PDA Software Library/pdasoftwarelib.iso/PSION/MISC/S3ABANK8/BANK8-3.TXT

Text File | 1996-09-28 | 28.4 KB | 617 lines

PART 3 - OTHER FUNCTIONS AND OPTIONAL ADD-ON MODULES.
------------------------------------------------------

STANDING ORDERS
---------------
(Also known as Future Transactions or Scheduled Transactions )
(Configurable through the 'Terminology' option in 'Set Preferences')

1.    Select the Standing Orders screen using the MENU key, successive
presses of the diamond key or <Shift-PSION-O>. (If you have the title
selected to 'Future Transactions' the key will be <Shift-PSION-F> and
if it is set to 'Scheduled Transactions' it will be <Shift-PSION-D>)

2.    Now use <PSION-E>  or <ENTER> to enter a
Standing Order.  The date field is the first date when the
order should be actioned.  Leave it on today's date for the
demonstration.  You should use 'None' in the FROM or TO
fields if you are paying or receiving to/from an external
agency (use <TAB> or cursor keys to select other
accounts), fill in a description and an amount. Use today's
date for the demo, 'Current' in the FROM field, 'VISA' in
the TO field. Specify how regularly you want the order
actioned.  Unlike other programs, the program can accept,
for example,  3-weekly Standing Orders, and the 'last day of
the month'. Note that there has been some confusion over
the Interval field.  It is simply how often you wish the entry
to be actioned.  If you want it every 4 weeks then select
'Weekly' and '4', if you want it quarterly then select 'Month'
and '3'.  For the tutorial, use 2 weeks (i.e. æWeeklyÆ and æ2Æ)
as the period.  At this stage leave the 'Advanced Functions'
set to 'No', these functions are discussed in part 4.

3.    These Standing Orders will be automatically credited
to/debited from the appropriate accounts when the initial
date arrives, and the date reset to the next occurrence.

4.    As usual, you can Update (<PSION-U> or <TAB>)
or delete (<PSION-D> or <DEL>) entries as required, and
note the period and number of times are displayed if you
turn the Status Window off.

5.    To prove it works, press <Esc> to go back to the
main screen.  You should see the Standing Order being
processed, and when complete, the Accounts should have
been updated.  Go into the Orders screen, and you should
see the Order date has moved on the appropriate period.

6.    There is also an option to use the Standing Order
screen to allocate an estimated interest figure automatically.
Simply use <PSION-I> to specify the first date, which
account should be actioned, and how often.  In this case,
because the Interest rate for that account has not been
specified it will ask you for the Credit and Debit % values
(for example, my credit card gives me 18% if I run a debit
and 2% if I am in credit - There has to be a lesson there
somewhere !!).  The amount to be credited/debited is
calculated using this figure, and the final balance on the
account.

7.    Although the Standing Orders are basically sorted by
date, there is an option to sort those Standing Orders that
share the same date.  This is for people like me who have all
their Standing Orders actioned on the 1st of the month
although they actually occur throughout the month.  Finally,
there is an option to have a 'Total' window displayed using
<PSION-T> if you feel it is useful.

8.    In V1.6, I also included an  'Action Now'  option in
case you want to manually action a transaction at an earlier
date.

CURRENCIES
----------

1.    The program provides full support for all currencies.
It caters for what I believe is the most difficult case, of
someone living in Country A, running some accounts in
Country B, and occasionally visiting Country C.  (in other
words, me !!)  It does this by using 3 currency settings:

    a.    The Base Currency is the main currency for
    the program, and will normally be your country of
    residence. If you haven't already done it, make sure
    this is selected from the 'Set Preferences' and
    'Currency' menu in the Accounts screen.

    b.    The Group Currency is the country where
    the bank accounts/investments contained in that
    specific Group are held.

    c.    The Secondary Currency is the country that
    you are temporarily visiting.

2.    To reduce any possible rounding errors caused by
currency switching, the Shares (Stocks), Budget, Fuel,
Home Inventory, Utility and Financial Planning files are held
on disc in the Base currency, and the Account files are held
in the appropriate Group Currency.  The Expenses files are
allocated their own currency.  Although you would normally
set these currencies at the start, and not change them, the
program will actually allow you to change them and
recalculate the values.

