Monster Media 1994 #1

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P R O F I T P L A N G E N E R A L L E D G E R U S E R 'S M A N U A L Silver Hill Development 1811 Porter Avenue Suitland, Md. 20746 (301) 736-7299 Copyright 1993 Silver Hill Development All Rights Reserved PROFIT PLAN GENERAL LEDGER Table of Contents Chapter 1 About Profit Plan General Ledger............. 3 Chapter 2 Getting Started.............................. 4 2.1 Setting Up General Ledger.................... 4 2.2 Running General Ledger....................... 4 2.3 General Ledger Terminology................... 5 Chapter 3 Entering System Information.................. 5 Chapter 4 Defining the Chart of Accounts............... 7 4.1 Departments.................................. 7 4.2 Account Groups............................... 8 4.3 Chart of Accounts........................... 10 Chapter 5 Preparing GL Data Files..................... 15 5.1 Source Codes................................ 15 5.2 Automatic Journal........................... 17 Chapter 6 Beginning Balances.......................... 19 6.1 Beginning at the Start of a New Period...... 19 6.2 Beginning During an Accounting Period....... 19 Chapter 7 General Ledger Processing................... 20 7.1 General Journal Entries..................... 20 7.2 Edit General Journal........................ 21 7.3 Post Journal Entries........................ 22 7.4 Generating Automatic Entries................ 22 7.5 Get Distributions........................... 23 7.6 Onscreen Account View....................... 24 7.7 Close Period/Year........................... 24 Chapter 8 General Ledger Reports and File Lists....... 24 8.1 Income Statement............................ 25 8.2 Balance Sheet............................... 25 8.3 Budget Report............................... 26 8.4 Trial Balance............................... 26 8.5 General Ledger.............................. 26 8.6 General Ledger Source Report................ 27 8.7 General Journal............................. 27 8.8 List Chart of Accounts...................... 27 8.9 List Automatic Entries...................... 28 8.10 List Account Groups......................... 28 8.11 List Source Codes........................... 29 8.12 List Departments............................ 29 Chapter 9 Maintenance Functions....................... 30 9.1 Rebuild Files............................... 30 9.2 Delete History.............................. 30 Page 3 1. A B O U T G E N E R A L L E D G E R Profit Plan General Ledger is a computerized double entry accounting system. Each entry that you make is recorded in a general journal file. Later, if you wish, you can change or delete any incorrect entries. When you are certain that all of your entries are correct, you can post them automatically to the general ledger. General Ledger can also be linked to the Accounts Payable, Service Billing, or Payroll modules at the summary or detail level and can automatically update the general journal with any entries that they create. When you are ready, General Ledger will automatically close your accounting periods and fiscal year. And when you need to, General Ledger enables you to print balance sheets and income statements and several helpful reports. Following is a more extensive listing of Profit Plan General Ledger features: * Permits accounting for more than 1,000 companies, assuming sufficient disk space. * Allows creation of up to 999 departments per company. * Saves all entries in a General Journal file and allows editing before posting to the general ledger. * Provides for onscreen review of activity for any account. * Optionally assigns a source code to each entry to identify its origin. * Can be linked to Profit Plan Service Billing, Accounts Payable, and/or Payroll. * Creates Automatic Journal entries. * Allows from 3 to 13 accounting periods. * Prints Income Statements and Balance Sheets showing current balances compared to budgeted and/or prior year amounts. * Automatically closes each accounting period. * Maintains prior period and prior year account balances. Before proceding, it is recommended that you become familiar with the information in the file INTRO.DOC. The manual in this file explains how to install the Profit Plan program files and begin to configure the system for your company. It also contains a general explanation of the Profit Plan system and outlines basic rules and conventions that the program follows. Page 4 2. G E T T I N G S T A R T E D This chapter outlines the steps necessary to configure General Ledger for your company and briefly describes some of the functions that you will need to use on a day-to-day basis. 2.1 SETTING UP GENERAL LEDGER You will probably need to set up General Ledger in three separate steps. First, you will need to define the basic General Ledger system information. This process is described in Chapter 3. Then, the General Ledger data files must be loaded. Chapter 4 explains how to load the Chart of Accounts file, the Department file, and the Account Groups file. Chapter 5 explains how to load the Source Code file and the Automatic Journal file. Lastly, you will have to create your beginning balances. This is covered in Chapter 6. It is most practical to enter beginning balances at the beginning of a new accounting period. 2.2 RUNNING GENERAL LEDGER After you have entered the General Ledger system information, loaded the data files, and created beginning balances, you will be prepared for regular processing. The GENERAL JOURNAL ENTRIES function is used to make entries directly to the general journal. You can then change any of these entries using the EDIT GENERAL JOURNAL function. Later, when you are ready, you can use the POST JOURNAL ENTRIES function to automatically post your general journal entries to the general ledger. The CREATE AUTOMATIC ENTRIES function can be used to create general journal entries that occur on a regular basis. If you link General Ledger to other Profit Plan modules, you can also use the GET DISTRIBUTIONS function to transfer any entries that they create to the general journal. At the end of each accounting period, you can use the CLOSE PERIOD/YEAR function to prepare your data files for the next period. General Ledger also allows you to analyze your data with several reports. The INCOME STATEMENT option prints a summary of your company's revenues and expenses. It can be formatted to show only current data or to include budget and/or prior year data. The BALANCE SHEET option prints a summary of your assets, liabilities, and equity and can also include budget and/or prior year data. Each of these can be printed for any or all departments. The BUDGET REPORT lists the budget amounts that you enter for each account. The TRIAL BALANCE report can be used to verify that your general ledger is in balance. You can print the GENERAL LEDGER report to list all current period general ledger Page 5 entries. The GL SOURCE REPORT enables you to list all of the current period general ledger entries grouped by source code. The GENERAL JOURNAL report lists all entries currently in your general journal. General Ledger allows the user to create new accounts and source codes "on the fly" as you enter transactions. However, you should be aware that when you use this feature you will not be able to enter period-to-date and year-to-date information for your accounts. If you need to enter this information, you should use the ENTER ACCOUNTS function to create the account. 