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}1 ______________ ________________________________ \ /\ \ \ \ / \ \ \ \ / \ \ _________________ \ / _____________ / / /\ / / / / / / / \ / / / / / / / \ / / / / / _____________________________________________/ / \ \ \ \ / \ \ \ \ / \_____________________________________________/®ad! . }6 MONEY MATTERS v3.0 }1 Typed and edited by DIT & Fireflash }6 For LSD Part 1 }1 Made into an AmigaGuide file by DIT 23-11-1993 All Figures by DIT 23-11-1993 PAGE NUMBER Part 1, Learning Money Matters ------------------------------ Chapter 1- Introduction ------------------------ 1.1 Welcome to Money Matters 13 1.2 Machine Requirements 14 1.3 Conventions Used in This Book 15 1.4 Terminology Used in This Book 16 Chapter 2 - Setting up Money Matters -------------------------------------- 2.1 What You Should Already Know 19 2.2 Preparing to Use Money Matters 20 2.3 Installing Money Matters 21 2.3.1 Floppy Disk Users 21 2.3.2 Hard Disk Users 21 2.4 To Start Money Matters 22 Chapter 3 - Quickstart 25 ---------------------- Chapter 4 - Tutorial -------------------- 4.1 What's on The Screen 29 4.2 Creating a New File 30 4.3 Asking For Help 33 4.4 Setting up Accounts 35 4.5 Setting up Income And Expenditure Types 39 4.6 Setting up Regular Transactions 42 4.7 Saving Information 46 4.8 Setting up Budgets 46 4.9 The Calculator 50 4.10 The Interest Calculator 51 4.11 Entering Transactions 52 4.12 Setting Transaction Window Display Headers 58 4.13 Finding Transactions 59 4.14 Finding And Replacing Transactions 60 4.15 Reconciling Transactions 61 4.16 Setting Transaction Defaults 63 4.17 Function Keys 65 4.18 Setting up Investments 66 4.19 Multiple Windows 66 4.20 Arranging Windows 67 4.21 Workbench icons 68 4.22 Setting up Your Printer 69 4.23 Reports 71 4.24 Setting Preferences 75 Chapter 5 - Looking After Your Finances --------------------------------------- 5.1 The Secret to Good Housekeeping 5.1.1 Plan Your Budget, Budget Your Spending 75 5.1.2 Budget Checklist 76 5.2 Getting Credit 77 5.3 Credit Guide 78 5.4 Tips For Better Borrowing 80 5.5 Cancelling a Loan 81 5.6 General Tips 5.6.1 Loan Insurance 82 5.6.2 Annual Percentage Rate 82 5.6.3 What if You Are Turned Down For Credit 82 5.7 Debt - a Survival Guide 5.7.1 If You Get Into Too Much Debt 83 5.7.2 Six Step Emergency Plan 83 5.7.3 Borrowing Again to Get Out of Debt 84 5.7.4 Coping With Debt 85 5.7.5 Loan Sharks 85 5.8 Using Money Matters 86 Chapter 6 - General ------------------- 6.1 The Desktop 6.1.1 Menu Bar 95 6.1.2 Icons 96 6.1.3 Dustbin 98 6.2 The Requesters 6.2.1 Text Entry Boxes 99 6.2.2 Radio Buttons 99 6.2.3 Check Boxes 99 6.2.4 Cycle Buttons 100 6.2.5 List Boxes 100 6.2.6 Alert Boxes 101 6.3 Editing Windows 102 6.4 The Notepad 103 6.5 The File Selector 104 Page iv Chapter 7 - Menu Commands ------------------------- 7.1 Project menu 7.1.1 About Money Matters 107 7.1.2 New 107 7.1.3 Open 107 7.1.4 Save 108 7.1.5 Save as 108 7.1.6 Delete 109 7.1.7 Open Comparatives 110 7.1.8 Clear Comparatives 111 7.1.9 Quit 111 7.2 Edit Menu 7.2.1 Add 112 7.2.2 Amend 112 7.2.3 Delete 112 7.2.4 Sort 112 7.2.5 Find 113 7.2.6 Find Again 114 7.2.7 Find And Replace 114 7.2.8 Empty Dustbin 115 7.3 Setup Menu 7.3.1 Add Account 116 7.3.2 Amend Account 118 7.3.3 Delete Account 118 7.3.4 Transaction Types 118 7.3.5 Transaction Markers 119 7.3.6 Regular Transactions 119 7.3.7 Budget 121 7.3.8 Investments 122 7.3.9 VAT Code 123 7.3.10 Window Headers 124 7.3.11 Function Keys 125 7.3.12 Password 126 7.4 Trans Menu 7.4.1 Set Defaults 127 7.4.2 Add or Amend 128 7.4.3 Reconcile 129 7.4.4 Delete 130 7.4.5 Auto Balance 130 7.4.6 Auto Balance Again 131 7.4.7 What if 131 7.5 Report Menu 133 7.5.1 Types 133 7.5.2 Markers 133 7.5.3 Budget 133 7.5.4 Regular Transactions 134 PAGE v 7.5 Report Menu - continued 7.5.5 VAT codes 134 7.5.6 Account Summary 134 7.5.7 Account Statement 134 7.5.8 Transaction List 136 7.5.9 Income and Expenditure 138 7.5.10 Budget Progress 140 7.5.11 VAT 142 7.5.12 Portfolio 143 7.5.13 Net Worth 143 7.6 System Menu 7.6.1 Help 144 7.6.2 Calculator 145 7.6.3 Interest Calculator 145 7.6.4 Set Date Time 146 7.6.5 Playtime 146 7.6.6 Amiga Workbench Open 146 7.6.7 Open a New Shell 147 7.7 Settings Menu 7.7.1 Create Icons 148 7.7.2 Icons 148 7.7.3 Cleanup Desktop 148 7.7.4 Arrange Windows 148 7.7.5 File 148 7.7.6 Printer 149 7.7.7 Screen Mode 149 7.7.8 Colours 149 7.7.9 General 150 7.7.10 Goodies 150 7.7.11 Load 151 7.7.12 Save 151 7.7.13 Save As 151 Appendices ---------- Appendix A -- Memory And Home Accounts2 155 What is Memory? 155 How Home Accounts2 Uses Memory 155 Appendix B -- Keyboard Shortcuts 157 Appendix C -- File Format 159 ASCII Text Format 159 IFF Format 159 Home Accounts Format 159 Appendix D -- Troubleshooting 160 Appendix E -- Getting Technical Support 162 The Glossary 167 Terms And Conditions of Sale 178 Index 181 Chapter 1 Introduction ------------ This chapter gives details about Money Matters and this book. * Product support and registration. * Welcome to Money Matters. * Machine requirements. * Conventions used in this book. * Terminology used in this book. 1.1 Product Support and Registration ------------------------------------ REGISTER NOW! Complete and post your prepaid registration card and get: * Technical support. * Special software offers. * Notification of upgrades. Return the registration card supplied with Money Matters (which contains your unique ID number), to qualify for technical support. Support is free for the first 60 days of ownership and includes access to our telephone support