3.    To show the capability, select the Currency  screen
(<Shift-PSION-C>).  If you want, enter a few more
currencies (<PSION-E>) (France for example), specifying
the Country,  Symbol (i.e. FF) and the exchange Rate
relative to the Base Currency.  Note the usual update and
delete options are available, as well an 'Update All' option if,
like me, you do them all at once from the evening paper.
Ignore the 'Allowances' field, it is described later.

4.    You will see there is a 'B' against your  currency,
which shows the Base Currency in use, and a 'G' against the
Group Currency.  There should also be a '*' against the
currency you selected as the secondary currency.  The
purpose of the secondary currency is to allow you to enter
transactions in a different currency to the Base Currency if
you are temporarily there on holiday or business.  The next
few steps  should demonstrate this.

5.    Select a secondary currency different to the Group
Currency.  (Either via the MENU, <PSION-S>, or selecting
it and pressing '*' or <ENTER>.  Press <ESC> again, then
<ENTER> to go into the Transactions screen for the
Current Account.  (From V1.6, you can have this selected
automatically from the  'World'  setting for Home City.  Use
'Set Preferences'  to set it.  My thanks to Roger Burton for
the code segment to do this.)

6.    Now select the Foreign Currency option <PSION-
F>.  This will now remain in force for this Account, until
reversed, even if you exit the program (Note that it only
affects this Account, not the whole Group, if you want the
whole Group to be affected, use the <PSION-C> option
from the main screen.).  Now enter a new transaction
(<ENTER>).  The difference is that the Reference field is
now replaced by a Currency field.  This defaults to your
secondary currency, but can actually be set to any currency
you like.  When you enter the transaction, using the local
currency value, you will find that the amount has
automatically converted to the Group Currency.  (If you
press CTRL-MENU, you will see that the original value has
been  stored in the Reference field.)  Once you are happy,
deselect the Foreign Currency option <PSION-F> before
you quit.

7.    Back in the Currency screen, there are 'Set
Preferences' options to set the number of  decimal places,
inverting the method of displaying/entering/updating
exchange rates and, for those like me who have fixed
overseas allowances, an optional allowances column to
enter daily allowances.  (This is for info only and is not used
in any calculations.  Use the Update option to set the figure)
There is also a repeat of the 'Currency' setup dialog from the
main screen.

8.    Finally, there is a conversion option (<PSION-C>),
which is quite straightforward, and can actually be accessed
from any screen by pressing <CTRL-C>.  The default 'From'
and 'To' currencies are configurable through the Set
Preferences menu.

9.    It is probably worth pointing out at this stage that a
number of people have asked for a method by which the
values could be changed retrospectively if an exchange rate
changes.  This is not possible at the moment, because of the
memory shortage, so all that happens is that the entry is
converted at the time of entry and a record kept in the
Reference field in case you wish to change it manually later.
I also have to say from a personal viewpoint that I believe
the practicality of doing this retrospective change is
questionable.  In my experience my Visa company uses a
different rate every day, so when I am reconciling my entries
at the end of each month, I cannot predict what rate has
been used.  I accept this argument does not apply to
Expense Accounts, where companies may suddenly change
rates and a whole trip could be updated, and that facility
may appear in  a later version.

BUDGET
------
(Needs BANKSBUD.OVL to be loaded)

1.    This optional module allows you to keep track of
how much you are spending for various categories (Oil,
Gas, Holiday, Car etc)

2.    Select the Budget screen using the MENU, the
diamond key or  <Shift-PSION-B>.

3.    Now use <PSION-E> (or <Enter>) to enter a
category.  Use Electricity as an example, and any numbers
you fancy for the Estimate and start date, as these are purely
for information. Press <ENTER> to put it in, and add a
couple more, such as 'Car' and 'Phone' for interest.  Then
note that, as usual, you can Update (<PSION-U>) or Delete
(<PSION-D>) or Move (<PSION-M>) the entries later.
There is also an alphabetical sort if that is how you would
like them displayed.  When you try updating, <PSION-U>
(or <TAB>), you will see I have programmed it to allow a
change to the Spend/Income, (Credit/Debit) or to input an
absolute value, whichever is most convenient.