2.3 GENERAL LEDGER TERMINOLOGY This document will use the following terms: Entry - An "entry" is a single line item in the general journal or general ledger. These may originate in other Profit Plan modules or you may create them manually with the GENERAL JOURNAL ENTRIES function. General Journal - The "general journal" is the file where each entry is originally recorded. As long as an entry remains in this file, it will be available for editing or deletion. General Ledger - The "general ledger" is where the actual accounting records will be kept. When entries are transferred from the general journal to the general ledger, it will no longer be possible to correct them without creating additional entries. Departmentalized Income - If your company uses departments, you have the option of calculating net income separately for each department. If you elect to use this option, net income for each department will be posted to a different departmental sub-account for the account that you specify as the Current Earnings account. At the end of the year, each department's net income will be posted to a different departmental sub-account for the account that you specify as the Retained Earnings account. 3. E N T E R I N G S Y S T E M I N F O R M A T I O N This chapter explains how to enter or change the basic General Ledger system information for your company. You must run the SYSTEM INFORMATION function at least once before using General Ledger on a regular basis. Select SYSTEM INFORMATION from the General Ledger System Maintenance menu. Page 6 You will first be asked if you want to edit the displayed system information. Answer "Y" to change the displayed information or "N" to return to the main menu. If you elect to continue, you will need to enter the following fields: Use Departments:Enter "Y" if your company uses departments or "N" if not. If you use departments, you will apply a 3-digit departmental sub-account to each main account number used by each department. You should be certain to make the correct entry in this field when first setting up a new company. Thereafter, switching departments on or off may prove impractical. Depart. Income:Enter "Y" if you want General Ledger to calculate net income separately for each department. During period closing operations, each department's net income will then be summed to the Current Earnings/Retained Earnings account for that department. All transactions not distributed to a specific department will be summed to the master Current Earnings/Retained Earnings account. If you enter "N" in this field, net income for all departments will be summed to the accounts that you specify below. If you do not use departments, this field is skipped. Keep History:Enter "Y" if you want to keep prior period general ledger entries on file. This will enable you to view additional detail using the ONSCREEN ACCOUNT VIEW function. If you enter "N" in this field, General Ledger will automatically remove all entries at the close of each period. Number of GL Periods:Specify the number of accounting periods in your fiscal year. General Ledger will allow from 3 to 13 accounting periods per year. Current Period:If you are setting up a company for the first time, you should enter the period prior to the accounting period in which you will begin using General Ledger, since you will close this period after entering beginning balances. Thereafter, this field will be updated automatically each time you close a period. Current Earnings Acct:This must be an equity account. Net income will be posted to this account at the end of each period. If you have elected not to use departments, you can simply enter a 5-digit account number. If you do use departments but do not departmentalize income, you will need to enter a 3-digit departmental sub-account in addition to the main account number. If you choose to use departments and departmentalize income, the departmental sub-account Page 7 will automatically be set to zero. Any transaction not distributed to a specific department will then be summed to this account at the close of each period. Retained Earnings Acct:This must also be an equity account. At the end of the fiscal year, the Current Earnings balance is added to this account. If you have elected not to use departments, you can simply enter a 5-digit account number. If you do use departments but do not departmentalize income, you will need to enter a 3-digit departmental sub-account in addition to the main account number. If you use departments and departmentalize income, the departmental sub-account will automatically be set to zero. GL Error Acct:Any entries to accounts not found in the chart of accounts are posted to this account. Whenever you update the general ledger, a report will be printed showing any such entries. You can then make any necessary correcting entries. After you complete these fields, a screen will appear for you to define the beginning and ending dates of each of your accounting periods. After you enter the ending date of the last period that you use, you will be asked if you want to save the information that you have entered. Answer "Y" to save and return to the main menu or "N" to return to the main menu without saving. 4. C R E A T I N G T H E C H A R T O F A C C O U N T S The best method of defining your Chart of Accounts will be determined by whether or not you use departments and whether or not you want your financial statements to show subtotal detail. If you use departments, you will need to create them as described in section 4.1. Otherwise, you can skip to section 4.2. 4.1 DEPARTMENTS Use this function to create, rename, or delete departments. Select ENTER DEPARTMENTS from the General Ledger File Maintenance Menu. You will be asked to enter a department code. At this point, you can: 1. Enter a new department code 2. Enter an existing department code 3. Press ENTER to return to the main menu If you want to create a new department, go to section 4.1.1. If you want to rename or delete an existing department, go to section 4.1.2. Page 8 4.1.1 CREATING A NEW DEPARTMENT Enter the numeric code that will represent this department. You will use this code to add a 3-digit extension to each account that this department uses. After you enter the code, you will be asked if you want to add a new department. Answer "Y" to continue or "N" to reenter the code. If you elect to continue, you will be asked to specify a description for this department. After you enter the description, you will be asked if you want to save the department. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save the department as shown on the screen 2. Answer "M" to reenter the description 3. Answer "Q" to abandon entry of this department Whether you save the department or not, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another department code as described in section 4.1. 4.1.2 CHANGING OR DELETING AN EXISTING DEPARTMENT Enter an existing department code or press F2 to use the lookup window to search for the correct code. After you enter the code, the screen will display the department's description and you will be asked if you want to change the description or delete the department. You can: 1. Answer "E" to edit the description 2. Answer "D" to delete the department 3. Answer "Q" to return to the previous screen If you elect to delete the department, you will be asked to confirm that you actually want to delete it. Answer "Y" to delete or "N" to return to the previous prompt. If you elect to edit the description, you will be asked if you want to save any changes that you have made. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save the department as shown on the screen 2. Answer "M" to reenter the description 3. Answer "Q" to abandon any changes that you have made Whether or not you save changes, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another department code as described in section 4.1. 