bottom of the page. Any ideas? A Excel displays the tabs by default, but
Advertisement
The magazines
Banking
Mortgage loan modifications and payment plans increased significantly as did the rates of delinquency and foreclosures in process in the second quarter of 2009. The OCC and OTS Mortgage Metrics Report said home retention actions increased 21.7%, driven mostly by the Making Home Affordable program. However, 5.3% of all mortgages
Protect Your E-Mailing and Internet Surfing When You Travel
Q My tech-savvy friends warn me about computer-privacy risks when I travel. They say that checking my e-mail while in a Wi-Fi-equipped coffeehouse or an airport is practically an invitation for an unscrupulous person to monitor my messages and even steal my data. Are there any practical ways to protect
Several Ways to Fix a Corrupt Word Document
Q I’ve got a Word document that appears to be corrupt. I suspect there’s a problem because, although I can open the file, it will not respond to several commands, such as Ctrl+F (Find and Replace). Is there some way I can repair it? A This is a tricky
Detecting Circular Cash Flow
Following an initial customer confirmation request with no response, a first-year auditor mails a second and third request, all under the supervision of the auditor-in-charge assigned to the account. Field work begins on the audit, but there is still no response from the customer. Another auditor scanning the cash journal
Write-Off Patterns a Key Factor in Ratios
Regarding the article “Assessing the Allowance for Doubtful Accounts” (Sept. 09, page 40): Enjoyed the article. However, it seems to me that another important component of the analysis suggested by the authors would be to determine whether the entity was following a consistent pattern of writing off accounts. If that
Value Creation Measures a “Step in the Right Direction”
Your recent article “Four Options for Measuring Value Creation” (Aug. 09, page 34) touched on my long-held belief that accounting measures, while necessary and useful, are limited when it comes to valuing an investment in the company’s stock. Your proposed measures of value are an important step in the right
More to Risk Management Than COSO ERM
The authors of “ERM: Opportunities for Improvement” (Sept. 09, page 28) only discuss/reference the COSO ERM Framework. The body of risk management knowledge includes many other sources, including lectures and books from recognized thought leaders, such as Robert Shiller, Nassim Taleb and others; at least 15 professional risk-related organizations such
Highlights
FASB brought U.S. GAAP closer to the approach FASB and the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) have outlined in their preliminary views documents for their joint revenue recognition project that is scheduled for completion in 2011. FASB ratified the consensus approach reached at the Sept. 9–10 Emerging Issues Task Force
Requests for Tax Shelter Opinion Letters Denied
The Tax Court denied a partnership’s motions to compel the IRS to provide tax opinion letters related to all known “Son of BOSS” transactions, along with a list of law or accounting firms that have issued them. The court determined that the information requested by 3K Investments LLC (tax matters
Financial Reporting
The SEC announced that the smallest public companies have six more months to provide audited assessments on the effectiveness of their internal control over financial reporting. Under section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, public companies and their independent auditors are each required to report to the public on the effectiveness
Auditing
The PCAOB postponed the effective date for registered public accounting firms required to report under its new rules to Dec. 31, 2009, from the previous date of Oct. 12, in order to resolve technical issues related to deploying the board’s new Web-based system for processing and publishing filings on the
Institute’s Spiegel Chosen Top CFO in the Raleigh-Durham Area
Scott Spiegel, CFO for the AICPA, was named 2009 Top CFO in the Financial Services category for the Raleigh-Durham (N.C.) region by Business Leader Media. Spiegel is responsible for oversight of the AICPA’s Finance team, which includes accounts payable, accounts receivable, contract management and purchasing, credit and collections, payroll, and
IFRS for SMEs: The Next Standard for U.S. Private Companies?
In July 2009, the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) released International Financial Reporting Standards designed for use by small and medium-sized entities (SMEs). IFRS for SMEs is a self-contained, standalone set of financial accounting and reporting standards. Along with the standards, the board released implementation guidance, such as example financial
Risk-Based Audit Best Practices
The aim of the risk assessment auditing standards was to improve the quality and effectiveness of audits by substantially changing audit practice. Statements on Auditing Standards nos. 104–111 provide increased rigor to the audit process in a number of key areas including the assessments of inherent and control risks and
Two Easements, Two Outcomes
The Tax Court decided two cases involving conservation easements with mixed results for the taxpayers. In one case, the court held that the taxpayer was entitled to a charitable deduction for easements on two properties, since the easements were exclusively for conservation purposes. According to the court, the easements preserved
FYI
The SEC’s Office of the Chief Accountant is seeking up to seven professional accounting fellows to help develop proposed securities rules, work with standard setters in accounting and auditing, and consult with filers on reporting matters. The fellowships are for two years beginning in spring or summer of 2010. Three
International
To be most effective, international financial reporting standards should be field-tested prior to adoption, and the international standard setter needs to more clearly communicate its processes while gathering stakeholders’ opinions, a group of global accounting leaders including AICPA President and CEO Barry Melancon told the representatives of the International Accounting
Corrections
In the October 2009 article “The Generation- Skipping Transfer Tax: A Quick Guide” (page 30), in a passage regarding transfers to an irrevocable life insurance trust, the text should have said that a transfer that qualifies for the annual gift exclusion may also qualify for a generation-skipping transfer tax exclusion
Stop the Letter Designation of a Remote Drive From Arbitrarily Migrating to a Different Letter
Q: I use memory sticks frequently because they’re so handy for quick backups and copying or moving files to another computer. Also, I have a remote hard drive for regular backups that is designated my F drive. The memory sticks and the remote drive connect to the computer via USB
Features
FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE
Flip out with the latest Tech Q&A
The September Technology Q&A column shows how to create dynamic to-do lists with Excel's checkboxes and also how to set up multifactor authentication texts that don't rely on phones. Flip through both items and view a video walkthrough in our digital format.
From The Tax Adviser
August 30, 2025
2025 tax software survey
July 31, 2025
