John Tilton on mon 1 jul 96
Does anyone use Quickbooks Pro 4.0 for Windows to do accounting for their
pottery business? If so would you please e-mail me privately with a testamonial
for or against.
My hard drive crashed last night-- had to reformat at 3am---- it's time to
change accounting software.
Thank you.
John Tilton
Alachua, Fl
John Tilton on sun 7 jul 96
Hello Everyone,
Thank you for all the suggestions. I have purchased a copy of Quickbooks for
Windows but can't install it as of now because of some error----probably
something having to do with a full 120 meg hard drive or a damaged one.
Anne and I leave for State College, Pa early tomorrow morning to exhibit our
pottery at the Central Pa Festival of the Arts and I don't have time to deal
with the software until we get back.
A new computer has been on the horizon for some time and now the horizon is
closer-----perhaps as early as next month. Boy did I think that this state of
the art 486-33 would last longer than 4 1/2 years.
Again, I really appreciate your time, expertise, and good wishes.
John Tilton
Alachua, Fl
PS I had about a dozen replies-------Quickbooks seems to be the way to go.
Lisa on sun 7 jul 96
At 02:14 PM 7/7/96 +0000, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>Hello Everyone,
>
>Thank you for all the suggestions. I have purchased a copy of Quickbooks for
>Windows but can't install it as of now because of some error----probably
>something having to do with a full 120 meg hard drive or a damaged one.
>
I have tried to email John Tilton, but seem to get bounced back every
time..... Do any of you use Peachtree software? I am trying to set mine up
and would be interested in how you set yours up.
Lisa
Corinne P. Null on thu 13 nov 97
>>Great Plains is now giving away their software. Great Plain was bought
>>by Champion Business Systems in September. Version 3.0 is availble here:
>>http://www.champbiz.com/profit/demo/
A friend sent me this information, and I have downloaded this software to
try out. Thought others might be interested in it. A second message said
it might cost $50-100.
I am spending this time (when I should be making pots) evaluating
accounting software. (Influenced by articles in Ceramics Monthly
Supplement "Pottery Making Illustrated" by Jeff Zamek, and Summer '97
Contact Magazine article by Dan Taylor.) Am looking at Quickbooks and the
above mentioned Profit. Are there any others that people are using that I
should look at?
I'm finding that my current handwritten system of numbering each piece
(item) individually is probably not the best way to go with these packages
- that I need to create stock item numbers (ie. mugs, cereal bowls, etc.)
Is that true?
Also, want to track commissions to galleries, and I'm not sure the Profit
system will do that.
Please share your experiences. I would appreciate any help.
Corinne
Corinne Null
Bedford, NH
cnull@MCIONE.com
Orion/Baker on fri 14 nov 97
We use Peachtree accounting software, and really love it.
Ellen Baker
Orion - Glacier, WA
orion@telcomplus.com
Jeremy/Bonnie Hellman on fri 14 nov 97
As a CPA I've worked with and looked at a number of accounting software
packages, one more expensive than the next. In general, unless my clients
were trained as accountants or bookkeepers, I would recommend Quickbooks,
because you do not have to understand debits and credits. Quickbooks and
One-Write require that you understand only whether cash is coming in or
going out.
However the key to successful use of an accounting package is how you set
up your chart of accounts. Here, you may want to hire a professional who
understands your business.
Great Plains and the Champion Business accounting programs are in general
designed for use by people who think in debits and credits, plus the full
systems are many times more expensive than Quickbooks. I believe that
Intuit (which sells Quickbooks) has a referral system to CPA's who claim
to be knowledgeable about Quickbooks. It could be worthwhile to phone
Intuit or contact them online at their web site, and then interview
anyone they refer you to.
Bonnie Hellman, CPA in Pittsburgh, PA
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>>>Great Plains is now giving away their software. Great Plain was bought
>>>by Champion Business Systems in September. Version 3.0 is availble here:
>
>>>http://www.champbiz.com/profit/demo/
>
>
>A friend sent me this information, and I have downloaded this software to
>try out. Thought others might be interested in it. A second message said
>it might cost $50-100.
>
>I am spending this time (when I should be making pots) evaluating
>accounting software. (Influenced by articles in Ceramics Monthly
>Supplement "Pottery Making Illustrated" by Jeff Zamek, and Summer '97
>Contact Magazine article by Dan Taylor.) Am looking at Quickbooks and the
>above mentioned Profit. Are there any others that people are using that I
>should look at?
