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PART4
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1988-09-25
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REFERENCE SECTION A
COMMAND LIST
This reference section gives a description of the commands in
alphabetical order that are used in the ACCOUNTING, EDIT STANDARD
TRANSACTIONS and SEARCH THROUGH MANY MONTHS sections of PC-ACCOUNT.
Note that the range of commands on a page are listed in the top right
corner of the page.
The following is a complete list of the commands:
A * DISPLAY ACCOUNTS
B BUDGET
C CHANGE DATE
D DELETE A TRANSACTION
E EDIT A TRANSACTION
F * FIND ALL TRANSACTIONS FOR AN ACCOUNT
G * GET ALL TRANSACTIONS FOR AN AMOUNT
H * HELP
I INSERT TRANSACTIONS
J * SEARCH BY CHECK NUMBER
L LAST TRANSACTION NUMBER
M MOVE & SAVE DATA FOR A NEW PERIOD
N NAME AN ACCOUNT
O * MULTIPLE CONDITION QUERY
P PRINT A CHECK
Q SAVE DATA AND EXIT
R * RETRIEVE TRANSACTIONS FOR A CODE
S * SEARCH COMMENTS
T * DISPLAY TRANSACTIONS
U UPDATE FILES (SAVE DATA)
V * VERIFY ACCOUNT TOTALS
W REWRITE SCREEN
X SAVE DATA AND EXIT
Y * SKIP LINE OR PAGE
Z DISPLAY STATUS DATA
* DIRECTED OUTPUT
Not all commands are available in each of the above sections.
Those that are available are displayed in the help window.
A - DISPLAY ACCOUNTS. This command will display whatever
accounts you select to the output selected by function key 7. That
is, the output will go to the screen, the printer, to a text file or
to a file that can be imported by Lotus 1 2 3 (see appendix A). This
is typical of all commands indicated in the table with an asterisk.
Normally, to view the status of an account, you will use function key
1 or 2 to display the screen that maintains the account status.
-47-
REFERENCE SECTION B-E
B - BUDGET. In the Edit Standard Transactions section of
PC-ACCOUNT, you can create and edit three files of common
transactions. This command selects one of these files and
automatically reads transactions one at a time for input into the
Insert Transactions routine.
The Insert Transactions routine takes over and continues its
normal processing by displaying the transaction and asking if it is
OKAY. If you answer N for no, then the next transaction is read from
the file. If you answer Y for yes, then the transaction is processed
in the normal way, including the prompts for the check writing
routine. This means that if you decide not to process a standard
transaction, it can easily be skipped. Automatic transaction
processing can be terminated by answering the OKAY prompt with a Q
for QUIT instead of Y or N.
The amount of the transaction for the current transaction can be
changed by answering the OKAY prompt with an A.
C - CHANGE DATE. This will change the date used by the program
for dating the transactions, checks and reports. It is very useful
if you did not enter the date into DOS when the system was booted.
It can also be used to change the date to be printed on a check.
When prompted for the new date, enter the month, day and year.
The year is optional. All years, even after 1999, can be entered
with just the last two digits. The current year is the default.
These values must be separated by a comma, a space, a slash / or a
dash. The same separation character must be used twice when a year
is entered or the results are unpredictable. It must be a valid
date. The DOS date is always displayed as the default date and can
be selected just by entering RETURN. The new date will be displayed
on the 25th line.
D - DELETE A TRANSACTION. This action will prompt for a
transaction number. Only one can be deleted at a time. The
transaction will be displayed and you will be asked:
DO YOU WANT TO DELETE THIS TRANSACTION [Y]?
When the transaction is deleted, its action is backed out of the
system. That is, a ghost transaction is processed with the first and
second accounts switched. Then all of the transactions with
transaction numbers higher then the one this transaction had are
reduced by one so that there is no gap in transaction numbers.
E - EDIT A TRANSACTION. This is a very useful feature. When
errors are made in any field of a transaction, they can easily be
corrected. Sometimes you will decide to change an account in a
transaction. When this is done, PC-ACCOUNT backs out the original
transaction and implements the new version. Naturally, the status
-48-
REFERENCE SECTION F-H
display screens are also updated automatically. Remember, any field
of a transaction can be changed.
