new computer - can't update

Do you want us to believe you spent the last four years installing the product? I bet you simply installed it once four years ago and that is the extent of your install knowledge. Do not take offence Newbe, be proud.

Your problem probably has nothing to do with the file being bad, it the fact that the install program thinks its bad that is causing the problem.

Eventually you'll get to a USA rep and they will know how to get you

Just for your information, along with all the extensive technical training these people get they also take classes in American accents. You better believe it, the last Bostonian Tech Support Gal your spoke with ate her date under a fig tree after work.

I think you need to work on your reading comprehension. I bought a NEW computer and I am reinstalling. If you are a QB expert you would know it would be impossible to have installed four years ago and have a working program, due to sunsetting. Besides, I really don't think QBPro 2003 was around four years ago. If I were an install expert I wouldn't be asking for advice, would I? I call on your vast install knowledge to help me with my simple problem; or just stick with witty.

If your problem were that simple you would have found a solution by now. If it was my problem I probably would uninstall the program, manually delete any folders and files associated with the program, edit the registry and remove all traces of the program if any exist, turn off my virus checker and reinstall. I would then manually download the latest update and install instead of using the auto update feature. If that fails to solve the problem then I would kill myself. RIP dude.

Then I would start by uninstalling and reinstalling QB. QB will detect the existing program and not install the program over itself. You have to uninstall QB first.

This answer should have been N/A since you did not uninstall QB first.

The first thing I would do is uninstall QB, take a good hard look at the CD and ask yourself am I installing the right version?

I had this happen last year, turned out I was installing the version from the previous year. I wanted to crawl under the floor.

(That is one of the problems when you still have the CD for the older version.)

I agree. At least when talking to the help desk in India, you're speaking to someone for whom English is his native tongue.

But I installed it on a new computer from the original disk.

But if the initial install went haywire and you need to reinstall the software you must remove the bad version first.

The point to my post is that as more and more jobs are outsouced to other countries the belief that these jobs will return once people discover how incompenent these people are simply will not happen.

The truth is, these are highly competent, educated workers. The boys and girls at Intuit did not travel to India and grab some poor peasant cleaning her clothing by beating them against at large rock at a river bank infested with raw sewage to run their tech support centers. They grabbed them from some of the finest technical universities in the world. Best we tell our kids to hit the books because that part time job flipping burgers after school may be all that is available to them in the future.

Update and reinstall problems are difficult to diagnose. For more help with your problem post with more information. What OS are you attempting to install on? What OS was your old computer? Are you on a network? If so, what kind? What is the ERROR number of the message you are recieving.

In general the procedure is: Turn off any anti-virus software. Turn off any spyware traps. Reinstall the product. Even if it is a new computer. Even if you think you would be reinstalling the same files. YOU WERE TOLD TO. If for no other reason, a specific program instruction should entice you. If you need reasons, think on this, the installation was PARTIAL and may be corrupted. Additionally, see this link.

If that doesn't work for you, try this. Use the add/remove programs to remove the 'bad installation' of QB and manually delete any files associated with it. Re-boot. Couldn't hurt.

Again, make sure there are no virus protection programs running after the reboot! Install the program from the CD. Do NOT allow QB to automatically update. Follow the instructions at

I must agree on this one. I got equally bad advice from Intuit phone support when they were based in Arizona.

Both Dell Pentium 4s run WinXP Pro. Not networked (at the time.) I don't recall that there was an error number. The installation of the update simply stopped at 47% and it said that qbm3t2.dat was the wrong version and to reinstall Quickbooks and try again.

Did that.

Did that.

I'll try the steps as you suggested. Thanks. If that fails, I'll bug my CPA on Monday. He has the Hotline to "Premier Support." If EVERYTHING fails, I'll buy QBPro2005 a year early.

GWB- DON'T BOTHER LISTENING TO ALLEN HE IS A DONKEY! I THINK HE WRITES JUST TO READ WHAT HE SAYS! IN SOME PLACES PEOPLE WOUDL CALL THAT A TOTAL LOSER....HE CAN NEVER ACTUALLY GIVE SUPPORT ONLY TALK CRAP AND GO AROUND IN CIRCLES.

I HAVE NEVER USED qb 2003 AND AM > I tried to update QBPro2003 on my new machine. It downloaded the

I agree that we get bad tech support in America...but at least you feel like you are talking to a person rather than a computer. I have had a few occasions where got an American and actually got help (in one case it was actually for the same issue in this post). But when I get a different country I swear they are going to google and typing in the question as I ask it, in that case what is the sense of paying for their tech support..it is useless. this website reminds me of calling QB support..it is a good laugh...

Every Newsgroup has one; a "superior intellect" who dispenses sarcasm and derision, but no useful advice.

I'll have my CPA contact support on Monday and maybe he can get me a "qbm3t2.dat" that works. Thanks.

I uninstalled QuickBooks, turned off all virus protection, turned off firewall, no spyware protection is installed yet, completely deleted C:\Program Files\Intuit, restarted, turned off all virus protection and firewall, installed QBPro2003, restarted, turned off all virus protection and firewall, updated QuickBooks manually, restarted, turned off all virus protection and firewall, started QuickBooks and tried to install updates. Guess what; same thing. It got stuck at

I guess I will bug my CPA on Monday. He has the Hotline to "Premier Support."

No one has addressed my wacky idea: "Would be advisable or a really stupid idea to copy qbm3t2.dat from the old computer (which has a properly updated QuickBooks) to the new computer?" Could this work? Could it mess things up royal?

I have a feeling I'll be upgrading on Monday.

Gosh j&r. Are you saying that if you look up dunsil there will be a picture of Allan in the ditionary?