LET'S DO SOMETHING RIGHT FOR A CHANGE

To contact us Click HERE

Therehas been a lot of talk lately about “tax expenditures” and the 47% of Americanswho either pay absolutely no federal income tax or actually make a profit byfiling a tax return (thanks to “refundable” tax credits). 
Overthe years the idiots in Congress have created a mucking fess of the Tax Code bymaking it the method of delivery for various social welfare benefits and toencourage certain beneficial purchases, which has created the 47%.  This is certainly not the best, nor the mostefficient, way to deliver or distribute these benefits – but it is easy.  And, as we all know, the idiots in Congressare all for choosing the quickest and easiest way to do things rather thanactually having to sit down and think.
Whilethere are many “tax expenditures” that should be completely done away with,many of the social and societal benefit programs run through the Code areactually good and have merit.  But theyshould be delivered and distributed separately out of the budget of theappropriate cabinet department – and not on the 1040.
AsI have posted here before, doing this is much “more better” for many reasons -
(1)It would be easier for the government to verify that the recipient of thesubsidy or hand-out actually qualified for the money, greatly reducing fraud.And tax preparers would no longer need to take on the added responsibility ofhaving to verify if a person qualified for government funds.
(2)The qualifying individual(s) would get the money at the “point of purchase”,when it is really needed, and not have to go “out of pocket” up front and waitto be reimbursed when they file their tax return.
(3)We would be able to calculate the true income tax burden of individuals.  Many of the current 47% would still bereceiving government hand-outs, but it would not be tied into the income taxsystem so they would actually be paying federal income tax.
(4)We could measure the true cost of education, housing, health, welfare, etcprograms in the federal budget because the various subsidies would be properlyallocated to the appropriate departments and not be reported as a part of netincome collected via income tax.
(5)The Tax Code would be much less complicated, the cost to the public forpreparing a tax return would be reduced, and the IRS would have much less toprocess and to audit.   
Item(2) is a very important one.  A major problemwith using the Tax Code to distribute government benefits via tax deductionsand credits is that the benefits are provided “after-the-fact” and not at the “pointof purchase”.
Let’slook at the deductions and credits for tuition and fees.  In order to claim these tax benefits thestudent, or more likely his/her parents, must spend the money for tuition andfees and then wait until they file their tax return to get the “studentfinancial aid” from the government.
Thesestudents, and parents, need the money when the tuition and fees are due.  If they do not have it at the point ofpurchase they often turn to borrowing, placing themselves further in debt.   
Thereis currently in place a process for providing student financial aid at thepoint of purchase.  And this aid is basedon student and family income, using information from tax returns.  Instead of giving those who qualify a taxdeduction or credit on their Form 1040 a year or more later, why not give thesame benefit, based on the same income formula, as part of the existing studentfinancial aid system.  This way thestudent, or parents, gets the money upfront to pay for college expenses or, betteryet, the money is distributed directly to the college - and there is no needfor additional borrowing.
Inthe past there have been credits for purchasing energy-efficient products andimprovements, and some still exist.  Butagain, the money is provided after-the-fact – as much as a year or more afterthe purchase.  I would think moreindividuals would be encouraged to purchase these items if the money wasprovided upfront as a point of purchase discount.  Again individuals who want to take advantageof the eventual tax credit may be forced to borrow money to make the qualifyingpurchase, creating more debt.
The“Cash for Clunkers” program of a few years back proves that this can be donerelatively efficiently. 
And,as I have said over and over again, the Earned Income Tax Credit, refundableand otherwise, and refundable Child Tax Credit, which, if you call a spade ashovel, are really forms of welfare, would be better distributed via the Aid toFamilies with Dependent Children program – and with substantially less fraud.
Unfortunately,with BO re-elected and the members of Congress being the idiots they are, don’texpect any changes in the current system any time soon.
TTFN

GIT 'ER DONE!

To contact us Click HERE

Itis almost December.  When dealing withthe potential “fiscal cliff”, now is not the time to consider long-termissues. 
Thefirst, and most important, thing to do ASAP is to extend the AMT patch throughthe end of 2012 (or, more better, through the end of 2013) so that theprocessing of 2012 tax returns and refunds are not delayed, and middle classtaxpayers are not hit with possible tax increases of between $3,000 and $4,000.
Thesecond thing to do is to extend all of the various tax benefits that willexpire on December 31, 2012, for one more year (through the end of 2013), andperhaps also the various popular “extenders” that expired on 12/31/11 alongwith the AMT patch (except for the 2% Social Security reduction).  The reason for doing this is so that we do notbegin 2013 with uncertainty concerning proper withholding.    
Thetime for considering serious long-term tax reform is January 2013, when the newCongress (which is really not that new) convenes.  This is when legislators should beconsidering whether to do away with or limit various tax loopholes andexpenditures, and whether to raise or lower tax rates – while there is almost afull year before any tax legislation must be passed (not that they should waituntil the last minute, as has become the custom).
Congresshas wasted away 2012, and must be made aware that their actions, or ratherinactions, have consequences.  They must putaside ridiculous partisan battling and consider the American people for achange.
TTFN 

