[jeff]

I have a question that I hope you can help me with…. I purchased the Becker CD’s and installed them on my PC. I have taken and passed all but one of the exams (BEC left).. I was checking to see if my software was up to date and noticed an expiration date of November 2013.. Does this mean my software ( downloaded from my CD’s) will no longer work after November….or will it no longer be supported but I can still take practice exams and do study questions etc?

Jeff Elliott, CPA (KS) | Another71 | NINJA CPA | NINJA CMA | NINJA CPE

[Anonymous]

ZSRizvi – You are correct! Those were some pretty specific exam disclosures and are strictly forbidden by the AICPA.

Before posting about an exam experience, please read the forum rules.

Remember that every exam is different. One person's experience probably won't be the same as someone else's even if they are sitting next to each other at the testing center. The CPA exam has been non-disclosed for quite a few years and will remain so until the AICPA changes it!

[ZSRizvi]

Good to know. I didn't want to be going around saying the wrong thing.

Okay, back to studying.

I'm doing strategic planning questions and I'm stuck on this one:

Snyder Co. manufactures fans with direct material costs of $10 per unit and direct labor of $7 per unit. A local carrier charges Snyder $5 per unit to make deliveries. Sales commissions are paid at 10% of the selling price. Fans are sold for $100 each. Indirect factory costs and administrative costs are $6,800 and $37,200 per month, respectively. How many fans must Snyder produce to break even?

a.

1,375

b.

530

c.

648

d.

564

This question actually popped up on the 2008 BEC exam. I'm looking at the answer and it's got me stumped.

Apparently the indirect manufacturing costs are fixed costs as well as the administrative costs. And they use that to compute the breakeven units. But nowhere in the problem does it say these are fixed! Or am I to just assume that since it says “per month” it's fixed? Am I the only one who thinks this problem is oddly-worded?

BEC (July 2013)
FAR (OCT 2013)
REG (NOV 2013)
AUD (JAN 2014)

The CPA Exam is an opponent that not even the Fellowship of the Ring would want to come across.

I have a long...long...journey ahead of me.

[ZSRizvi]

Good to know. I didn't want to be going around saying the wrong thing.

Okay, back to studying.

I'm doing strategic planning questions and I'm stuck on this one:

Snyder Co. manufactures fans with direct material costs of $10 per unit and direct labor of $7 per unit. A local carrier charges Snyder $5 per unit to make deliveries. Sales commissions are paid at 10% of the selling price. Fans are sold for $100 each. Indirect factory costs and administrative costs are $6,800 and $37,200 per month, respectively. How many fans must Snyder produce to break even?

a.

1,375

b.

530

c.

648

d.

564

This question actually popped up on the 2008 BEC exam. I'm looking at the answer and it's got me stumped.

Apparently the indirect manufacturing costs are fixed costs as well as the administrative costs. And they use that to compute the breakeven units. But nowhere in the problem does it say these are fixed! Or am I to just assume that since it says “per month” it's fixed? Am I the only one who thinks this problem is oddly-worded?

BEC (July 2013)
FAR (OCT 2013)
REG (NOV 2013)
AUD (JAN 2014)

The CPA Exam is an opponent that not even the Fellowship of the Ring would want to come across.

I have a long...long...journey ahead of me.

[ROACH]

Indirect factory and admin cost are fixed cost.

$100 sales and everything else is variable cost.

BEC: 66 | 69 | 7/23/2013
AUD: 8/28/2013
REG:
FAR:

[ROACH]

Indirect factory and admin cost are fixed cost.

$100 sales and everything else is variable cost.

BEC: 66 | 69 | 7/23/2013
AUD: 8/28/2013
REG:
FAR:

[Amay]

Good luck to those upcoming BEC takers! Study your butts off and you will be fine! Remember all we need is a 75!!

