Copyright: Computer Associates 1993


->Index Page
Newcomer Hints Index

Turning Newcomer Hints Off

Startup

New Finance Group Dialog

Open Finance Group Dialog

Modify Finance Group Dialog

Delete Finance Group Dialog

Backup Finance Group Dialog

Restore Finance Group Dialog

Exit Program with Backup

Payee Setup

Import Dialog

Export Dialog

Tax Export Dialog

Category Editor Dialog

Classification Editor Dialog

Auto Budget Feature

Budget Setup

Security Editor

Security Type Editor

Security Goal Editor

Report List Dialog

Graph List Dialog

Graph Options Dialog

Find Dialog

Schedule Dialog

Financial Advisor Dialog

Initial Setup Dialog

Background Patterns Dialog

Record Paycheck Dialog

Create Income Source Dialog

RecordIncome Dialog

Using Check Book

Using Savings Account Dialogs

Using Credit Card Dialog

Using Cash Account Dialogs

Using Mortgage Account Dialogs

Using Investment Dialog

Using Credit Line Dialogs

Using Liability Account Dialog

Using Asset Account Dialog

Using Payroll Account Dialog

Account Setup-Add

Account Registers

Distribution Register

Buttons Just Adjusted

Standard Laser Checks Page Feed Options

Print Checks Setup

Check Layout

Continuous Feed Checks - Alignment

Page Feed Checks - Alignment

Checking Account Just Created

Account Just Created


Program Startup
Newcomer Hints

This is a Newcomer Hint.  Hints appear when you encounter something new in CA-Simply Money.  They explain the purpose and basic use of features.  Hide a Hint by clicking anywhere on the screen outside the Hint..  To turn off Newcomer Hints altogether, select Settings:General... from the System menu and then click off the checkbox labeled "Newcomer Hints."

Help

Hints just provide an overview of each feature.  For detailed procedural assistance, use the Help facility.  Help is available throughout CA-Simply Money.  Each main window has a Help button on the lower left hand side of the window in the tool rack.  Just click on this button or press F1 for overall Help.  Additionally, just about every dialog has a Help button to provide you with specific instructions on using that feature of CA-Simply Money.


New Finance Group Dialog
New Finance Group

Finance Groups are collections of Income Sources, Accounts and Payees.  Create a New Finance Group to keep track of finances for a household or small business.  In most cases, you only need one Finance Group, into which goes all of your Income  Sources, Accounts and Payees.  However, you might want a second Finance Group to keep track of a small business.  Advanced users might also set up separate Finance Groups to store records for specific periods of time using the Archive feature.


Open Finance Group Dialog
Open Finance Group

Lets you switch to another Finance Group.  Select the Finance Group to switch to and click OK.

Special Hint for Advanced Users

If you discover you need to consolidate two Finance Groups, export one using the MXF export format, switch to the other Finance Group using the Open Finance Group feature and import the previously exported file.


Modify Finance Group Dialog
Change Finance Group Name

CA-Simply Money uses long descriptive names with optional comments for Finance Groups.  This makes it easy to remember the contents of each Finance Group.  Use this dialog to change the name or comments associated with a Finance Group.


Delete Finance Group Dialog
Delete Finance Group

Deletes the Selected Finance Group and all its records.  All Income Sources, Accounts and Payees, along with all associated transaction records will be lost.  This is an irreversible operation so please use caution!  You may wish to backup the Finance Group first in case you change your mind later.  The Backup feature is found on the File menu.


Backup Finance Group Dialog
Backup

Makes a copy of a Finance Group as a safeguard against computer crashes or other calamities.  We recommend that backups of all active Finance Groups be done after each CA-Simply Money session, preferably to a rotating set of diskettes.


Restore Finance Group Dialog
Restore

Returns a previously backed up Finance Group to active status.  After restoring, the previously backed up Finance Group can be opened using the File:Open feature.


Exit Program (w/ Backup)
Exit (with Backup)

This is your last opportunity to backup the current Finance Group before exiting the program.  We strongly recommend that you make periodic backups of your Finance Groups to floppy disks to guard against computer crashes and other calamities.  Simply select the destination disk and subdirectory and click OK.  Click Exit to leave CA-Simply Money without backing up.  You can disable this backup warning by clicking off the checkbox found on the Reminders dialog on the System:Setting menu.


Import Dialog
Import

Use this feature to read in financial records from other software programs, other Finance Groups or from records downloaded from BillPay USA (Prodigy's electronic bill payment service).  CA-Simply Money reads three types of import records.  They are:

MXF files.  This format is exported by CA-Simply Money.  It is a more complete format than QIF and is recommended if you plan to consolidate records between two Finance Groups.