>
>I'm finding that my current handwritten system of numbering each piece
>(item) individually is probably not the best way to go with these packages
>- that I need to create stock item numbers (ie. mugs, cereal bowls, etc.)
>Is that true?
>
>Also, want to track commissions to galleries, and I'm not sure the Profit
>system will do that.
>
>Please share your experiences. I would appreciate any help.
>
>Corinne
>Corinne Null
>Bedford, NH
>
>cnull@MCIONE.com
Grimmer on fri 14 nov 97
Connie,
I use Great Plains Dynamics accounting system every day at my day job.
It's a big accounting system for networked computers, so the smaller
software may be different, but there are some problems with Dynamics.
One, it sometimes neglects to add freight to shipments, so a $50 order
plus $19 freight adds up to $19. Or $50. Or $69. You gotta watch it.
Two, postings to accounts are sometimes 'lost' in cyber space or posted
to the wrong period. Customers get upset when their statement says they
have $200 outstanding for 120 days when they pay in full every month.
There some other problems we've had, but Great Plains response tends
to be, "That's funny. It shouldn't do that." Not much help.
The small business package may be much different, though. Just my
$0.02.
steve grimmer
marion illinois
sleet and 2" snow predicted tonight
Corinne P. Null wrote:
>
> ----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> >>Great Plains is now giving away their software. Great Plain was bought
> >>by Champion Business Systems in September. Version 3.0 is availble here:
>
> >>http://www.champbiz.com/profit/demo/
>
> A friend sent me this information, and I have downloaded this software to
> try out. Thought others might be interested in it. A second message said
> it might cost $50-100.
>
> I am spending this time (when I should be making pots) evaluating
> accounting software. (Influenced by articles in Ceramics Monthly
> Supplement "Pottery Making Illustrated" by Jeff Zamek, and Summer '97
> Contact Magazine article by Dan Taylor.) Am looking at Quickbooks and the
> above mentioned Profit. Are there any others that people are using that I
> should look at?
>
> I'm finding that my current handwritten system of numbering each piece
> (item) individually is probably not the best way to go with these packages
> - that I need to create stock item numbers (ie. mugs, cereal bowls, etc.)
> Is that true?
>
> Also, want to track commissions to galleries, and I'm not sure the Profit
> system will do that.
>
> Please share your experiences. I would appreciate any help.
>
> Corinne
> Corinne Null
> Bedford, NH
>
> cnull@MCIONE.com
Ray Carlton on fri 14 nov 97
hi corrinne....i have used quickbooks for a couple of years and find it
does almost everything i want it too.
I would recomend it highly as a low cost but extremely comprehensive
accounting package that goes way beyond the needs of a simple
potter....however, i would also recomend that anybody considering using it,
or indeed any other package of this type, to get professional help with the
setup. It is really very tricky and i spent many many hours before i had it
right...here in australia you can hire a specialist to come in and set it
up for you for around $200.00 It will also cost you an hour or two of your
time to talk to the guy while he sets it up......
any one who has a computer and is not using accounting software is missing
one of the main points of these infernal machines
further queries ?? email me
At 10:15 13/11/97 EST, you wrote:
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>>>Great Plains is now giving away their software. Great Plain was bought
>>>by Champion Business Systems in September. Version 3.0 is availble here:
>
>>>http://www.champbiz.com/profit/demo/
>
>
>A friend sent me this information, and I have downloaded this software to
>try out. Thought others might be interested in it. A second message said
>it might cost $50-100.
>
>I am spending this time (when I should be making pots) evaluating
>accounting software. (Influenced by articles in Ceramics Monthly
>Supplement "Pottery Making Illustrated" by Jeff Zamek, and Summer '97
>Contact Magazine article by Dan Taylor.) Am looking at Quickbooks and the
>above mentioned Profit. Are there any others that people are using that I
>should look at?
>
>I'm finding that my current handwritten system of numbering each piece
>(item) individually is probably not the best way to go with these packages
>- that I need to create stock item numbers (ie. mugs, cereal bowls, etc.)
>Is that true?
>
>Also, want to track commissions to galleries, and I'm not sure the Profit
>system will do that.
>
>Please share your experiences. I would appreciate any help.