THE NATP YEAR-END TAX UPDATE SEMINAR

To contact us Click HERE

As mentioned in Wednesday’s BUZZ,this week I attended the National Association of Tax Professionals’ annualyear-end tax update seminar “The Essential 1040” (it was formerly “Famous”, butis now “Essential”) in New Jersey.
While the day was basically anupdate of what is new for 2012 tax returns, with nothing really new for me,there were a few items of interest.
(1)  The draft version of the 2012 Form 1040 (and 1040A) is available for viewing. They are the same as their 2011 counterparts, with the same number oflines.  However certain Lines are marked“Reserved” – for the popular tax extenders that expired on December 31, 2011,and have not yet been extended for 2012 by the idiots in Congress, but whichthe IRS is thinking probably will be.
They include Lines 23 and 34 on Page1 of the 2012 Form 1040, and Lines 16 and 18 on the 1040A, are “reserved” forthe deductions for educator expenses and tuition and fees respectively. 
On Page 2 of the 2012 Form 1040 Line67 and item b. on Line 71 is also “Reserved”. Line 67 on the 2011 form was used for the First-Time HomebuyerCreditfrom Form 5405, and item b on Line 71 referenced Form 8839, used forQualified Adoption Expenses (which was refundable).
The draft of the 2012 Schedule A,for Itemized Deductions, is also available. Item b of Line 5 (under “Taxes You Paid”) is “Reserved” for the possibleextension of the option to deduct state and local sales taxes instead of stateand local income taxes.
(2)  The IRS has said that because of thedelay by the idiots in Congress in dealing with the extenders, including theannual AMT patch, and more detailed checking to prevent fraudulent returns,refunds from electronically filed 2012 income tax returns will no longer beissued in 2 weeks.  It will not take 4 to6 weeks to process the refunds. 
Thissounds like the processing time we had been used to with manually filedreturns.  So it looks like filingelectronically will not get your refund to you any faster than filing manually.
(3)  FYI – the “incidental only” (nomeals) per diem allowance for business travel is $5.00.  It is the same as 2011. 
Thiscovers fees and tips to airport, train station, and hotel personnel.  It is generally used by business travelerswho do not incur meal expenses while “on the road” – i.e. they stay withrelatives who feed them, or all meals are included in the price of an event oractivity. 
Andthe special Meals and Incidental Expenses per diem for transportation workers(like over-the-road truck drivers) also remains the same as 2011 - $59.00 perday for travel within CONUS (continental US) and $65.00 per day for OCONUS(outside the continental US) travel.
(4)  The IRS is getting better atmatching 1099 information returns to amounts reported on the Form 1040 (or1040A), and will continue to issue CP-2000 notices when discrepancies areidentified – so be sure to report all 1099 items somewhere on your return.
And,of course, just because you do not receive a Form 1099 in the mail does notmean that one was not issued and sent to the IRS. 
(5)  This, I will admit, was new tome.  The interest that has accrued on USSavings Bonds is taxable in the year that the individual bond matures, and notnecessarily in the year the bond is cashed in (i.e. a bond matures in 2010, butis not cashed in until 2012).
Iverified this via TREASURY DIRECT - 
“Theinterest earned on your savings bonds is subject to federal income tax, whichcan be deferred until redemption, finalmaturity, or other taxable disposition, whichever occurs first.”  
(6)  Another FYI, especially for tax pros- 43 inmates on death row were issued PTINs (Preparer Tax IdentificationNumbers) - the number issued by the Internal Revenue Service to paid tax returnpreparers who have registered with the IRS.
(7)  The seminar leaders, both very good(while some are obviously more better than others -my buddy Beanna Whitlockwill have you in stitches while learning something important about tax law – Ido not recall ever coming across a bad or unsatisfactory NATP seminar leader),both discussed the “back-ended ROTH” strategy.
Ataxpayer wants to contribute to a ROTH IRA for 2012, but has too much income tobe able to do so (MAGI of more than $183,000 if married filing joint, $10,000if married filing separately, or $125,000 for all others).
Sothe taxpayer puts the maximum $5,000 or $6,000 (depending on age) in anon-deductible “traditional” IRA.  Oncethis contribution has been processed the taxpayer converts the $5,000 or $6,000in the traditional IRA account to a ROTH account.  There is no longer an income threshold forconverting a traditional IRA to a ROTH IRA. 
Asthe taxpayer’s basis in the IRA is $5,000 or $6,000, his 2012 non-deductiblecontribution, there is no taxable income to report.  If the money deposited in the non-deductibletraditional IRA account earns $5.00 in interest prior to the conversion, thenthe taxpayer reports $5.00 as taxable income.
(8)  Be sure to read my THE TAX PROFESSIONAL post for my commentary on items discussed at the seminar thatapply to taxpros. 
Ihave now completed my CPE for the year. While the IRS requires 15 hours per year, in 2012 I took 24 hours infederal taxation and 8 hours in state taxation (actually all NATP or NJ-NATPclasses).  And there were some federalcourses offered recently that I would have taken if not for cash flow issues.  First up in 2013 is the excellent NJ-NATPfamous State Tax Seminar in mid-January.
TTFN

Lotus Notes Out of Office Message Won't Disable or Enable

To contact us Click HERE
If you are trying to go away on vacation  or leave the office for an extended period of time with no access to email, you will definitely want to enable your away message on Lotus Notes Mail to indicate you are not available via email. Here's a post to learn how to put your out of message on if you don't know how.

Conversely if yo have returned to the office you want to be sure you disable your out of office message so that people know you are back. 


Let's make sure you are disabling properly before we look at another way to fix your problem. To Disable, first be sure you are in any screen that allows the “Tools” button to show in the top right corner of your Lotus Notes screen (inbox, send, junk mail, trash, etc views will all allow you to see the “Tools” button)Click the “Tools” button


In the drop down menu that appears select “Out of Office”The window that appears should read “Enabled”at the top. If so, look to the lower right of that window and select“Disabled”Another window will appear that will ask you if you are sure you want to disable your vacation / away message. Click yes and you are all set.

