In an effort to make it easier for you to manage your finances, we're proud to announce that we've updated our OS X Dashboard Widget to allow you to enter transactions directly from the dashboard on your Mac!

The widget still has the same functionality it always had, but now you have the ability to enter transactions. The widget will pull all of your accounts and categories and give you the ability to add deposits, withdrawals or make transfers without having to sign into the site.

To download the newest version of the widget, log in and go to Tools and click on the OS X Dashboard Widget icon. Simply install the new widget over the old one and you'll be good to go.

Try it out and let us know what you think!

This little add-on is aimed at those of you who are frequent users of the command line. The add-on interfaces with the Google Talk CheckBot and allows you to execute withdrawals, deposits and transfers, but without having to sign into Google Talk. There's more though, it even has an offline support mode!

Here's the official description from the developer's website:

To download the latest version of the add-on, download it here.

Thanks Srijith for your work!

The latest version of ClearCheckbook has finally been released. This version introduces an incredibly large number of new features, updates, and visual enhancements which will all lead to making your ClearCheckbook experience more productive.

Here's a breakdown of some of the new features and major updates that have been made to the site:

• Recurring Transactions - This had been one of the most requested features that people wanted added to the site. Well, now it's here and it's working great. The recurring transactions are now tied into the reminders system, which has also been updated. Simply enter when you would like your transaction to take place and whether or not it's repeating and we'll take care of the rest.


• Updated Reminders - We've now added many more options for how your reminders can repeat. Now bi-weekly, bi-monthly, every 3, 4, and 6 months are all options you can choose from. The interface to the reminders system has also been upgraded.


• Split Transactions - This was also another highly requested feature by our members. Splits work just like you'd expect them to. Simply enter your transaction and tell us you want to split it and we break it out so you can enter amounts/categories for each split. There's no limit to the number of splits you can make either.


• "Quick Adding" - We've given you the ability to add new transactions directly from the main accounts summary page. Now there's no need to go to a separate page to add your transactions (although we still give you that option)


• Jiving / Balancing - The way you reconcile your checkbook has also been completely revamped. Instead of having a dedicated page for jiving transactions, you can now mark a transaction as jived (cleared) directly from the main accounts summary page. In addition to this, you can also set your view options to view only cleared/uncleared transactions for all accounts or specific accounts. This will make finding uncleared transactions much easier.


• Credit Card Transactions - The credit card system has been updated to make it easier to select the transactions you're paying off and see how much your balance is. Also, once you "pay off" a credit card for a month, the old transactions you just paid do not disappear... they remain in your transaction list so you can still see them for historical reasons.


• Exporting of Transactions - You can now export to QIF format. Why is this such a nice feature? Well, that means you can export all your transactions and then re-import them directly into ClearCheckbook without having to manually enter them all. Exporting in this format also retains split transactions.


• Reports - The reports tool has also been overhauled to give you a much better picture of your spending / saving. We have new graphs that you can view, which tell you much more information than the previous reports.


• CheckBot 2.0 - CheckBot has also been completely re-written from the ground up. In addition to being much more stable, CheckBot can now accept messages from SMS/Text Message, AIM, ICQ, MSN, Yahoo! and Google Talk messaging systems.


• Site Help - The help section of the site has also been updated to make finding answers to your questions much easier.


• No Confirmation Email Needed - Instead of requiring a confirmation link be clicked in an email, we simply require that you click a link on the page after registering (although we'll still send you the email with the confirmation link)


• Advanced Transaction Editing Features - In keeping with our new theme of reducing the amount of unnecessary pages to visit to perform simple tasks, the transaction editing form appears directly below a transaction in the transaction list itself.


• Importing The importing section got a major facelift. You can now import transactions that you had previously exported from ClearCheckbook! In addition to that, you can also import QIF files that contain valid splits.


• Auto-Completion for descriptions - When adding new transactions, we will offer suggestions of previous transactions that match what you're typing.


• International Settings - We have completely updated the way currency and date formatting are handled. You can now select from many different date and currency formatting options and set your site defaults.

In addition to all of these new features and updates, we still offer the same great experience we always have. The site is still completely free to use and we never ask for any account information and never send you any junk mail or give out any of your personal information.

There are a few features which unfortunately weren't able to be updated in time, such as the new Budgeting system, but that should be available to use some time over the next few weeks.

Like the new features? Then help us spread the word about it! Submit the site to Digg and other social sites, blog about us, tell your friends, etc. This new version just goes to show that as the site gets bigger it also gets better.

What's next for ClearCheckbook? Well, that's a very good question. We already have several new ideas in the pipe line that should be appearing over the next few months. These new updates also promise to make the site even better.

Thanks for all your support. Please feel free to let us know what you think of the site by sending us a contact message or by posting it in the blog.

As I said last week, I was planning on releasing Version 2 some time this week. Well, I am fairly confident that I can now pick an exact time the site will be released. I'm planning on making the switch from V1 to V2 on the night of Sunday, October 28th. I know that's not quite "Mid October" as I had promised back at the end of August, but we're trying to make sure everything is working correctly before we release the site.

In the transition between versions, the site will be unavailable for up to an hour or two. This is partly why we picked Sunday night to make the switch, as it's typically our least busy time period.

I'll post more details as to the exact time and duration of the switch later in the week.

Also, it looks like we're right on track to hit the 1,000,000th transaction some time before Friday!

Stay tuned!

I wanted to take a minute and give everyone a small update on the status of the Version 2 (V2) launch. Development and testing of V2 is going well. Many of the new features have already been developed and are performing well. Having said that, I'm looking at a launch date some time during the week of October 22nd. I want to take a little extra time to make sure everything is working correctly before making the site live.

To give a recap of some of the new features being added to V2, I'm going to list a few of them here:

• Split Transactions-Ability to break a transaction into multiple categories/amounts.


• Recurring Transactions-The ability to add recurring transactions to the reminders system. These transactions will automatically be placed in your account on the specified date.


• Misc Reminders updates-More recurring period times (like bi-weekly, bi-yearly, etc)


• Improved user interface and layout that promises to be much quicker than it is now.

There are many other enhancements being made to the site, but those are some of the major ones.

Also, I would like to remind all new members that when you register for the site, you don't need to wait for the confirmation email to arrive. Simply click on the confirmation link that appears on the page after you submit your registration.

In other news, if trends continue the way they have been over the last month or two, we're set to break the 1,000,000 transaction and 10,000 active user mark by the end of October.

It's astounding to see how fast the site continues to grow and it's great to read all the emails coming in from people who say that this site has changed the way they manage their money. I know that with the V2 release, it will do an even better job.

Continue spreading the word and keep the site growing!