4.2 ACCOUNT GROUPS To facilitate printing financial statements, General Ledger organizes accounts into eight categories. As you create accounts, you will be required to specify each account's category by entering one of the abbreviations below: ASSE - Asset LIAB - Liability EQUI - Equity Page 9 REVE - Revenue COST - Cost of Sales EXPE - Expense OTRE - Other Revenue OTEX - Other Expense When creating balance sheets, General Ledger will calculate and print totals for Asset, Liability, and Equity accounts. Totals for Revenue, Cost of Sales, Expense, Other Revenue, and Other Expense accounts appear on income statements. If you want your income statements and balance sheets to show additional subtotal detail, you can create account groups within any or all of the categories listed above. For instance, within the "Liability" category, you could create one group for "Current Liabilities" and another group for "Long-Term Liabilities." If you do not want to use account groups, you can skip this section and create accounts as described in section 4.3. If you choose to use account groups, you can use this function to create and modify them. Select ENTER ACCOUNT GROUPS from the General Ledger File Maintenance menu. You will be asked to enter an account group code. At this point, you can: 1. Enter a new account group code 2. Enter an existing account group code 3. Press ENTER to return to the main menu If you want to create a new group, go to section 4.2.1. If you want to modify or delete an existing group, go to section 4.2.2. 4.2.1 CREATING A NEW ACCOUNT GROUP Enter the code that will represent the new account group. You will then be asked if you want to create a new group. Answer "Y" to continue or "N" to reenter the code. If you elect to continue, you will need to enter the following fields: Category:Enter the abbreviation for the account category that this account group falls into. Description:Enter a description for this group. Statement Group:You must determine in what order account groups within a given category will appear on financial statements. The number that you enter here will determine where within the category specified above this group will appear. It is not necessary for statement group numbers to be consecutive. For example, you could designate the first group as statement group 1, the second group as statement group 5, and the third group as statement group 10. This would allow you to Page 10 insert additional account groups at a later date. However, in any case, the group that will appear first within a given category must always be designated as statement group 1. After completing the last field, you will be asked if you want to save this account group. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save the account group as shown on screen 2. Answer "M" to change the displayed information 3. Answer "Q" to abandon entry of this group Whether you elect to save the account group or not, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another account group code as described in section 4.2. 4.2.2 CHANGING OR DELETING AN EXISTING ACCOUNT GROUP Enter an existing account group code or press F2 to use the lookup window to search for the correct code. After you enter the code, the screen will display the information previously entered for this account group and you will be asked if you want to make changes or delete the group. You can: 1. Answer "E" to make changes to this group 2. Answer "D" to delete the group 3. Answer "Q" to return to the previous screen IMPORTANT NOTE:If you delete an account group, any accounts assigned to that group must have their group designations changed. The program does not force the user to do this. However, any account designated as belonging to a deleted account group will not appear on financial statements. If you elect to delete the group, you will be asked to confirm that you actually want to delete it. Answer "Y" to delete or "N" to return to the previous prompt. If you elect to make changes, you will need to reenter each displayed field as described in section 4.2.1. You will then be asked if you want to save any changes that you have made. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save the account group as shown on screen 2. Answer "M" to change the displayed information 3. Answer "Q" to abandon any changes that you have made Whether or not you save changes, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another account group code as described in section 4.2. 4.3 CHART OF ACCOUNTS Use this function to create, modify, or delete accounts in the Chart of Accounts file. Page 11 Select ENTER ACCOUNTS from the General Ledger File Maintenance Menu. You will be asked to enter an account number. At this point, you can: 1. Enter a new account number 2. Enter an existing account number 3. Press ENTER to return to the main menu If you want to create a new account, go to section 4.3.1. If you want to modify or delete an existing account, go to section 4.3.2. 4.3.1 CREATING A NEW ACCOUNT The exact method for creating accounts will differ slightly, depending on whether or not you elect to use departments. If you do not use departments, you can simply enter a 5-digit account number. The sub-account will automatically be set to zero. If you do use departments, you will have to enter the main account number as well as a 3-digit departmental sub-account to represent the appropriate department. Therefore, if you had two departments numbered "100" and "200" and both used account "10900" you would need to create two accounts:"10900-100" and "10900-200." When you create the first departmental account for a given account number, a master account with the same main account number and sub- account "000" will be created automatically (You will be asked to specify a description for the master account). All master accounts are non-posting accounts-you will not be able to create general journal entries for them. If you enter an account number with a sub-account of "000," the account will be created as a normal posting account and you will not be able to create departmental accounts with this main account number. After you enter a new account number, you will be asked if you want to create a new account. Answer "Y" to continue or "N" to reenter the account number. If you elect to continue, you will need to enter the following fields (If you are using departments and are creating a departmental account for which no master account has been created, you will first be asked to specify the description for the master account): Current Balance:You can enter a current or beginning balance for a new account, but it may be advisable to leave this field set to zero and enter beginning balances as described in chapter 6, "Enter Beginning Balances." You should enter balances here as positive amounts, except in unusual circumstances (i.e., a credit account with a debit balance or a debit account with a credit balance). Description:Enter a description for this account. Page 12 Category:Enter the abbreviation for the account category that this account falls into. Group:If you are using account groups within the category specified for this account, use this field to specify the account group that this account falls into. IMPORTANT NOTE:If you elect to use account groups for any particular category, all accounts for that category must be specified as belonging to a group within that category. The program does not force the user to do this. However, any accounts not designated as belonging to such a group will not appear on financial statements. Print Sequence:The number entered in this field determines in what order accounts appear on financial statements. If this account is specified as belonging to an account group, the number entered in this field determines where within that group this account will appear. Otherwise, it determines where within the specified account category it will appear. It is not necessary for these numbers to be consecutive. For example, you could designate the first account as print sequence 1, the second account as print sequence 5, and the third account as print sequence 10. This would allow you to insert additional accounts at a later date. The program will not prevent you from entering duplicate print sequence numbers. Therefore, if you are unconcerned