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       modified: July 9th 2006
  Maintainers: 
               Chris Lyttle <chris@wilddev.net>
  Author:
  		Jon Lapham <lapham@extracta.com.br>
  	Updated	Bengt Thuree <bengt@thuree.com>
  Originally written by Carol Champagne.
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<chapter id="chapter_basics">
  <title>The Basics</title>

  <para>This chapter will introduce some of the basics of using GnuCash. It is
  recommended that you read through this chapter, before starting to do any
  real work with GnuCash. The chapters which follow this will begin to show
  you hands on examples.</para>

  <sect1 id="basics-accounting1">
    <title>Accounting Concepts</title>

    <para>GnuCash is easy enough to use that you do not have to have a
    complete understanding of accounting principles to find it useful.
    However, you will find that some basic accounting knowledge will prove to
    be invaluable as GnuCash was designed using these principles as a
    template. It is highly recommended that you understand this section of the
    guide before proceeding.</para>

    <sect2 id="basics-accounting52">
      <title>The 5 Basic Accounts</title>

      <para>Basic accounting rules group all finance related things into 5
      fundamental types of <quote>accounts</quote>. That is, everything that
      accounting deals with can be placed into one of these 5 accounts:</para>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><emphasis>Assets</emphasis> - things you own.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><emphasis>Liabilities</emphasis> - things you owe.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><emphasis>Equity</emphasis> - overall net worth.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><emphasis>Income</emphasis> - increases the value of your
          accounts.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><emphasis>Expenses</emphasis> - decreases the value of your
          accounts.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>

      <para>It is clear that it is possible to categorize your financial world
      into these 5 groups. For example, the cash in your bank account is an
      asset, your mortgage is a liability, your paycheck is income, and the
      cost of dinner last night is an expense.</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-accountingequation2">
      <title>The Accounting Equation</title>

      <para>With the 5 basic accounts defined, what is the relationship
      between them? How does one type of account affect the others? Firstly,
      equity is defined by assets and liability. That is, your net worth is
      calculated by subtracting your liabilities from your assets:</para>

      <para><emphasis>Assets - Liabilities = Equity</emphasis></para>

      <para>Furthermore, you can increase your equity through income, and
      decrease equity through expenses. This makes sense of course, when you
      receive a paycheck you become "richer" and when you pay for dinner you
      become "poorer". This is expressed mathematically in what is known as
      the Accounting Equation:</para>

      <para><emphasis>Assets - Liabilities = Equity + (Income -
      Expenses)</emphasis></para>

      <para>This equation must always be balanced, a condition that can only
      be satisfied if you enter values to multiple accounts. For example: if
      you receive money in the form of income you must see an equal increase
      in your assets. As another example, you could have an increase in assets
      if you have a parallel increase in liabilities.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-AccountRelationships">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_AccountRelationships.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Jon Lapham" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The basic accounts relationships</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>A graphical view of the relationship between the 5 basic
            accounts. Net worth (equity) increases through income and
            decreases through expenses. The arrows represent the movement of
            value.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-accountingdouble2">
      <title>Double Entry</title>

      <para>The accounting equation is the very heart of a double entry
      accounting system. For every change in value of one account in the
      Accounting Equation, there must be a balancing change in another. This
      concept is known as the <emphasis>Principle of Balance</emphasis>, and
      is of fundamental importance for understanding GnuCash and other double
      entry accounting systems. When you work with GnuCash, you will always be
      concerned with at least 2 accounts, to keep the Accounting Equation
      balanced.</para>

      <para>Double entry accounting serves two purposes. The first is to
      create an accounting trail, money always has to come from somewhere and
      go to somewhere. Additionally, double entry accounting historically
      served to double check the math of an accountant. Because the numbers
      are entered into multiple accounts simultaneously, there are multiple
      places to check to make sure the totals match. Of course, with the
      advent of computers, the chances of a mathematical problem are low, but
      it is good to know that the concept still exists!</para>

      <para>Double entry accounting has been around since the late 15th
      century, when it was described by an Italian friar, Luca Pacioli.
      Traditional double entry accounting involves recording each transaction
      in a book called a ledger, then copying each part of the transaction to
      separate books called journals. This method is still used in businesses
      today as a way to avoid entry errors and to track the source of those
      errors. GnuCash simplifies this traditional accounting by copying part
      of each transaction for you, so it may not catch some of the entry
      errors that would show up in traditional accounting. But it will flag
      transactions that are not balanced, and it will let you know when an
      account name is missing.</para>

      <note>
        <para>Calling this double-entry bookkeeping is a bit misleading; it
        would be somewhat more accurate to call it multiple- entry
        bookkeeping, since a transaction can affect more than two accounts.
        Unfortunately, there's 700 years of history of use of the term, which
        sufficiently discourages changing it.</para>
      </note>
    </sect2>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-entry1">
    <title>Data Entry Concepts</title>

    <para>When entering data in GnuCash, you should be aware of the 3 levels
    of organization in which GnuCash divides your data: files, accounts and
    transactions. These levels are presented in their order of complexity, one
    file contains many accounts and one account contains many transactions.
    This division is fundamental to understanding how to use GnuCash.</para>

    <sect2 id="basics-accounts2">
      <title>Files, Accounts and Transactions</title>

      <para>GnuCash uses <emphasis>files</emphasis> for storing information.
      GnuCash provides three types of files: data files, backup files, and log
      files. The main file that you will use to store your data is a data
      file. You will probably have only one data file that you use for your
      home data, but GnuCash will automatically save a backup copy for you
      each time you save that data file. GnuCash also provides log files which
      can be used to help reconstruct data. Backup and log files are described
      later in this chapter.</para>

      <para>An <emphasis>account</emphasis> is a place for keeping track of
      what you own, owe, spend or receive. Although you only have one main
      data file, that file will contain many accounts. You probably already
      think of money you own or owe as being in an account. For example, at
      some point you opened checking and savings accounts at a particular
      bank, and that bank sends you monthly statements showing how much money
      you <emphasis>own</emphasis> in these accounts. Credit card accounts
      also send you statements showing what you <emphasis>owe</emphasis> to a
      credit card company, and the mortgage company may send you periodic
      statements showing how much you still <emphasis>owe</emphasis> on your
      loan.</para>

      <para>In GnuCash, accounts are also used to categorize money you receive
      or spend, even though these are not physical accounts that receive
      statements. As we will cover more in <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref>,
      income type accounts are
      used to categorize money received (like a paycheck), and expense type
      accounts are used to categorize money spent (for pizza, to pay a bill,
      etc.) These accounts function much like categories in some other
      financial programs, with a few advantages discussed in 
      <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref>.</para>

      <para>A <emphasis>transaction</emphasis> represents the movement of
      money from one account to another account. Whenever you spend or receive
      money, or transfer money between accounts, that is a transaction. In
      GnuCash, as we will see in the next section, transactions always involve
      at least two accounts. Examples of transactions are: paying a bill,
      transferring money from savings to checking, buying a pizza, withdrawing
      money, and depositing a paycheck. <xref linkend="chapter_txns"></xref> 
      goes more in depth on how to enter transactions in GnuCash.</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-dbentry2">
      <title>Double Entry</title>