>
>Corinne
>Corinne Null
>Bedford, NH
>
>cnull@MCIONE.com
>
>
raycarlt@valylink.net.au
Ray Carlton
McMahons Creek Victoria Australia 3799
John H. Rodgers on sat 15 nov 97
-- [ From: John H. Rodgers * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --
Hi Connie:
I have used a variety of accounting software packages but in my book the
best "Canned" accounting software for small business is Quickbooks. The
lastest version out is Quickbooks Pro v5. It includes an online banking
package, and an accounts output/input package, and a communications package
connecting you to the internet and allowing faxing of invoices and
statements to customers. Also there is a Turbo-Tax link, whereby, if you
purchase Turbo-tax, Quickbooks will run your taxes throughout the year, and
all you have to do is download the tax returns to the printer. They can also
be sent directly to IRS by phone modem.
The really good thing about Quickbooks is you don't have to be a CPA or
trained accountant to work with it. You do not have to understand or think
in terms of the standard debit/credit that CPA's and ordinary accountants
must deal with. All you need to understand is how the money cojmes in, and
how it goes out. Done properly, the program can give you a daily balance
sheet so you can see financial position at the end of every day. Does it
automatically, takes only seconds. Profit and Loss Statements are a snap
also. There are many more features to make the accounting process easier.
The critical element, however is the proper setting up of a chart of
accounts. I would strongly recommend your using a professional well versed
in using Quickbooks to set up your chart of account. These will include
asset accounts, depreciation accounts, liability accounts, and expense
accounts. Under those broad headings there will be a miriade of account
names such as bank accounts, income accounts,cash accounts, mortgage
accounts, Cost of Goods Sold, employer liability accounts, utility accounts
, etc,etc,etc. The point of which is to say let your CPA set this up. That
way things are automatically posted to the proper account.
I have been using this program professionally for 5 years, and would
recommend it to any small business person.
If you have any questions please feel free to ask, but please use the
private e-mail address to avoid clutter on the listserver.
John Rodgers
Enjoying a Beautiful Autumn in Alabama
-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------
Date: Thursday, 13-Nov-97 10:15 AM
From: Corinne P. Null \ Internet: (cnull@mcione.com)
To: CLAYART LIST \ Internet: (clayart@lsv.uky.edu)
Subject: Accounting Software
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
>>Great Plains is now giving away their software. Great Plain was bought
>>by Champion Business Systems in September. Version 3.0 is availble here:
>>http://www.champbiz.com/profit/demo/
A friend sent me this information, and I have downloaded this software to
try out. Thought others might be interested in it. A second message said
it might cost $50-100.
I am spending this time (when I should be making pots) evaluating accounting
software. (Influenced by articles in Ceramics Monthly Supplement "Pottery
Making Illustrated" by Jeff Zamek, and Summer '97 Contact Magazine article
by Dan Taylor.) Am looking at Quickbooks and the above mentioned Profit.
Are there any others that people are using that I should look at?
I'm finding that my current handwritten system of numbering each piece (item
) individually is probably not the best way to go with these packages - that
I need to create stock item numbers (ie. mugs, cereal bowls, etc.) Is that
true?
Also, want to track commissions to galleries, and I'm not sure the Profit
system will do that.
Please share your experiences. I would appreciate any help.
Corinne
Corinne Null
Bedford, NH
cnull@MCIONE.com
-------- REPLY, End of original message --------
John H. Rodgers on mon 17 nov 97
-- [ From: John H. Rodgers * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --
Hi John Weber.
Since most small businesses fail as a result of their accounting practices I
decided to post my response to your questions and concerns so the membership
might benefit.
First a caution. Don't work the inventory thing to death. It's basically
cost of materials USED plus cost of labor = cost of goods. Simple as that.
Not to worry about how many of this that and the other you have except maybe
once a year.
In my view, Quickbooks is weak in its ability to allow integration of costs
of raw materials to arrive at a per-unit cost of goods and and track
inventory manufactured in-house. . Peachtree does a better job, and allows
multiple price structures. However, overall, Quickbooks is easier to use. It
is the flexibility of the program that makes it so desirable in spite of its
weaknesses. You don't have to be a CPA to get the job done. If you get your
CPA to help set up your chart of accounts, you'll be miles along down the
trail.
Quickbooks is really designed around retail operations, where you purchase
your inventory at one price and sell it at another. That doesn't quite fit
with production. You need to use a spread sheet to work out your per-unit
costs on each item you produce.
