QuickBooks was originally developed as a general, small-business accounting package. It was only after large numbers of construction companies began using the software that Intuit upgraded the program to include basic job-costing features, and called it QuickBooks Pro (QBP). Setting up the software has always required rudimentary understanding of general accounting principles, but setting up the latest release (version 5) to take full advantage of jobcost reporting can be frustrating, especially for new users. Part of the confusion stems from the fact that QBP uses two very different methods — one called Items, the other Classes — to organize data for job-cost reports. Each method has its strengths and weaknesses. Which method you choose will depend on how much detail you want to