OK… now, what is probably happening, the whole reason you are reading this article, is that your vacation message is not turning off (ie it isn't disabling).  In other words, if you go back into tools-out of office again, it still says “Enabled” This is a problem since people still think you are still away from work when you really are. (The opposite, of course, is true if you are still getting the “Disabled” message but want to “Enable”)

Chances are you are already getting warning messages about your lotus running out of file space / memory. This is what is preventing your from turning on and off your away message.

To remedy, delete all of the emails (sent, inbox, junk, trash) that you no longer need. If a particular email is taking up a large amount of memory and you still need it, consider saving it to your hard drive, network, CD, etc, etc first before deleting  You want to get rid of as much mail as possible.  Essentially, your Lotus Notes file space is so full that even a simple action like disabling or enabling the out of office message will not save.

You might need to contact your system administrator to determine how much mail you need to delete or just wing it and get rid of as much as you  can starting with the largest sized files.  Here are some great tips on deleting excess mail from Lotus

Keep deleting and then trying to enable  / disable (don't forget to empty your 'trash' bin and junk mail). If it isn't enabling / disabling, delete some more.

Hope that helps! Thanks for reading!

Add Page or Pages To WordPress Theme

To contact us Click HERE
Creating a static page in WordPress is pretty easy to do.  Once you create a new page though, it won't just automatically add itself into your WordPress website theme. It isn't the same as when you publish a new post and it is instantly available for you readers to see on your theme. Even when you publish the page it won't appear by default on your webpage / theme.  

There are a couple real easy steps you'll need to take to get your new static page or pages onto your theme to that viewers can see it.

Here are a few easy steps after you have created your page.

Step 1

Go to your control panel on WordPress

Step 2

Go to "Appearance" and "Themes"

Step 3

Find the theme you have installed under the manage themes tab  (actually you'll probably see your theme before you see the tab).   Click on "Widgets"

Step 4

Look in the "Available Widgets" section and find the one that says "Pages"

Got it?  OK, now click on the "Pages" widget and drag it out of the available widgets section and put it where you want in your theme (ie sidebar one, sidebar two, etc)

Step 5

Now if you look at your site you'll see your page. If you aren't seeing it, just refresh the screen and it should appear.

I hope that helps!



 

LET'S DO SOMETHING RIGHT FOR A CHANGE

To contact us Click HERE

Therehas been a lot of talk lately about “tax expenditures” and the 47% of Americanswho either pay absolutely no federal income tax or actually make a profit byfiling a tax return (thanks to “refundable” tax credits). 
Overthe years the idiots in Congress have created a mucking fess of the Tax Code bymaking it the method of delivery for various social welfare benefits and toencourage certain beneficial purchases, which has created the 47%.  This is certainly not the best, nor the mostefficient, way to deliver or distribute these benefits – but it is easy.  And, as we all know, the idiots in Congressare all for choosing the quickest and easiest way to do things rather thanactually having to sit down and think.
Whilethere are many “tax expenditures” that should be completely done away with,many of the social and societal benefit programs run through the Code areactually good and have merit.  But theyshould be delivered and distributed separately out of the budget of theappropriate cabinet department – and not on the 1040.
AsI have posted here before, doing this is much “more better” for many reasons -
(1)It would be easier for the government to verify that the recipient of thesubsidy or hand-out actually qualified for the money, greatly reducing fraud.And tax preparers would no longer need to take on the added responsibility ofhaving to verify if a person qualified for government funds.
(2)The qualifying individual(s) would get the money at the “point of purchase”,when it is really needed, and not have to go “out of pocket” up front and waitto be reimbursed when they file their tax return.
(3)We would be able to calculate the true income tax burden of individuals.  Many of the current 47% would still bereceiving government hand-outs, but it would not be tied into the income taxsystem so they would actually be paying federal income tax.
(4)We could measure the true cost of education, housing, health, welfare, etcprograms in the federal budget because the various subsidies would be properlyallocated to the appropriate departments and not be reported as a part of netincome collected via income tax.
(5)The Tax Code would be much less complicated, the cost to the public forpreparing a tax return would be reduced, and the IRS would have much less toprocess and to audit.   
Item(2) is a very important one.  A major problemwith using the Tax Code to distribute government benefits via tax deductionsand credits is that the benefits are provided “after-the-fact” and not at the “pointof purchase”.
Let’slook at the deductions and credits for tuition and fees.  In order to claim these tax benefits thestudent, or more likely his/her parents, must spend the money for tuition andfees and then wait until they file their tax return to get the “studentfinancial aid” from the government.
Thesestudents, and parents, need the money when the tuition and fees are due.  If they do not have it at the point ofpurchase they often turn to borrowing, placing themselves further in debt.   
Thereis currently in place a process for providing student financial aid at thepoint of purchase.  And this aid is basedon student and family income, using information from tax returns.  Instead of giving those who qualify a taxdeduction or credit on their Form 1040 a year or more later, why not give thesame benefit, based on the same income formula, as part of the existing studentfinancial aid system.  This way thestudent, or parents, gets the money upfront to pay for college expenses or, betteryet, the money is distributed directly to the college - and there is no needfor additional borrowing.
Inthe past there have been credits for purchasing energy-efficient products andimprovements, and some still exist.  Butagain, the money is provided after-the-fact – as much as a year or more afterthe purchase.  I would think moreindividuals would be encouraged to purchase these items if the money wasprovided upfront as a point of purchase discount.  Again individuals who want to take advantageof the eventual tax credit may be forced to borrow money to make the qualifyingpurchase, creating more debt.
The“Cash for Clunkers” program of a few years back proves that this can be donerelatively efficiently. 
And,as I have said over and over again, the Earned Income Tax Credit, refundableand otherwise, and refundable Child Tax Credit, which, if you call a spade ashovel, are really forms of welfare, would be better distributed via the Aid toFamilies with Dependent Children program – and with substantially less fraud.
Unfortunately,with BO re-elected and the members of Congress being the idiots they are, don’texpect any changes in the current system any time soon.
TTFN

GIT 'ER DONE!