Note. As soon as you select the AMOUNT, or the IN or OUT
account fields to change, the entire transaction is immediately
backed out. So, if you use function keys 1 or 2 to view the accounts
after this, the account data will have changed. As soon as the new
data is entered, the changed transaction will update the account
data.
After a month has been closed (M command), you can not change
the account numbers, the amount or the date, but all other fields can
be changed.
F - FIND ALL TRANSACTIONS FOR AN ACCOUNT. This command will
prompt for an account number. It only needs one. But, if you enter
two account numbers, it will find all of the transactions for the
accounts in that range. The second account number must be higher
than the first.
If you want to see all the checks you wrote on a given checking
account for example, use this command. And, if the output is
directed to the printer, you will get a hard copy of the
transactions. It is very useful when you want to check if a
particular transaction has been entered this month. Just find the
transactions for one of the accounts it uses.
G - GET ALL TRANSACTIONS FOR AN AMOUNT. This will prompt for an
amount, then search all transactions and display those that equal the
amount. You may use a wildcard character to retrieve a range of
amounts. The wildcard character is the asterisk.
For example, if you entered 1*, you would get all the
transactions with an amount from $10.00 to $19.99. If you entered
1*0, you would get all from $100.00 to $199.99. If you entered *0
you would get all transactions with an amount value from 0.01 to
99.99. Use the wildcard when you are not sure of the exact amount of
the transaction you are looking for. The zero is a position holder.
It can be any character, even another asterisk.
H - HELP. When the output is directed to the screen, this
command will toggle the HELP display on and off. When the output is
directed to one of the other modes with function key 7, the list of
help commands will be sent to that device. An asterisk in the
display of a command indicates that the output can be directed to the
screen, the printer, to a text file or to a file that can be imported
by Lotus 1 2 3. Appendix A will discuss how to put this data into
1 2 3.
-49-
REFERENCE SECTION I
I - INSERT TRANSACTIONS.
PC-ACCOUNT has two different modes of entering transactions,
Prompted and Free Form.
The Prompted input mode prompts you for each data element, such
as amount, account numbers, etc., and is recommended if you are just
learning PC-ACCOUNT.
The Free Form input mode is where most of the data is entered on
a single line. It is used for ease and speed by those familiar with
PC-ACCOUNT.
You may easily switch from one input screen to the other while
in the input mode. On each screen there is a reminder to enter an
asterisk followed by a RETURN. PC-ACCOUNT will remember which screen
type you used last and will present that screen the next time that
you select INPUT.
PROMPTED INPUT MODE
This screen will respond with the prompt:
ENTERING TRANSACTION # 20
ENTER * & RETURN TO SWITCH TO FREE FORM INPUT MODE
or ENTER AMOUNT [QUIT]?
-50-
REFERENCE SECTION I
We will enter the amount 123.45 and press RETURN. The next screen
will be:
ENTERING TRANSACTION # 20 $123.45
ENTER AN ACCOUNT NUMBER FOR EACH OF THE FOLLOWING 2 SETS OF PROMPTS:
PRESS RETURN TO SKIP THE FIRST OPTION IN A SET
ENTER ASSET ACCOUNT NUMBER (1-60) TO DEPOSIT MONEY INTO?
or ENTER BANK ACCOUNT NUMBER (61-75) TO WITHDRAW MONEY FROM
ENTER BANK ACCOUNT NUMBER (61-75) TO DEPOSIT MONEY INTO
or ENTER ASSET ACCOUNT NUMBER (1-60) TO WITHDRAW MONEY FROM
Note that the amount is now displayed on the top line. You are
prompted to enter an account number for each of two sets of prompts.
It clearly shows what type of account, asset or bank, it is looking
for and the action it will take. To get to the second input line of
a set, just press RETURN. There must be an entry for each set.
Read the next part on the Free Form Input Mode to pick up where this
part continues.
FREE FORM INPUT MODE
This command will respond with the prompt:
$ ASSET
AMOUNT IN OUT COMMENT | SEARCH CODE
[QUIT]? _
BANK
OUT IN
ENTER * & RETURN TO SWITCH TO PROMPTED INPUT MODE
-51-
REFERENCE SECTION I
The prompt reminds you of the order in which to enter data.
Enter the amount first, then two account numbers, then the comment,
then a delimiter followed by the search code and finally the RETURN.