QIF files.  This format was popularized by another financial management program.  There are several variants of this format.  CA-Simply Money reads them all.

BMF files.  This is a special version of a QIF file which is saved to your drive by the BillPay USA service of Prodigy.  It is used to update your records after using BillPay USA to make electronic payments.


Export Dialog
Export

Use this feature to save your transaction records in a form that can be read (imported) by other software.  There are two basic types of exported files.

QIF.  These types of files are used by many popular financial programs to exchange rudimentary transaction information.  QIF files are ASCII files, which means they can be examined with a word processor. See the User Guide or on-line Help for information on the many varieties of QIF export supported by CA-Simply Money.

MXF.  This is the native export format for CA-Simply Money.  MXF is an ASCII format, which means these files can be examined with a word processor.  All aspects of your financial records, including button icons and other information unique to CA-Simply Money are included in an MXF file.  Since MXF is more complete than QIF, we recommend that you always use MXF if you plan to read the information back into CA-Simply Money.  For example, use MXF if you plan to consolidate two Finance Groups.

In addition to the options shown on the "Export CA-Simply Money Data" dialog,  there are three other ways to export information from CA-Simply Money.  These features are found in other places in the program:

To export your records for use with popular tax preparation packages, use the Tax Export feature found on the File menu.

DDE (Dynamic Data Exchange) lets most Windows programs gain access to your data directly.  See the User Guide for further information (general information on using the spreadsheet samples included and specific technical information on using DDE with CA-Simply Money).

The final export method is to save reports to disk as ASCII (standard text) files or as "comma delimited" records.  Comma delimited records can be imported by many spreadsheets.  Look in the reports section of the User Guide for further information on this feature.


Tax Export Dialog
Tax Export

Use this feature to write a TXF tax export file.  These types of files are used by most popular tax preparation programs.  To use the TXF feature you first must assign tax codes to the income and expense budget categories you use.  Use the Category Editor to assign these codes.  Then, as you categorize transactions involving income and expense, CA-Simply Money automatically associates the transaction with the appropriate tax code.  The Tax Export feature writes the transactions and the associated tax codes to a file in a format that can be read by the tax preparation programs.  If you are careful and complete when entering your financial records, then CA-Simply Money -- in combination with a tax preparation program -- can make filling out your tax return an automatic process.


Category Editor Dialog
Category Editor

The category editor adds or modifies income, expense, asset and liability categories.  Categories are used to track cash flows and for budgeting.

Modify

Changes the name and description of the category.  For Income and Expense categories, you may optionally set the Tax Flag and associate the category with an IRS tax code.  The Tax Flag is used for certain reports and indicates that this is a category with possible tax significance.  The tax codes are used to produce reports and for exporting TXF files for use by tax preparation software.

Move

Shifts the location of the category within the category list.  For instance, you might have Fuel as a subcategory of Auto, then decide that Fuel should be at the same level in the list as Auto.  For advanced users: Move can also be used to move categories between types.  For instance, it could be used to change an expense category into a liability.  This will have serious accounting effects and should only be done by the knowledgeable user.

Merge

Collapses all references to the category into the parent category.  For example: Suppose Fuel is a subcategory of Auto and you decide that you do not want to break fuel costs out.  By merging Fuel into Auto, reports that previously showed totals for Fuel will have that amount added to the Auto category.  The Fuel category will be removed.

Delete

Removes the category.  Any references to the category will be automatically assigned to the appropriate miscellaneous category.  For instance if you delete the Auto expense category, all references to Auto will be reported as Miscellaneous Expense.

Note: CA-Simply Money automatically creates certain categories when an Income or Account button is created.  If you try to edit one of these categories in the Category Editor, the Delete, Move and Merge operations will not be available.


Classification Editor Dialog
Classification Editor

Classifications group transaction distributions into related projects or properties.  Here's an example:  Suppose you own two apartment buildings and you want to keep track of all your plumbing and electrical expenses.  You could add "Apartment A" and "Apartment B" as subcategories to "Plumbing" and "Electrical" but this will get complicated and may limit flexibility when creating reports and graphs.  However, if you use the classifications "Apartment A" and "Apartment B" in the distributions and just use the expense categories "Plumbing" and "Electrical", you can easily get reports showing quick totals for your expenses, then get comparative reports for the two properties using one of the classification reports.

The Classification editor lets you add, delete or modify classifications.


Auto Budget Feature

Automatic budgeting sets up a budget based on your actual spending patterns.  Auto Budget looks at the transactions you've entered to estimate expense or income budgets.  After Auto Budget is done, you can view and modify the budgets it creates.

Auto Budget needs to look at least a month's worth of transactions in order to produce meaningful estimates.  More transactions over a longer time produce better estimates.  Note that Auto Budget uses the categories you assign to transactions to make its estimates; the more you categorize, the better the estimates.