      <para>You've probably heard the saying, <quote>Money doesn't grow on
      trees</quote>. It means that money must come from somewhere - it doesn't
      just <quote>appear</quote>. <emphasis>Double entry accounting
      </emphasis> is a method of record-keeping that lets you track just where
      your money comes from and where it goes. Using double entry means that
      money is never gained nor lost - an equal amount is always transferred
      from one place to another. When you withdraw cash, you are transferring
      money from your bank account to your wallet. When you write a check to
      the grocery store, you are transferring money from your checking account
      to the grocery store. And when you deposit a paycheck, you are
      transferring money from your source of income to your bank
      account.</para>

      <para>In GnuCash, these transfers are known as transactions, and each
      transaction requires at least two accounts. To enter the cash
      withdrawal, for example, you would enter a transfer of money from a bank
      account to a cash account. You would record the grocery check as a
      transfer from a checking account to a groceries expense account. And the
      paycheck deposit is recorded as a transfer from an income account to a
      bank account.</para>

      <para>Unlike traditional accounting packages, GnuCash makes it very easy
      to enter your double entry transactions. <xref linkend="chapter_txns"></xref> 
      gives more detail on
      entering transactions, but for now let's take a general look at how they
      work. For a basic transaction like writing a check, you first create two
      accounts: a checking account and an account for the expense. For
      example, if you write a check to pay for groceries, then you need both a
      checking account and a groceries account. 
      (See <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref> for more detail
      on creating accounts.) To record the check, you simply enter a
      transaction to transfer money from the checking account to the groceries
      account. In this example, the GnuCash transactions look like this when
      viewed from the register windows of the checking account:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-DoubleEntryIntro-compact">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_DoubleEntryIntro_compact.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>A Basic Transaction</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows entering the date, description and transfer
            account for a payment of <guilabel>$50</guilabel> to the
            <guilabel>Grocery Store</guilabel>.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>In this transaction, a check is written to <guilabel>Grocery
      Store</guilabel> for <guilabel>$50</guilabel>. Since this is a double
      entry transaction, at least two accounts are affected and must be part
      of the transaction. GnuCash automatically enters the current account
      name (<guilabel>Assets:Checking Account</guilabel>) for you so you only 
      enter the other account name affected
      (<guilabel>Expenses:Groceries</guilabel>).</para>

      <para>To emphasize that GnuCash stores everything as double entry
      transactions, we change the view to <guilabel>Transaction
      Journal</guilabel> and see how it looks.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-DoubleEntryIntro-expanded">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_DoubleEntryIntro_expanded.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>Transaction Journal view of a Basic Transaction</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the <guilabel>Transaction
            Journal</guilabel> of the <guilabel>Checking
            Account</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>Observe that we have one entry for depositing (debiting) the <guilabel>
      Expense:Groceries</guilabel> account, and one entry for withdrawing (crediting)
      from <guilabel>Assets:Checking Account</guilabel>.</para>

      <para>Lets have a quick look to see how this same transaction looks from the
      <guilabel>Expense:Groceries</guilabel> account</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-DoubleEntryIntro-Groceries">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_DoubleEntryIntro_groceries.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>View of a Basic Transaction in Expenses:Groceries</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the <guilabel>Transaction
            Journal</guilabel> of the <guilabel>Groceries</guilabel>
            Account</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>


      <note>
        <para>In this example for double entry accounting we used a checking
        account to pay for the groceries. But, notice that concept is the same
        no matter what method you use to pay for the groceries. If instead you
        used a credit card, the double entry accounting would simply involve
        your Credit Card account instead of the Checking account.</para>
      </note>

      <para>What about your paycheck? You can see that money goes into a bank
      account, but where does it come from? In double-entry, the money has to
      come from somewhere. Technically, that money comes from your employer,
      but you don't care about tracking your employer's accounts. So how do
      you account for money coming in? In GnuCash, you create a special income
      type account to track your incoming paychecks. 
      (See <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref> for more
      information on creating income accounts.) To record the paychecks, you
      simply enter a transaction to transfer money from the income account to
      a bank account.</para>

      <para>Here's what a paycheck deposit looks like in GnuCash.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-DoubleEntryIntro-salary">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_DoubleEntryIntro_salary.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>A simple paycheck transaction</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows entering the date, description and transfer
            account for a <guilabel>$600</guilabel> <guilabel>
            Salary</guilabel> payment from <guilabel>Employers R
            Us</guilabel>.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>In this example, <guilabel>$600</guilabel> is transferred from a
      <guilabel>Salary</guilabel> income account to the <guilabel>Checking
      Account</guilabel>. Because of the special nature of income accounts,
      discussed in <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref>, this transaction 
      increases both the checking account balance and the income account 
      balance by the amount transferred.</para>

      <para>So what if you want to record your gross pay and all the
      deductions that come out of your check as well? You enter a transaction
      with <emphasis>multiple splits</emphasis>, which we will cover in
      <xref linkend="txns-registers-multiaccount2"></xref>. 
      In this type of transaction, you are transferring a sum of
      money from one location to several locations. For any double entry
      transaction, the <emphasis>total</emphasis> amount of money transferred
      <emphasis>from</emphasis> accounts must equal the
      <emphasis>total</emphasis> amount transferred <emphasis>to</emphasis>
      other accounts.</para>

      <para>For example, your gross pay might be $1000, but only $655 of that
      gets deposited in your checking account. The remaining $345 is split
      between your deductions, such as federal taxes, FICA and state taxes.
      How do you account for this in GnuCash? First, you should have accounts
      set up for the gross income (salary), checking, and each of the
      deductions (See <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref>). 
      Then you enter a transaction to transfer
      $1000 from the <guilabel>Salary</guilabel> account to the other
      accounts: <guilabel>Checking Account</guilabel>,
      <guilabel>Federal</guilabel>, <guilabel>Medicare</guilabel>,
      <guilabel>Social Security</guilabel> and
      <guilabel>State/Province</guilabel>. Because this is a double entry
      transaction, the total amount transferred to these five accounts must
      equal the original $1000 total coming from the income account. We cover
      this type of transaction in more detail in 
      <xref linkend="chapter_txns"></xref>, but for now here's a peek at what 
      it looks like:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-DoubleEntryIntro-SalarySplit">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_DoubleEntryIntro_SalarySplit.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>A Split Paycheck Transaction</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows entering the date, description and transfer
            account for a <guilabel>$1000</guilabel> <guilabel>
            Salary</guilabel> payment from <guilabel>Employers R Us
            </guilabel>. This is then made into a split transaction to
            <guilabel>Checking Account</guilabel>, <guilabel>Federal
            </guilabel>, <guilabel>Medicare</guilabel>, <guilabel>Social
            Security</guilabel> and
            <guilabel>State/Province</guilabel>.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>The main principle to remember is that there are at least two
      parts to every transaction, and the total amount transferred from a set
      of accounts must equal the total amount transferred to another set of
      accounts. When a transaction transfers an equal sum from accounts to
      other accounts, that transaction is said to be <emphasis>in
      balance</emphasis>. In GnuCash, as in double-entry accounting, you want
      to have all of your transactions in balance.</para>