This will be better understood after you read the next page or two.
The ASSET/IN OUT reminds you of the order in which to enter
asset account numbers (1-60). The BANK/OUT IN reminds you of the
order to enter bank account numbers (61-75). IN means that the
transaction amount is going IN or being added to the account. OUT
means that the transaction amount is coming OUT or being subtracted
from the account.
In comparison to the Prompted Input Mode described above, the
first account number you would enter is the same as you would for the
first set of prompts. The second account number you would enter is
the same as you would for the second set of prompts.
These prompts also work when asset and bank accounts are both in
a transaction. If you are depositing money in a bank account, it
must also go into an asset account (unless it is being transferred
from another of your bank accounts). Enter the asset account number
first and the bank account number second. See, it fits the rule
displayed by the prompt. The reverse is true for a withdrawal. The
bank account is entered first and the asset account second, because
both are OUT accounts.
The only required fields for a valid transaction are the amount
and the two account numbers. The | is the delimiter that signifies
that the next value is a search code. You can have either a comment
or a search code or both. If you use a search code you must use the
|, otherwise leave it out.
This command uses free form input. That means there are many
variations on how the data can be entered. For example:
75 15 25 Theater Tickets|1
75.001525Theater Tickets|1
75.00 15 25Theater Tickets |1
75.0 1525Theater Tickets | 1
75 15 25 Theater Tickets | 1
75 1525Theater Tickets
75 1525|1
These transaction inputs are all equivalent and valid. The last
two examples leave out the comment or search code to illustrate that
either can be omitted. Both can also be omitted. The amount for
this transaction is 75 dollars. The IN account is 15. The OUT
account is 25. The comment is Theater Tickets. The search code is 1.
Spaces are not required when you enter two decimal digits in the
amount or when the first account number is two digits. If either
-52-
REFERENCE SECTION I
case is not true, a space must follow the short entry. You may wish
to enter a space after each value to make the entry clear to you,
such as in the first line of the above example.
Commas must not be used in any value except in the comment. If
you enter a double quote (") in the comment field, PC-ACCOUNT will
change it to a single quote ('), which is also acceptable. This is
because the comment field is delimited by double quotes in the disk
file.
The search code is any integer number in the range from -32768
to 32767 that you wish to use for your reference. The R command will
retrieve all transactions that have the same code. PC-ACCOUNT will
display your list of search codes at the bottom of the screen. These
can be scrolled using function keys 9 and 10, or jump scroll with the
ALT key in combination with the A, S, Z, or X keys. The A and S keys
scroll by page and the Z and X keys jump to the beginning or end.
The S and X keys are on the right and move the data in the same
direction as the Function 10 key does. Try it. Just remember to
press the ALT key while doing it.
When RETURN is pressed, PC-ACCOUNT will decode the input line
and display it for verification. For example, the above transaction
will be displayed as:
$75.00 ENTER INTO 15 AMER EXP 10/26/85
WITHDRAW FROM 25 RECREATION
SEARCH CODE 1 Miscellaneous
Theater Tickets
IS THE TRANSACTION OKAY [Y]?
The 75.00 is the amount. 15 is the IN account and 25 is the OUT
account. PC-ACCOUNT added the date, the account names and the search
code nomenclature. The last field is the comment. There is no limit
on the length of the comment field.
If the first account number is between 61 and 75 inclusive, and
you have designated the account as a checking account by creating a
check format with the Setup Check Format program, PC-ACCOUNT will
ask:
DO YOU WANT TO PRINT A CHECK [Y]?
If you respond in the affirmative, you will be prompted by the
check printing routine. Otherwise, you will be asked for the check
number. It will provide the next check number as a default.
If the transaction is a bank finance charge or some other non
check withdrawal, enter a zero for the check number. This will not
affect the check number remembered by PC-ACCOUNT. The same number
-53-
REFERENCE SECTION I
will be the default the next time. However, if you enter another
number, the system will set its check counter to that number. The
last check number for each checking account is retained in the file
named CONTROL.
The program will then prompt for another transaction. If there
is none, enter return and the ENTER COMMAND prompt will return.
If the transaction is not correct, respond to the OKAY [Y]
prompt with an N or n and PC-ACCOUNT will forget all about it.
If you want to print a check, PC-ACCOUNT will ask:
MAKE THE CHECK PAYABLE TO (= to Search)?