4.    Now press <ESC>, select 'Current Account' and
press <ENTER>.  Enter a transaction, pretending you are
paying an Electricity bill (<PSION-E>).  Fill in the usual
details , then move to the 'Update Budget Category' field
and select 'Yes'.  (If this field is not present, then either
deselect the 'foreign currency' option, or select the
'Advanced Functions' field to 'Yes' and access it on the
second screen.  See Part 4 for instructions on configuring
the dialog).  Use the <TAB> key or the cursor keys (or press
'E') to select 'Electricity' (Ignore the 'Split Categories'
option, that is covered later) then <ENTER> the
transaction.  Note that there is also a 'New' option so you
can enter a new category directly from this dialog.

5.    Now go back into the Budget screen (<Shift-
PSION-B>), and you should see that the Electricity entry
shows an appropriate increase in current spend.  (Negative
to show that it is a spend).  If you have the Status Window
removed, you will also see the spend expressed as a
percentage, to enable you to see how you are doing.

6.    Note that if you prefer, you can reverse the logic of
the display (using <PSION-T>) and have amount remaining,
rather than amount spent, displayed and, of course, you can
use it for Income as well as spend.  (After much discussion I
have standardised on +ve for Income and -ve for Spend)

7.    Note that this module is common across all Groups,
unlike the Standing Orders, which are specific to a Group.
Any subsequent updates to account transactions, or deleting
entries, will amend the Budget reading accordingly (unless
the 'Split Categories option was used, in which case I didn't
have enough memory to keep a record of it for later
updating) .  Also, it can be used retrospectively to include
existing entries, if the Budget Field is amended during an
update from 'NONE' to the Budget item.  Please note that
the date is used only for information.  The program also
does not keep a record of where the 'Spend' came from, so
don't expect a change in date to affect the total figure.  It is
purely to act as a guideline if, like me, you run your budget
on an annual cycle.

8.    Once the checking cycle is complete (I use it
annually), you can quickly reset the 'Budget' column to the
previous spend using <PSION-R> for each entry, or
<PSION-L> for all of them.

FINANCIAL PLANNER
-----------------
(Needs BANKSPLN.OVL loaded)

1.    This is an extension to the existing Budget module,
and allows for accurate future budgeting.  It basically works
on 3 different levels:

Level 1.     To start up the module, use the
Menu, diamond key or <PSION-SHIFT-N>.  Now
use <PSION-E> to enter a couple of agencies who
send you bills, such as Electricity and Phone (The
usual Update, Delete and Move options are available
as always).   You can now move the vertical
highlight to the required agency, and the horizontal
highlight to the required month, and use <PSION-
C> to enter the estimated bill.  (Note that this
defaults to a single month, but you can actually put
in multiple payments.) The bottom line will show the
total for each month.  Note that, although it starts
up with January as the first month, you can use the
horizontal cursor to make any month the first to be
displayed.  All the settings you have will be
remembered between sessions.  Once a payment has
been made, you can use <PSION-R> (or the Space-
Bar) to show a cost in Bold as a reminder.  The
default is for a 12-month display, which is usable for
costs up to 999.  If you need more than 3 figures, or
some decimal places, there is an option to reduce the
number of months on display to prevent overlap.

Level 2.    If, like me, you run a separate
account to pay the bills, you can use the planner to
decide how much to transfer into the account each
month.  Press <PSION-W> to switch the bottom
line to 'Transfer' and use <PSION-T> to put an
initial estimate in for the amount.  Note that you can
put the amount in for individual months, to the end
of the screen (if you have less than 12 months in the
display it will fill up the remaining months as though
they are displayed), or for all months.  Now press
<PSION-W> again, and the line will show the
Balance for each month.  You can now increase or
decrease the transfer accordingly, depending on how
much in debt (or minimum credit) you are willing to
go.  There is also an option to adjust the initial
balance in case you are not starting from zero.