      <para>Why is this important to you? If all of your transactions are in
      balance, then your money is all accounted for. GnuCash has a record of
      where that money came from and where it was used. By storing the names
      of all accounts involved in each transaction, you provide data that can
      be sorted and viewed in report form later. Reports allow you to see
      things like how much money you made for the year and where it all went,
      what your net worth is, and what your taxes might be for the year. The
      more information you provide when entering transactions, the more
      detailed your reports will be.</para>

      <note> <!-- <sidebar> -->
        <title>Accounting Terminology</title>

        <para>Accountants use the terms <emphasis>debit</emphasis> and
        <emphasis>credit</emphasis> to describe whether money is being
        transferred <emphasis>to</emphasis> or <emphasis>from</emphasis> an
        account. Money is recorded in the debit column, which is always the
        left column, when it is being transferred <emphasis>to</emphasis> an
        account. Money is recorded in the credit column, which is always the
        right column, when it is being transferred <emphasis>from</emphasis>
        an account. Money always flows from the right column of one account to
        the left column of another account.</para>

        <para>The main rule of accounting is this: <emphasis>For every
        transaction, total debits must equal total credits.</emphasis> This is
        just another way of repeating the double entry rule, that for each
        transaction, the amount of money transferred <emphasis>from</emphasis>
        accounts must equal the amount transferred <emphasis>to</emphasis>
        other accounts</para>

        <para>You don't have to use the terms debit and credit to use GnuCash,
        however. GnuCash account registers default to common column headings
        such as deposit and withdrawal - if you are more comfortable with
        those headings, use them. If you prefer the credit and debit headings,
        you can change the column headings to use accounting labels from the
        menu item <guimenu>Edit</guimenu> -&gt;
        <guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem> <guibutton>General</guibutton>
        (see <xref linkend="basics-prefs1"></xref> for more detail on setting 
        preferences).</para>
      </note> <!-- </sidebar> -->
    </sect2>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-interface1">
    <title>The GnuCash Interface</title>

    <para>The very first time you open GnuCash, you will see the
    <guilabel>Welcome to GnuCash!</guilabel> dialog. From there, GnuCash
    provides other tools to help you easily find what you are looking for.
    Let's take a look at some of the common screens and dialog boxes you will
    see.</para>

    <sect2 id="basics-setup2">
      <title>Create a new set of accounts</title>

      <para>The <guilabel>New Account Hierarchy Setup</guilabel> druid allows
      you to create several accounts at once. When you open GnuCash the first
      time, you will get this dialog:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-NewAccountHierarchySetup">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_NewAccountHierarchySetup.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The New Account Hierarchy Setup Druid</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the first screen of the <guilabel>New
            Account Hierarchy Setup</guilabel> Druid.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>Click <guibutton>Next</guibutton> and follow the instructions
      provided in the dialog. The dialog provides a default set of accounts
      with predefined account types, and you simply select the accounts you
      want. For more information on account types, see 
      <xref linkend="accts-types1"></xref>.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-NewAccountHierarchySetup-currency">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_NewAccountHierarchySetup_currency.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The New Account Hierarchy Setup Druid - Currency</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the second screen of the <guilabel>New
            Account Hierarchy Setup</guilabel> Druid where you select the
            currency.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>The currency you select here, will be assigned to all the
      <guilabel>accounts</guilabel> created in this druid.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-NewAccountHierarchySetup-Accounts">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_NewAccountHierarchySetup_Accounts.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The New Account Hierarchy Setup Druid - Choose
            accounts</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the third screen of the <guilabel>New
            Account Hierarchy Setup</guilabel> Druid where you choose the
            various accounts.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>Select one or more of the predefined account-groups here. For more
      information on account types, see 
      <xref linkend="accts-types1"></xref>.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-NewAccountHierarchySetup-Setup.png">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_NewAccountHierarchySetup_Setup.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The New Account Hierarchy Setup Druid - Configure</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the fourth screen of the <guilabel>New
            Account Hierarchy Setup</guilabel> Druid where you can set
            <guilabel>Opening Balance</guilabel>.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>In this dialog you will be able to set an <guilabel>Opening
      Balance</guilabel> on each of the accounts, as well as indicate if it
      the account should be a <guilabel>Placeholder</guilabel> (only
      sub-accounts allowed, no transactions. Like Current Assets in above
      image)</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-NewAccountHierarchySetup-Finish">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_NewAccountHierarchySetup_Finish.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The New Account Hierarchy Setup Druid - Finish</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the Last screen of the <guilabel>New
            Account Hierarchy Setup</guilabel> Druid.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>Click <guibutton>Apply</guibutton> to create all the accounts and
      leave the druid.</para>

      <para>If you intend to import your data from another program and you
      want to keep the same account names you used in that program, you may
      want to delay setting up default accounts at this time. You can simply
      import the data and the account names into GnuCash from the other
      program (<xref linkend="basics-import1"></xref> explains how to do this).</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-tip2">
      <title>Tip of the Day</title>

      <para>GnuCash provides a <guilabel>Tip of the Day</guilabel> dialog to
      give helpful hints for using the program:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-TipOfDay">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_TipOfDay.png" format="PNG"
                       srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The Tip of the Day</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the <guilabel>Tip of the
            Day</guilabel>.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>These tips provide useful information for beginning users. To view
      more of the tips, click <guibutton>Next</guibutton> to continue. If you
      do not wish to see this dialog box on start-up, deselect the box next to
      <guilabel>Display this dialog next time</guilabel>. When you have
      finished viewing the helpful tips, click <guibutton>Close</guibutton> to
      close the Tip dialog.</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-main2">
      <title>Account Tree Window</title>

      <para>You should now see the <guilabel>Accounts</guilabel> window, which
      appears as shown below. The exact layout of the account tree will depend
      on which default accounts you selected during the New Account Hierarchy
      Setup. In this example, the "Common Accounts" are shown.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Accounts">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Accounts.png" format="PNG"
                       srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The Account Tree Window</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows the <guilabel>Accounts</guilabel>
            window.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para>The Account Tree window provides an overview of the data contained
      in the current file. It contains a list of account names and their
      current balances. From this window, you can open any of the accounts.
      The individual account windows are called account registers. GnuCash
      allows you to have as many account registers open as you wish.</para>

      <para>At the top of this window is the title bar, which displays the
      file name (once you have saved the file.) Below that is the menu bar.
      You can access the menu options by either clicking on these menu
      headings or by using shortcuts and access key combinations, covered
      later in this chapter. Next is the tool bar, which contains buttons
      for the most common functions.</para>
      
      <para>The account tree appears below the tool bar. Once you have
      started creating accounts, the account names will appear in the account
      tree. You can customize which headings show up by using the
      small <guiicon>down-arrow</guiicon> at the far right just above the account tree.</para>

      <para>At the bottom is the status bar, which tells you
      information about what you own (Net Assets) and how much money you have
      made (Profits).</para>


    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-register2">
      <title>Account Register Window</title>

