I just use mint. It does most of what I want, and the integration with my
bank records is a snap to set up.
Adam
On 21 August 2012 11:49, Matt Graham <
Matthew.H.Graham@asu.edu> wrote:
> From: Michael Butash <michael@butash.net>
> > I've attempted probably no less than 4 times over the past 5 years or
> > so to get [GNUcash] working in efforts to track finances more
> effectively,
> > but never once got the hbci stuff working with my bank(s) to do so. That
> > bit was quite cryptic and frustrating
>
> I haven't tried that, since I usually have fewer than 5 bank transactions
> per
> day, so entering these by hand is easy/fast. Getting Finance::Quote
> installed
> and set up for tracking stock/mutual funds was relatively easy once I'd
> read
> the fine manual.
>
> > That and the accounting knowledge required to use it effectively simply
> > eludes me as much seemed to assume I actually understood accounting.
>
> Take a look at the basic help,
> http://gnucash.org/docs/v2.4/C/gnucash-help/help.html , and see if
> anything
> in
> the advanced help ,
> http://gnucash.org/docs/v2.4/C/gnucash-guide/index.html
> is
> interesting.
>
> The thing to do when setting up GNUcash is to start out your checking
> account
> opening balance with the opening balance on the first of (month), then just
> enter all the income/expenses from then til today that are on your bank
> statement. Start your cash in wallet opening balance with the bills in
> your
> wallet. *DON'T* try to enter everything you have records of, just pick a
> start date.[0] Then spend 5 minutes every day recording what you spent
> that
> day and what you spent it on.
>
> The real power of GNUcash is that it forces you to categorize every
> transaction. $4.65 double venti marshmellow fluff mocachino every day?
> That
> accumulates in Expenses:Dining and then you say, "What in the name of
> Richard
> Stallman did I spend so much money on in Dining?" and then you think about
> buying cheaper drinks.[1]
>
> Split transactions and scheduled transactions are also useful. Though if I
> were going to use scheduled transactions a lot, I'd schedule the expenses
> <= 5
> days in advance, so that your ledger reflects what you have *now*. And I
> only
> enter income transactions when I've actually got the money in my wallet or
> bank account. (Somebody I know scheduled a bunch of expenses and income
> transactions 180 days in advance, making it look as though she'd paid off
> her
> credit card on the overview window when there was still $1000 on it. While
> that might make you feel better, it doesn't reflect current reality....)
>
> FWIW, I haven't had any formal accounting training at all, and I managed to
> get GNUcash mostly figured out in 2000-2001, when the documentation was
> sort
> of incomplete.
>
> [0] Accountants, feel free to gasp in horror here.
> [1] Not if you file everything under Expenses:Miscellaneous , so don't do
> that. You'll probably need to create a few custom accounts. I have
> Expenses:Cat , you may need Expenses:Dog or Expenses:Kid .
>
> --
> Matt G / Dances With Crows
> The Crow202 Blog: http://crow202.org/wordpress/
> There is no Darkness in Eternity/But only Light too dim for us to see
>
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