March 16, 2024 · 12:39 pm

Sage 50 – I See You

Sage 50 is my new/old favorite accounting software (besides PeopleSoft, of course).

Here is a great intro site: https://www.sage.com/en-us/products/sage-50/features/

I really like the structure that stays in place and is easy to navigate. I also really like the memorized transactions – to not re-invent the wheel every time and have best possible efficiencies.

The bank account reconciliation process is easy to use. I don’t love the absence of a list of reconciliations, to get to a past reconciliation screen you need to go back to that prior period, then open the bank reconciliation window. A bit indirect. But workable.

The reporting functions – I’ll have to tackle those in a later post. But you can drill down to the general ledger report behind any financial statement number, which is indispensable.

The inventory-related functionalities are well-designed. I haven’t used those recently, but I might play with them in a test environment to gain that awareness.

Sage 50 also integrates with all the 3rd party products, so you have all the options.

Sage 50 – my new home.

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Filed under Business, NonProfits, Resources, Sage 50 (formerly Peachtree), Technology

March 15, 2024 · 5:07 pm

Other Financial/Technology Activities

In recent years, I’ve branched out from simply regular GL Accounting that I’ve focused on for most of my career.

Those other activities include working for a season at H&R Block assisting individual (relatively simple) clients with their tax returns, and also spending 6 months in a FinTech Boot Camp. The two activities kind of merged in a particular site I wanted to mention, that some of you may not be aware of but might be interested in: Stack Overflow.

Stack Overflow has a variety of Communities on a range of topics – mainly centered on technology or technology-adjacent topics. But some other ones include a set of communities on English Usage, Writing, Latex usage, other languages (including Ukraine), Travel, Environment, Cooking, Games, etc… And then there are also some Finance-focused topics including some with an interest in tax topics. Like many online communities it has a lot of US content but it’s not exclusive to the US including regarding tax topics.

The content of each community’s activity is around questions and answers, and there is a lot of specificity around how each should be constructed. Opinions are not welcome (which is part of why I’m here again – all my opinions!), only facts, solutions that work, information based on references, etc.. Each community has a behavior standard, there are relatively similar, around common elements like ‘Be Civil’, ‘Assume Good Faith’, ‘Be Nice to Newcomers’, and so on. Asking good questions is rewarded. Providing good answers is very rewarded. Someday when I’m better at that maybe I’ll share my Stacks Overflow profile here, not yet though.

So just in case you’re interested in a wider arena for some research you’re doing, or you want to provide information that fits in one of the communities, wanted to mention that. And if you’re seeing this from Stack Overflow and have any feedback/comments, please share!

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Filed under Accounting, Community, Cooking, Food, Fun, Resources, Technology

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March 14, 2024 · 7:50 pm

Fair Warning

Note to subscribers: I totally understand if some of you decide to drop off, temporarily at least. My workplan for this site right now does lean towards daily postings, and I know that’s a lot.

That’s what I’m thinking though, through June or so.. when I’m hoping to have an additional piece of the puzzle in place. And that would change things, so would be a new plan going forward.

But for now, there will be volume to contend with.

And please do let me know any topics of interest around accounting/payroll software for small business and nonprofits!

Also though: happy Pi Day!!

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March 13, 2024 · 6:10 am

Quickbooks – my favorite things

I’m not the biggest fan of Quickbooks. I never have been, ever since it came out years ago, disrupting the batch-based accounting software environment. I have never been comfortable with the way things can be deleted without a trace, despite having existed as an actual transaction. And the messaging – but that’s a different post.

In this post, I will describe what I do like about Quickbooks (desktop version)!

There are some features in there that I am very fond of – I wish other programs would pick them up, and in the meantime I will miss them.

One is 3-up checks: for personal accounting use, are much more applicable than 1-up.

Within transactions, I’ve always enjoyed how dates can be adjusted by the plus key/minus key. And that within the quantity field, you can do math! You can add up multiple amounts (within a grocery receipt, for instance) to be the amount for a specific gl account. I really miss that also.

As a Quickbooks Pro Advisor many years ago, I know they have done a lot in the name of ease of use. Those are my favorite things.