      <para>The Account Register windows are used to enter and edit your
      account data. As the name suggests, they look similar to a checkbook
      register. When you double-click an account name in the
      <guilabel>Accounts</guilabel> window, the <guilabel>Register</guilabel>
      window for that account will open.</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-CheckAccount">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_CheckAccount.png" format="PNG"
                       srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>The Checking Account Register</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Checking Account - Register
            </guilabel> with several transactions.</para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <para><xref linkend="chapter_txns"></xref> explains more about account 
      register windows and how to
      enter data into them. For now, note that the parts of an account
      register window are similar to the parts of the account tree window
      described earlier. The title bar at the top contains the account name.
      Below that, the menu bar contains menu options related to the account
      register. Tool bar buttons simplify common data entry functions. The
      status bar at the bottom of the window, displays some account balances
      covered in <xref linkend="chapter_txns"></xref>. At the bottom of the 
      account register window,
      information appears about the current location of the cursor.</para>
      
      <para>You can resize the various columns that GnuCash display, but keep
      in mind that the description column will automatically expand to fill all unused
        space.  Therefore you should increase the size of all your other columns
        first and then decrease the size of the description column.
      </para>
      
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-toolbar2">
      <title>Tool Bar Buttons</title>

      <para>Both the account tree window and the account register window
      contain tool bar buttons. These buttons provide quick access to common
      functions such as <guibutton>Save</guibutton> and
      <guibutton>Open</guibutton> in the account tree window and
      <guibutton>Record</guibutton> and <guibutton>Delete</guibutton> in the
      account register window. If you are not sure what a button does, move
      the mouse pointer over that button, and you should see a description of
      the function appear.</para>

      <para>Here is a summary of the account tree window buttons:</para>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guibutton>Save</guibutton> - Use this function often to save
          the current file to disk.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guibutton>Close</guibutton> - Use this function to close the
          current notebook page.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guibutton>Open</guibutton>, <guibutton>Edit</guibutton>,
          <guibutton>New</guibutton> and <guibutton>Delete</guibutton> - These
          are functions related to accounts. They are discussed in 
          <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref>.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
      
      <para>Register buttons are discussed in <xref linkend="chapter_txns"></xref>.
      </para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-options2">
      <title>Menu Items</title>

      <para>The account tree window and the account register window both
      contain menu headings in a menu bar. Clicking on a menu heading brings
      up the menu items for that heading.</para>

      <para>You can click on the account tree menu headings and then move the
      mouse pointer over the menu items to see what they do. As the pointer
      moves over a menu item, a description of the item appears in the lower
      left-hand corner of the window. To select a menu item, click on
      it.</para>

      <para>You can also access the most common menu items in a window by
      right-clicking the mouse anywhere in that window. In the account tree
      window, this will bring up a list of account items. In the account
      register window, this will bring up a list of transaction items.</para>

      <para>Other ways of accessing menu items are through keyboard shortcuts
      and access keys, described next.</para> </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-shortcut2">
      <title>Menu Shortcuts</title>

      <para>All of the menu items have access keys which are
      marked by underlined characters in the menu names. Pressing the
      <keycap>Alt</keycap> key with the underlined character in the menu
      heading will bring up the menu items for that heading. Once the menu
      items are displayed, type the underlined character in the menu item to
      activate it. For example, typing <keycombo>
          <keycap>Alt</keycap>

          <keycap>F</keycap>
        </keycombo> in the main window brings up the <guimenu>File</guimenu>
      menu, then typing <keycap>S</keycap> will save the file.  Access keys
       are fixed and may not be changed by users.</para>

      <para>Some of the more commonly used menu items also have shortcut keys
      that directly activate the command without having to traverse the menu
      structure.  These shortcuts typically use the <keycap>Ctrl</keycap>
      key, although they can use any key combination.  Menu shortcuts are
      displayed at the end of each menu item.  These shortcuts may be edited
      by users by setting a preference in the "Menu and Toolbar" preference
      panel.</para>

      <para>GnuCash, as a Gnome application, also allows you to define your
      own menu shortcuts. To define a shortcut, first go to the "Menu and
      Toolbar" preference panel and select the "Editable menu accelerators"
      check box.  Then return to GnuCash, click on the menu header and move
      the mouse pointer over the menu item. While the menu item is
      highlighted, press a key or key combination to set the shortcut. You
      should now see your shortcut choice next to the item in the menu. To
      delete a shortcut, press the <keycap>Delete</keycap> key while the menu
      item is highlighted.  Be careful when setting shortcuts as Gnome does
      no checking on the key values pressed, and you can easily do things
      like set a letter of the alphabet as your shortcut.</para>
    </sect2>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-prefs1">
    <title>Setting Preferences</title>

    <para>GnuCash allows you to customize your session by setting several
    preference options. From the menu select <guimenu>Edit</guimenu> -&gt;
    <guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem>, then make your desired changes
    using the list of items shown on the left. The changes you made will be
    applied directly. To close the preference window press the
    <guibutton>Close</guibutton> button.</para>

    <sect2 id="basics-acctprefs2">
      <title>Accounts</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>Accounts</guilabel>, you will see the default
      settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-Accounts">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_Accounts.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Accounts</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences -
            Accounts</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Separator Character</guilabel> - The account
          separator is the character that separates a parent account from its
          sub-account, for example Utilities:Electric. The default is a
          <guibutton>:(Colon)</guibutton>, but you can also select
          <guibutton>/(Slash)</guibutton>,
          <guibutton>\(Backslash)</guibutton>, <guibutton>-(Dash)</guibutton>
          or <guibutton>.(Period)</guibutton>, or any single non alphanumeric
          unicode. Parent accounts and sub-accounts are discussed in 
          <xref linkend="accts-types1"></xref></para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Reverse Balanced accounts</guilabel> - This option
          lets you determine whether account balances will display as positive
          or negative numbers: <itemizedlist>
              <listitem>
                <para><guilabel>None</guilabel> shows all credit balances as
                negative and all debit balances as positive. (See Accounting
                Terminology note in this chapter for more information on
                debits and credits.)</para>
              </listitem>

              <listitem>
                <para><guilabel>Credit Accounts</guilabel> (default) displays
                a positive balance for account types that would normally carry
                a credit balance (income, credit, liability, equity). See
                <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref> for more information on 
                these account types.</para>
              </listitem>

              <listitem>
                <para><guilabel>Income &amp; Expense</guilabel> assigns a
                positive credit balance to income account balances and a
                negative debit balance to expense account balances. See
                <xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref> for more information 
                on these account types.</para>
              </listitem>
            </itemizedlist></para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Labels</guilabel> - Select this option if you want
          column headings to refer to debits and credits instead of the
          default informal headings. (See Accounting Terminology note in this
          chapter for more information on debits and credits.)</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Default Currency</guilabel> - This item determines
          which currency will be selected by default when creating new
          accounts.</para>

          <itemizedlist>
            <listitem>
              <para><guilabel>Locale</guilabel> will use whatever currency is
              specified in your system.</para>
            </listitem>

