We are always working to improve RTG Bills. This list shows the first version that included various features.

We encourage all RTG Bills users to install the current version, because each version provides both new features and solutions to known problems. See Upgrading RTG Bills.

Click the link for each version to see a more detailed explanation of the changes in that version.

Version 2.27

• The Data Location is saved in a file instead of the Windows registry.
• RTG Update displays a separate list of special updates
• Easier entry of a blank line in descriptions
• Duplicate button copies description from previous entry
• Main window disappears when a new window opens
• Removed Setup > Database from menu
• Responsible Timekeeper replaces Billing Timekeeper
• Updated tutorials and improved their readability (V2.27b)
• New report: Matter Details (V2.27g)

Version 2.26

• Show writedown as discount without activity code
• Hidden text in fee, expense, and payment descriptions
• Set initial cutoff dates to Month-End, Today, or Mixed
• New reports: Fees Billed and Collected by Billing Timekeeper and Summary of Fees Billed and Collected by Billing Timekeeper.

Version 2.25

• Larger, more readable font
• Inactive timekeepers are hidden
• Backups include custom reports
• Sequence numbers improved
• New color for lists
• Option for today's date or Bill Date on bills
• Adjusted balance method for late charges (V2.25a)

Version 2.24

• Up to 255 timekeepers allowed
• New Matter Summary report
• New custom reports for RTG Bills: Unbilled Hours by Timekeeper and Unbilled Expenses by Timekeeper

Version 2.23

• Client cover pages can be reprinted with bills
• Option to reprint only non-PDF bills
• Success or failure of emailing each bill is recorded
• Five-character task and activity codes are allowed
• RTG Timer shows recently-edited items on its main window
• RTG Timer can copy RTG Bills data directly
• Move Fees and Expenses feature is now standard
• Send a File to RTG feature is now standard
• RTG Reports is now standard
• New report for RTG Bills: Emailed Bills by Matter
• New report for RTG Bills and RTG Timer: System Information
• New report for RTG Timer: Hours and Expenses by Timekeeper
• New custom reports for RTG Bills: Matter Ledger (Full Descriptions), Hours and Expenses by Timekeeper, Matter Balances (CSV), Fees and Expenses by Area
• RTG Bills remembers the last tab (all or favorites) for reports
• RTG Viewer remembers window size when not full-screen
• Improved email feature allows reducing speed to meet ISP limitations
• Graphic images are stored in a shared location
• RTG Upgrade has been renamed to RTG Update

Version 2.22

• New reports in the Custom Reports package: Fees by Matter & Timekeeper (Detail), Clients by Billing Timekeeper, Hours Billed by Timekeeper

Version 2.21

• Mini stopwatch in RTG Timer
• Unreleased time shown in red on RTG Timer's monthly calendar
• Double confirmation required to cancel all bills
• Selected printer stays selected when RTG Bills exits
• Print To File offers PDF option for reports
• Client Payment Wizard can handle unbilled payments and adjustments
• Consolidated bills format combines matters for one client
• Optional PayPal link to pay PDF bills online
• Several additional bill format options
• Retainer Account Wizard can start after a new matter is created
• Easier access to historical bills
• Rate table, bill format, and billing timekeeper can be copied from one matter to all other matters for the same client
• Client information can be edited while viewing a bill
• Rate Tables report can print a single rate table
• Payment Summary by Matter no longer shows matters with no payments or adjustments
• Uncollected Bills report shows the age in days for each bill
• New reports in the Custom Reports package: Alphabetical Matter List (Open Matters), Activity Summary by Matter (CSV format), Task Summary by Matter (CSV format), Retainer Account List, Matters by Rate Table

Version 2.20

• RTG Bills can upload clients, matters, timekeepers, and codes directly to RTG Timer Online
• RTG Bills can download the fees and expenses released from RTG Timer or RTG Timer Online directly from RTG Timer Online
• RTG Timer can download the RTG Bills data from RTG Timer Online
• RTG Timer can release fees and expenses to RTG Timer Online
• The Client Abbreviation now accepts 20 characters instead of 10
• The Select A Client window now shows 20 clients at a time instead of 10
• Historical bills are always backed up
• The Matters with No Fees or Expenses in the Last 30 Days report is faster.
• Retainer Account Percent Unused is a new report
• New reports in the Custom Reports package: Matter Open Dates, Retainer Ledger (No Canceled Items), Fees & Expenses by Activity
• Summary of Unbilled Fees & Expenses by Matter, in the Custom Reports package, now lets you choose a date range
• RTG Bills provides a 45-day trial period for new users and requires a license key for continued use after that

Version 2.19

• RTG Bills and RTG Timer can export shorthand codes in a format compatible with RTG Timer Online