about the order in which accounts will appear, you can enter any number in this field. However, in any case, at least one account within a given group or category must always be designated as print sequence 1. Active:Enter "Y" if this is an active account or "N" if this is an inactive account. You will not be able to create general journal entries for inactive accounts. Budget Type:The entry that you make in this field determines how budgets for this account are set. Enter "V" if you want to manually set variable period budgets. If you enter "A" here, the program will use the amount that you enter in the next field to automatically calculate the budget for each period according to the previous budget amounts. This feature will prove most useful when you need to change the budget for each period by a given percentage. Avg. Budget:If you are calculating budget amounts automatically, enter the new average budget amount in this field. The budget amount for each period will be changed by the same percentage so that the average for all periods equals the amount that you specify here. When you create a new account, all budget amounts for Page 13 the account will be set to this amount. If you are setting budget amounts manually, this field is skipped. BUDGET Per 1-13:If you are setting budget amounts manually, you will need to specify the budget amount for each period that you use. If you have calculated budgets automatically, budgets for each period that you use will have already been entered in each field and you can make any necessary changes. THIS YEAR Per 1-13:When creating a new account, you can enter account balances for each prior period of the current fiscal year. For income statement accounts, this will actually be the change in the account balance for each prior period. For balance sheet accounts, this will be the amount that the account actually contained at the end of each prior period. If you do not want to specify prior period balances, you can skip these fields. As you close each accounting period, the prior period balances for each account will be updated automatically. LAST YEAR Per 1-13:When creating a new account, you can enter account balances for each period of the prior fiscal year. For income statement accounts, this will actually be the change in the account balance for each period. For balance sheet accounts, this will be the amount that the account actually contained at the end of each period. If you do not want to specify period balances, you can skip these fields. After one year, the period balances for each account will begin to be updated automatically when you close accounting periods. After completing the last field, you will be asked if you want to save the account. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save the account as shown on screen 2. Answer "M" to change the displayed information 3. Answer "Q" to abandon entry of this account Whether you elect to save the account or not, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another account number as described in section 4.3. 4.3.2 CHANGING OR DELETING AN EXISTING ACCOUNT Enter the number of an existing account, including the 3-digit sub-account if you are using departments. You can also press the F2 key to use the lookup window to search for the correct account. After you enter the account number, the screen will display the information previously entered for this account and you will be asked if you want to make changes or delete the account. You can: Page 14 1. Answer "E" to make changes to this account 2. Answer "D" to delete the account 3. Answer "Q" to return to the previous screen IMPORTANT NOTE:You will not be able to delete an account that has general ledger entries on file or prior period balances not equal to zero. Also, before deleting a master account you must delete all departmental accounts with the same main account number. If you elect to delete the account, you will be asked to confirm that you actually want to delete it. Answer "Y" to delete or "N" to return to the previous prompt. If you elect to make changes, you can change any of the following fields: Description:Enter a new description for this account. Category:Enter the abbreviation for the account category that this account falls into. Group:If you are using account groups within the category specified for this account, use this field to specify the account group that this account falls into. IMPORTANT NOTE:If you elect to use account groups for any particular category, all accounts for that category must be specified as belonging to a group within that category. The program does not force the user to do this. However, any accounts not designated as belonging to such a group will not appear on financial statements. Print Sequence:The number entered in this field determines in what order accounts appear on financial statements. If this account is specified as belonging to an account group, the number entered in this field determines where within that group this account will appear. Otherwise, it determines where within the specified account category it will appear. It is not necessary for these numbers to be consecutive. For example, you could designate the first account as print sequence 1, the second account as print sequence 5, and the third account as print sequence 10. This would allow you to insert additional accounts at a later date. The program will not prevent you from entering duplicate print sequence numbers. Therefore, if you are unconcerned about the order in which accounts will appear, you can enter any number in this field. However, in any case, at least one account within a given group or category must always be designated as print sequence 1. Active:Enter "Y" if this is an active account or "N" if this is an inactive account. You will not be able to create general journal entries for inactive accounts. Page 15 Budget Type:The entry that you make in this field determines how budgets for this account are set. Enter "V" if you want to manually set variable period budgets. If you enter "A" here, the program will use the amount that you enter in the next field to automatically calculate the budget for each period according to the previous budget amounts. This feature will prove most useful when you need to change the budget for each period by a given percentage. Avg. Budget:If you are calculating budget amounts automatically, enter the new average budget amount in this field. The budget amount for each period will be changed by the same percentage so that the average for all periods equals the amount that you specify here. If you are setting budget amounts manually, this field is skipped. BUDGET Per 1-13:If you are setting budget amounts manually, you will need to specify the budget amount for each period that you use. If you have calculated budgets automatically, budgets for each period that you use will have already been entered in each field and you can make any necessary changes. After completing the last field, you will be asked if you want to save any changes that you have made. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save the account as shown on screen 2. Answer "M" to change the displayed information 3. Answer "Q" to abandon any changes that you have made Whether or not you save changes, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another account number as described in section 4.3. 5. P R E P A R I N G GL D A T A F I L E S In addition to the Chart of Accounts file, there are two other files that you may need to prepare before using General Ledger on a regular basis. The Source Code file enables you to create source codes to identify the origin of any entry and the Automatic Journal file enables you to automatically create general journal entries that occur on a regular basis, such as rent or depreciation. 