Viewing Turbo Tax .tax file possible?

[DVDeeZ]

Just wondering with the wealth of knowledge around here if anyone knows if I can view a 2001 tax return done with turbotax with a program other then turbo tax? The reason I ask is the newest version of TT (this year) won't open one from 2001. The file has the extension .ext.

I tried to change the extension to .doc and it appeared as though Windows was going to open it with word. It said I needed to add some converter files so I put my Office XP disk in and when the file opened it was encoded. I called Turbo Tax and they said that i'll need the 2001 disk which they can send but would take 10 days or so. I need it today as the deadline is today and of course I can't find the 2001 disk.

Anyone by chance know if I can view this file any other way

[BJ_M]

notepad ?

[enstg8er]

not that i know of. future hint- save as an acrobat file. when you print just use the acrobat distiller and save as a .pdf. you can add your 5 digit code password as a note and save it with it. i have 4 years saved this way and can alwaqys print a paper copy if needed. you may need to set acrobat as default printer.

[Capmaster]

Windows Word Pad might. That's a descendant of Write - an excellent word editor that would open almost everything - even executables.

[DVDeeZ]

thanks all for the suggestions. Notepad opened the file, but just like Word, it was all "garbled" and encoded. I can make some words out but 99% of it I can't. Any other suggestions?

thx enstg8er for the advice. I'll do that with this years. I just wish I could open 2001's now.

[thayne]

I think you have to install turbo tax for the year it was created and view it via TT...

I suggest using turbo tax web in the future, it's so much more convienient. I think you can even import those .tax files into it... Took me only 37 min to do my taxes and I itemize, have 1099's and all sorts of junk. The first year I used it it took about 2 hours, but by the second year everything is already there and you just modify the existing info which makes it go really fast.

TT web also creates a PDF of all the forms you submit for your own copy.

[tekkieman]

You might try to start a new return in 2003 TT and import last year's file, except point it to the 2001 file. Because of the changes in forms and laws, you might not get a full import, but it may be enough to find the information you need.

[edsmith77]

Tax Cut does open up TT files. Not sure if it will go backwards in time tho.

[DVDeeZ]

thanks again to everyone for the advice. I was able to hunt down a paper copy after a few hours. .PDF format from now on!

[gmatov]

DVDeez,

TT was right. I rebuilt my daughter's machine a while back and she swore I lost her files.

I went to find them, found the files, but 2003 won't open them.

For those of you who don't know, the new year checks your return against the last year's AGI. If you don't have it on the machine, and try to reconstruct, it will try to submit, error you with "AGI does not match" or the approx.

I finally asked her if she had the old disk, installed (she had uninstalled to install the new), and the old file was readable, the program worked flawlessly.

Unlike you, she put the old disk in with that year's tax return, it was available. Oh, No, yours isn't in the old tax folder, is it?

Cheers,

George