            <listitem>
              <para><guilabel>Choose</guilabel> will let you specify a
              specific currency to use, independent of your system
              settings.</para>
            </listitem>
          </itemizedlist>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-business2">
      <title>Business</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>Business</guilabel>, you will see the default
      settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-Business">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_Business.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Business</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences -
            Business</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Open in a new window</guilabel> - If checked, each
          invoice will be opened in its own top level window. If clear, the
          invoice will be opened in the current window.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Accumulate splits on post</guilabel> - Whether
          multiple entries in an invoice which transfer to the same account
          should be accumulated into a single split by default.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Number of rows</guilabel> - Default number of
          register rows to display in invoices.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Tax Included (Invoices)</guilabel> - Whether tax are
          included by default in entries on invoices. This setting is
          inherited by new customers and vendors.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Notify when due</guilabel> - Lets you set whether
          you want to be notified of when a bill is soon to be due.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Days in advance</guilabel> - How many days in the
          future to warn about bills coming due.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Tax Included (Bills)</guilabel> - Whether tax are
          included by default in entries on bills. This setting is inherited
          by new customers and vendors.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-datetime2">
      <title>Date/Time</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>Date/Time</guilabel>, you will see the default
      settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-DateTime">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_DateTime.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Date/Time</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences -
            Date/Time</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Time Format</guilabel> - lets you specify if you
          want to use 24 or 12 hours time format. That is if 23:00 should be
          represented as 11PM or 23.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Date Format</guilabel> - This item controls the
          appearance of the date. The available options are US, UK, Europe,
          ISO, and Locale. Choosing "Locale" will automatically determine the
          date format based on your operating system settings.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-general2">
      <title>General</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>General</guilabel>, you will see the default settings
      shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-General">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_General.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - General</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences -
            General</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Display "tip of the Day"</guilabel> - You can turn
          on or off the option to display the <quote>Tip of the Day</quote>
          dialog on start-up.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Perform account list setup on new file</guilabel> -
          This option turns off the display of the <guilabel>New Account
          Hierarchy Setup</guilabel> druid when <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt;
          <guimenuitem>New File</guimenuitem> is selected.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Show close button on notebook tabs</guilabel> - Adds
          a small close icon on each tab, to make it easier to close the
          various tabs.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Enable Euro support</guilabel> - If selected,
          enables support for the European Union EURO currency. Needed if you
          have any accounts with EURO currency.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Display negative amounts in red</guilabel> - If you
          turn off this option, GnuCash will display negative numbers in
          black.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Automatic Decimal Point</guilabel> - This option
          will automatically insert a decimal point into numbers you type
          in.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Decimal Places</guilabel> - This option allows you
          to set the number of decimal places to be used.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Compress files</guilabel> - This option determines
          whether the GnuCash data file will be compressed or not.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Retain log files</guilabel> - This option deletes
          log files (and backup files) after the number of days set
          here.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>New search limit</guilabel> - Defaults to 'new
          search' if fewer than this number of items is returned.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-onlinebank2">
      <title>On-line Banking</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>Online banking</guilabel>, you will see the default
      settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-OnlineBanking">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_OnlineBanking.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Online banking</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences - Online
            banking</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Show documentation</guilabel> - The first time you
          use the QIF importer (discussed later in this chapter), you may
          notice that the importer has detailed instructions on how to import
          a file. Once you have become familiar with using the importer, you
          might want to turn off this option. Turning off the option gives you
          less detail in the importer dialogs.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Use Bayesian matching</guilabel> - Use Bayesian
          algorithms to match new transactions with existing accounts.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Match display threshold</guilabel> - The minimal
          score a potential match must have to be displayed in the match
          list.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Auto-add threshold</guilabel> - A transaction whose
          best match's score is in the red zone (above display threshold, but
          below or equal to Auto-add threshold) will be added by
          default.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Auto-clear threshold</guilabel> - A transaction
          whose best match's score is in the green zone (above or equal to
          Auto-clear threshold) will be cleared by default.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Commercial Cash Machine fees threshold </guilabel> -
          If the ATM machine automatically adds a small transaction fee,
          GnuCash will still be able to match it to the transaction as long as
          the difference is below this threshold</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-regprefs2">
      <title>Register</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>Register</guilabel>, you will see the default
      settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-Register">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_Register.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Register</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences -
            Register</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>'Enter' moves to blank transaction</guilabel> - If
          selected, move to the blank transaction after the user presses
          'enter', otherwise move down on row.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Auto-raise lists</guilabel> - If selected, all lists
          will automatically be expanded when input focus is in the list
          field.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Check cleared transactions</guilabel> - If selected,
          automatically check off cleared transactions when
          reconciling.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Automatic interest transfer</guilabel> - If
          selected, prior to reconciling an account which charges or pays
          interest, prompt the user to enter a transaction for the interest
          charge or payment. Currently only enabled for Bank, Credit, Mutual,
          Asset, Receivable, Payable, and Liability accounts.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Automatic credit card payments</guilabel> - If
          selected, after reconciling a credit card statement, prompt the user
          to enter a credit card payment.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Use system theme colours</guilabel> - If selected,
          GnuCash will use the system theme colours instead of the default
          colours.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Double mode colors alternate with
          transactions</guilabel> - If selected, configures the register
          window to alternate between the primary and secondary colors with
          each transaction, instead of each row.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Draw horizontal lines between rows</guilabel> - If
          selected, GnuCash will draw a horizontal line between each
          row.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Draw vertical lines between cells</guilabel> - If
          selected, GnuCash will draw a vertical line between the cells in
          each row.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-regdefaults2">
      <title>Register Defaults</title>

      <para>The <guilabel>Register Defaults</guilabel> preferences item
      affects the behavior of the transaction register windows. More
      information about the transaction register can be found in 
      <xref linkend="txns-registers1"></xref> of this guide.</para>

      <para>In <guilabel>Register</guilabel>, you will see the default
      settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-RegisterDefaults">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_RegisterDefaults.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Register Defaults</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences - Register
            Defaults</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Default Style</guilabel> - you can choose from 3
          different styles for register windows, <guilabel>Basic
          Ledger</guilabel> (default), <guilabel>Auto-Split Ledger</guilabel>,
          and <guilabel>Transaction Journal</guilabel>. The basic style is a
          standard one-line register where everything appears on a single
          line. The auto-split style is similar to the basic style except that
          the current transaction is split-expanded. The journal style has
          every transaction split-expanded.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Register opens in a new window</guilabel> - If
          selected, Register will be in a separate window instead of in a
          tab.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Double Line Mode</guilabel> - If selected, show two
          lines of information for each transaction instead of one.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Number of transactions</guilabel> - How many
          transactions to show in a register</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Number of rows</guilabel> - How many rows to display
          when the register is opened.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-reports2">
      <title>Reports</title>

      <para>The <guilabel>Reports</guilabel> preferences item affects the
      behavior of the transaction register windows. More information about the
      transaction register can be found in <xref linkend="txns-registers1"></xref>
      of this guide.</para>