To contact us Click HERE

Itis almost December.  When dealing withthe potential “fiscal cliff”, now is not the time to consider long-termissues. 
Thefirst, and most important, thing to do ASAP is to extend the AMT patch throughthe end of 2012 (or, more better, through the end of 2013) so that theprocessing of 2012 tax returns and refunds are not delayed, and middle classtaxpayers are not hit with possible tax increases of between $3,000 and $4,000.
Thesecond thing to do is to extend all of the various tax benefits that willexpire on December 31, 2012, for one more year (through the end of 2013), andperhaps also the various popular “extenders” that expired on 12/31/11 alongwith the AMT patch (except for the 2% Social Security reduction).  The reason for doing this is so that we do notbegin 2013 with uncertainty concerning proper withholding.    
Thetime for considering serious long-term tax reform is January 2013, when the newCongress (which is really not that new) convenes.  This is when legislators should beconsidering whether to do away with or limit various tax loopholes andexpenditures, and whether to raise or lower tax rates – while there is almost afull year before any tax legislation must be passed (not that they should waituntil the last minute, as has become the custom).
Congresshas wasted away 2012, and must be made aware that their actions, or ratherinactions, have consequences.  They must putaside ridiculous partisan battling and consider the American people for achange.
TTFN 

Lotus Notes Out of Office Message Won't Disable or Enable

To contact us Click HERE
If you are trying to go away on vacation  or leave the office for an extended period of time with no access to email, you will definitely want to enable your away message on Lotus Notes Mail to indicate you are not available via email. Here's a post to learn how to put your out of message on if you don't know how.

Conversely if yo have returned to the office you want to be sure you disable your out of office message so that people know you are back. 


Let's make sure you are disabling properly before we look at another way to fix your problem. To Disable, first be sure you are in any screen that allows the “Tools” button to show in the top right corner of your Lotus Notes screen (inbox, send, junk mail, trash, etc views will all allow you to see the “Tools” button)Click the “Tools” button


In the drop down menu that appears select “Out of Office”The window that appears should read “Enabled”at the top. If so, look to the lower right of that window and select“Disabled”Another window will appear that will ask you if you are sure you want to disable your vacation / away message. Click yes and you are all set.

OK… now, what is probably happening, the whole reason you are reading this article, is that your vacation message is not turning off (ie it isn't disabling).  In other words, if you go back into tools-out of office again, it still says “Enabled” This is a problem since people still think you are still away from work when you really are. (The opposite, of course, is true if you are still getting the “Disabled” message but want to “Enable”)

Chances are you are already getting warning messages about your lotus running out of file space / memory. This is what is preventing your from turning on and off your away message.

To remedy, delete all of the emails (sent, inbox, junk, trash) that you no longer need. If a particular email is taking up a large amount of memory and you still need it, consider saving it to your hard drive, network, CD, etc, etc first before deleting  You want to get rid of as much mail as possible.  Essentially, your Lotus Notes file space is so full that even a simple action like disabling or enabling the out of office message will not save.

You might need to contact your system administrator to determine how much mail you need to delete or just wing it and get rid of as much as you  can starting with the largest sized files.  Here are some great tips on deleting excess mail from Lotus

Keep deleting and then trying to enable  / disable (don't forget to empty your 'trash' bin and junk mail). If it isn't enabling / disabling, delete some more.

Hope that helps! Thanks for reading!