There are many ways to use Auto Budget to help you set up your budgets.  Click the Help button on the dialog to get an overview.

You can limit the transactions that Auto Budget will use by changing the source date range.  In general, the larger the range, the better the estimates will be.  The range should cover the months for which you have transactions.

To automatically set up a budget for the first time, or to completely replace an old budget, select the All Categories option.  This will create budgets for all income or expense categories.

If you've already entered some budgets and you want to let the program fill out the rest of the budgets, select Only Non-Budgeted Categories.  This will create budgets only for categories that do not yet have a budget.

Finally, if you want to automatically create a budget for a single category, move to the category on the main Budget dialog, click AutoBudget, and select the exact category option.  Auto Budget will create a budget only for that category.

You can set up two kinds of budgets: fixed and variable.  For Fixed Budgets, CA-Simply Money averages transactions to get an average monthly total.  For Variable Budgets, CA-Simply Money judges your expenses separately for each month, to allow for seasonal variations.  It's best to have a year's worth of transactions before setting up a variable budget.

The budgets created by Auto Budget may include budgets for expenses which aren't common enough to be budgeted.  For example, if you bought a car, Auto Budget would include its cost in its budgets, even though it's a one-time expense.  To eliminate other one-time expenses, set the Limit to Regularly Used Categories option.  When this option is turned on, only those categories with transactions for at least three quarters of the months in the date range are budgeted.


Budget Setup

Budgeting lets you assign monthly estimates to expense or income categories.  After setting up budgets, you can create reports and graphs that show how closely you're meeting your budget.  The Financial Advisor can also use the budget information to warn you if your spending doesn't match your budget.  To use budgeting effectively, you should categorize all your important transactions into budgeted categories.  This dialog lets you add, modify, or remove budgets.

You can create two kinds of budgets: Fixed and Variable.  Fixed budgets are the same for every month of the year.  Variable budgets have different amounts for each month.  For example, you might want to set a fixed budget for the Rent category, and a variable budget for the Utilities\Electricity category to reflect seasonal variations.

Special Hint: Practical suggestions on how to get the most from budgeting are offered by the Financial Advisor.  Click on the Advise button and get advice for any topic shown, then choose the browse button and locate the section on budgeting.


Security Editor

This feature lets you add or modify information about stocks, bonds or other securities.  Purchases and sales of securities are recorded in investment accounts.  The information you record here about securities is used in reports and for the modem stock update procedure.


Security Type Editor

Use this editor to create and modify Security Type identifiers.  You can then assign these Security Types, like "Stock" or "Bond," to specific securities.  You can then get portfolio reports and graphs keyed to security type.  You can use these reports and graphs to determine portfolio asset allocation and return by type.


Security Goal Editor

Use this editor to create and modify Security Goal identifiers.  You can then assign these Security Goals, like "Growth" or "Income," to specific securities.  You can then get portfolio reports and graphs keyed to security goal.  You can use these reports and graphs to determine portfolio asset allocation and return by goal.


Report List Dialog
Report Selections

Over 35 different reports are offered on this list.  Select the general category of report with the radio buttons on the left side of the dialog and then choose a specific report to display.

Special Hint: Once you have chosen the report, it is displayed immediately using the default settings.  You may modify the default date range used by all reports on the Reports & Graphs Settings dialog found on the System menu under Settings.  If you find you often change settings on a report after it is displayed, you can memorize the report.  After memorizing the report, it will appear in the memorized reports area of the Report Selections dialog.  The Memorize command is found on the File menu of each displayed report.


Graph List Dialog
Graph Selections

Over 30 different graphs are offered on this list.  Select the general category of graph with the radio buttons on the left side of the dialog and then choose the specific graph to display.  The choice of display options and graph types rivals standalone graphing programs.

Special Hint: Once you have chosen the graph, it immediately appears using the default settings.  You may modify the default date range used by all graphs on the Reports & Graphs Settings dialog found on the System menu under Settings.  If you find you often change settings on a graph after it is displayed, you can memorize the graph.  After memorizing the graph, it will appear in the memorized reports area of the Graph Selections dialog.  The Memorize command is found on the File menu of each displayed graph.


Graph Options Settings Dialog
Graph Settings

You can customize graphs using this dialog, setting the graph type (bar, pie, line, or area) and several other options.  For example, you might change a bar graph to a line graph in order to show trends more clearly.

If the Expand button is clicked, the dialog expands to show extra options that affect the way the data for the graph is organized.  You can use these options to reduce or increase the amount of detail shown on the graph. Click the Help button to get detailed explanations for the fields on this dialog.