I have done a cost analysis on every single piece we produce. I know
exactly how much glaze goes on a coffee cup, how much clay is used in the
cup, how much fuel is allocated to the cost of the making the cup, the total
time of all processes involved in making the form and finishing it, and on
and on. I used a scale for weights and a stopwatch for time to get a handle
on labor. I found this to be absolutely necessary to have a sure grip on the
cost of producing ware in our shop. Edward Deming became my idol. You have
to know the real cost of every thing you do in production. A spreadsheet was
the only way to go. My analysis spreadsheets fill two workbooks in Excel.
But I KNOW what it takes and what it costs. When I really got into this, I
discovered there were items we were making that we didn't even recover cost
of materials on, much less make a profit, and we all know that the cost of
clay is really "dirt" cheap compared to other raw materials. I quit making
some really popular items simply because they were not cost effective. That
was hard, but in production, you can't afford to do otherwise.
As for the bookkeeping end of things, I don't try to track finished
inventory in Quickbooks. Cost of goods includes many things where
manufacturing is concerned but the principle elements are labor and
materials. Labor is recorded as I pay myself a paycheck, and I simply record
the cost of materials as they are purchased, and at the end of the period I
inventory those materials to determine how much was used. A journal entry is
made to record cost of materials used. the cost of the labor and cost of
materials is cost of goods. Except at year end, the only time I get
concerned about finished goods inventory is when I need to see my banker. He
needs to know about my assets and finished goods has added value over raw
materials in terms of inventory on hand.
I recommend a college textbook used in the University of Alabama accounting
program titled Fundamental Accounting Principles by Larsen and Pyle. Mine is
the 11th edition. If you are going to run a business, this book(or one of
similar professional standing) is a must. It is fairly easy reading,
interesting( as much as an accounting book can be) and explains many things
in the business world, and in many cases, in matters of personal finance. It
has helped me a great deal.
There is a very good section on cost accounting in a manufacturing
environment. It fits both the large and the small. This book will serve you
well. I wouldn't trade my copy for money.
Hope this helps.
John Rodgers
Enjoying and beautiful Autumn in Alabama
-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------
Date: Saturday, 15-Nov-97 06:43 PM
From: John Weber \ America On-Line: (JODO96)
To: John H. Rodgers \ Internet: (inua@quicklink.net)
Subject: Re: Accounting Software
John,
Your posting on Clayart regarding software was interesting. I am in the
market for software to handle our pottery business - just starting. However
I can't seem to find any that really handle inventories of chemicals and so
forth to come up with a cost of goods sold. Do you feel Quickbooks Pro can
handle these aspects of the accounting process for a production potter?
Thanks for your help JODO96@AOL.COM (John Weber, in Virginia)
-------- REPLY, End of original message --------
John Weber on tue 18 nov 97
In a message dated 97-11-17 12:16:55 EST, you write:
<<
But I KNOW what it takes and what it costs. When I really got into this, I
>>
I've probably exceeded my limit on questions, but here is one more. Once you
have taken a begining inventory, and an ending inventory to come up with your
cost of goods sold (or manufactured), and you know how many pieces were sold
and still on hand, do you allocate that cost of goods sold to all the pieces
made and substract those still on hand? You described your process of
arriving at a unit cost based on time and materials studies, but how can that
be accurate enough to account for all of the cost of goods sold, based on
inventory numbers. Then I guess you have to identify the cost of each piece
and maintain that record for when you sell the piece to substract that amount
from your inventory of finished goods. -- I will buy the book! Thanks for
your insight, I think there are a lot of folks that need to hear about this
part of the business.
Bonnema on tue 18 nov 97
Hi from maine.
I have used MYOB on my Mac for several years and I am happy with it. It has
many things I don't use though. It handles our small payroll well.
I have used Quicken to do the books for a non-profit organization I was
volunteer treasurer of. It works very well if you write checks manually and
don't have a payroll. Really easy to use.
Garret Bonnema
Bethel, Maine
--
Garret Bonnema
bonnema@megalink.net
Don Jones on tue 18 nov 97
I'm not sure where to pick up on this thread on software but I would like
three things I'm not getting on my MYOB accounting package:
1. A way to pull up galleries by state and city
2. A way to list totals of each category of work sold
3. the year 2000 problem solved for sure.
Anyone know of any programs out there for the mac?
Don Jones
claysky@highfiber.com
:-) implied in all messages and replies
http://highfiber.com/~claysky
John H. Rodgers on wed 19 nov 97
-- [ From: John H. Rodgers * EMC.Ver #2.5.02 ] --
Hi John Weber.
To continue the discussion about the accounting process and what I did......
....!
