In microsoft.public.money, Relztrah wrote:

- quote -

Money is upward compatible, and not downward compatible. You
need a version at least as new as the one that you used when
you used that Money file.

<snip
- quote -

Even with that method, keep backups anyway, perhaps in the safe
deposit box.

I've spent most of the day trying to restore a backup of my Money files to a
"new" computer which is really a hand-me-down. Actually it has some
advantages over my old one, but is has Money 2000 instead of Money 2001 which
is on my older computer. I really only use the checkbook balance feature,
none of the investment or budgeting tools, so I can get by with an older
version of Money. My old computer came with Money 2001 bundled, and I don't
have the CD, so that's why I installed 2000 on my new machine and I'm using
that.

I go to File> Restore Backup> Open a different backup file> select other backup
file and browse to my flash drive. I see my Money backup file in the Restore
box, select it and click OK. Now I get a Restore Target dialog box, "Money
has selected a default location to which it will restore your backup file.
You can select a different location by choosing Browse." I click OK and then
get, "Money cannot locate 'C:\Program Files\Microsoft Money\My Money Backup'
or cannot open it, possibly because it is a read-only file [it's not]. You
can change the read-only attribute in the Windows Explorer [not necessary].
If you have chosen the correct file [I have] and it cannot be accessed, you
will need to open your most recent backup file." Well, that's precisely what
I'm trying to do, open my most recent backup file.

I opened a sample file on my new computer and looked for updates. Only some
stock info which isn't necessary. I can get online with no problem. All other
features of my "new" computer work fine. I have tried to restore the backup
from a flash drive, with floppies, across my home network...and still
nothing.

Is there an alternative to MS Money that I can get cheaply or free that
would allow me to simply balance my checkbook and keep track of who I make
checks out to? Since I can't export Money files to Money, maybe I can export
them to a simple spreadsheet or something else. At this point I'm ready to
revert to a pencil, legal tablet and a calculator.

Thanks,
Relztrah