Find Dialog
Find

This feature finds transactions matching the search criteria and displays a description of each.  You can also jump to the register containing the transaction. To use, just fill in the blanks and press Find.

Special Hint:  The search criteria is exclusionary.  This means that as you add criteria, the requirements for a search match increase and the number of transactions found will decrease.  Also, make certain that the date range is appropriate for the transactions you want to find.  CA-Simply Money chooses a likely date range, but you may need to modify the starting and end dates for a particular inquiry.


Schedule Dialog
Schedule

This powerful feature establishes future payments.  When the date for payment nears, the Advisor will remind you of the payment and allow you to pay it (with optional modifications to the amount, etc.).  The scheduling feature can handle all kinds of transactions, including banking transactions, payments to payees and investment transactions.  It will even let you schedule a memo, which you can use to remind yourself of an important date.


Financial Advisor Dialog
Financial Advice

Kiplinger's Financial Advisor scans your records and automatically recommends moves that can save (or make) you hundreds or even thousands of dollars.  The Advisor puts expert financial and tax advice from Kiplinger right at your fingertips.

The Advisor assists in several ways.

Scheduled items.  The Advisor checks for items due for payment shortly.  You must use the Schedule feature to set up scheduled items.

Recurring actions.  The Advisor scans previous transactions looking for payment trends.  Once it discovers a payment trend, it projects the next payment and warns you when the date for the likely payment is near or past.  This feature is very valuable for detecting lost or misplaced bills.

Financial advice.  The Advisor surveys all kinds of items, including accounts , transaction amounts, categories, date, frequency of payments and much more.  Based on this information, the Advisor will offer tips to save you money.  For instance, the Advisor checks to make sure you haven't exceeded the limit on your credit card and offers advice on corrective action if you do.  It offers lots of valuable tax and investment advice near year end plus many other valuable tips, tailored to your particular circumstances.


Initial Setup Dialog (w/ Choices)
Setup

Before you can use CA-Simply Money, you will need to set up at least one account. You may also want to set up Income Sources, Payees or Specials.  CA-Simply Money is completely flexible, however.  Once you have set up one account, you can set up any additional Income Sources, Accounts, Payees and Specials when entering transactions.

Income Sources

Any source of income can be tracked by one of these buttons.  You should set up one button for each distinct income source.  For simplicity at tax time, the types of income sources have been selected to match up with the income line items found on a 1040 tax form.  Once you have set up one or more income sources, you record receipt of income by simply clicking the appropriate button.

Accounts

Accounts are where money is stored or managed.  CA-Simply Money lets you set up all kinds of accounts including checking, savings, mortgage, credit card and many others.  Once set up, each account appears as a button on the Home Area.  When you click on the account button, you will be presented with a specialized dialog procedure designed to simplify dealing with the account.  For instance, savings accounts have easy-to-use dialogs for deposits and withdrawals.  Mortgage accounts have a different set of dialogs designed to track payments to principal and interest, all properly categorized.  There's even an amortization feature to calculate interest and principal portions of your mortgage payment.

Finally, in addition to the dialogs, each account offers a "register" which is a tabular view of account transactions.  Most likely, you will use registers to review or modify existing transactions.

Payees

These are buttons representing people or institutions who you pay regularly.  You can select an icon to represent the payee and there is a spot for the address and other information.  After the payee button has been set up, click on it to get information about the payee.

Specials

"Specials" are like payees, except that no button is created.  Some specials are created when you first start the program.  Typically, they serve as place holder labels in an account, such as "Refund," "Transfer" and "Void".


Background Patterns Dialog
Background Patterns

Use this dialog to select and modify background colors and patterns for the Home Area, Check, Checkbook background and Register Background.  Customize your copy of CA-Simply Money.


Record Paycheck Dialog
Record Paycheck

Use this dialog to record receipt of wage/salary income from a paycheck on which federal or state tax, social security or other deductions are shown.  Common deductions are provided for, and you can add special deductions using the distribution register.

For Those with Pension (401K or similar) deductions

For advanced users, here's how to record your pension deductions:

Set up an asset account that represents the pension funds.  If the account is managed for you, a generic asset account is probably best; if it is a self-directed account and you plan a large number of investment transactions, an investment account might be more suitable.  Set up the account as "Tax Free" (using the checkbox on the Add Account dialog).

Click on the Paycheck button.

Click on the Distribution button.

Add a negative entry equal to the amount of your pension deduction. .

Assign the amount to the Asset category created when you set up the Asset Account button.  (You'll find it using the browser; press the blue radio button labeled "Asset.")

Close the Distribution Register and Record the transaction.

This procedure produces a deposit to the Asset account and automatically reduces the net amount of your paycheck.  A detailed explanation of this procedure can be found in the User Guide, along with a description of how to account for a taxable withdrawal of pension funds.   You can also find an example in the practice session.