      <para>In <guilabel>Reports</guilabel>, you will see the default settings
      shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-Reports">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_Reports.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Reports</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences -
            Reports</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Default Report Currency</guilabel> - This item
          determines which currency will be used by default when creating
          reports. You can choose between <guilabel>Locale</guilabel> which
          uses system settings, or <guilabel>Choose</guilabel> which lets you
          specify your own default report currency.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Location</guilabel> - if you select this option, the
          reports will open up in a new window, instead of in a tab.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-accountingPeriod2">
      <title>Accounting Period</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>Accounting Period</guilabel>, you will see the
      default settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-AccountingPeriod">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_AccountingPeriod.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Accounting Period</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences - Accounting
            Period</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Include grand total</guilabel> - if this item is
          selected, GnuCash will include a grand total on the report.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Include non-currency totals</guilabel> - if this
          item is selected, GnuCash will include a total of non-currency items
          (for instance number of shares) in the report.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Start Date</guilabel> - This item determines which
          from which start date the report will report from. You can choose
          between <guilabel>Relative</guilabel> which uses a dynamic start
          date (like "start of this year", "start of this month" etc), or
          <guilabel>Absolute</guilabel> which lets you specify a specific
          start date (which will not change as time goes by).</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>End Date</guilabel> - This item determines which to
          which end date the report will report to. You can choose between
          <guilabel>Relative</guilabel> which uses a dynamic end date (like
          "end of this year", "end of this month" etc), or
          <guilabel>Absolute</guilabel> which lets you specify a specific end
          date (which will not change as time goes by).</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-schedtrans2">
      <title>Scheduled Transactions</title>

      <para>The <guilabel>Scheduled Transactions</guilabel> preferences item
      affects the behavior of GnuCash for scheduling transactions. More
      information about scheduled transactions can be found in 
      <xref linkend="txns-registers1"></xref> of this guide.</para>

      <para>In <guilabel>Scheduled Transactions</guilabel>, you will see the
      default settings shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-ScheduledTransactions">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_ScheduledTransactions.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Scheduled Transactions</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences - Scheduled
            Transactions</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Run when data file opened</guilabel> - If selected,
          the "Since-Last-Run" window will appear on GnuCash start-up (or
          rather when GnuCash opens the file).</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Auto-Create new transactions</guilabel> - If
          selected, new Scheduled Transactions will automatically be entered
          into the register. Also, if selected <guilabel>Notify before
          transactions are created</guilabel> can be set to allow the user to
          confirm creating the transactions.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Create in advance, days</guilabel> - The default
          number of days in advance to create new Scheduled
          Transactions.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Remind in advance, days</guilabel> - The default
          number of days in advance to remind on new Scheduled
          Transactions.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-windows2">
      <title>Windows</title>

      <para>In <guilabel>Windows</guilabel>, you will see the default settings
      shown here:</para>

      <screenshot id="basics-Preferences-Windows">
        <mediaobject>
          <imageobject>
            <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_Preferences_Windows.png"
                       format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
          </imageobject>

          <textobject>
            <phrase>GnuCash Preferences - Windows</phrase>
          </textobject>

          <caption>
            <para>This image shows The <guilabel>Preferences -
            Windows</guilabel></para>
          </caption>
        </mediaobject>
      </screenshot>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Save window size and position</guilabel> - If
          selected, next time GnuCash starts it will re-use the window size
          and position of the last run.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para><guilabel>Toolbar Style</guilabel> - you can choose from 5
          different styles for the toolbar, <guilabel>Use system
          default</guilabel> (default), <guilabel>Text below icons</guilabel>,
          <guilabel>Text beside icons</guilabel>, <guilabel>Icons
          only</guilabel>, and <guilabel>Text only</guilabel>.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>
    </sect2>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-help1">
    <title>Getting Help</title>

    <para>GnuCash offers help in many ways. We have already covered the
    <guilabel>Tip of the Day</guilabel> dialog that gives you helpful hints
    upon start-up of your GnuCash session. GnuCash also offers an extensive
    help manual.</para>

    <sect2 id="basics-manual2">
      <title>Help Manual</title>

      <para>Once you have opened GnuCash, you will see the <guilabel>Account
      Tree</guilabel> window <guilabel>Help</guilabel> menu heading, which
      opens the on-line manual. The on-line manual is organized by topic, and
      you can expand each topic into its subtopics.</para>

      <para>Topics are listed on the left side. To select a topic or subtopic,
      click on it, and you should see the text for that topic appear on the
      right. Use the <guibutton>Back</guibutton> and
      <guibutton>Forward</guibutton> buttons to navigate through your topic
      choices, and print any text using the <guibutton>Print</guibutton>
      button.</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-web2">
      <title>Web Access</title>

      <para>The <guilabel>GnuCash Help</guilabel> window also acts as a simple
      web browser, so you can pull up a web site for additional information.
      You can open any web site under this window by clicking the
      <guibutton>Open</guibutton> tool bar button and then typing in the URL.
      Use the <guibutton>Back</guibutton>, <guibutton>Forward</guibutton>,
      <guibutton>Reload</guibutton>, <guibutton>Stop</guibutton>, and
      <guibutton>Print</guibutton> buttons as you would in a standard
      browser.</para>

      <para>The <ulink
      url="http://www.gnucash.org"><citetitle>GnuCash</citetitle></ulink> web
      site contains helpful information about the program and about any
      updates to it. It also contains links to the GnuCash mailing lists for
      developers and users, and you can search the <ulink
      url="https://lists.gnucash.org/cgi-bin/namazu.cgi"><citetitle>archives
      of GnuCash mailing lists</citetitle></ulink> for discussions on a
      particular topic. If you don't find the answers you are looking for, you
      can post your question to the <ulink
      url="https://lists.gnucash.org/mailman/listinfo/gnucash-user"><citetitle>GnuCash
      user list</citetitle></ulink>, and someone on the list will attempt to
      answer you.</para>

      <para>The most updated <guilabel>GnuCash FAQ</guilabel> is also located
      on the <ulink url="http://wiki.gnucash.org/wiki/FAQ"><citetitle>GnuCash
      FAQ website</citetitle></ulink>, and contains answers to the popular
      questions.</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-topic2">
      <title>Topic Search</title>

      <para>The online manual also provides a search function. To search for a
      particular topic, click the <guibutton>Search</guibutton> tab at the
      bottom of the help window and type in your topic in the field provided.
      Click the <guibutton>Search</guibutton> button to complete your search.
      A list of choices should appear in the box below, clicking a choice will
      bring up its text on the right.</para>
    </sect2>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-files1">
    <title>Creating and Saving Files</title>

    <para>If you are using GnuCash for the first time, it will automatically
    open a new file when you begin. Follow these steps to save the file under
    a new name:</para>

    <orderedlist>
      <listitem>
        <para>Choose <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt; <guimenuitem>Save
        As...</guimenuitem> from the menu bar or select the
        <guibutton>Save</guibutton> toolbar button. GnuCash will bring up this
        window:</para>

        <screenshot id="basics-SaveAs">
          <mediaobject>
            <imageobject>
              <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_SaveAs.png" format="PNG"
                         srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
            </imageobject>

            <textobject>
              <phrase>The Save dialog</phrase>
            </textobject>

            <caption>
              <para>This image shows the <guilabel>Save</guilabel>
              dialog.</para>
            </caption>
          </mediaobject>
        </screenshot>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>In the text box below <guilabel>Selection</guilabel> type your
        chosen file name (e.g. gcashdata).</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>Click the <guibutton>OK</guibutton> button to save the
        file.</para>
      </listitem>
    </orderedlist>

    <para>If you are keeping track of finances for a single household, you
    need only one file. But if you are also tracking business finances or want
    to keep data separate for some reason, then you will need more than one
    file. To create a new file:</para>

