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  • From: baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • To: baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: [BL] File US tax returns electronically with BL
  • Date: Fri, 8 Oct 2010 13:27:08 +0000 (UTC)

Online electronic tax filing required java a few years ago.
I read that it has mostly been replaced by flash and javascript
except at a few game sites. Nice to be rid of it.

(Nevertheless. OS 10.4 on our 400Mhz iMac insisted on downloading Java updates 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, each 81MB).

Now direct filling out of government forms online requires Micro$oft Silverlight (available for linux GTK2 - involves audio and moving pictures - for tax forms????). This seems to be the MS challenger to Flash and is also required to view many streaming TV stations. Others use Realaudio or Windows Media Player and hopefully Mplayer will handle them. (Not on my 266MHz Thinkpad). The Linux version is Moonlight and it comes precompiled for various recent linuxes, or you can try to compile your own but I doubt GTK1 and glibc 2.3.6 would work. Puppy Linux probably supports it but my preference is to avoid it. Only 7.7MB source code but you also need a Microsoft Media Pack for it. 4MB Firefox plugin (probably GTK2).

With Silverlight or Moonlight, you can use the online services of some tax filing company, which are free if you earn under $57,000 or in some cases under $32,000. Most of them are restricted to certain states (up to 44 of them) and certain age groups (over 25, under 51, under 70, etc.). Even if your state is listed, it may not really be available for data entry.

I tried eFileReturns (MI was both listed and allowed, but most states were not actually open for data entry), and Opera 9.64 got stuck on one item (would not let me enter something, javascript error).

iSecureTax allows any age, 44 states, and seems to work with Opera 9.64. Since they are still doing 2009 taxes and I finished mine long ago I only signed up and went as far as the interest income page.

This takes longer to fill in the info than doing it on paper (you have to keep clicking on Continue and I would not try it without broadband and a fast enough computer to handle the javascript) but should save calculation time and prevent arithmetic errors and produce something more legible, that you can print in multiple copies.

It may not work if you are self-employed (Schedule C) or use other less common forms. I did not go far enough to see if Schedules A or B were included. They mentioned 1040 and 1040EZ.

There are around 20 companies listed but most are age limited.



Sindi Keesan



  • [BL] File US tax returns electronically with BL, baslinux, 10/08/2010

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