Create Income Source Dialog
Create Income Source

This is where you create buttons that represent sources of income.  The type of income is selected using the drop down box labeled "Type."  Each button represents one of the types of income found on a 1040 form.  Setting up appropriate Income Source buttons will make data entry easier and simplify things at tax time.

Paycheck

Create this type of Income Source button to record receipt of salary (paycheck) income.  The data entry dialog used by this button will allow you to enter gross pay and deductions to fully track your salary income.

Other Income Sources

Select other income types, such as Alimony or Taxable Interest, if you have income that is not from a paycheck.  Using accurate income types makes it easier to distinguish between income types come tax time or anytime you run a category report.


Record Income Dialog
Record Income

Deposit income to an account using this dialog.  The dialog automatically inserts the appropriate income category for the transaction, which corresponds to the correct line item of a 1040 form.


Using Check Book
Checking Account

This is the area of CA-Simply Money used to prepare checks for printing.  If you hand write your checks, you can press the Register tool button at the bottom of the window to jump to the register and record those checks.

Computer Printed Checks

We strongly recommend using computer printed checks.  Checks are available in all formats for use with any printer and speed your bill paying enormously.  Computer printed checks look professional and guarantee accuracy.  You can order checks from the catalogs included with CA-Simply Money or from the on-line order form found on the System menu (Order Supplies).

Special hint: When you order checks, choose a starting number about 1000 more than your current handwritten checks.  This way you can use both handwritten checks and computer printed checks with no overlap.


Using Savings Account Dialogs
Savings Account

Use the Savings Account dialogs to record deposits and withdrawals.

Special hint: Many people keep free funds in their savings account, then transfer funds to checking as needed.  The fastest and easiest way to do this in CA-Simply Money is to just drag and drop the Savings Account button onto the Checking Account button.  Enter the amount of the transfer and that's it.


Using Credit Card Dialog
Credit Card

Use this dialog to record credit card transactions and to make payments on your credit card account.

Credit card transactions

You can record your transactions either as you make them (using charge receipts) or when you receive your credit card bill.  As you record the transactions indicate the payee (merchant) and category for the purchase.

Making payments

CA-Simply Money uses the account balance procedure to pay the credit card bill.  You can enter additional transactions at this time or allow CA-Simply Money to enter an adjustment to cover transactions not entered.  The final step generates a payment, generally from your checking account, to cover part or all of the due bill.


Using Cash Account Dialogs
Cash Account

Use this account type to track currency.  It works like a savings account, but with some additional conveniences.  If you want to keep track of where you cash goes, here's the basic procedure:

when you withdraw cash from an ATM for example, drag and drop from the source account to the cash account and enter the amount of the transfer.

As you spend the cash, record Withdrawals in the cash account.  Enter the payee and category.

You can get many reports showing your spending patterns.  Drag the Cash account button to the Reports tool to see the transactions.  Click the Reports button and select one of the Category reports for a detailed breakdown of cash spending.


Using Mortgage Account Dialogs
Mortgage Account

The Pay Mortgage Dialog

Use this dialog to make a payment on your mortgage.  Specify the bank account from which you will pay, plus interest, principal and other parts of the payments you make.  A transaction is then generated from the bank account to the mortgage account.  If you print checks, a check will be readied for printing. Checks you specify as "handwritten" will automatically appear in the appropriate account register.

Special Hint:  Be certain that the name of this account is what you want to appear on checks when making mortgage payments.  If you have set this account up differently, you can Cancel from this dialog, and drag the mortgage account button to the Setup tool button at the bottom right of the  window.  Choose Modify and change the name.

The Record Improvements Dialog

Use this dialog to record improvements to the dwelling covered by the mortgage.  Improvements are items which add to the value of the dwelling (as distinct from repairs which restore existing value).  Your accountant can explain the difference in greater detail.  The important thing is that when you use this dialog to record an improvement, an adjustment is made to the asset account associated with the dwelling (known as "increasing the basis").  This reduces the capital gain when the dwelling is sold, thereby reducing the tax you pay.  "Repairs" are expenses that do not reduce the basis (and, if this is a personal residence, provide no beneficial tax effect).  Thus, it is beneficial to record all "improvements" using this dialog.  To record "repairs," just proceed with an ordinary transaction to a payee (from your checking account, for example), and use the expense category "Home Repair."


Using Investment Dialog
Investment Account Dialog

This dialog provides access to investment operations.  Unlike the other accounts, which deal solely with dollars, investment accounts deal with the quantity and cost of securities.  In addition, since you can buy, sell, and receive interest or dividends on securities (and since each of these operations can have different tax or investment effects), this dialog lets you specify the operation to be performed.