The list that you created with the Edit Check Payees section
will be displayed at the bottom of the screen. Use function keys 9
and 10 to scroll the list of payees if you have more than nine. You
can also use the ALT A, S, Z, or X to jump scroll. Select the number
of the payee you want at the prompt.
There are two types of answers to this question. The first is
to enter the sequence number of the payee. You may have remembered
it or found it on the list. So, if the payee is on the list, enter
the payee number.
If your list of payees is long, PC-ACCOUNT will search the names
for you. Enter a search string that consists of a few characters
anywhere in the name. Case is not important. When a matching string
is found, that payee will be at the top of the list and you will be
asked if that is the correct payee, or to continue searching, or to
quit the search. The search is made in the payee name field only,
not the reference field.
If the payee is not on the list, then enter the name exactly as
you want it to appear on the check. This response is followed by the
request:
ENTER REFERENCE?
This reference will be printed on the Memo or For line of the
check. PC-ACCOUNT will then prompt with:
MAKE CHECK PAYABLE TO: Payee name
REMARKS ARE: Reference for this payee
OKAY (Enter R to change the REMARKS) [Y]?
If you respond with N, the program will go back to the question
of do you want to print a check. If you enter R, you can then change
the remarks. If you enter return or Y or y, the process will
continue. If you had entered a payee name you will be prompted:
-54-
REFERENCE SECTION J-M
DO YOU WANT THIS PAYEE ENTERED INTO THE PAYEE FILE [Y]?
This is an alternate way of entering payee data into the PAYEE file.
In either case you will then see the following prompt:
ENTER CHECK NUMBER [437]?
The number selected for the default is one greater than the last
check written on this account. You may enter return to take the
default, or enter another number. For any number other than zero,
PC-ACCOUNT will remember that number and use it as the basis for the
next default. If 0 (numeric zero) is entered, the current default
will remain. Use 0 for the case when there is a bank charge against
the account for which no check is written.
The next prompt will be:
INSERT CHECK....
Your check alignment instructions
HIT RETURN WHEN READY
The phrase, 'Your check alignment instructions', will be
replaced with the instruction that you want to remind you how to
align the check in the printer. You will have entered this message
when you set up the check format for this bank. You can have a
different message for each bank.
When the check is aligned in the printer, and the printer is on
line, enter return and PC-ACCOUNT will print your check.
The program will then prompt for another transaction. If there
are none, enter return and the ENTER COMMAND prompt will return.
J - SEARCH BY CHECK NUMBER. This command will prompt for a bank
account number and then for a check number. It only needs one check
number. But, if you enter two check numbers, it will find all of the
transactions that have check numbers in that range. The second check
number must be higher than the first.
L - LAST TRANSACTION NUMBER. There are times when you want to
look at the last few transactions just entered. Or maybe you just
want to see where you left off the last session. L displays how many
transactions there are.
M - MOVE AND SAVE DATA FOR A NEW PERIOD. When you have
completed all of the transactions for a month, use this command to
close out the files and create new files for the next month. This
does not have to be done on the last day of a month. It can be in
-55-
REFERENCE SECTION N-O
the middle of the next month or before the end of the current month,
whenever is convenient to you. That is why the current accounting
month is displayed along with the current date on the 25th line of
the screen. The current accounting month displayed may be June and
the date may be July 7.
Here is precisely what M does. First, all accounts and
transactions are written to the disk files. Then the account values
from this month are copied into the account values for the past month
on the account display screens. A new account file and a new
transaction file are created. The current month is changed and the
transaction counter is set to zero. Then you are ready to continue.
The accounts and transactions for any closed month are available
whenever the Accounting mode is selected and you are asked for what
month you want the files. However, the data is marked closed and the
account number, the amount and the date can not be changed. You may
use all of the commands that search and view the closed data, but you
may only make changes in the fields not mentioned above.
N - NAME AN ACCOUNT. Account names can be up to 11 characters
in length. They can include any displayable characters and the
space. For example, W & L is a valid account name. Account names
are not required. They can be changed or deleted at any time. This
command does not affect the account balance. When invoked, this
routine prompts for the account number and then the name. If you
want to delete a name, just enter return for the name. The account
status screens are immediately updated to reflect the change.