Level 3.    This is the fully automatic mode that
I operate.  Use <PSION-A> to enter the mode once
you have completed all the entries.  From now on,
the present month will always appear in the second
column, leaving the previous month in case there is
an outstanding payment.  All future payments will be
de-reconciled, and the bottom window will show the
predicted balance based on the previous months
total.  This total is shown in bold, and can be
changed if required.  Once the next month arrives,
everything will move one column to the left, so you
continually have a prediction for 11-months ahead.

2.    Because it is difficult to satisfy everyone's
requirements, the display is configurable through 'Set
Preferences' so that you can design your own display.  See
Part 4 for more details.

3.    There is also a 'Mark Entry' option if you wish a
specific monthly payment to be always highlighted for any
reason.

SHARES (STOCKS)
---------------
(Needs BANKSSHA.OVL loaded)

1.    If you have a small shares (stocks) portfolio, you
can use this optional module to keep track of their value,
and their history.

2.    Select the Shares screen (<Shift-PSION-S> or the
MENU or  the Diamond key).

3.    Enter a couple of example shares. (<PSION-E> or
<Enter>).  Note that the currency in use is shown on the top
line, if you wish to change it, then go into the Module from
a Group which has the correct Base currency.  If you just
want to enter or update in a different currency, just select
the 'Foreign Currency' option.

4.    The usual update, delete and move options are
available, as well as a æSortÆ option, plus an  'Update All'
option (<PSION-L>).  I use this once a week to update
every share at once.  Try this, and then say 'Yes' to  the
'Update History' question (Later, if you decide you will
always Update the History, you can configure the program
to remove this dialog).  Now select a share and press
<PSION-V> and you will see the history display.  Once you
start updating regularly, the values will be tabulated on the
left, and a graph of performance will be drawn on the right.
(While you are in this screen, you can set the X-Scale
Factor (<PSION-A>) to  the number of pixels/day; and the
Y-Scale factor (<PSION-Y>) to the max/min values of the
scale or, probably the best way, you can set both axes to
automatic scaling.  In this mode, you can also change the
start date, if the history file starts to get a bit long and
Enter/Update/Delete entries if so required, and configure
the Gain/Loss figure to various options.

5.    This option to update the history file is also available
if you update individual shares and, if you make a mistake,
you can delete entries.  If you use this module to track Unit
Trusts, you can specify non-integer share numbers via the
Config menu, and also, as shares are often quoted to 3
decimal places, I have allowed you to overwrite the Global
decimal places setting for the share price, again through the
Config Menu.  Finally you can switch Shares using the hot-
key or the right/left arrows.

6.    <ESC> gets you back to the Shares screen, where
you can see there is also an option to view the History of
your Total Portfolio value, which has similar Menu options
to those already described for ordinary histories.  I suggest
you now delete the history file <PSION-K>, as this was
only a  demo.

7,    Finally, I personally have the Shares included as a
separate Account inside my Savings Group, and it is
programmed to automatically update the total if I change
the Shares screen.  This option is offered to you if you
generate a new Account in any Group with a short title
called 'Shares' (or 'Stocks').

PETROL (GAS)
------------
(Needs BANKSPET.OVL loaded)

1.    I have included this option to keep track of my fuel
consumption.  Initially it was just for one vehicle, but some
of my friends asked if it could cope with more than one.  It
will now accept 10, which should be enough for anyone.

2.    Go into the Petrol screen using <Shift-PSION-P> or
Menu or Diamond (If the title has been set to 'Gas', the key will
be <Shift-PSION-G>)  Note that it defaults to Litres and
Miles, if you want to use UK or US Gallons, or kilometers,
press <PSION-G> and <PSION-K> to change the defaults.

3.    Type <PSION-N> to add the first vehicle, calling it
anything you like, although the type is probably a logical
choice.  Don't worry, you can always change it later.

