[GNC] How to import PayPal transactions in to GC

[Michael or Penny Novack]

>
> On match transactions I then get a lot of errors about new, unbalanced 
> need acct to transfer.
>
> Example:
> Date 6/4/2023
> Amount 2.34
> Description: Sale 001
>
> Comments: New, UNBALANCED (need acct to transfer -2.34)
>
>
> What is this error all about? I have to right click on and select a 
> transfer account for all of the transactions. Does this have to be 
> done every time for each transaction?
>
> On the import I chose Account = Assets:Current Assets:PayPal, so am a 
> bit confused what transfer account it's referring to.
>
>
> New to GC, so don't fully understand all the concepts. 

No, the problem isn't so much being new to gnucash but new to double 
entry bookkeeping. I'm going to use the formal terms, because the 
supposedly "user friendly" ones depend on account(and so not so friendly 
if we are talking about all account).

EVERY transaction will have at least TWO accounts associated with it, at 
least one debit and one credit (left side, right side). If you don't 
inform gnucash (or any other bookkeeping app) what the accounts are, how 
can it know.

OK, your transaction. ONE side is PayPal (the PayPal account in your 
ledger). Was the money going into PayPal (debit) or coming out of PayPal 
(credit). In the first case, from what account was the money coming? In 
the other case, where was it going? For example, if that transaction 
were money coming from PayPal and going into your bank account the the 
bank account would be the account debited and the PayPal account the one 
credited. Remember, you could have six bank accounts. How could gnucash 
know which was the right one unless you provided that information.

Michael D Novack