Each button leads to a dialog customized for the operation you select.  Investment accounts are inherently more complicated than bank accounts and we suggest you read the User Guide for details on common procedures.


Using Credit Line Dialogs
Credit Line

Credit Line accounts are used to track general loans made to you such as personal lines of credit or auto loans.

Credit line transactions

You can record your transactions either as you make them in the case of a personal line of credit or when you receive a lump sum payment.  In either case, you should select the Use Credit dialog.  If you received a lump sum payment that you deposited to a checking or savings account, select the account name in the "Payee" field.  This will transfer the funds.

Making payments

CA-Simply Money uses the account balance feature to record payments on the credit line. This procedure records the payment, generating a transfer (generally from your checking account, with option to generate a printed check), to cover part or all of the due amount.


Using Liability Account Dialog
!Liability Account

This is a generic liability account.  Use it to record obligations such as loans made to you or other debts.  This type of account should only be used if all of the special purpose liability accounts (Mortgage, Credit Card, Credit Line) are unsuitable.


Using Asset Account Dialog
Asset Account

This is a generic asset account.  Use it to record increases or decreases in holdings or amounts owed you.

Record Decreases

Click this button to track reductions to the asset account. For instance, you might have set up an asset account to track your coin collection.  You would use the Record Increases dialog to track the sale of a new coin.  If you took the proceeds of the sale and deposited it into your checking account, you would enter the name of your checking account in the Payee field. (Use account browser to find the account).  This automatically inserts the account category into the category field (thereby generating a transfer of dollars from the coin collection to the checking account).  Fill in the amount of the sale, and optionally enter a memo or click on the Note tool to record detailed information about the coin just sold.  If you look at the register for the checking account, you will find a new deposit entry.

Record Increases

Use this dialog to track additions to the asset account, such as adding a new coin to your collection.


Using Payroll Account Dialog
Payroll Account

This dialog should be used by business owners to generate payroll for employees.

This account is not used to record receipt of a paycheck. For that, you should set up a "Paycheck" Income Source.  The simplest way to do this is to click on the Setup button in the lower right hand corner of the Home Area, choose Income Source and follow along.


Account Setup - Add

This is where you add an account button.  There are many types of accounts in CA-Simply Money.  Each offers a customized set of data entry dialogs to speed and simplify record keeping.  Here is a list of the available accounts.

Checking

These accounts track the checks you write.  Special procedures are provided to prepare checks for printing and to balance your account with your monthly bank statement.

Savings

Tracks deposits and withdrawals to savings accounts.  Provides reconciliation with account statements.

Credit Cards

Keeps records for each credit card transaction and provides a combination bill payoff and reconciliation procedure.  Create this kind of account if you want to track some or all of your credit card purchases.  If you just want to pay your bill and do not care about tracking the purchases or about Financial Advice regarding your credit cards, simply use your checking account to write a check to the credit card issuer.

Cash

For keeping track of currency flows.

Mortgage

Provides complete record keeping for your mortgage, including specialized dialogs that track principal and interest portions of your mortgage payment.  Mortgage accounts optionally provide an ongoing amortization of your loan.  In addition to helping you pay your mortgage, this account records home improvements which add basis to your home.  That is very important, since it may substantially reduce the capital gains taxes you pay when you sell your home.

Special Hint: Be certain to give the mortgage account the name you want to appear on your mortgage payment checks.  CA-Simply Money uses this name when preparing the checks or recording the transaction.

Investment

These accounts handle all aspects of portfolio management.  This is an advanced feature and we recommend you review the User Guide before proceeding.

Credit Line

Similar to the other loan accounts, but oriented toward personal or home equity loans.  Use for a car or boat loan.

Liability

A general purpose account to record debts owed or repaid.

Asset Account

A general purpose account to record payments owed or received.  Can be used for a 401(k) account.

Payroll

A highly specialized account, which greatly assists in preparing payroll checks for the employees of a small business.


Payee Setup

Here is where you set up Payees.  These are the names of the individuals or businesses with whom you regularly have financial transactions:  your grocery store, doctor's office, utility company, and gas station.  A credit card account can also be a Payee, if you don't need to reconcile the account or track its use.  Otherwise, a credit card should be set up as an account.


Adjusted Buttons Hint
Buttons Just Adjusted

To speed and simplify your work, CA-Simply Money automatically positions buttons based upon frequency of use.  More commonly used buttons are placed at the top of the window.  This Hint was triggered because the program just rearranged your buttons.

You can manually rearrange the buttons, too.  First, be sure to turn off the Auto Button Layout option in the System:Settings:General area.  Then hold down the Shift key to drag & drop a button into an area currently occupied by any other button.