5.1 SOURCE CODES Use this function to create, modify, or delete source codes. Source codes allow you to identify the origin of each entry. As you create general journal entries, you can apply a source code to each individual entry. You can then print the GL Source Report to Page 16 list entries for any range of source codes. This feature is optional unless you have chosen to link General Ledger to other Profit Plan modules. If you are linked to other modules, you will need to create the following source codes: 1. "SB" for entries from Service Billing 2. "AP" for entries from Accounts Payable 3. "PR" for entries from Payroll Select ENTER SOURCE CODES from the General Ledger File Maintenance Menu. You will be asked to enter a source code. At this point, you can: 1. Enter a new source code 2. Enter an existing source code 3. Press ENTER to return to the main menu If you want to create a new source code, go to section 5.1.1. If you want to rename or delete an existing source code, go to section 5.1.2. 5.1.1 CREATING A NEW SOURCE CODE Enter the 2-character code that will represent this source code. After you enter this code, you will be asked if you want to add a new source code. Answer "Y" to continue or "N" to reenter the code. If you elect to continue, you will be asked to specify a description for this source code. After you enter the description, you will be asked if you want to save the code. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save the source code as shown on the screen 2. Answer "M" to reenter the description 3. Answer "Q" to abandon entry of this source code Whether you save the source code or not, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another source code as described in section 5.1. 5.1.2 CHANGING OR DELETING AN EXISTING SOURCE CODE Enter an existing source code or press F2 to use the lookup window to search for the correct code. After you enter the code, the screen will display the source code's description and you will be asked if you want to change the description or delete the source code. You can: 1. Answer "E" to edit the source code 2. Answer "D" to delete the source code 3. Answer "Q" to return to the previous screen If you elect to delete the code, you will be asked to confirm that you actually want to delete it. Answer "Y" to delete or "N" to return to the previous prompt. If you elect to edit the Page 17 description, you will be asked if you want to save any changes that you have made. You can: 1. Answer "S" to save this code as shown on the screen 2. Answer "M" to reenter the description 3. Answer "Q" to abandon any changes that you have made Whether or not you save changes, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another source code as described in section 5.1. 5.2 AUTOMATIC JOURNAL Use this function to create, modify, or delete automatic journal codes. You can then use these codes create general journal entries automatically as described in section 7.4. Select ENTER AUTOMATIC JOURNAL from the General Ledger File Maintenance menu. You will be asked to enter an automatic journal code. At this point, you can: 1. Enter a new automatic journal code 2. Enter an existing automatic journal code 3. Press ENTER to return to the main menu If you want to create a new automatic journal code, go to section 5.2.1. If you want to modify or delete an existing code, go to section 5.2.2. 5.2.1 CREATING A NEW AUTOMATIC JOURNAL CODE Enter a new automatic journal code. After you enter this code, you will be asked if you want to add a new code. Answer "Y" to continue or "N" to reenter the code. If you elect to continue, you can proceed to enter the header information and up to a maximum of 500 line items. Enter the following fields to define the header information: Frequency:Use this field to specify how often this code is to be used. Enter "D" for daily, "W" for weekly, "B" for biweekly, "S" for semi-monthly, "M" for monthly, "Q" for quarterly, or "A" for anually. Next Date:Enter the next date that lines for this code are to be created. Type:You can specify a "type" for this code. This is for your reference only; the program does not use this field. Active:Enter "Y" if this code is currently active or "N" Page 18 if it is not. Inactive codes will not create general journal entries. After completing the header information, you can enter line items for this code. You will need to enter the following fields: Account No:Enter the General Ledger account number for this line or press ENTER to complete entry of this code. If you enter an account number that does not exist in the Chart of Accounts file, you will be given a chance to create it. Description:Enter a description for this line. Source:You can enter a source code to identify the origin of this line. If you enter a source code that is not on file, you will be given a chance to create it. Reference:You can make an entry in this field to further identify this line item. Debit/Credit:Enter the dollar amount of this line item in one of these fields. You will not be able to make an entry in both fields. Upon completion of each line item, you will be asked if you want to save the line just entered. Answer "Y" to save or "N" to erase the line and enter another. Also, a running balance of all lines for this code appears on the screen. After you have entered all of the information for the code, you will be asked if you want to save the code as entered. Answer "Y" to save or "N" to abandon entry of this automatic journal code. In either case, you will be returned to the previous screen and asked to enter another automatic journal code as described in section 5.2. 5.2.2 CHANGING OR DELETING AN AUTOMATIC JOURNAL CODE Enter an existing automatic journal code. After you enter the code, the screen will display the header information and the first line item for the code. You can: 1. Press "E" to edit the displayed line item information 2. Press "C" to edit the displayed header information 3. Press "D" to delete the displayed line 4. Press "A" to add a line for this code 5. Press PgUp to display the previous line item 6. Press PgDn to display the next line item 7. Press DELETE delete the selected code 8. Press ESC to return to the previous screen If you elect to edit the header or line item information or add a line, you will need to enter the appropriate fields as described in section 5.2.1. If you delete a line, the program will mark it Page 19 as deleted, but will not actually delete it unless you elect to save changes to this code. You can recall such a line at any time prior to saving changes. Whether or not you make any changes, you can press ESC to return to the previous screen. 6. B E G I N N I N G B A L A N C E S In order to bring the system up to date, you must establish beginning balances for each of your accounts. The best method of establishing beginning balances will depend on when you plan to begin using General Ledger on a regular basis. If you will begin using General Ledger at the start of an accounting period, continue to section 6.1. If you are beginning in the middle of an accounting period, skip to section 6.2. 6.1 BEGINNING AT THE START OF A NEW PERIOD To begin using General Ledger at the start of an accounting period, you will need to know the current balance of each account in your chart of accounts. You should also be certain that the current period is set to the period prior to the accounting period in which you will begin using General Ledger. To actually establish beginning balances, you must create a general journal entry for each account in the amount of that account's current balance. You will not need to make entries for accounts with a zero balance. Since this is the beginning of a new accounting period, you should need to make entries only for balance sheet accounts. The procedure for making general journal entries is described in section 7.1. When you have made an entry for each account, the the balance of your entries should be $0.00. After you create the necessary entries, you must run the POST JOURNAL ENTRIES function to update the accounts. This function is described in section 7.3. If your entries are not in balance, you will not be able to post them. You should then print the Journal Entry Register to compare your entries with your actual account balances. You can use the EDIT GENERAL JOURNAL function (section 7.2) to make any necessary corrections. After you have created and posted all of your entries, you may wish to run the INCOME STATEMENT, BALANCE SHEET, and TRIAL BALANCE reports to be certain that all account balances are correct. Lastly, you must run the CLOSE PERIOD/YEAR function to bring General Ledger into the current accounting period. Assuming that all of your data files have been prepared, you can then begin to use General Ledger on a regular basis. 