In a presentation at the AICPA Tech+ conference in Las Vegas this week Johnston told the audience that "I have reviewed 20 entry-level online accounting packages in the last six months." In a follow-up conversation, he said the total is actually 22.

There are several known products such as Intuit's QuickBooks Online, Wave Accounting and Xero. But it would be difficult for most people to come up with 22 names in the segment. And Johnston said many have not hit the market but will become publicly known over the next few months. These products include those that call for collaboration between accountants and businesses, some aimed solely at small business and others designed for personal use.

Johnston said one reason for the proliferation is the relatively low cost of development. "A number of smart technology people saw the opportunity and said that they can help business reduce the overhead" he said.

User disappointment with QuickBooks Online is not a major reason Johnston said. In fact, he belives the product is a good one. The problem is the name and the fact that the web-based product does not look like QuickBooks or have the same features.

"One of the dumbest pieces of advice I've given is to tell Intuit to call it QuickBooks Online," said Johnston. If the product were named Intuit Online Accounting, for example, users would not expect QuickBooks features and woud be happy with it, he continued.;