[GNC] Confusing and inconsistent headers in transaction entry and report forms

[Adrien Monteleone]

Peter,

I think the problem stems from your choice of report options.

Namely, by default, 'Account Name' under the Display tab is *not* 
selected, while the 'other account' is.

This is because by default the Sort options are:

Primary: account
Secondary: register order

So by default, the transactions for each chosen account are grouped 
together, and then those are listed by date. Subtotals are for the 
account. Since the primary sorting key is the account, it is shown like 
in my screenshot on 8/3 circled in yellow. (and also what you indicated 
in your 'I wish it has said' example.) Thus, there is no need to check 
off the option to show 'Account Name' in the Display tab as that would 
be superfluous.

But,

Changing the primary sort to Date (or other similar option) now sets 
that grouping label to an accounting period rather than the account 
name. The account name is no longer visible, but you can of course, turn 
it on in the Display tab.

I've managed to craft a report similar to the desired (3rd) example you 
gave and have attached it.

I've also attached the Options used to achieve it.

It might not be the only or best way to see the info, but it closely 
matches what you indicated you were looking for. Note, I only selected 
the Checking account, there is little need by your example to select 
both it and the Income account as those splits will be represented 
already since the other important preference change was switching the 
Detail Level to 'One Split Per Line' in the Display tab. You can of 
course turn on other info labels in Display, but I turned them off to 
match your example.

Note, the attached example uses Date, rather than the default Account 
Name, as the primary sort key.

Regards,
Adrien

On 8/16/22 10:44 PM, Peter S. Shenkin wrote:
> I think at last I see what you all are saying.
> 
> When I have not displayed account totals, the only account shown on a debit
> or credit line is the *counterpart* of the current leg of the transaction;
> so the line in the last of my four attachments that says "Checking Account"
> and lists $100 as a Credit is actually showing that "Other income" received
> a credit and received it from the Checking Account. The problem is that the
> partner in the account is not named in the display.
> 
> I find this very confusing, but I do understand it now. I think it would
> have helped if, without turning on Account totals, the label of each leg of
> the transaction could have maintained the name of the parent account for
> each line.
> 
> For instance, instead of just :
> 
> *Date       Num Description Memo/Notes Transfer from/to          Debit
> (USD) Credit*
> 08/16/2022     sale                            Checking Account
>   $100.00
> 
>   I wish it had said:
> 
> *Date       Num Description Memo/Notes Transfer from/to       Debit (USD)
> Credit*
> Other Income:
> 08/16/2022     sale                            Checking Account
> $100.00
> 
> Still, what I would really like to see is something compact that shows, for
> each transaction, in date order, the date and description of the
> transaction and then a single line for each leg, the amount involved and
> whether it is a debit or a credit. For instance:
> 
> 08/16/2022 sale
>      *Account             Debit     Credit*
>      Checking Account:   $100
>      Other Income:                 $100
> 
> It's the compactness and clarity of the representation, not the exact
> format, that I'm concerned with.
> 
> Thanks for all your help. I'll play with the options to see how close I can
> get.
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