6.2 BEGINNING DURING AN ACCOUNTING PERIOD To begin using General Ledger in the middle of an accounting Page 20 period, you will need to know the balance of each account in your chart of accounts as of the beginning of the current period. You should also be certain that the current period is set to the period prior to the accounting period in which you will begin using General Ledger. You must then create a general journal entry for each account in the amount of that account's balance as of the beginning of the period. You will not need to make entries for accounts with a zero balance. Since you have returned to the beginning of the accounting period, you should need to make entries only for balance sheet accounts. The procedure for making general journal entries is described in section 7.1. When you have made an entry for each account, the the balance of your entries should be $0.00. After you create the necessary entries, you must run the POST JOURNAL ENTRIES function to update the accounts. This function is described in section 7.3. If your entries are not in balance, you will not be able to post them. You should then print the Journal Entry Register to compare your entries with your actual account balances. You can use the EDIT GENERAL JOURNAL function (section 7.2) to make any necessary corrections. After you have created and posted all of your entries, you may wish to run the INCOME STATEMENT, BALANCE SHEET, and TRIAL BALANCE reports to be certain that all account balances are correct. Next, you must run the CLOSE PERIOD/YEAR function to bring General Ledger into the current accounting period. You will then need to use the GENERAL JOURNAL ENTRIES function to manually create each entry for the current period. Lastly, you must run the POST JOURNAL ENTRIES function to update the accounts. If your entries are not in balance, you will not be able to post them. You should then print the Journal Entry Register to review your entries. Use the EDIT GENERAL JOURNAL function to make any necessary corrections. Assuming that all of your data files have been prepared, you can then begin to use General Ledger on a regular basis. 7. G E N E R A L L E D G E R P R O C E S S I N G This chapter describes the General Ledger functions that you will most likely use on a day-to-day basis. 7.1 GENERAL JOURNAL ENTRIES Use this function to apply debits or credits to any General Ledger account. Each entry that you create will be saved in the General Journal file. Select GENERAL JOURNAL ENTRIES from the General Ledger main menu. Page 21 As you create general journal entries, an Entry Group number and a Line number are displayed on the screen. General Ledger assigns a unique Entry Group number to each group of entries that you create. A Line number is assigned to each entry within each group. A running balance (debits-credits) for the group is also displayed at the top of the screen. A zero balance means that the current group is in balance, but you can create and save unbalanced entry groups if you wish. For each line, you will need to complete the following fields: Account No:Enter the General Ledger account number for this line or press ENTER to complete entry of this group. If you enter an account number that does not exist in the Chart of Accounts file, you will be given a chance to create it. Description:Enter a description for this line. Date:Enter the date for this line. Source:You can enter a source code to identify the origin of this line. If you enter a source code that is not on file, you will be given a chance to create it. Reference:You can make an entry in this field to further identify this line item. Debit/Credit:Enter the dollar amount of this line item in one of these fields. You will not be able to make an entry in both fields. Upon completion of each line item, you will be asked if you want to save the line just entered. Answer "Y" to save or "N" to erase the line and enter another. After you have entered all of the information for the entry group, you will be asked if you want to save the group as entered. Answer "Y" to save or "N" to abandon this entry group. You will then be returned to the main menu. 7.2 EDIT GENERAL JOURNAL Use this function to make changes to the General Journal. Select EDIT GENERAL JOURNAL from the General Ledger main menu. The screen will display the first line for the first entry group on file. It also shows the current balance for all general journal entries currently on file. You can: 1. Press "E" to make changes to this line 2. Press "D" to delete the line 3. Press PgUp to display the previous line Page 22 4. Press PgDn to display the next line 5. Press ESC to return to the main menu If you elect to delete the line, you will be asked to confirm that you actually want to delete it. Answer "Y" to delete or "N" to return to the previous prompt. If you elect to make changes, you will need to reenter each displayed field as described in section 7.1. If you delete a line, the program will mark it as deleted and will not post it to the general ledger. You can recall such a line at any time prior to running the POST JOURNAL ENTRIES function. Whether or not you make any changes, you can press ESC to return to the main menu. 7.3 POST JOURNAL ENTRIES This function posts general journal entries to the general ledger, updates the appropriate accounts, prints the Journal Entries Posting Register, and empties the General Journal file. Select POST JOURNAL ENTRIES from the General Ledger main menu. If the general journal is not in balance, you will not be able to post. You will, however, be given the option of printing a posting register so that you can review the entries on file. If the general journal is in balance, you can simply select the device for the posting register. If you then elect to continue, the appropriate files are updated and the Journal Entries Posting Register is printed. Entries for this posting will be assigned the next available General Ledger batch number. All entries for invalid accounts will be posted to the General Ledger Error Account. If this account is not found in the chart of accounts, you will not be able to post. 7.4 GENERATING AUTOMATIC ENTRIES If you have created automatic journal codes as described in chapter 5, the CREATE AUTOMATIC ENTRIES function will use these codes to create general journal entries. Select CREATE AUTOMATIC ENTRIES from the General Ledger main menu. You will first be asked to specify a date. General Ledger uses this date to determine which automatic entries are due to be created. General journal entries will be created for all automatic journal codes with a "Next Date" on or before this date. These entries will be assigned the next available Entry Group number. After specifying a date, you will be asked if you want to list the entries that are due as of this date. Answer "Y" if you want to print a report or "N" to skip this option. If you elect to print the report, you will need to select the report device. Lastly, you will be asked if you want to create the general Page 23 journal entries due on the specified date. Answer "Y" to create entries or "N" to return to the main menu. If you elect to create entries, the General Journal file will be updated automatically and you will be informed when the update is complete. 