I'm confused at how GnuCash (CVS version as of 2AM this morning)
displays balances.
I -thought- that since debits are represented as positive quantities,
and credits are represented as negative quanitities, that you should be
able to add up the totals of all your top level accounts and get zero
if all debits and credits matched (as they should).
However, that appears to not be the case...
In a brand-new "test.xac", I created five accounts, A (asset account),
B (Liability, C (Equity), D (Income), and E (Expense). Initially, all
balances were 0.
I went into the asset register, and transferred in $10 each from
Liability, Income, and Equity. Then I transfered out $15 to expenses.
I believe that should give all the accounts "positive" balances (assets
and expenses positive debits; liabilities, equities, and incomes
positive credits), so that in GnuCash terms, I should have A and E
positive, B, C, and D negative.
What I really have is:
Account Balance "Proper Balance"
A $15.00 $15.00
B ($10.00) ($10.00)
C ($10.00) ($10.00)
D $10.00 ($10.00)
E ($15.00) $15.00
=================================
Total ($10.00) $0.00
Note that GnuCash appears to have the signs for Expenses and Incomes
reversed.
Is this intended behavior? Are Expense and Income accounts treated
differently when it comes to displaying balances?
Also, I would like to be able to customise the balance display. I
would like to have debit accounts (assets and expenses) show positive
balances when they have debit balances, and I'd like credit accounts
(liabilities, equities, and income) to show positive balances when they
have credit balances.
Example of what I mean... Before I started using GnuCash, I
accumulated a significant amount of student loan debt, which I entered
into GnuCash as a credit to a Liability account, and a debit to Equity
(the money having gone to an expense accrued before the current
accounting period. This leaves me with an account listing like:
Account Balance Shown Balance the way I want it
Assets $1,000.00 $1,000.00
Liabilities -$20,000.00 $20,000.00
Net Worth $20,000.00 ($20,000.00)
Income $2,000.00 $2,000.00
Expenses -$1,000.00 $1,000.00
========================================================
Right now, I find it confusing (and a little disconcerting) to see a
"Net Worth" of $20,000, and a "Liability" of -$20,000, when I know that
I owe the money.
Is there anyway this can be done?
--
Buddha Buck [EMAIL PROTECTED]
"Just as the strength of the Internet is chaos, so the strength of our
liberty depends upon the chaos and cacophony of the unfettered speech
the First Amendment protects." -- A.L.A. v. U.S. Dept. of Justice
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