O - MULTIPLE CONDITION QUERY. This is used for searching for
transactions. It displays the following screen:
MULTIPLE CONDITION QUERY
Enter values ONLY for the conditions desired.
Press RETURN to SKIP to the next entry.
Press RETURN to ENTER a new value.
Press the ESC key to QUIT this command.
Enter | to DELETE a value.
Enter \ to START the search.
AMOUNT ?
FIRST ACCOUNT
SECOND ACCOUNT
SEARCH CODE
SEARCH TEXT
You may enter one or any combination of five transaction fields
for searching. They are amount, first and second account numbers,
search code or text in the comment. You are prompted for a value for
each field. If you do not want to use a value in a field, just enter
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REFERENCE SECTION P-T
RETURN to advance to the next field. After the fifth field, it
cycles back to the first. To delete a value that you previously
entered in a field, enter |. To start the search, enter \ as the
only input to a prompt.
An example when this is useful is when you want to find all the
deposits to a checking account. To do this, enter the O command.
Press RETURN twice to skip the amount and first account number
fields. Enter the checking account number as the second account and
press RETURN. Then enter \ and press RETURN.
P - PRINT A CHECK. This routine works exactly like the check
printing feature in the Insert Transactions routine. It asks for an
account number to acquire the check format parameters. It also asks
for an amount to be put on the check and it uses the data on payees.
It does not change any files. It just prints the check.
Q - SAVE DATA AND EXIT. Use this command to return to the
master menu when you are finished with the sections that have this
command. Do NOT use function key 5 unless you do NOT want to save
the transactions and the changed accounts from this session. Q will
cause the account, transaction and control file to be written to the
disk if the data has changed. PC-ACCOUNT will then return to the
master menu. Q performs the exact same function as the X command.
R - RETRIEVE TRANSACTIONS FOR A CODE. This is similar to the F
and G commands except that it searches for the search code that you
used to mark your transactions for your application.
S - SEARCH TRANSACTION COMMENTS. This command prompts for a
string of characters. It then searches the comments of every
transaction and displays those that have a match on the selected
output device. It must be an exact match. Case and position in the
comment are not important. A string entered in upper case will
select a record where the string is in lower case or vice versa and
located anywhere in the comment.
The wildcard character ? can be used in text search strings.
This command is used to search the Transaction Comment. Only the ?
can be used. This differs from the search without wildcards in that
it must match from the first character of the comment. For example,
the search string '???ABC??4' would match the comment
'BTYABC004A SDF' and '923ABCZZ4X9 QWER'. But it would not match the
string 'Z2396ABC004TY UIOP' because the string 'ABC004' does not
start on the 4th character of the comment, as is indicated by the
first three ?.
T - DISPLAY TRANSACTIONS. This command will display whatever
transactions you select to the output selected by function key 7.
When the output is directed to the printer a heading is printed that
includes the date. It will start a new page with a new heading after
-57-
REFERENCE SECTION U-Z
printing 56 transactions. So be sure to start at the top of the page
and have the printer's top of page parameter set. Any transaction or
sequence of transactions may be selected.
There is a display at the bottom of the screen when the
transaction records are displayed that displays the number of
transactions displayed and the sum of the amounts. It will also
print this data on your printer. This option can be turned on or off
with the parameter selection in ACT_INIT.EXE.
U - UPDATE FILES (SAVE DATA). This causes the account and
transaction data to be written to the disk, as in the Q and X
commands, but PC-ACCOUNT stays in the accounting section.
V - VERIFY ACCOUNT TOTALS. This will display the sums of
accounts just like it does on the last line of the function key 2
display. Its main purpose is to direct this information to the
printer, etc.
W - CLEAR SCREEN. This will rewrite the command screen if
system error messages ever write over part of it.
X - SAVE DATA AND EXIT. X performs the exact same function as
the Q command.
Y - SKIP LINE OR PAGE. This command is used to advance the page
on the printer or in the file ACTLIST. It prompts if you want to
skip a line or skip to the top of the next page. If you select line,
it ask how many lines. If you have not selected TO PRINTER or TO
FILE before entering Y, it will give you a message and quit.