LET'S DO SOMETHING RIGHT FOR A CHANGE

To contact us Click HERE

Therehas been a lot of talk lately about “tax expenditures” and the 47% of Americanswho either pay absolutely no federal income tax or actually make a profit byfiling a tax return (thanks to “refundable” tax credits). 
Overthe years the idiots in Congress have created a mucking fess of the Tax Code bymaking it the method of delivery for various social welfare benefits and toencourage certain beneficial purchases, which has created the 47%.  This is certainly not the best, nor the mostefficient, way to deliver or distribute these benefits – but it is easy.  And, as we all know, the idiots in Congressare all for choosing the quickest and easiest way to do things rather thanactually having to sit down and think.
Whilethere are many “tax expenditures” that should be completely done away with,many of the social and societal benefit programs run through the Code areactually good and have merit.  But theyshould be delivered and distributed separately out of the budget of theappropriate cabinet department – and not on the 1040.
AsI have posted here before, doing this is much “more better” for many reasons -
(1)It would be easier for the government to verify that the recipient of thesubsidy or hand-out actually qualified for the money, greatly reducing fraud.And tax preparers would no longer need to take on the added responsibility ofhaving to verify if a person qualified for government funds.
(2)The qualifying individual(s) would get the money at the “point of purchase”,when it is really needed, and not have to go “out of pocket” up front and waitto be reimbursed when they file their tax return.
(3)We would be able to calculate the true income tax burden of individuals.  Many of the current 47% would still bereceiving government hand-outs, but it would not be tied into the income taxsystem so they would actually be paying federal income tax.
(4)We could measure the true cost of education, housing, health, welfare, etcprograms in the federal budget because the various subsidies would be properlyallocated to the appropriate departments and not be reported as a part of netincome collected via income tax.
(5)The Tax Code would be much less complicated, the cost to the public forpreparing a tax return would be reduced, and the IRS would have much less toprocess and to audit.   
Item(2) is a very important one.  A major problemwith using the Tax Code to distribute government benefits via tax deductionsand credits is that the benefits are provided “after-the-fact” and not at the “pointof purchase”.
Let’slook at the deductions and credits for tuition and fees.  In order to claim these tax benefits thestudent, or more likely his/her parents, must spend the money for tuition andfees and then wait until they file their tax return to get the “studentfinancial aid” from the government.
Thesestudents, and parents, need the money when the tuition and fees are due.  If they do not have it at the point ofpurchase they often turn to borrowing, placing themselves further in debt.   
Thereis currently in place a process for providing student financial aid at thepoint of purchase.  And this aid is basedon student and family income, using information from tax returns.  Instead of giving those who qualify a taxdeduction or credit on their Form 1040 a year or more later, why not give thesame benefit, based on the same income formula, as part of the existing studentfinancial aid system.  This way thestudent, or parents, gets the money upfront to pay for college expenses or, betteryet, the money is distributed directly to the college - and there is no needfor additional borrowing.
Inthe past there have been credits for purchasing energy-efficient products andimprovements, and some still exist.  Butagain, the money is provided after-the-fact – as much as a year or more afterthe purchase.  I would think moreindividuals would be encouraged to purchase these items if the money wasprovided upfront as a point of purchase discount.  Again individuals who want to take advantageof the eventual tax credit may be forced to borrow money to make the qualifyingpurchase, creating more debt.
The“Cash for Clunkers” program of a few years back proves that this can be donerelatively efficiently. 
And,as I have said over and over again, the Earned Income Tax Credit, refundableand otherwise, and refundable Child Tax Credit, which, if you call a spade ashovel, are really forms of welfare, would be better distributed via the Aid toFamilies with Dependent Children program – and with substantially less fraud.
Unfortunately,with BO re-elected and the members of Congress being the idiots they are, don’texpect any changes in the current system any time soon.
TTFN

GIT 'ER DONE!

To contact us Click HERE

Itis almost December.  When dealing withthe potential “fiscal cliff”, now is not the time to consider long-termissues. 
Thefirst, and most important, thing to do ASAP is to extend the AMT patch throughthe end of 2012 (or, more better, through the end of 2013) so that theprocessing of 2012 tax returns and refunds are not delayed, and middle classtaxpayers are not hit with possible tax increases of between $3,000 and $4,000.
Thesecond thing to do is to extend all of the various tax benefits that willexpire on December 31, 2012, for one more year (through the end of 2013), andperhaps also the various popular “extenders” that expired on 12/31/11 alongwith the AMT patch (except for the 2% Social Security reduction).  The reason for doing this is so that we do notbegin 2013 with uncertainty concerning proper withholding.    
Thetime for considering serious long-term tax reform is January 2013, when the newCongress (which is really not that new) convenes.  This is when legislators should beconsidering whether to do away with or limit various tax loopholes andexpenditures, and whether to raise or lower tax rates – while there is almost afull year before any tax legislation must be passed (not that they should waituntil the last minute, as has become the custom).
Congresshas wasted away 2012, and must be made aware that their actions, or ratherinactions, have consequences.  They must putaside ridiculous partisan battling and consider the American people for achange.
TTFN 

Lotus Notes Out of Office Message Won't Disable or Enable

To contact us Click HERE
If you are trying to go away on vacation  or leave the office for an extended period of time with no access to email, you will definitely want to enable your away message on Lotus Notes Mail to indicate you are not available via email. Here's a post to learn how to put your out of message on if you don't know how.

Conversely if yo have returned to the office you want to be sure you disable your out of office message so that people know you are back. 


Let's make sure you are disabling properly before we look at another way to fix your problem. To Disable, first be sure you are in any screen that allows the “Tools” button to show in the top right corner of your Lotus Notes screen (inbox, send, junk mail, trash, etc views will all allow you to see the “Tools” button)Click the “Tools” button


In the drop down menu that appears select “Out of Office”The window that appears should read “Enabled”at the top. If so, look to the lower right of that window and select“Disabled”Another window will appear that will ask you if you are sure you want to disable your vacation / away message. Click yes and you are all set.

OK… now, what is probably happening, the whole reason you are reading this article, is that your vacation message is not turning off (ie it isn't disabling).  In other words, if you go back into tools-out of office again, it still says “Enabled” This is a problem since people still think you are still away from work when you really are. (The opposite, of course, is true if you are still getting the “Disabled” message but want to “Enable”)

Chances are you are already getting warning messages about your lotus running out of file space / memory. This is what is preventing your from turning on and off your away message.

To remedy, delete all of the emails (sent, inbox, junk, trash) that you no longer need. If a particular email is taking up a large amount of memory and you still need it, consider saving it to your hard drive, network, CD, etc, etc first before deleting  You want to get rid of as much mail as possible.  Essentially, your Lotus Notes file space is so full that even a simple action like disabling or enabling the out of office message will not save.

You might need to contact your system administrator to determine how much mail you need to delete or just wing it and get rid of as much as you  can starting with the largest sized files.  Here are some great tips on deleting excess mail from Lotus

Keep deleting and then trying to enable  / disable (don't forget to empty your 'trash' bin and junk mail). If it isn't enabling / disabling, delete some more.