    <orderedlist>
      <listitem>
        <para>From the main menu, choose <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt;
        <guimenuitem>New File</guimenuitem>.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>Follow the steps above for saving a file under a new
        name.</para>
      </listitem>
    </orderedlist>

    <para>Before ending each GnuCash session, be sure to save your data
    changes using <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt;
    <guimenuitem>Save</guimenuitem> or the <guibutton>Save</guibutton> toolbar
    button. In fact, it is a good idea to save your data changes often, since
    GnuCash does not permanently record your changes until you save them. To
    open an existing file, select <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt;
    <guimenuitem>Open</guimenuitem> and choose your file from the list.</para>

    <para>GnuCash is storing its data file without any extension. If you name
    your GnuCash file to <filename>MyBudget</filename>, the actual file name
    will be <filename>MyBudget.</filename><note>
        <para>Ensure that you do not specify an extension when you specify
        the file name. Per the above example, only specify
        <filename>MyBudget</filename> as the filename.</para>
      </note></para>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-import1">
    <title>Importing QIF Files</title>

    <note>
      <para>This section tells you how to initially import data from other
      financial programs that use QIF (<trademark
      class="registered">Quicken</trademark> Interchange Format). 
<!--
      Section 11.5
      addresses importing QIF data from online bank statements.
-->
      </para>
    </note>

    <para>To import data from <trademark
    class="registered">Quicken</trademark>, MS Money, or other programs that
    use QIF(<trademark class="registered">Quicken</trademark> Interchange
    Format), you must first export your data to a QIF file. One way to do this
    is to export each account as a separate QIF file. An easier way, available
    in <trademark class="registered">Quicken</trademark> 98 and beyond, is to
    export all accounts at once into a single QIF file. Check your program's
    manual to determine if this option is available.</para>

    <para>Once your data is in QIF form, follow the easy 3-step import process
    described below. Before you get started, though, please note that part of
    the import process involves checking for duplicate transactions, so it is
    very important that you load <emphasis>all</emphasis> of your QIF files
    before importing. Duplicate transactions result when more than one account
    is involved. For example, if one of your transactions transferred money
    from savings to checking, you would end up with this same transaction
    recorded twice - once in the savings account and once in the checking
    account.</para>

    <para>To import QIF files:</para>

    <orderedlist>
      <listitem>
        <para>Load all of the QIF files containing data you wish to
        import.</para>

        <para>To do this, select <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt;
        <guisubmenu>Import</guisubmenu> -&gt; <guimenuitem>Import
        QIF...</guimenuitem> from the menu. When the <guilabel>QIF
        Import</guilabel> dialog box appears, click
        <guibutton>Next</guibutton> and follow the instructions to guide you
        through the process of loading your files.</para>

        <screenshot id="basics-QIF-Import-welcome">
          <mediaobject>
            <imageobject>
              <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_QIF_Import_welcome.png"
                         format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
            </imageobject>

            <textobject>
              <phrase>The QIF Import Druid</phrase>
            </textobject>

            <caption>
              <para>This image shows the start of the <guilabel>QIF
              Import</guilabel> Druid.</para>
            </caption>
          </mediaobject>
        </screenshot>

        <para>You will be prompted for a filename to load. Use the
        <guibutton>Select</guibutton> button to select your QIF file and click
        <guibutton>Next</guibutton> to load it. Once the file is loaded,
        select <guibutton>Load another file</guibutton> if you have more files
        to load. When you have loaded all your QIF files, click
        <guibutton>Next</guibutton> to continue with the import
        process.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>Review the GnuCash accounts to be created.</para>

        <para>The importer then matches up your QIF accounts and categories
        with GnuCash accounts and gives you a brief description of the
        matching process. Clicking <guibutton>Next</guibutton> will bring you
        to a view comparing your QIF accounts with the corresponding GnuCash
        accounts created. To change an account name, select the row containing
        that account name and edit the name in the dialog box provided. Click
        <guibutton>Next</guibutton> when you have finished making changes, and
        proceed through a similar category matching process. QIF income and
        expense categories import as GnuCash income and expense accounts (see
        <xref linkend="accts-concepts1"></xref> for more on this). 
        Make changes to these account names if
        necessary, and click <guibutton>Next</guibutton> to continue.</para>

        <note>
          <para>If you are not sure what changes are needed, it is safe to
          accept the GnuCash account names. It is easy to edit the accounts
          later if you find you need to make a change.</para>
        </note>

        <para>From the drop-down list, select a standard currency to be used
        for imported accounts and click <guibutton>Next</guibutton> to
        continue. If you have stocks, mutual funds, or other securities, you
        will be prompted for additional information. The importer dialog will
        ask for the exchange or listing (i.e. NASDAQ), the security's full
        name, and the ticker symbol. If you do not have this information
        handy, you can edit the account information later, once the import is
        complete. Click <guibutton>Next</guibutton> to continue.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>Tell GnuCash to import the data.</para>

        <para>The last step is the import. Once you have verified your account
        names and investment information, click <guibutton>Finish</guibutton>
        in the <guilabel>Update your GnuCash accounts</guilabel> page to
        complete the import process. Depending upon the size of your file, the
        import might take a few minutes to complete, so a progress bar
        displays the percentage finished. When the import process is complete,
        GnuCash will return you to the main window, which should now display
        the names of the accounts you imported.</para>
      </listitem>
    </orderedlist>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-backup1">
    <title>Backing Up and Recovering Data</title>

    <para>GnuCash creates several types of files to help ensure that your data
    is not lost. You may see files with the following file extensions: xac,
    log, LCK, LNK in the same directory as your primary data file. What each
    of these files does is presented below.</para>
    
    <programlisting>
      $ ls 
      gcashdata
      gcashdata.20060414185747.xac
      gcashdata.20060414223248.log
      gcashdata.20060415114340.xac
      gcashdata.20060415154508.log
      gcashdata.20060415173322.xac
      gcashdata.20060415194251.log
      gcashdata.7f0982.12093.LNK
      gcashdata.LCK
    </programlisting>

    <sect2 id="basics-backupxac2">
      <title>Backup file (.xac)</title>

      <para>Each time you save your data file, a backup copy will also be
      saved with the extension xac. This backup file is a complete copy of
      your previous data file, and the filename format refers to the data
      file, year, month, day and time of the backup. For example, the filename
      <filename>gcashdata.20060414185747.xac</filename> indicates this is a
      backup copy of the file gcashdata saved in the year 2006, April 14, at
      6:57:47 p.m.</para>

      <para>To restore an old backup file, simply open the .xac file with the
      date to which you wish to return. Be sure and save this file with a
      different file name, do not use a .xac extension for you regular file
      name.</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-backuplog2">
      <title>Log file (.log)</title>

      <para>Each time you open a file in GnuCash, a .log is created and saved
      with the same name format as the .xac backup files. As you make changes
      to the open data file, the log file saves only those changes. Log files
      are not a full backup of your data file - they simply record changes you
      have made to the data file in the current GnuCash session.</para>

      <para>In case you exit GnuCash inadvertently, possibly due to a power
      outage or a system wide crash, it is possible to recover most of your
      work since the last time you saved your GnuCash file using this log
      file. This is the procedure:</para>

