Tracking Money in Savings Account

[Mike or Penny Novack]

>
>Now if I wanted to see how much accumulated money
> I've spent on movies, all I would need to do is look at the balance of 
>Expense:Movies.  If I wanted to know how much money I have to spend on movies, then I just need to look at the balance of Asset:Bank:Movies.
>
>Are the two above paragraphs correct?
>
>  
>
Perhaps ---- but I think there is a bit of confusion. GnuCash is able to 
manage "books" (a record of ACTUAL financial transactions) and "budgets" 
(projected/planned transactions). In "standard" accounting both are used 
without (in the sense meant here) of "envelopes"*. The idea is that the 
actual transactions represent the actuals unconstrained by what is 
planned. That the disciple of sticking to the budget is external to 
either the budget or the books. In effect, the "envelope" method was 
devised as an aid for people who had difficulty with "sticking to a budget".


* Well yes, I do have "subaccounts" (designated funds) within the main 
savings account of organizations of which I am treasurer. For the simple 
reason that these "funds" aren't large enough to justify individual 
accounts. But again, these do not represent envelopes restricting actual 
transactions nor do the actual transactions affect these sub accounts. 
What happens is "as allowed" funds a transfer transaction moves funds 
from one of these to the main unrestricted account. Say that restricted 
account is monies donated to help cover expenses of type X. Well once a 
quarter (or once a year) or whatever would be allowed to have used those 
restricted monies so transfer that amount (up to the total of expenses 
of type X). But nothing prevents the organization from spending MORE 
than that on X (from its unrestricted funds).

Michael