Z - DISPLAY STATUS DATA. This displays to following information
at the top of the screen:
FILE NAMES: C:\ACTDATA\A03.87
C:\ACTDATA\T03.87
THE CURRENT ACCOUNTING PERIOD IS March, 1987
THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF RECORDS FOR:
TRANSACTIONS IS 320
PAYEES IS 300
SEARCH CODES IS 300
FREE SPACE IS 27486
In this example the data files are on drive C: in the directory
called ACTDATA. The account file names start with the letter A and
the transaction file names start with the letter T. The next two
digits of each name are the number of the month. The two digits
after the dot are the year number. For March 1987, the file names
are A03.87 and T03.87.
-58-
REFERENCE SECTION
This naming convention makes it easy to copy all of the data
files from one year with the DOS command COPY *.87 B:. Or you may
want to just copy the current months files with the DOS command COPY
?03.87 B:. There is one more file you must backup with the current
data files. That file is named CONTROL. The system will not run
without it. However, it must be on the same disk or in the same
directory as PCACT.EXE.
-59-
MISCELLANEOUS TIPS
This section will give examples of situations that you may
encounter and ways to handle them. The accounts shown in figure 1
will be used in the examples.
1. Deposit a paycheck for $750 into CHECKING ACCOUNT #1
(account 61) and the asset account called CASH (account 1). Give it
a search code of 3. The transaction would be entered as:
750 1 61 PAY CHECK|3
In this case the $750 is added to both accounts. Both are IN
accounts and would be positioned as indicated in the prompt below.
The amount is entered first. The IN asset account goes second and
the IN bank account goes third. The PC-ACCOUNT insert screen would
look like this:
$ ASSET
AMOUNT IN OUT COMMENT | SEARCH CODE
[QUIT]? 750 1 61 Pay Check | 3
BANK
OUT IN
2. Transfer $200 from your bank savings account (account #63)
to checking account #1 (account #61). We do not want to change the
amount in asset account #2, called Savings, because we still consider
the $200 savings even though it will be in the checking account.
This is a transfer from one bank account to another since both
account numbers are above 60. The transaction would be entered as:
200 63 61 Transfer From Savings
The position of the two account numbers follow the rule for bank
account numbers as shown in the prompt display in example 1 above.
The bank OUT account number is entered before the bank IN account
number.
2A. If you also want to take the $200 in the above example out
of the Savings asset account (account #2) and put it in your Vacation
asset account (account #6), enter the following transaction:
200 6 2 Transfer Savings to Vacation
-60-
MISCELLANEOUS TIPS
3. Deposit three checks at once into one checking account with
each check amount going into a different asset account.
This is a common situation. It can be entered in three or four
transactions. I suggest using four. If you only use three
transactions, then each will show up as a deposit when reconciling
your bank statement. However, your bank statement will only show one
amount as the deposit, the total of the three.
Using four transactions will make reconciling the bank statement
easier. This is because only one deposit will be displayed by
PC-ACCOUNT and it will match the one on the bank statement.
Here is how to do it. Select an account that is not being used.
For this example we will use account #33 and refer to it as
temporary. First, enter the amounts into the three asset accounts
that the money is going into and take all three of these amounts out
of the temporary account #33. That will take three transactions.
Then, with a fourth transaction, enter the total amount into the
checking account and into the temporary account. The amount to
deposit into these two accounts is the positive value of the negative
amount in account #33. You can see the amount in account #33 by
pressing function key 1 after entering the first three transactions.
The four transactions will look like this:
95.45 1 33 Refund from store
50 9 33 Birthday gift received
67.32 5 33 Payment from medical insurance
212.77 33 61 Deposited 3 checks on Nov 15
Note that the first 3 transactions take a total of $212.77 out
of account #33 and the fourth puts $212.77 into account #33 for a net
change in account #33 of zero. Now, when you reconcile the bank
statement for checking account #61, the displayed transaction amount
will match the deposit on your bank statement.
You could enter the total deposit transaction first, but by
doing it the way shown, PC-ACCOUNT adds the amount of the three
deposits in the temporary account for you.
4. Where to look for errors when a bank statement does not
reconcile? This will happen when you or the bank has made an error.
Most of the time the error will have been made by you. A word of
advice. When reconciling a bank statement, always have the directed
output set to the printer or a file so as to create a record of
transactions that you checked as cleared on this run. The file
ACTLIST can always be viewed with the DOS TYPE command or printed
with the DOS command COPY ACTLIST PRN.