Hope that helps! Thanks for reading!

LET'S DO SOMETHING RIGHT FOR A CHANGE

To contact us Click HERE

Therehas been a lot of talk lately about “tax expenditures” and the 47% of Americanswho either pay absolutely no federal income tax or actually make a profit byfiling a tax return (thanks to “refundable” tax credits). 
Overthe years the idiots in Congress have created a mucking fess of the Tax Code bymaking it the method of delivery for various social welfare benefits and toencourage certain beneficial purchases, which has created the 47%.  This is certainly not the best, nor the mostefficient, way to deliver or distribute these benefits – but it is easy.  And, as we all know, the idiots in Congressare all for choosing the quickest and easiest way to do things rather thanactually having to sit down and think.
Whilethere are many “tax expenditures” that should be completely done away with,many of the social and societal benefit programs run through the Code areactually good and have merit.  But theyshould be delivered and distributed separately out of the budget of theappropriate cabinet department – and not on the 1040.
AsI have posted here before, doing this is much “more better” for many reasons -
(1)It would be easier for the government to verify that the recipient of thesubsidy or hand-out actually qualified for the money, greatly reducing fraud.And tax preparers would no longer need to take on the added responsibility ofhaving to verify if a person qualified for government funds.
(2)The qualifying individual(s) would get the money at the “point of purchase”,when it is really needed, and not have to go “out of pocket” up front and waitto be reimbursed when they file their tax return.
(3)We would be able to calculate the true income tax burden of individuals.  Many of the current 47% would still bereceiving government hand-outs, but it would not be tied into the income taxsystem so they would actually be paying federal income tax.
(4)We could measure the true cost of education, housing, health, welfare, etcprograms in the federal budget because the various subsidies would be properlyallocated to the appropriate departments and not be reported as a part of netincome collected via income tax.
(5)The Tax Code would be much less complicated, the cost to the public forpreparing a tax return would be reduced, and the IRS would have much less toprocess and to audit.   
Item(2) is a very important one.  A major problemwith using the Tax Code to distribute government benefits via tax deductionsand credits is that the benefits are provided “after-the-fact” and not at the “pointof purchase”.
Let’slook at the deductions and credits for tuition and fees.  In order to claim these tax benefits thestudent, or more likely his/her parents, must spend the money for tuition andfees and then wait until they file their tax return to get the “studentfinancial aid” from the government.
Thesestudents, and parents, need the money when the tuition and fees are due.  If they do not have it at the point ofpurchase they often turn to borrowing, placing themselves further in debt.   
Thereis currently in place a process for providing student financial aid at thepoint of purchase.  And this aid is basedon student and family income, using information from tax returns.  Instead of giving those who qualify a taxdeduction or credit on their Form 1040 a year or more later, why not give thesame benefit, based on the same income formula, as part of the existing studentfinancial aid system.  This way thestudent, or parents, gets the money upfront to pay for college expenses or, betteryet, the money is distributed directly to the college - and there is no needfor additional borrowing.
Inthe past there have been credits for purchasing energy-efficient products andimprovements, and some still exist.  Butagain, the money is provided after-the-fact – as much as a year or more afterthe purchase.  I would think moreindividuals would be encouraged to purchase these items if the money wasprovided upfront as a point of purchase discount.  Again individuals who want to take advantageof the eventual tax credit may be forced to borrow money to make the qualifyingpurchase, creating more debt.
The“Cash for Clunkers” program of a few years back proves that this can be donerelatively efficiently. 
And,as I have said over and over again, the Earned Income Tax Credit, refundableand otherwise, and refundable Child Tax Credit, which, if you call a spade ashovel, are really forms of welfare, would be better distributed via the Aid toFamilies with Dependent Children program – and with substantially less fraud.
Unfortunately,with BO re-elected and the members of Congress being the idiots they are, don’texpect any changes in the current system any time soon.
TTFN

GIT 'ER DONE!

To contact us Click HERE

Itis almost December.  When dealing withthe potential “fiscal cliff”, now is not the time to consider long-termissues. 
Thefirst, and most important, thing to do ASAP is to extend the AMT patch throughthe end of 2012 (or, more better, through the end of 2013) so that theprocessing of 2012 tax returns and refunds are not delayed, and middle classtaxpayers are not hit with possible tax increases of between $3,000 and $4,000.
Thesecond thing to do is to extend all of the various tax benefits that willexpire on December 31, 2012, for one more year (through the end of 2013), andperhaps also the various popular “extenders” that expired on 12/31/11 alongwith the AMT patch (except for the 2% Social Security reduction).  The reason for doing this is so that we do notbegin 2013 with uncertainty concerning proper withholding.    
Thetime for considering serious long-term tax reform is January 2013, when the newCongress (which is really not that new) convenes.  This is when legislators should beconsidering whether to do away with or limit various tax loopholes andexpenditures, and whether to raise or lower tax rates – while there is almost afull year before any tax legislation must be passed (not that they should waituntil the last minute, as has become the custom).
Congresshas wasted away 2012, and must be made aware that their actions, or ratherinactions, have consequences.  They must putaside ridiculous partisan battling and consider the American people for achange.
TTFN 