My work at the time was in reproduction work, ie, there was an entire line
of pieces and they were made by the hundreds. This allowed me to get a good
grip on cost, because I could select 100 pieces of any one item and use the
average of measurements from each. The finished work was slip-cast porcelain
figurines. There was a production process, ie, many steps from raw material
to finished goods. Because we did everything in-house, from mold design to
finished goods I was able to track the entire process.
The first thing I did was to identify the profit centers within the process.
That allowed me to work with smaller units. Profit centers are those points
within the production process where the work in progress could be sold as a
finished good. Not all work in progress can be treated that way. Some
centers that I identified were (1) sculpture - an original, one-off piece
could be sold at a profit. (2) Master molds - can be sold at a profit, (3)
production molds, (4) greenware, (5) Bisqueware (6) Finished Work(Painted or
what ever). Each one of these areas could stand alone in their ability to
make money. But where the goal was to sell a finished product, each of these
steps added value to each piece.
After identifying the profit centers, I took my scale and stopwatch, and I
measured materials consumed and labor expended, right down to .001 grams,
and 5 second intervals on the stop watch. I did this in every center. I
tracked the number of pieces that were produced, the number of pieces that
were crashed due to flaws and thrown on the scrap heap, the number of pieces
thrown back into the reclaim bucket, I got it all. If you throw greenware
back into the reclaim bucket, obviously you have not lost the material, but
you have lost the labor put into the casting.You also have one round of wear
on your molds for which there will be no income. One the greenware has
fired and it is scrapped due to flaws, you have lost the material AND the
labor. This is true of the moldmaking process. If it is wrong, plaster that
has set is worthless. So labor and material is lost. Same is true for rubber
master molds.
So I made elaborate measures and built elaborate spreadsheets. The necessity
of this was twofold, I needed to know to manage the business and not lose
our backsides in the marketing/sales end of things, and I was going for a
big business loan, and in doing that I had to meet the lenders measure.
Remember The Golden Rule? He Who Has The Gold Rules!!! It was a lesson
well learned. But the value of the education I got from going through the
process is without measure.
Along with all this I wrote a business plan with a detailed market analysis.
That is also a must in my book. After having been through the process, I
wouldn't encourage anyone to go into business without doing a market
analysis and then writing a business plan and marketing plan first. Seems
like a lot of work, but it gets you focused, and serves a guide to keep you
on track.
Why go through all this? Well, a single large order, without proper
knowledge of cost of goods, could wipe you out. We dealt with single orders
up to $35000. Make a mistake on the cost of goods on an order like that and
you will be a long time recovering if you ever do.
Can't emphasize enough, "Do your homework!"
Now back to your point, and mine, the in-depth analysis may not be
necessary on a very small scale business. And so using the cost of labor and
raw materials used is a simple easy way to go. You could complicate it by
breaking inventory down to raw materials, work in progress, and finished
goods, but unless you are going to be producing large quantities of goods of
the same kind, or custom work it isn't necessary. On the P&L, the cost of
raw materials and labor should go into the Cost of Goods Manufactured, and
unsold finished inventory would go into your assets column.
Near the top of the P&L will be a line for total sales. Further down there
will be a line for Cost of Goods Manufactured, A little further there will
be expenses(utilities, rent, office labor, etc), and near the bottom, the
assets( unsold inventory) will appear. So it is not absolutely necessary to
break it out into every little piece of finished work you have in inventory.
IRS could care less whether or not you have $3 in this piece or $9 in that
piece or $0.50 in the other piece. As a matter of fact, you might not even
want to show the finished inventory in the P&L unless you are trying to show
a banker how much you are worth and how well you are doing. Until the
inventory is sold it is only worth the labor and materials in it as Cost of
Goods Manufactured. File a loss claim with an insurance company on loss of
goods and see what happens. Your are guaranteed not to get the wholesale
price, much less retail price. Your "REAL" loss is only the cost of
manufacturing the goods plus some portion attibutable to "Operating
expenses or overhead."
Hope this helps a bit. There are some really good books at college
bookstores about accounting, marketing, and business management. I strongly
urge anyone who plans on going into business themselves to get some of those
books. Books in commercial bookstores are ok, but college texts on those
subjects have been selected for their specific content by the professors.
And for that reason, I personally feel they are a better choice. I would
drop by my local college bookstore, and ask which books are being used for a
particular course. They can tell you, and that's the one to get.
Good luck.
John Rodgers
It's 27 degrees where I am in Alabama, just like a September Morning in
Alaska. Makes me homesick.