7.5 GET DISTRIBUTIONS Use this function to transfer entries from the Service Billing, Payroll, and Accounts Payable linking files to the General Journal file. Select GET DISTRIBUTIONS from the General Ledger main menu. When you select the GENERAL JOURNAL ENTRIES function from the Service Billing, Payroll, or Accounts Payable modules, entries are created in linking files. This function automatically transfers these entries to the General Journal file. The next available entry group number is automatically assigned to these entries. IMPORTANT NOTE:Due to the large number of entries that may be transferred, it is recommended that any general journal entries currently on file be posted to the general ledger before using this function. If there are no entries to transfer, General Ledger will display a message and return you to the main menu. If there are any entries to transfer, you can enter the following fields: Update from Accounts Payable:Enter "Y" to transfer entries from the Accounts Payable linking file to the General Journal file. You will not be able to make an entry for this field if there are no Accounts Payable entries on file. Update from Service Billing:Enter "Y" to transfer entries from the Service Billing linking file to the General Journal file. You will not be able to make an entry for this field if there are no Service Billing entries on file. Update from Payroll:Enter "Y" to transfer entries from the Payroll linking file to the General Journal file. You will not be able to make an entry for this field if there are no Payroll entries on file. General Ledger will then ask if you want to continue. Answer "Y" to process the module(s) you have selected or "N" to return to the main menu. If you elect to continue, all entries from the module(s) you select will be transferred to the general journal, the appropriate linking files will be emptied, and you will be returned to the main menu. Page 24 7.6 ONSCREEN ACCOUNT VIEW You can use this function to review the general ledger entries for any account. Select ONSCREEN ACCOUNT VIEW from the General Ledger main menu. You will be asked to enter an account number. Enter the number of an existing account, including the 3-digit sub-account if you are using departments. You can also press the F2 key to use the lookup window to search for the correct account. Press ENTER if you want to return to the main menu. After you enter a valid account number, the function will display the first entry on file for the account. You can then review the details of each entry for this account using the PgUp and PgDn keys or press ESC to return to the previous screen to enter another account number. NOTE:This function always displays the actual balance for each account. Credit balances are shown as negative amounts. 7.7 CLOSE PERIOD/YEAR This function performs all of the procedures necessary to close the current accounting period and prints a list of all general ledger entries for the current period. If the current period is the last of the fiscal year, it automatically closes the year. Revenues and expenses are summed to the Current Earnings account. The current balances for revenue and expense accounts are then set to zero. When closing the year, the Current Earnings balance will be moved to the Retained Earnings account. Select CLOSE PERIOD/YEAR from the General Ledger System Maintenance Menu. You will be asked to specify the final date of the current period. The default date will be the date that you specified as the end of the current period when you ran the SYSTEM INFORMATION function. If you change the date, the date that you enter here will become the new ending date for this period. The program will not accept a date earlier than the beginning date for the period. After entering the date, you will need to specify the device for the report. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then perform all period ending procedures and print the report. 8. R E P O R T S A N D F I L E L I S T S This chapter describes the various General Ledger reports and file lists. Most reports and file lists can be formatted to include only the items that you want. None of the reports updates General Ledger data files. Page 25 8.1 INCOME STATEMENT This report shows your company's revenues and expenses for the current period and for the current year-to-date. You can format the report to show only current balances or to include budget and prior year data. Select INCOME STATEMENT from the General Ledger Reports menu. To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Show Budget Amounts:Enter "Y" if you want the report to show budget amounts alongside the current balances or "N" to exclude budget amounts. Show Prior Year Amounts:Enter "Y" if you want the report to show prior year amounts alongside the current balances or "N" to exclude prior year amounts. Department:Enter the number of the department for which you want to print an income statement. Only accounts with the departmental sub-account that you specify here will appear on the report. If you want the report to cover all departments, leave this field set to zero. This field only appears if your company uses departments. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the report device. If you have elected to show budget or prior year amounts, you will not be able to direct this report to the screen. 8.2 BALANCE SHEET This report shows your company's assets, liabilities, and equity. You can format the report to show only current balances or to include budget and prior year data. Select BALANCE SHEET from the General Ledger Reports menu. To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Show Budget Amounts:Enter "Y" if you want the report to show budget amounts alongside the current balances or "N" to exclude budget amounts. Show Prior Year Amounts:Enter "Y" if you want the report to show prior year amounts alongside the current balances or "N" to exclude prior year amounts. Reporting Period End:The date that you enter here will appear on the report header, but does not affect the account balances that appear on the report. Department:Enter the number of the department for which you want to print the balance sheet. Only accounts with Page 26 the departmental sub-account that you specify here will appear on the report. If you want the report to cover all departments, leave this field set to zero. This field only appears if your company uses departments. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the device for the report. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then print or display the report. 8.3 BUDGET REPORT This report lists budget amounts for each account in your chart of accounts. Accounts are printed in order by account category and group. The report also prints the budget totals for each category and group. Select BUDGET REPORT from the General Ledger Reports menu. If your company does not use departments, you can simply select the report device. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then print the report. If your company uses departments, you will first be asked to enter a department number. Only accounts with this departmental sub-account will appear on the report. If you want the report to cover all departments, leave this field set to zero. You can then proceed to select the report device. Since this report requires 132 columns, there is no option to display the report. 8.4 TRIAL BALANCE This report can be used to verify that your general ledger is in balance. For each account, the report first lists any current period general ledger entries. It then shows the beginning balance for the period, the ending or current balance, the total debits, and the total credits for each account. Select TRIAL BALANCE from the General Ledger Reports menu. If your company does not use departments, you can simply select the report device. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then print or display the report. If your company uses departments, you will first be asked to enter a department number. Only accounts with this departmental sub-account will appear on the report. If you want the report to cover all departments, leave this field set to zero. You can then proceed to select the report device. 8.5 GENERAL LEDGER This report lists all current period general ledger entries. Page 27 Select GENERAL LEDGER from the General Ledger Reports menu. If your company does not use departments, you can simply select the report device. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then print or display the report. If your company uses departments, you will first be asked to enter a department number. Only entries for accounts with this departmental sub-account will appear on the report. If you want the report to cover all departments, leave this field set to zero. You can then proceed to select the report device. 8.6 GENERAL LEDGER SOURCE REPORT This report lists all current period general ledger entries for each general ledger source code. It can be printed or displayed for one source code, any range of source codes, or all source codes. Select GL SOURCE REPORT from the General Ledger Reports menu. To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Beginning Code:Enter the first source code to include in the report or skip this field to begin with the first code. Ending Code:Enter the final source code to include in the report or skip this field to end with the last code. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the device for the report. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then print or display the report. 8.7 GENERAL JOURNAL This report lists all general journal entries currently on file. Select GENERAL JOURNAL from the General Ledger Reports menu. To print this report, simply select the report device. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then print the report and return you to the main menu. Since this report requires 132 columns, there is no option to display the report. 8.8 LIST CHART OF ACCOUNTS This report lists the accounts in the Chart of Accounts file. It can be printed or displayed for one account, any range of accounts, or all accounts. Select LIST CHART OF ACCOUNTS from the General Ledger File Lists menu. Page 28 To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Beginning Account:Enter the first account to include in the report or skip this field to begin with the first account. Ending Account:Enter the final account to include in the report or skip this field to end with the last account. Show Data:Enter "Y" in this field if you want the report to show prior period, budget, and prior year information for each account. Enter "N" if you do not want to include this information. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the report device. If you have elected to show prior period, budget and prior year amounts, you will not be able to direct this report to the screen. 8.9 LIST AUTOMATIC ENTRIES This report lists all entries for each Automatic Journal code. It can be printed or displayed for any or all Automatic Journal codes. Select LIST AUTOMATIC ENTRIES from the General Ledger File Lists menu. To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Beginning Code:Enter the first code to include in the report or skip this field to begin with the first code. Ending Code:Enter the final code to include in the report or skip this field to end with the last code. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the report device. General Ledger will then print or display the report. 8.10 LIST ACCOUNT GROUPS This report lists the account groups currently on file. It can be printed or displayed for any or all account groups. Select LIST ACCOUNT GROUPS from the General Ledger File Lists menu. To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Beginning Group:Enter the first group code to include in Page 29 the report or skip this field to begin with the first group. Ending Goup:Enter the final group code to include in the report or skip this field to end with the last group. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the report device. General Ledger will then print or display the report. 8.11 LIST SOURCE CODES This report lists the source codes currently on file. It can be printed or displayed for any or all source codes. Select LIST SOURCE CODES from the General Ledger File Lists menu. To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Beginning Code:Enter the first source code to include in the report or skip this field to begin with the first source code. Ending Code:Enter the final source code to include in the report or skip this field to end with the last source code. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the report device. General Ledger will then print or display the report. 8.12 LIST DEPARTMENTS This report lists the departments for your company. It can be printed or displayed for any or all departments. Select LIST DEPARTMENTS from the General Ledger File Lists menu. To format the report, you will need to enter the following fields: Beginning Department:Enter the first department code to include in the report or skip this field to begin with the first department. Ending Department:Enter the final department code to include in the report or skip this field to end with the last department. After completing the above fields, you will need to specify the report device. General Ledger will then print or display the report. Page 30 9. M A I N T E N A N C E F U N C T I O N S General Ledger includes two functions that you should rarely, if ever, need to use. The REBUILD GENERAL LEDGER FILES function enables you to conserve disk space and to recover from certain errors. You can use the DELETE HISTORY function to remove old general ledger entries and further conserve disk space. 9.1 REBUILD FILES Unless you need to recover disk space, you will probably never need to use this function. If, however, you find that some reports are not showing all records or that you are not able to access certain records, rebuilding your data files may correct the problem. Select REBUILD FILES from the General Ledger System Maintenance menu. You will first be asked if you want to include GL History files. Answer "Y" if you want to rebuild the Transaction History file. If this file contains a large number of entries, this may be time consuming. Answer "N" to rebuild all files except for this one. You will then be asked if you want to continue and rebuild your files. Answer "Y" to continue or "N" to return to the main menu. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then rebuild your files and return automatically to the main menu. 9.2 DELETE HISTORY You can use this function to delete entries from the Transaction History file. If the file contains a large number of entries, this may be time consuming, but can conserve considerable disk space. Select DELETE HISTORY from the General Ledger System Maintenance menu. You will need to enter the following fields: Cutoff Batch:Enter a general ledger batch number. All general ledger entries up to and including the batch number that you enter here will be deleted. List Deletions:Answer "Y" if you want to print a list of all entries that will be deleted first. You will then have a chance to review this list before proceding. Enter "N" in this field if you do not want to print a report. If you elect to print the report, you will need to specify the device for the report. If you elect to continue, General Ledger will then print the report. Otherwise, you will be asked if you Page 31 want to continue and remove the entries. Answer "Y" to continue or "N" to return to the main menu.