LET'S DO SOMETHING RIGHT FOR A CHANGE

To contact us Click HERE

Therehas been a lot of talk lately about “tax expenditures” and the 47% of Americanswho either pay absolutely no federal income tax or actually make a profit byfiling a tax return (thanks to “refundable” tax credits). 
Overthe years the idiots in Congress have created a mucking fess of the Tax Code bymaking it the method of delivery for various social welfare benefits and toencourage certain beneficial purchases, which has created the 47%.  This is certainly not the best, nor the mostefficient, way to deliver or distribute these benefits – but it is easy.  And, as we all know, the idiots in Congressare all for choosing the quickest and easiest way to do things rather thanactually having to sit down and think.
Whilethere are many “tax expenditures” that should be completely done away with,many of the social and societal benefit programs run through the Code areactually good and have merit.  But theyshould be delivered and distributed separately out of the budget of theappropriate cabinet department – and not on the 1040.
AsI have posted here before, doing this is much “more better” for many reasons -
(1)It would be easier for the government to verify that the recipient of thesubsidy or hand-out actually qualified for the money, greatly reducing fraud.And tax preparers would no longer need to take on the added responsibility ofhaving to verify if a person qualified for government funds.
(2)The qualifying individual(s) would get the money at the “point of purchase”,when it is really needed, and not have to go “out of pocket” up front and waitto be reimbursed when they file their tax return.
(3)We would be able to calculate the true income tax burden of individuals.  Many of the current 47% would still bereceiving government hand-outs, but it would not be tied into the income taxsystem so they would actually be paying federal income tax.
(4)We could measure the true cost of education, housing, health, welfare, etcprograms in the federal budget because the various subsidies would be properlyallocated to the appropriate departments and not be reported as a part of netincome collected via income tax.
(5)The Tax Code would be much less complicated, the cost to the public forpreparing a tax return would be reduced, and the IRS would have much less toprocess and to audit.   
Item(2) is a very important one.  A major problemwith using the Tax Code to distribute government benefits via tax deductionsand credits is that the benefits are provided “after-the-fact” and not at the “pointof purchase”.
Let’slook at the deductions and credits for tuition and fees.  In order to claim these tax benefits thestudent, or more likely his/her parents, must spend the money for tuition andfees and then wait until they file their tax return to get the “studentfinancial aid” from the government.
Thesestudents, and parents, need the money when the tuition and fees are due.  If they do not have it at the point ofpurchase they often turn to borrowing, placing themselves further in debt.   
Thereis currently in place a process for providing student financial aid at thepoint of purchase.  And this aid is basedon student and family income, using information from tax returns.  Instead of giving those who qualify a taxdeduction or credit on their Form 1040 a year or more later, why not give thesame benefit, based on the same income formula, as part of the existing studentfinancial aid system.  This way thestudent, or parents, gets the money upfront to pay for college expenses or, betteryet, the money is distributed directly to the college - and there is no needfor additional borrowing.
Inthe past there have been credits for purchasing energy-efficient products andimprovements, and some still exist.  Butagain, the money is provided after-the-fact – as much as a year or more afterthe purchase.  I would think moreindividuals would be encouraged to purchase these items if the money wasprovided upfront as a point of purchase discount.  Again individuals who want to take advantageof the eventual tax credit may be forced to borrow money to make the qualifyingpurchase, creating more debt.
The“Cash for Clunkers” program of a few years back proves that this can be donerelatively efficiently. 
And,as I have said over and over again, the Earned Income Tax Credit, refundableand otherwise, and refundable Child Tax Credit, which, if you call a spade ashovel, are really forms of welfare, would be better distributed via the Aid toFamilies with Dependent Children program – and with substantially less fraud.
Unfortunately,with BO re-elected and the members of Congress being the idiots they are, don’texpect any changes in the current system any time soon.
TTFN

GIT 'ER DONE!

To contact us Click HERE

Itis almost December.  When dealing withthe potential “fiscal cliff”, now is not the time to consider long-termissues. 
Thefirst, and most important, thing to do ASAP is to extend the AMT patch throughthe end of 2012 (or, more better, through the end of 2013) so that theprocessing of 2012 tax returns and refunds are not delayed, and middle classtaxpayers are not hit with possible tax increases of between $3,000 and $4,000.
Thesecond thing to do is to extend all of the various tax benefits that willexpire on December 31, 2012, for one more year (through the end of 2013), andperhaps also the various popular “extenders” that expired on 12/31/11 alongwith the AMT patch (except for the 2% Social Security reduction).  The reason for doing this is so that we do notbegin 2013 with uncertainty concerning proper withholding.    
Thetime for considering serious long-term tax reform is January 2013, when the newCongress (which is really not that new) convenes.  This is when legislators should beconsidering whether to do away with or limit various tax loopholes andexpenditures, and whether to raise or lower tax rates – while there is almost afull year before any tax legislation must be passed (not that they should waituntil the last minute, as has become the custom).
Congresshas wasted away 2012, and must be made aware that their actions, or ratherinactions, have consequences.  They must putaside ridiculous partisan battling and consider the American people for achange.
TTFN 

SWANS ARE EXPENSIVE!