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Filed under Business, NonProfits, Quickbooks

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March 12, 2024 · 4:30 pm

About words, in a book! From favorite site..

The thingliness of Lorrie Moore’s words

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Filed under Books & Publishing, Fun, Local

March 11, 2024 · 9:57 am

Spring Forward!

Prior work situation anecdote: New job, staff meeting first thing Monday mornings. I was to be introduced at top of the meeting. It was the Monday right after Daylight Savings went in to place.

Soundly asleep, I get a phone call- the in-person meeting is in process, would I be there soon?

Every year since then – very happy not to be in that moment!

PS all details not relayed- I take workplace confidentiality very seriously. Always.

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Filed under Community, Fun

March 10, 2024 · 11:26 am

Accounting & Payroll Software

I completely am a RTFM-er, I always prefer to read up on things before getting in to them whenever possible, and to consult the current resources before asking questions.

Currently I work at the U of MN, in payroll, using PeopleSoft. The problem is, there is no FM! I mean, not for our implementation, that is complete and up-to-the-minute. For instance, the whole ESST thing is being added now, so that’s all new. Only just getting added to resources etc.

So at the U there are various resources to use instead, and help staff and audit reports to check on things and so on. It’s a whole complex system, and it’s really great. I enjoy working within it a great deal.

But much of my career has been in Accounting using that software, more. I’ve used some great programs – really have liked using Abila’s MIP and formerly Great Plains Accounting which is currently Microsoft Dynamics. I’ve also used Quickbooks a great deal, including some exposure to the online version (not a favorite). Also Peachtree, currently Sage 50.

And that is what this site will be focusing on – one of the main topics anyway. Sage 50, it’s use and optimization.

I’m looking forward to the journey!

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Filed under Accounting, Business, MIP (Abila), NonProfits, PeopleSoft, Quickbooks, Resources, Sage 50 (formerly Peachtree), Software, Technology

March 10, 2024 · 10:43 am

KYC Request – informally

As I’m bringing this site back to life, I’d like to request of any of you reading this and/or receiving notifications: please respond and let me know about yourselves.

If I know you in real life, please let me know your name so I can match that to your handle/email etc.

If I don’t know you – welcome! Please just let me know basic things about you as fits for you- geographic location, your interest in this site, your career area/company if applicable, etc..

Thanks much in advance!

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Filed under Business, Community, NonProfits

March 9, 2024 · 7:50 pm

Return to posting

Well, it took a bit longer than expected. But am getting started now on the site updates and remodeling that is overdue!

First, for comfort level, an excerpt from a book I’m reading, about books:

We have a lot of books in the house. They are our primary decorative motif — books in piles on the coffee table, framed book covers, books sorted into stacks on every available surface, and of course books on shelves along most walls. Besides the visible books, there are the boxes waiting in the wings, the basement books, the garage books, the storage locker books. They are a sort of insulation, soundproofing some walls. They function as furniture, they prop up sagging fixtures and disguised by quilts function as tables. The quantities and types of books are fluid, arriving like hysterical cousins in overnight shipping envelopes only to languish near the overflowing mail bench. Advance Reading Copies collect at bedside, to be dutifully examined– to ignore them and read Henry James or Barbara Pym instead becomes a guilty pleasure. I can’t imagine a home without an overflow of books. The point of books is to have way too many but to always feel you never have enough, or the right one at the right moment, but then sometimes to find you’d longed to fall asleep reading The Aspern Papers, and there it is.

Louise Erdrich – Books and Islands in Ojibwe Country

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Filed under Books & Publishing, Fun

December 11, 2022 · 8:52 am

Post Revisions pending

So, I am going to be drastically revising this site in order to prepare for a more active future for it. Part of that process will include deleting many posts, as they were oriented around a different use for it.

And some historical content will stay, at least during the transition. Since people have personalities, and these posts reflect mine. And some posts are from colleagues that I’ve shared the space with in the past, who remain vibrant and active today!

I have downloaded a copy of this whole site, so in case in the future there is some need to access anything deleted, that will be possible.


Fair Warning!

If anyone reading this has strong feelings, suggestions, exhortations, etc.. please share!

I do plan to be more responsive than has been the case since 2016.

Thanks!

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