New User to GnuCash

[Mike or Penny Novack]

On 12/14/2017 5:23 PM, Alex Aycinena wrote:
> On Thu, Dec 14, 2017 at 2:10 PM, Jack Slater <theilliniguy at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> How could that be? I’m paying from Checking. That’s a debit is it not? If
>> not then everything I’ve learned in 59 years is wrong!
>>
>> On Dec 14, 2017, at 4:08 PM, Alex Aycinena <alex.aycinena at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
Nope, you have it backwards. Double entry bookkeeping has two "senses", 
debit and credit (not quite the same as positive and negative). There 
are three FUNDAMENTAL types of accounts, asset, liability, and equity 
(type income and expense are actually temporary accounts of fundamental 
type equity --- hundreds of years ago they did not exist and 
transactions were entered directly against equity).

The normal balance of the type asset is debit (a debit increases an asset).
The normal balance of the types liability and equity is credit (a credit 
increases a liability or equity)

You are being confused by looking at the statement you get from your 
bank. That is because from THEIR point of view, when you make a deposit 
it is a credit (for THEM) and when they pay a check a debit (for THEM). 
But for you it would be the other way around.

Michael D Novack