Banks obviously aren't shy about raising checking account fees, but few of us go through the hassle of changing banks in search of a better deal. That's often because we've already paid for a box or carton of pre-printed checks that become useless if we switch banks.

But thanks to the wonders of desktop publishing, you no longer need to let your cache of pre-printed checks keep you from bank shopping. With some inexpensive software, a laser printer and some blank check stock, you can print checks on your own computer. These are real bank checks, complete with that strange-looking line at the bottom that contains your bank routing numbers and other codes.

Check printing software not only frees you to switch banks more easily, but it's cheaper too.

I tried one of the least expensive check printing programs called CHECKMAGIC, which works on computers running Microsoft Windows. The $19.95 program is made and sold by a burlington, company of the same name (http://www.checkmagic.com). CHECKMAGIC says they have been selling the program for the last year and a half.

CHECKMAGIC, like many of its competitors, works in concert with another accounting software package such as Intuit's Quicken or Microsoft Money to write out complete checks that include the payee and amount information. CHECKMAGIC supports only Quicken and Quickbooks, but you can use it alone to print blank checks that look just like produced by a check printer.

I used CHECKMAGIC, along with Quicken, to pay about a dozen bills during a two month period, and all of the checks were accepted and cashed without any problem. Aside from the confusing setup procedure, the program was easy to use. The version I tried stores information for up to 10 different checking accounts, so you can write checks from multible accounts. A more expensive version that sells for $59.95 lets you write checks from upto 999 accounts.

The CHECKMAGIC software is not as polished as many Microsoft Windows programs. Its main window has an array of button selections, and during some setup operations, it was not immediately obvious which buttons to click.

You also need to change a few printer settings in Quicken that instruct that software to capture checks you write to a disk file, rather than sending them to the printer. Fortunately, you need go through this setup process only once. Using the software from that point on was a breeze. You write checks with Quicken, then start CHECKMAGIC and tell it to print the checks Quicken has stored on your hard drive. The program keeps track of the last check number you printed and numbers the new ones accordingly.

It prints your checks, up to 3 on a page, complete with the information supplied by Quicken. You just need to separate the checks, sign them, and they are ready to be mailed.

There's a point of contention between some check-publishing software companies and the American Bankers Association, which represents large and small banks around the country. Many of the check printing software devcelopers say you don't need anything beyond a laser printer using standard toner to print checks. But John Hall, aspokesman for the ABA, said you must use a special toner that contains magnetic particles. He said nonmagnetic ink slows down processing and that could delay the payment of a check. CHECKMAGIC responds that most larger banks now read checks using optical character recognition, rather than Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (hence the acronym MICR).

They said that if you write 10 to 15 checks a month, you don't need the magnetic ink. But suggests that businesses writing 50 or more checks a month get the magnetic toner cartridge. CHECKMAGIC sells these toner cartridges for about $85 each, which is not much more than the cost of standard toner. You can use MICR toner for all printing, not just check printing-- it looks exactly the same.

I didn't use MICR toner, and my checks went through, apparently without any special handling.

There's no question that check printing software can be a money saver. It's cheaper, for example, to buy the CHECKMAGIC software ($19.95) and blank check stock ($15.95 for 500 checks) than it is to order pre-printed checks from the maker of Quicken ($49.99 for 250 checks).

With products like CHECKMAGIC, it's now almost as easy to switch banks as it is to switch long distance carriers.

Timothy C. Barrman is a Journal staff writer. His column runs periodically in the Business section. Send him comments via e-mail at: tim@cybertalk.com or U.S. Mail c/o the Journal-Bulletin, 75 Fountain Street, Providence, RI 02902