Equity-Opening Balance Never Changes

[Mike or Penny Novack]

janfl wrote:

>I have been using gnu cash for a couple of months. What I am noticing is that
>my equity balance never changes under accounts. Under equity, it says
>opening balances. I want it to show how much equity I have after everything
>is balanced. It just stays fixed at opening balance and yes, I know that is
>my opening balance. I would like the accounts page to reflect my current
>equity.  I pull the reports to get my cash flow and profit and loss. Would
>appreciate if someone could advise me.
>
>  
>
I guess I need to do this every couple months?

History of double entry bookkeeping.

Originally (late Renaissance) there were no income or expense accounts. 
Those transactions were immediately entered against equity. The somebody 
bright realized that more information about the business operations 
would be available if there were "income" and expense" accounts as 
temporary (not "standing") accounts of fundamental type equity. At some 
interval (whatever useful for the business) these would be closed to 
equity with the amount needed to close the account being whatever 
brought it to zero balance -- so that total now available. Slightly 
later noticed that if these income and expense accounts were first 
closed to a special "profit and loss" account then THAT showed useful 
information and the amount needed to close "profit and loss" to equity 
was the net profit or loss for the period.

It is easier with computerized systems that show us things like the 
running balance of each account (they didn't have that) and reports that 
can be run  without closing accounts.

Note that you perhaps might not (really want) what you are asking for. 
Instead of JUST the balance of equity, wouldn't it be preferable to see 
the initial equity and then the net profit (or loss) for each subsequent 
accounting interval? So that you can see that history? I don't use the 
automated close the books, but even if you did I strongly suspect you 
could later alter the description field of the closing transaction to 
label it with year, etc. (if you close manually, of course you describe 
that closing transaction whatever you like.

Michael