To contact us Click HERE

Theholiday season is upon us.  And so is the29^th annual PNC Christmas Price Index!
Theannual survey conducted by PNC Wealth Management tracks the cost of the items giftedby the True Love in the classic carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas” - from a partridgein a pear tree to 12 drummers drumming.
Thecost for 2012 is $25,431.18, up $1,168.00, or 4.8%, from 2011.
Thebiggest price increase on the list is the 6 geese-a-laying, which jumped 29.6%,from $162.00 to $210.00.  Half of theanimal prices showed double-digit increases, the other 2 in the teens, and halfremained unchanged.  While the cost of thepartridge was the same as last year, the price of the pear tree in which thepartridge sits was up 11.8%.  The onlyother double-digit increase was for the 5 gold rings, up 16.3%.
Onthe labor front - although the performer’s union has usually done better for itsmembers than the musician’s union, with the dancers and leapers earningsubstantially more than the pipers and drummers, this year there was no changein the price of the dancers or leapers. But the musician’s union was able to get their members a 5.5% pay raise.  The poor milking maids, considered “unskilledlabor”, are paid the minimum wage, which did not go up in 2012.
Asa point of information, each dancing lady gets $699.34 while a milking maidgets only $7.25 (the musicians each get slightly over $230.00).  At $58.00, the 8 maids-a-milking is the leastexpensive item on the list (if you could the partridge and pear tree combined).  On the other end the swan is the mostexpensive item at $1,000 each. 
PNCalso calculates the “True Cost of Christmas”, which is the total cost of all364 gifts from repeat giving in each verse of the song.  For 2012 this is $107,300.24, up $6,180.40 or6.1% from last year.
Andit also determines the price of the items if purchased over the internet, which,at $40,439.53, is $15,008.35 more than the base CPI.    However, the increase in cyber prices from2011 to 2012 is only $579.47, or 1.5%. 
PNCWealth Management tells us –
“In general, Internet prices are higher thantheir non-Internet counterparts because of premium shipping costs for birds andthe convenience factor of shopping online.”
Soit does pay to stand on line on Black Friday instead of ordering from theconvenience of your home on Cyber Monday. Since I no longer exchange gifts, I do not have to do either!
TTFN

Lotus Notes Out of Office Message Won't Disable or Enable

To contact us Click HERE
If you are trying to go away on vacation  or leave the office for an extended period of time with no access to email, you will definitely want to enable your away message on Lotus Notes Mail to indicate you are not available via email. Here's a post to learn how to put your out of message on if you don't know how.

Conversely if yo have returned to the office you want to be sure you disable your out of office message so that people know you are back. 


Let's make sure you are disabling properly before we look at another way to fix your problem. To Disable, first be sure you are in any screen that allows the “Tools” button to show in the top right corner of your Lotus Notes screen (inbox, send, junk mail, trash, etc views will all allow you to see the “Tools” button)Click the “Tools” button


In the drop down menu that appears select “Out of Office”The window that appears should read “Enabled”at the top. If so, look to the lower right of that window and select“Disabled”Another window will appear that will ask you if you are sure you want to disable your vacation / away message. Click yes and you are all set.

OK… now, what is probably happening, the whole reason you are reading this article, is that your vacation message is not turning off (ie it isn't disabling).  In other words, if you go back into tools-out of office again, it still says “Enabled” This is a problem since people still think you are still away from work when you really are. (The opposite, of course, is true if you are still getting the “Disabled” message but want to “Enable”)

Chances are you are already getting warning messages about your lotus running out of file space / memory. This is what is preventing your from turning on and off your away message.

To remedy, delete all of the emails (sent, inbox, junk, trash) that you no longer need. If a particular email is taking up a large amount of memory and you still need it, consider saving it to your hard drive, network, CD, etc, etc first before deleting  You want to get rid of as much mail as possible.  Essentially, your Lotus Notes file space is so full that even a simple action like disabling or enabling the out of office message will not save.

You might need to contact your system administrator to determine how much mail you need to delete or just wing it and get rid of as much as you  can starting with the largest sized files.  Here are some great tips on deleting excess mail from Lotus

Keep deleting and then trying to enable  / disable (don't forget to empty your 'trash' bin and junk mail). If it isn't enabling / disabling, delete some more.

Hope that helps! Thanks for reading!

Lotus Notes Out of Office Message Won't Disable or Enable

To contact us Click HERE
If you are trying to go away on vacation  or leave the office for an extended period of time with no access to email, you will definitely want to enable your away message on Lotus Notes Mail to indicate you are not available via email. Here's a post to learn how to put your out of message on if you don't know how.

Conversely if yo have returned to the office you want to be sure you disable your out of office message so that people know you are back. 


Let's make sure you are disabling properly before we look at another way to fix your problem. To Disable, first be sure you are in any screen that allows the “Tools” button to show in the top right corner of your Lotus Notes screen (inbox, send, junk mail, trash, etc views will all allow you to see the “Tools” button)Click the “Tools” button


In the drop down menu that appears select “Out of Office”The window that appears should read “Enabled”at the top. If so, look to the lower right of that window and select“Disabled”Another window will appear that will ask you if you are sure you want to disable your vacation / away message. Click yes and you are all set.

OK… now, what is probably happening, the whole reason you are reading this article, is that your vacation message is not turning off (ie it isn't disabling).  In other words, if you go back into tools-out of office again, it still says “Enabled” This is a problem since people still think you are still away from work when you really are. (The opposite, of course, is true if you are still getting the “Disabled” message but want to “Enable”)

Chances are you are already getting warning messages about your lotus running out of file space / memory. This is what is preventing your from turning on and off your away message.

To remedy, delete all of the emails (sent, inbox, junk, trash) that you no longer need. If a particular email is taking up a large amount of memory and you still need it, consider saving it to your hard drive, network, CD, etc, etc first before deleting  You want to get rid of as much mail as possible.  Essentially, your Lotus Notes file space is so full that even a simple action like disabling or enabling the out of office message will not save.

You might need to contact your system administrator to determine how much mail you need to delete or just wing it and get rid of as much as you  can starting with the largest sized files.  Here are some great tips on deleting excess mail from Lotus

Keep deleting and then trying to enable  / disable (don't forget to empty your 'trash' bin and junk mail). If it isn't enabling / disabling, delete some more.

Hope that helps! Thanks for reading!