4.    You can now enter the details manually, or
automatically.  First try a manual entry:  type <PSION-E>
and fill in the details.  The cost in the first screen is how
much you spent.  Note that in the second screen it will
actually allow you to enter the total in litres or gallons,   or
the price per litre/gallon (but not both).  It will always
default to your last selection, (NOT the screen selection, as
I personally like to enter the total in litres and have the
screen show Miles/Gallon)  If you called the screen from an
account where the foreign currency option was selected, or
the global foreign currency option is selected, or the petrol
foreign currency option is selected you will also be offered a
foreign currency.  Put in a representative mileage for the
first entry  (Please Note:  this first entry MUST be the total
distance read directly off the odometer, NOT the distance
since the last entry.  For future entries you can choose
between the 2 systems.).  After entry, the screen will
indicate the baseline entry.

5.    Now type in another value, using either elapsed or
total distance. You should see that the spot MPG (or KPL
etc) has now been evaluated, and that the average MPG is
the same as the spot.  (Logical, of course, because it has
only 1 entry to work on. Once there are a number of entries
a genuine average MPG will be calculated.)

6.    This method of entering is really only for the case
where you pay cash for petrol.  If you pay by cheque or
plastic, you can enter it automatically.  To demonstrate this,
press <ESC> and then go into the Current Account.  Enter
a new transaction, filling in the details, but select the
'Display Advanced Options' to 'Yes'.  In the second screen
select the name of the vehicle in the 'Update Petrol
Manager' field.  After pressing <ENTER> you will be
presented with the 'Update History' dialog.  Fill in the details
as before.  Note that the cost is transferred as well, in case
you bought a newspaper or some chocolates on the same
VISA bill and you want to change it!!  On completion, go to
the Petrol screen and you should see that it has been
entered, and the MPGs/MPLs have altered accordingly.  (If
you call the entry 'Petrol' or 'Gas', it will automatically put
you into this mode.)

7.    Now try entering a second car (<PSION-N>) (don't
worry if you don't have one, you can delete it later).  The
screen will now display the new car, and you can repeat a
similar exercise as for the first car.  If you now enter a
petrol transaction you will see that an extra field has
appeared, allowing you to specify which car the purchase
relates to.   For this demo use the second car.  Pressing
<PSION-S> or the left arrow key in the Petrol screen will
give you the opportunity to return to the original car.

8.    Finally, go back to the petrol screen, select the
second car using <PSION-S> or the right arrow, and delete
it using <PSION--> (and the first one as well, if you don't
want to use this option).

9.    As of V1.5, I have incorporated a history display
exactly the same as that used in the Shares Module.  Rather
than have to explain it all again, use <PSION-V> to access
the screen, and see the instructions for the Shares History
for an explanation of the functions.  This screen also
includes a Statistics screen which gives you a breakdown of
your costs etc..

HOME CONTENTS
-------------
(Needs BANKSHOU.OVL loaded)

1.    This optional module is used to allow you to keep
track of the value of your possessions for the purposes of
insurance policies.  The module is very easy to use, and
simply contains details of every one of your possessions,
based on a description, a value, a serial number for your
electrical goodies such as the Series 3A, a room location
and a category.  The rooms and categories can be added,
updated and deleted from their individual screens, and can
be included (default) or excluded from the total value.  The
items can be entered either from the main room screen or
from the item description screen.   There is an option to
allow all the items to be uprated for inflation, (or
depreciation) (<PSION-L>) but if you do not want the Item
to be affected, simply select 'Purchase price' in the
'Replacement' field and the value will stay constant during
the uprating process.  From V1.6 you can also do this just
by Category.

2.    If you enter the 'Items' screen from the 'Rooms'
screen, then it will show the Items in that Room.  If you
enter the screen from the 'Categories' screen it will show the
Items in that Category.  You can quickly switch
rooms/categories using the hot key or the right/left arrows
and find an Item using the 'Find Item' option..

3.    You can have up to 10 different houses defined,
each with its own title.  Personally I have a house in the UK,
I am renting a house in the USA and have some other items
in long-term storage, so I need 3 Houses.  There is an option
available to Move/Copy Items between houses.

4.    The Print Routine allows you to print either all the
Items, or just those associated with a Room or a Category,
and in the Item screen you can sort the entries by a number
of parameters.