Version 2.18

• Each RTG Bills user now has a separate list of shorthand codes
• Only the Supervisor can make permanent changes to firm-wide settings
• The Matters on Hold report now includes Matter Notes
• The Closed Matters report now lets you choose a date range in addition to a matter range
• Two reports, Retainer Account Summary and Retainers Applied Automatically, now show subtotals by group (i.e., bank account)

Version 2.17

• Compatibility with Windows Vista
• Separation of programs and data, allowing programs to be on the local computer and data to be on a server
• An activity code can specify that a writedown will appear as an item discount on the bill
• A Client Payment Wizard distributes a single client payment among all of the client's matters that have a balance due
• Reduced multi-user conflicts by using row-level locking instead of page-level locking
• Improved ability to cancel bills while other users are in RTG Bills
• Payments and adjustments can be entered for closed matters
• New help files
• Added the option to show task codes and activity codes on the bills
• Added the option to print bills with a retainer balance, even if there is no balance due and no activity
• Editing a task code no longer shows fields that are only relevant for activity and expense codes
• Client Cover Pages now print in order by client abbreviation if the bills are printed that way
• The Billing Summary now prints in the same order as the bills (by matter, by client abbreviation, or by billing timekeeper)
• Most windows now open over the window that opened them instead of in the center of the screen
• New reports: Uncollected Bills, Realization: Fees Billed (Detail and Summary), Realization: Fees Collected (Detail and Summary), Fees & Expenses by Matter & Timekeeper with Codes, Matter Check
• New reports in Custom Reports: Payments & Adjustments by Billing Timekeeper, Expenses by Timekeeper & Matter
• The Matters by Billing Timekeeper report in Custom Reports only includes open matters

Version 2.16

• The Alphabetical Client List can be printed for a range of client abbreviations
• The most recent bill can be reprinted as a PDF file without changing matter settings on the PDF tab

Version 2.15

• Reports can specify the required paper width, so they automatically print in portrait orientation if possible, and in landscape orientation if not
• Bill formats can specify either Letter paper or A4 paper, and the items on the page are adjusted automatically to fit
• Added options to show Hours over the hours column and Amount over the amount column in the Fees section of the bills
• Added the ability to specify a non-standard SMTP port for sending bills by email

Version 2.14

• Added a Search button to search for client names or matter names
• Combined the reports for RTG Bills and RTG Reports into a single list
• Added favorites lists for reports
• Added matter messages to put a message on the bills for a single matter
• Added the Retainer Account Wizard for creating new retainer accounts
• Added the option to have the maximum fee amount prevent charges above that amount by entering a credit for excess charges
• Added the ability to set a minimum fee for a matter
• Added the option to suppress the printing of bills with a zero balance and no new fees or expenses
• Improved payment allocation to consider aging of the charges
• Improved the Index button for historical bills so that, if you choose One Matter, the index only shows the dates on which bills were printed for that matter

Version 2.13

• Compatibility with RTG Timer ME for Pocket PC and Windows Mobile
• Increased the precision of the percentage matter discount to five decimal places
• Increased the precision of the unit cost to four decimal places
• Added the option to print the Billing Summary before the fees on a bill
• Changed the Maximum Fees report to exclude closed matters

Version 2.12

• Added the ability to edit an item on a bill or report by double-clicking the item in the RTG Viewer
• Added the ability to reprint bills as PDF documents and, optionally, email them to the client
• RTG Review can convert from RTG Review format to PDF
• Added the ability to print bills or prebills for one billing timekeeper
• Added the option to skip the printing of prebills that have no balance due and no new fees and expenses
• Added billing cycles A through F to allow staggered billing
• Added the option to have RTG Timer appear in the system tray (the "notification area") instead of the taskbar when it is minimized
• New report: Fees and Expenses on Hold by Timekeeper in both RTG Bills and RTG Timer

Version 2.11

• A new Month button in RTG Timer displays a calendar showing the total hours you have entered for each day of the month
• An activity code can set a rate table, overriding the standard rate for the matter
• Added the ability to print envelopes after printing bills
• Added the option to show only new charges in the Billing Summary on the bills
• Added the option to show the billing rate in a column under the hours on the bills
• Added a new method to select a shorthand code, which lets you enter a few letters to jump to the right area in a long list of codes
• Added a report to RTG Reports, Fees and Expenses by Matter with Codes, that shows a warning for missing codes
• Added a new Fees Billed and Collected by Area to RTG Reports and changed the previous report of this name to Summary of Fees Billed and Collected by Area
• Print To File offers the option of saving bills and reports in RTG Review format, which preserves all formatting