BEC: 73, 81
AUD: 85
FAR: 71, 77
REG: 74, 75...finally DONE! 😀

*This is my 2nd attempt at the CPA exam. For all of you who have failed this exam many times, given up on it, or taken a break like me, remember that it is still possible to finish what you started...failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently 🙂

[Amay]

Good luck to those upcoming BEC takers! Study your butts off and you will be fine! Remember all we need is a 75!!

BEC: 73, 81
AUD: 85
FAR: 71, 77
REG: 74, 75...finally DONE! 😀

*This is my 2nd attempt at the CPA exam. For all of you who have failed this exam many times, given up on it, or taken a break like me, remember that it is still possible to finish what you started...failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently 🙂

[Zaq]

Went through the 1st half of B3. Cash flow, IRR, NPV stuff.

Soooooooooooo much easier than B2. I hope the rest of the chapters are of this difficulty level.

FAR: 50, 76!
REG: 74... (ouch baby, very ouch), 76!
AUD: 65, 91!?
BEC: 80! Aaaand doneskies!

May 2012 to August 2013. Can't believe it's over.

[Zaq]

Went through the 1st half of B3. Cash flow, IRR, NPV stuff.

Soooooooooooo much easier than B2. I hope the rest of the chapters are of this difficulty level.

FAR: 50, 76!
REG: 74... (ouch baby, very ouch), 76!
AUD: 65, 91!?
BEC: 80! Aaaand doneskies!

May 2012 to August 2013. Can't believe it's over.

[Anonymous]

Taking this, my last section Saturday. Trying to study and do a lot of the techniques that worked for my earlier sections (lots of progress tests). I'm a little behind schedule but I'm trying not to underestimate the test. Just working problems over and over and hoping for a pass.

[Anonymous]

Taking this, my last section Saturday. Trying to study and do a lot of the techniques that worked for my earlier sections (lots of progress tests). I'm a little behind schedule but I'm trying not to underestimate the test. Just working problems over and over and hoping for a pass.

[barelystayingsane]

Can anyone explain digital certificates to me in English? How do they differ from Public Key Infrastructure? How are they different from a digital signature?

Thanks!!!

[barelystayingsane]

Can anyone explain digital certificates to me in English? How do they differ from Public Key Infrastructure? How are they different from a digital signature?

Thanks!!!

[Anonymous]

@sane, just read this definitely a bit confusingly worded here's what I thought. From what I read I assume that the digital certificate are some sort of transfer privilege attachment to transferred data provided by a central agency. They seem to allow for example a vender online to verify the security of their online data collection process. The certificate seems to be attached to your information which you assume is encrypted. The vendor can use his key to unencrypted the data you send to him. Basically you put your credit card number into a website, the numbers are packaged and scrambled with the attached certificate and transferred to vendor. He has the right key to unscrambles them and he can access the data.

The Public Key Infrastructure is the required work performed by Verisign to manage the millions of interchanging Digital Certificates as well as the assymetric keys which enable receivers to unlock the ###### (encrypted) data.

E-signatures are simply a legally binding signature that is computer generated. Allows you to sign without physically being present.

I don't know if that made any sense, i think I may have confused myself now.

[Anonymous]

@sane, just read this definitely a bit confusingly worded here's what I thought. From what I read I assume that the digital certificate are some sort of transfer privilege attachment to transferred data provided by a central agency. They seem to allow for example a vender online to verify the security of their online data collection process. The certificate seems to be attached to your information which you assume is encrypted. The vendor can use his key to unencrypted the data you send to him. Basically you put your credit card number into a website, the numbers are packaged and scrambled with the attached certificate and transferred to vendor. He has the right key to unscrambles them and he can access the data.

The Public Key Infrastructure is the required work performed by Verisign to manage the millions of interchanging Digital Certificates as well as the assymetric keys which enable receivers to unlock the ###### (encrypted) data.

E-signatures are simply a legally binding signature that is computer generated. Allows you to sign without physically being present.

I don't know if that made any sense, i think I may have confused myself now.

[Author]

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