UTILITY MODULE
--------------
(Needs BANKSUTI.OVL loaded)

1.    This optional module is designed to allow you to
keep track of those Utilities you have that are metered, i.e.
Electricity, Water, Gas etc..  In my case I pay the bills
quarterly and I like to keep track of the figures weekly, so
that is how the module is designed.  I have allowed for 3
different utilities to be tracked, each of which can have 2
different meters (to allow for dual-meters with cheaper
overnight use),

2.    I believe the use of the module is fairly obvious, with
one exception, covered later.  Use <PSION-A>,
<PSION-B> and <PSION-C> to set up the 3 utilities, with
titles, Standing Charges, costs for each meter and any
applicable tax rate.

3.    Each week, you can enter the meter readings, and
the display will show the weekly usage as well as a running
total.  The only æoddityÆ is that when you first start the
program, it will calculate the total as though the previous
meter reading was zero.  Simply use the 'Initial Balance'
field in the Setup dialog to give the correct starting total.
This may take some trial and error to get right, but it
seemed the simplest solution to cover the possibility that
someone will start using this program part-way through a
billing cycle.

4.    Once a bill is received, this can be entered and will
be deducted from the running total.  (Enter the full amount
of the bill, including tax and the standing charge)

5.    All the usual keys are available, plus the extra one
that the right and left arrows move between the 3 utilities.
Also, I have given you the option of displaying more than 1
utility at a time by setting the number of windows.  In this
case, although you can still enter a meter reading for any of
the  utilities, if you wish to amend or delete a line, the
associated utility must be in the top 'Edit' screen.  Finally,
there is a 'Swap' facility in case you want to change the
order that the utilities appear in as you cycle through them
with the arrows.

EXPENSES MODULE
---------------
(Needs BANKSEXP.OVL loaded)

1.    Initially, a number of users (including me) tried to
use 'dummy' accounts and the Budget Categories to run
Expense Accounts, and we have all come to the conclusion
it doesn't work.  I have therefore, implemented a specially
designed module which is similar to the Transaction screen,
but optimised for an Expense Account.  I would like to
thank Andy Waller, who gave me the basic outline for what
was required and has spent a great deal of time making sure
I get it right.

2.    To use the module, enter it by using the Diamond
key, the Menu or <Shift-Psion-E>.  Start a new trip with
<PSION-N>, allocating a title and, if appropriate, an overall
expense allowance (total or per-diem), a vehicle/distance
rate (i.e. $0.11 a mile) and a currency.  Now we need to
build up some Categories.  Use <PSION-M> and enter
some representative Categories such as Food, Petrol, Hotel
etc.  (I did wonder about using the main Budget Categories
but decided it would be more flexible to hold a separate
set.)

3.    Now enter a couple of expenses (<PSION-E> or
<Enter>), selecting appropriate Amounts and Categories.
The screen displays the results.  Now enter a vehicle journey
(<PSION-J>).  The spend will be automatically calculated
from the distance and the distance rate.  The total distance
traveled is shown at the bottom of the screen, and if you
want to see the individual distances, then remove the Status
Screen (<CTRL-MENU>).

4.    Now, you can select a Category (or Distance) filter,
and only those entries which match the category are
displayed.  In this way you can find out individual totals for
each category.  Also, once the travel claim has been
submitted, entries can be reconciled in the same way as for
the Transaction screen and archived to a file, which can then
be viewed in the same fashion as the main archive.   Both
the main screen and the archive screen can be printed.

5.    The final column can either be 'Total Spent', or
'Amount Remaining' and can be set to show positive or
negative.

6.    Following some discussion with advanced users, we
decided to allocate each trip its own dedicated currency, to
avoid problems with exchange rates.

PRINTING MODULE
---------------
(Needs BANKSPRT.OVL and S3APRINT.DYL loaded)

1.    I believe the printing functions are relatively
straightforward, as they use similar routines as those
contained in the  built-in applications.  Use the æPrinter
ConfigurationÆ option in æSet PreferencesÆ to select Parallel,
Serial or File (This simply mirrors the function available in
the main System Screen), the æPrint SetupÆ option to define
the page layout, headers and footers etc. , the æPrint
PreviewÆ option to check it, and then the æPrintÆ function to
output the details.