-------- REPLY, Original message follows --------
Date: Tuesday, 18-Nov-97 08:03 AM
From: John Weber \ America On-Line: (JODO96)
To: CLAYART LIST \ Internet: (clayart@lsv.uky.edu)
Subject: Re: Accounting Software
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
In a message dated 97-11-17 12:16:55 EST, you write:
<<
But I KNOW what it takes and what it costs. When I really got into this, I
>>
I've probably exceeded my limit on questions, but here is one more. Once
you have taken a begining inventory, and an ending inventory to come up with
your cost of goods sold (or manufactured), and you know how many pieces were
sold and still on hand, do you allocate that cost of goods sold to all the
pieces made and substract those still on hand? You described your process
of arriving at a unit cost based on time and materials studies, but how can
that be accurate enough to account for all of the cost of goods sold, based
on inventory numbers. Then I guess you have to identify the cost of each
piece and maintain that record for when you sell the piece to substract that
amount from your inventory of finished goods. -- I will buy the book!
Thanks for your insight, I think there are a lot of folks that need to hear
about this part of the business.
-------- REPLY, End of original message --------
Jeremy/Bonnie Hellman on thu 20 nov 97
Don-
3. I would call or email Intuit about the year 2000 problem, but I
believe it is not a problem with Quickbooks Pro for the Mac or for PC's.
(And by the way, your PC colleagues on windows can share files with Mac
users.)
2. Set up your accounts in Cost of Goods Sold by category. You can have
many subaccounts in Quickbooks for each account. Just remember NOT to
make any entries to your "headers" (main accounts) when you are using
sub-accounts. The nice thing about Quickbooks is the ability to add and
change accounts while the program is in use.
1. Can't help you on this one except to have a separate database for your
galleries. A real database is also useful in many ways not found in a
traditional accounting program.
BTW Quickbooks is excellent for helping to prepare a tax return, now that
tax season is fast approaching. Each account can be linked to a specific
line on a tax return (whether Sch C, partnership or corporate).
There may be other programs that do as much as Quickbooks as easily and
at as low a price, but I stopped looking when I found Quickbooks.
Bonnie Hellman, CPA in Pittsburgh, PA
(going off line for 2 weeks)
>----------------------------Original message----------------------------
> I'm not sure where to pick up on this thread on software but I would like
>three things I'm not getting on my MYOB accounting package:
>
>1. A way to pull up galleries by state and city
>2. A way to list totals of each category of work sold
>3. the year 2000 problem solved for sure.
>
>Anyone know of any programs out there for the mac?
>
>Don Jones
>claysky@highfiber.com
> :-) implied in all messages and replies
>http://highfiber.com/~claysky
"Outside a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside a dog, it's too
dark to read" Groucho Marx
" " Harpo Marx
"Time flies like an arrow. Fruit flies like an avocado" Att. to GM
L. P. Skeen on mon 7 jan 08
Hey everybody,
Lemme say up front that I am not an accountant, nor do I play one on TV. =
When it comes to accounting, I'm really bad at it. I manage to keep =
all my receipts in one general location, if I'm lucky, and then in =
December or January, I get them input for tax purposes.
I think Bonnie the Accountant would probably agree that whatever works =
for you, in terms of keeping up with income and expenses, is fine, as =
long as you use it. Years ago, my BIL the self-employed dog trainer =
turned me on to Dome accounting books. If you are of the paper and =
pencil mindset, the Dome books are great. I used the one that has a tan =
cover and is set up by the month called the Dome Simplified Accounting =
book, available at Office Despot. It's very easy to use; you write your =
expenses on the left side of the page, income on the right, and there's =
a section for figuring out if you made a profit or not. LOL.
Since I'm NOT of the paper and pencil mindset, I was quite happy to find =
that Dome has a software version of their accounting books. It's not as =
fancy-dancy as Quickbooks, but it does what I (we) need it to do, and =
frankly, you CAN do more with it than I do; I just don't use all the =
features. You can customize the chart of accounts however you like it. =
I put in all my income and expenses, print out the report and then go =
fill in the Turbotax. The software is very inexpensive, especially when =
compared to QB, and the learning curve is not as steep.
I do not work for Dome or make any money from them, just a happy =
customer.
=
http://www.domeproductsonline.com/home.html?lang=3Den-us&target=3Dd13.htm=
l
L. P. Skeen, Summerfield NC
http://www.livingtreestudios.etsy.com
www.living-tree.net
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