[GNC] Is GnuCash right for me?

[Michael or Penny Novack]

>>
>> Yes, using a proper database for keeping track of equipment and RMA 
>> tracking
>> makes sense.
>>
>> GnuCash can manage your invoicing, etc.
>>
>>> My wife wants to run the entire business from Excel, and in one
>>> spreadsheet I think? Databases seem more proper to me :-)
>> YES! People seem to think a spreadsheet program is a be-all-end-all
>> application (ARG!). This is like tossing out your whole toolbox and 
>> buying a
>> Swiss Army Knife as a replacement. Would you actually do that?

Those of us who learned bookkeeping in the old pen and ink on paper days 
can easily see how a spreadsheet application could be used for double 
entry bookkeeping just substituting suitably arranged columns for the 
special lined accounting paper that we used to use. Simply point out to 
somebody who suggests this that by far the greatest number of errors 
were transcription errors during posting.

If the want the familiar format in which they used to enter 
transactions, tell them to choose "journal view" to enter transactions 
AND POSTING IS AUTOMATIC (and error free).

BUT -- gnucash is just an accounting package. It is NOT a complete 
"business system". THAT would have other parts to it, payroll and HR, 
inventory, point of sales, etc. If an integrated business system, some 
of these components would send "feeds" to other parts (automation of 
data from one of these affecting another part  --- POS records the sale 
of something and tells inventory to adjust for widget sold and 
accounting to enter the transaction.

If you need these other parts of your business system, you'll need other 
applications, databases, etc.

Michael D Novack

PS --- you should NOT be surprised that the free software community has 
not (yet) constructed a general purpose "business system". THAT would be 
an enormous undertaking. Some elements of business systems are common to 
all (general ledger -- that's what gnucash is) but many are not. 
Payroll/HR is only if there are employees (and a sole proprietorship or 
partnership might not). Billable hours relevant to a professional 
services business but not inventory, and vice versa for a retail store. 
In other words, a complete "general purpose" business system would have 
to have lots of parts NOT relevant to most of its users.

Many/most of the commercial offerings are specialized.