Version 2.10

• Client Reminders can be printed if a balance is overdue
• Each matter can be assigned an area of practice, with new reports Areas of Practice, Matters by Area, and Fee Summary by Area in RTG Bills and Fees Billed and Collected by Area of Practice in RTG Reports
• Added a button next to the Hourly Rate box to make it easier to choose a non-standard billing rate when entering a fee transaction in RTG Bills or RTG Timer
• Added the option to round hours to the next tenth of an hour
• RTG Timer can now release fees and expenses for a single matter or a range of matters
• Improved several reports to reduce any balance due by the amount of unapplied payments
• Added the Find and Find Next buttons in the RTG Viewer to allow searching for text in bills and reports
• The matter number can be removed from the top portion of the bills
• Data exported to RTG Timer (for standalone operation) is now written to a single file, making it easier to send the data as an email attachment
• Added the ability to import contacts from Microsoft Outlook
• When the stopwatch is on, RTG Timer shows the elapsed time on the title bar, hence on the Windows taskbar as well

Version 2.09

• Added split billing and two reports, Split Bill Matters and Split Bills by Date
• Added unapplied payments, allowing RTG Bills to delay allocating a payment to fees and expenses until a bill is printed
• Improved the readability of the Billing Summary section of the bills
• New report in RTG Bills: Payments and Adjustments by Matter
• New reports in RTG Reports: Unbilled Item Aging by Billing Timekeeper and Total Fees Billed and Collected
• Added the option to set the Bill Date of each bill to be the fee and expense cutoff date instead of the date the bill is printed

Version 2.08

• Compatibility with RTG Scripts

Version 2.07

• Each matter may have more than one retainer account
• Added client-level retainer accounts
• Added a maximum fee with a warning on the prebill, plus a Maximum Fees report
• Closed matters only appear on reports if you check Include Closed Matters
• Improved printer selection
• Improved free upgrades to show a list of available upgrades and automatically install the ones you choose
• Added the ability to restore deleted clients
• Added the ability to print historical Client Cover Pages
• List button for selecting a matter range lets you choose all matters for a chosen client
• Task and activity codes are now shown on the prebills

Version 2.06

• Can now import Quicken transactions that do not have a check number

Version 2.05

• Added the ability to change a matter number, including all transactions for the matter
• Added Edit > Update Rates to change unbilled hourly rate transactions to use the current billing rates
• Added the ability to hide billing rates and currency amounts in RTG Timer
• Added the ability to cancel the most recent uncanceled bill for any matter, so that any number of bills can be canceled, in reverse chronological order
• Added the New button on the Enter A Matter window
• Total charges and payments to date now appear on the prebill and, optionally, on the bill
• Added the Letterhead Design feature
• Imports expenses from QuickBooks
• Added fee and expense thresholds to prevent billing small amounts
• Added Matter Notes
• Increased the number of shorthand codes from 100 to 300
• Added the ability to enter a recurring charge for a matter
• Improved multi-user operation

Version 2.04

• RTG Backup now compresses the data
• Added RTG Restore to restore data from a backup
• Added an option to print more than one copy of each bill or prebill
• Added an option to print prebills in landscape (wide) orientation
• Added an option to show only new charges on Client Cover Pages
• Item button goes directly to a fee or expense transaction given its item number
• Negative currency amounts can be shown with a minus sign before the amount (or, as previously, with CR after the amount)
• Improved compatibility with regional currency settings that differ from U.S. settings
• Added Unbilled Fees and Expenses by Timekeeper to RTG Bills and RTG Timer
• New reports: Retainers Applied Automatically and Retainers Used and Received

Version 2.03

• Bills can request replenishment of retainer
• Bills and prebills can be printed in order by billing timekeeper or client name (in addition to matter number as before)
• Sales tax rate can have four decimal digits

Version 2.02

• Compatibility with RTG E-Bills for electronic billing
• Compatibility with RTG Timer HE for Palm OS
• Retainer used transactions can appear on the bill
• Error log to diagnose problems
• Mixed button to set cutoff dates
• Improved auto-allocation of payments and manual retainers
• Added Matter Status report
• Backup includes options to back up archive file and historical bills

Version 2.01

• 32-bit software
• Spell checker with legal dictionary
• Select a printer
• Separate installation of RTG Bills, RTG Timer, or both
• Desktop shortcuts for Bills and Timer
• Microsoft Jet 4.0 (the database engine) replaces Jet 1.1

Before Version 2.01, released in September 2000, came RTG Bills versions 1.01 through 1.25. Version 1 was 16-bit software, designed to work with both Windows 3.1 and Windows 95.

RTG Bills Version 1.01 was first released in February 1996.