If the button you want to move isn't visible in the window, use the scroll bar to see it.  Hold down the Shift key and drag the button to the Up or Down arrow on the scroll bar.  This makes the buttons begin to scroll, and you can drop the button in the desired position.

To rearrange the vertical bars that separate Income Sources, Accounts, and Payees, position the cursor on the bar until the cursor turns into a double-sided arrow.  Then drag the bar left or right on the screen.  CA-Simply Money will automatically rearrange your buttons to fit within the new space created by the moved bar.


Distribution Register

When you want to assign more than one category to a transaction, you use the distribution register.  The distribution editor "distributes" the transaction total into more than one category.

Advanced Hint:  Ordinarily, you may use the distribution editor in two ways:

Total mode.  In this mode, the distribution register takes each category and associated dollar amount and calculates a running transaction total.  To use the distribution register this way, do not enter a total before clicking the down arrow to enter the distribution register.   When you close the distribution register, the total will be inserted into the transaction total field.

Adjust mode.  In this mode, the distribution register inserts an adjusting transaction to match the transaction total.  Use this mode if you know the transaction total and plan to leave some of it undistributed.   Any undistributed amount will be put in the Miscellaneous Expense category.  This is helpful if, for example, you have used petty cash for purchases but can't account for every penny you spent.  The Recalc Total button can be used to override the automatic adjustment and generate a new transaction total from the sum of your distributions.


Graph Options Filters Dialog
Graph Filters

Use this dialog to change the date range used to gather data for the graph or to change the Income Sources, Accounts, Payees, Categories, Classifications and Securities that appear on the graph.  (Certain options will be deactivated when not relevant for the graph.)

Special Hint: By default, CA-Simply Money uses data from the current year when displaying reports and graphs.  Of course, you can always change the date range after each graph is drawn if you want to see data from a different date range.  Or, you can change the default date range for every report and graph by going  to the System:Settings:Reports & Graphs menu and setting a new default date range.

Another Hint: If you find yourself customizing date ranges, options and settings often, consider memorizing the graph.  You will find this option on the File menu of the graph.  Once memorized, you can call it up again either by selecting Graph List from the Options menu of the graph you are viewing or by clicking the Graph button in the Home Area (main screen).g


Report Options Dialog
Report Filters and Styles

This is where you set the display settings and filters for reports.  Display settings control such things as whether cents are shown, amount range, subtotaling and so forth.  Filters change the Income Sources, Accounts, Payees, Categories, Classifications and Securities used in the report.  (Please note that certain inclusion options will be deactivated when not relevant for the report.)

Special Hint: By default, CA-Simply Money uses data from the current year when displaying reports and graphs.  Of course, you can always change the date range after each report is drawn if you want to see data from a different date range.  Or, you can change the default date range for every report and graph by going  to the System:Settings:Reports & Graphs menu and setting a new default date range.

Another Hint: If you find yourself customizing date ranges, filters and styles or font settings often, consider memorizing the report.  You will find this option on the File menu of the report.  Once memorized, you can call the report up again either by selecting Report List... from the Options menu of the report you are viewing or by clicking the Report button in the Home Area (main screen).


Standard Laser Page Feed Options
Standard Laser Checks Page Feed Options

Standard Laser Checks come three on a page.  This means that, after printing, you will often be left with a partial page containing one or two checks.  Keep these checks because CA-Simply Money lets you use them the next time.  This dialog lets you specify how many checks remain on the first page being printed and the orientation and alignment to use for this partial page.

Special Hint:  Do not confuse the number of checks remaining on the page with the total number of checks you will be printing this session.  This dialog is only concerned with how many paper checks (one, two or three) are on the first page you will be feeding to the printer.

If you have a full page (three checks) no special action is necessary.  If there are one or two remaining checks, specify the number remaining and then select the orientation and alignment appropriate for your printer.

Special Hint:  Not sure which orientation and alignment is correct?  You can check your printer manual, but if you would rather experiment, here is a starting point:  The most common choice is Sideways Feed, Centered.  This applies to popular printers like the HP LaserJet II and III.  Second choice would be Sideways Feed, Left; use this choice for printers like the HP LaserJet IIp and the Apple Personal LaserWriter.  The Normal Feed option is usually used with bubble jet printers like the HP DeskJet.  If your printer uses Sideways feed, you will need to experiment to determine whether you need to insert the check face up or down and with the left or right edge leading.  A good first try would be page up, right edge leading.


Print Checks Setup
Print Checks

Clicking OK on this dialog begins the check printing process.  Before doing that, however, you need to configure your printer, choose the type of checks you are using and print some sample checks to establish alignment on your particular printer.  CA-Simply Money remembers the type of checks you use and the alignment settings from session to session so once you have set things up once, check printing proceeds very quickly.