      <itemizedlist>
        <listitem>
          <para>Open the last saved GnuCash file.</para>
        </listitem>

        <listitem>
          <para>Go to "File" -&gt; "Import" -&gt; "Replay GnuCash .log file"
          and select the one .log file with the same date as the saved file
          you just opened. Make sure that you picked the right .log file, or
          you will possibly wreck havoc in your accounts.</para>
        </listitem>
      </itemizedlist>

      <para>Log replaying will recover any transaction affecting the balance
      entered since the last save, including those created from scheduled
      transactions and business features (invoices, bills, etc.).</para>

      <note>
        <para>Warning: Changes to the scheduled transactions, invoices of
        bills themselves are NOT recovered, and their transactions that were
        recovered may not be properly associated with them, and should thus be
        double-checked. Especially for business transactions, you may have to
        delete and re-create some of them. If you do not, although the balance
        will be correct, some reports may not.</para>
      </note>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-backuplock2">
      <title>Lock files (.LNK and .LCK)</title>

      <para>You may occasionally see .LNK and .LCK files appear. These do not
      store any data, but they are created to prevent more than one user from
      opening the same file at the same time. These files are automatically
      created when you open the file, to lock it so no one else can access it.
      When you close your GnuCash session or open another file, GnuCash
      unlocks the first data file by deleting the LCK and LNK files.</para>

      <para>If GnuCash crashes while you have a data file open, the LCK and
      LNK files are not deleted. The next time you try to open GnuCash, you
      will get a warning message that the file is locked. The warning message
      appears because the LNK and LCK files are still in your directory. It is
      safe to choose Yes to open the file, but you should delete the .LNK and
      .LCK files (using a terminal window or your file manager.) Once those
      files are deleted, you will not get the warning message again unless
      GnuCash crashes.</para>
    </sect2>

    <sect2 id="basics-backupmanage2">
      <title>File Management</title>

      <para>So which files should you keep around? Keep your main data file,
      of course - data files do not have an automatic file extension. It's a
      good idea to keep some of the more recent .xac files, but you can safely
      delete the .log files since they are not complete copies of your data.
      You should also delete any .LCK and .LNK files that you see after
      closing GnuCash. If you decide to manually back up your data file to
      another disk, you only need to back up the main data file - not the .xac
      files.</para>

      <note>
        <para>GnuCash will automatically delete any .xac, .log files that are
        older than 30 days. You can change this behavior in the GnuCash
        preferences.</para>
      </note>
    </sect2>
  </sect1>

  <sect1 id="basics-together1">
    <title>Putting It All Together</title>

    <note>
      <para>This section begins a tutorial that will continue throughout this
      book. At the end of each chapter, you will see a <guilabel>Putting It
      All Together</guilabel> section that walks you through examples to
      illustrate concepts discussed in that section. Each <guilabel>Putting It
      All Together</guilabel> section builds on the previous one, so be sure
      to save your file for easy access.</para>
    </note>

    <para>Let's get started!</para>

    <orderedlist>
      <listitem>
        <para>First, let's create a file to store your real data. Open GnuCash
        and go through the <guilabel>New Account Hierarchy Setup</guilabel>
        dialog. You will create a file and accounts to be used for your home
        finances, so choose the accounts that pertain to you. If you are not
        sure what accounts you will need, click the <guibutton>Select
        All</guibutton> option to create all of the accounts provided. When
        you have completed the setup, save this file with a filename you want
        to use for your home data.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>Next, create a file to store test data. This is the file that
        will be used in the tutorials throughout this manual. Click
        <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt; <guimenuitem>New</guimenuitem> to create
        a new file, and name it <filename>gcashdata_1</filename>. Your main
        window should now look something like this:</para>

        <screenshot id="basics-EmptyAccounts">
          <mediaobject>
            <imageobject>
              <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_EmptyAccounts.png"
                         format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
            </imageobject>

            <textobject>
              <phrase>The Main windows showing the test file</phrase>
            </textobject>

            <caption>
              <para>This image shows the Account Tree window with a set of
              accounts loaded from the druid.</para>
            </caption>
          </mediaobject>
        </screenshot>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>Now, adjust some preferences in the account tree window. Select
        <guimenu>Edit</guimenu> -&gt; <guimenuitem>Preferences</guimenuitem>
        -&gt; <guimenuitem>Windows</guimenuitem> and change the toolbar Style
        so that they display only text, not icons. The change will take place
        directly, so look at the tool bar buttons in the main window. Return
        to the <guilabel>Preferences</guilabel> dialog and change the tool bar
        buttons back to the default setting by clicking <guibutton>Use system
        default</guibutton>. From the column header row, select
        <guibutton>Arrow down</guibutton> and select <quote>Type</quote>
        (which means view column "Type"). The main window should now look like
        this:</para>

        <screenshot id="basics-EmptyAccounts2">
          <mediaobject>
            <imageobject>
              <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_EmptyAccounts2.png"
                         format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
            </imageobject>

            <textobject>
              <phrase>The effect of changing the display options</phrase>
            </textobject>

            <caption>
              <para>This image shows the effect of changing the display
              options.</para>
            </caption>
          </mediaobject>
        </screenshot>

        <para>Save your file.</para>
      </listitem>

      <listitem>
        <para>If you plan to import QIF data from another program, let's try a
        practice file first. (If not, skip to the next chapter on account
        setup (<xref linkend="chapter_accts"></xref>).)</para>

        <orderedlist>
          <listitem>
            <para>First, create a new file called
            <filename>gcashimport</filename>. It is up to you if you would
            like to specify accounts (like Common Accounts) directly or not.
            If QIF importer do not find an account, it will create it
            automatically (or allow you to create it manually)</para>
          </listitem>

          <listitem>
            <para>From the main menu, select <guimenu>File</guimenu> -&gt;
            <guisubmenu>Import</guisubmenu> -&gt; <guimenuitem>Import
            QIF...</guimenuitem> to start the import.</para>
          </listitem>

          <listitem>
            <para>Select the appropriate currency</para>
          </listitem>

          <listitem>
            <para>Select <filename>gnc_Sample_QIF.qif</filename> as QIF file
            to load.</para>
          </listitem>

          <listitem>
            <para>In the following dialogs, ensure that each transaction has a
            valid account, if in doubt, just use the default ones.</para>
          </listitem>

          <listitem>
            <para>Complete the import.</para>
          </listitem>
        </orderedlist>

        <para>The main window should now look like this:</para>

        <screenshot id="basics-AccountsSampleQIF">
          <mediaobject>
            <imageobject>
              <imagedata fileref="figures/basics_AccountsSampleQIF.png"
                         format="PNG" srccredit="Bengt Thuree" ></imagedata>
            </imageobject>

            <textobject>
              <phrase>After importing the provided sample QIF file</phrase>
            </textobject>

            <caption>
              <para>This image shows the Main window after importing the
              provided QIF sample file.</para>
            </caption>
          </mediaobject>
        </screenshot>

        <para>If after the import the screen is blank, go to <guimenu>File -&gt; New -&gt; New Accounts page</guimenu>
         to display a new Accounts tab.</para>

        <para>Save your file.</para>

      </listitem>
    </orderedlist>
  </sect1>
</chapter>