-61-
MISCELLANEOUS TIPS
The first place to look is to see if you have checked off all of
the transactions on the bank statement. If not, it means that the
transactions not checked off were never entered into the computer, or
you missed it on the first time through the PC-ACCOUNT reconciling
routine. To find this transaction, use the Search Through Many
Months routine for this amount or account. If it is not there, enter
a new transaction into PC-ACCOUNT for it.
Common transactions missed are finance charges, bank charges for
checks and other miscellaneous bank charges. After entering these
transactions, rerun the PC-ACCOUNT check reconciling routine again to
pick up the new entries. If you accidentally select a transaction as
cleared and it has not, you can edit it with the E command in the
Accounting section, even if the month is closed.
The second place to look for an error is in the actual amount on
the bank statement and in your transaction. Use the directed output
from the reconciling routine to double check the transaction amount
with the bank statement amount. It is very easy to transpose two
digits and not see the error when quickly going through the
reconciling routine. That is why the reconciling routine has the
amount double underlined, to remind you to double check the amount on
the bank statement with the amount in the PC-ACCOUNT transaction.
I had a situation where the bank keyed in an amount different
than that on the check. The bank had to look at a microfilmed copy
of the check to confirm that they made an error. It was a very neat
check printed by PC-ACCOUNT on a daisy wheel printer, so that the
amount on the check was clear and easy to read.
A third place to look for an error is in months previous to the
month that you started the reconciling routine. Sometimes a check
that you wrote gets lost and is never deposited or someone takes a
long time to use the check.
PC-ACCOUNT starts the reconciling routine with the bank account
balance at the beginning of the starting month that you select. If
there is an uncleared check in a month before this, the reconciling
routine does not know it.
The reconciling routine assumes that all previous transactions
have cleared. If you know of one that has not cleared, you can enter
it in the adjustments routine at the end of the reconciling routine.
To avoid this error, it is a good practice to start two or three
months before the month you think has the first uncleared transaction
and let the reconciling routine look for you.
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MISCELLANEOUS TIPS
5. BACKUP YOUR DATA. Make it a habit to copy your working disk
to another disk at least once a month. The best time to do it is
right after starting a new accounting month. I suggest making two
backup disks. Keep one at home and the second in another building,
such as your office. You can always replace stolen or burned
equipment and programs, but data is often irreplaceable, or very
difficult to recreate.
You may want to back up only the files that changed after each
session. This can be done by just copying three files to another
disk. These would be the current transaction and account files and
the CONTROL file. The transaction and account files look like T01.87
and A01.87. The numbers reflect the accounting period. Also copy
any other files you created or changed, such as PAYEES, a check
format file or a standard transaction file (TRANSCKS, TRANSDIS and
TRANSOTR).
It is a good practice to print the transactions from each
session and save the printouts until the end of the month. This is
for reference when your computer is off and also serves as backup
during the month.
I also suggest that at the end of each accounting month, and
before starting the next accounting month, you print all the accounts
and all the transactions from that month. Keep these printouts in a
notebook or file for quick reference when the computer is off. Use
the following procedure.
Turn the printer on and align the printer to the top of the
page. Set the top of page marker on your printer (turn the printer
off then on if you do not have a Set Top of Form button to do this).
Get into the Accounting Section. Direct the output to the printer
with function key 7. Skip eight lines from the top of the page with
the command:
Y L 8 RETURN
Enter the command:
A 1,99 RETURN
to print the 75 accounts (99 is easier to enter than 75 and only 75
accounts will print). Then enter V to have the totals printed.
Align to the top of the next page with the command:
Y RETURN
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MISCELLANEOUS TIPS
Then enter the command:
T 1,999 RETURN
to print all of the transactions.
6. FLOPPY DISK OPERATION. If you want to store much more than
twelve months data on a floppy disk, you will have to use two disks
and place all of the account and transaction files on the second
disk. Use the CHANGE PROGRAM PARAMETERS section of ACT_INIT to set
the path to the B: drive. Using the DOS PATH command to do this will
NOT work for data files. When operating from a floppy disk, always
have an empty formatted floppy on hand. If the data floppy is full
when PC-ACCOUNT writes transaction or account files to it, you will
get one chance to insert a new floppy to save your data on it.
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