Special Hint:  If you are using pin-feed checks, position the first check in the printer and make a small mark on the printer in line with the top of the check.  Then use the sample check feature to "dial in" correct alignment.   The next time you print checks, position them at the mark and you can begin printing immediately.


Page Feed Checks - Alignment

This dialog adjusts alignment for printed checks.  If you discover that your page feed printer is putting the check information too far left, right, up or down, you can make an adjustment here.  The easiest thing is to print a sample check, then take a measurement.  Enter adjustments in 1/100th's of an inch.  For example, if the check printed 1/2 inch too far to the right, you would enter -50 in the side adjustment field.  You can print additional sample checks and continue to make adjustments until you have the check perfectly positioned.

Special Hint: You can save valuable check stock by only printing the first sample on an actual check form.  For subsequent samples, use regular paper.  Then match the regular paper against the printed form until the alignment is correct.

Once you have set these values, CA-Simply Money remembers them from session to session so you only need to go through this procedure once unless you change check styles or printers.


Continuous Feed Checks - Alignment

This dialog adjusts alignment for printed checks.  If you discover that your continuous feed printer is putting the check information too far left, right, up or down, you can make an adjustment here.  Load your check stock into the printer and make a note of where the top of the check form aligns.  Print a sample check, then note the location of the numbers and letters printed vertically and horizontally.  Enter the appropriate number and letter in the fields shown on the dialog.  CA-Simply Money will use these values to create vertical and horizontal adjustments when printing checks.

Special Hint:  If you mark the location of the top of the check form on the printer, it's easy to get the initial alignment the same each time.

Once you have set these values, CA-Simply Money remembers them from session to session so you only need to go through this procedure once unless you change check styles or printers.


Check Layout

This dialog sets the type and style of the printed checks you are using.

Type

Pin Feed checks are used on dot matrix printers which feed continuously.  Page Feed checks are used with laser or bubble jet printers which take cut sheets.

Style

Standard checks are 8.5" wide (standard business size) without vouchers attached.  For Page Feed printers, they come three on a page.  Wallet checks are personal sized checks 6" wide with a small voucher on the side.  Voucher checks are typically used by businesses and are the same size as Standard checks, but with a voucher attached.

Multipart Settings for Page Feed

If you are using multipart forms (more than one copy of each check)  with a laser or other cut sheet feed printer, you should select the number of copies to print.


Account Registers

Every account button you create displays its transactions in a Register like you see here.  The format and content of the Register depends on the type of account.  While it is usually easier to enter new transactions using the dialogs for each account button (single click any account button to see these dialogs), the register provides the most general and flexible means of entering or editing transactions.  With the exception of registers for investment accounts, all registers let you enter dates, payees/payors (which can be income sources, other accounts, payees or special labels) along with transaction amounts, notes and memos and budget categories.

Most times you only enter one category per transaction.  Other times, you may need to break a transaction out into multiple categories (called distributions).  For this you will use a sub-register -- called the distribution register -- obtained by clicking on the small triangle shown in each transaction field.

Special Hints:

To determine the purpose of any field in the register, simply point the cursor at the field and read the description in the lower left hand corner of the display area.

When the triangle for the distribution register appears filled in, this means there is more than one category associated with the transaction.  Click the triangle to see the complete record.

To pop up the distribution register, you can either click on the triangle with the mouse or hold down the Ctrl key and press the Page Down (PgDn) key while the typing caret is positioned in the category field.

To quickly delete the contents of a distribution register (useful when you have recalled a previous transaction, but do not want the distributions), click in the category field, then hold down the Ctrl key and press the 'D' key.


Check Account Created
Checking Account Just Created

Congratulations.  You've just created a checking account.  To record transactions, drag & drop  the checking account button onto the Register tool button found at the bottom of the Home Area.  To write checks for printing, just click the checking account button.

To create another account, click the Setup tool button found at the bottom right hand corner of the Home Area.

If you would like to turn off Newcomer Hints, select Settings:General from the System Menu and clear the Newcomer Hints checkbox.


Account Created
Account Just Created

Congratulations.  You've just created an account.  To record transactions for this account using customized dialogs, just click on the account button.  Or, drag & drop the account button onto the Register tool button found at the bottom of the Home Area to use the account register.

To create another account, click the Setup tool button found at the bottom right hand corner of the Home Area.

If you would like to turn off Newcomer Hints, select Settings:General from the System Menu and clear the Newcomer Hints checkbox.


NewcomerHintsOff
Turning Newcomer Hints Off

If you would like to turn off Newcomer Hints, select Settings:General from the System Menu and clear the Newcomer Hints checkbox.  You can turn Newcomer Hints on again at any time.