line. When you choose Digita, you're getting more than just a great product, you're getting a company committed to providing the best possible customer service and support for your product. We want you to get the most from your Digita software. As a registered user, we'll help you get it. UPGRADES Money matters makes use of the most advanced technology available today. As the technology improves, so does Money Matters, making it even more powerful and easy to use. As a registered Digita user, you can reap the benefits of our ongoing research as it happens. In most cases, the update or enhanced version will be available to you at a special price. Only registered users can receive these special update notices. CONTACTING DIGITA FOR HELP One of the really great things about Money Matters is that if you have a problem, we're here to help you. However, before contacting technical support, check: * Chapter 5.8 - Using Money Matters. * Appendix D - Troubleshooting. * Appendix E - Getting Technical Support. IMPORTANT ************************************************************************ Under no circumstances can we provide either telephone or written product support to unregistered users. ************************************************************************ PAGE 13 1.2 Welcome to Money Matters ---------------------------- Congratulations! You will soon be using the most popular financial software ever written for the Amiga. If you read nothing else, at least study Chapter 3, "Quickstart". Trying to work out personal finances has always been a chore everyone dreads at the end of the month, but, not any longer. Like 50,000 people before you, you can now use Money Matters to take to control of your finances. Welcome to the fold. Your Money Matters package should consist of: * This Money Matters instruction book. * Product registration card * One program disk. MONEY MATTERS WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH : * Workbench 3 look and feel, with comprehensive AGA support. * HIP (TM) (Human Interface Protocol), a graphical environment which integrates the desktop and automates the way you work. Predictable, consistent, you will find HIP both friendly and intuitive. * Monthly cash flow and projection reports. * New 3D icons for major functions. * Comprehensive reporting and graphics. * Colour pie charts, bar graphs, line graphs and scatter graphs. * Capacity limited only by the memory of your Amiga. * Extensive budgeting facilities. * Optional password. * Optional VAT facility. * On-line help. * Calculator, with interest and loan repayment computation. PAGE 14 1.3 Machine Requirements ------------------------ * Commodore Amiga * Workbench 2 or 3. * 1MB RAM. * Printer (optional). * Mono or colour TV/monitor. The capacity of Money Matters is limited only by your imagination and the amount of memory available in your Amiga. PAGE 15 1.4 Conventions used in this book --------------------------------- * Square-bulleted lists provide information * Italics generally indicates words or characters you enter. For example, "type Petrol in the reference box". Italics is also used to indicate program or drawer names. For example, "use the Set map program in your utilities drawer." * Pointer refers to the arrow ( ) which you move with the mouse when choosing from menus, or when you click icons on the desktop. * Combination key presses are expressed, for example as Right Amiga-Q. This means hold down the Right Amiga key and press the Q key. Then release both keys. * Text consisting of more than one word, that appears on the screen when using Money Matters, is enclosed by quotation marks (for example "Set up" menu or "Start a new year?"). * Drawers and directories are the same, drawers being the name used with Workbench and directories when using the Shell. In this book we refer to drawers * Buttons on the mouse are referred to as Mouse keys; the right being the Menu Mouse key or Right Mouse key; the left being the Select Mouse key or Left Mouse key. PAGE 16 1.5 Terminology used in this book --------------------------------- * Account refers to your own sources of money. For example, a bank account, a credit or charge card, a store card, an investment or building society account. * Budget refers to the amount you estimate you will be spending. For example, a budget for a summer holiday. * Manual transaction refers to a money transaction which occurs once. For example, writing a cheque to buy some food, buying a radio using a credit card. * Notepad refers to the facility in Money Matters to save a few lines of text. For example, you can set up a Notepad for your bank account - this may contain the bank's address and the name of the local manager. * Reconciled refers to any money transaction which you know has been processed. For example, if you paid for something by credit card, the transaction is considered Reconciled when the money has been transferred out of your account. (Normally you would only know this when you receive your statement and the transaction appears on it). By differentiating between Reconciled and Unreconciled transactions, Money Matters can provide you with both up-to-date account balances, and actual balances to match the statements you receive. Compare Unreconciled. * Regular transaction refers to a money transaction which occurs regularly. For example, a standing order to pay off a loan, a monthly mortgage payment. * Type refers to the groups into which you allocate your income and expenditure. For example, you probably want to analyse your spending over different headings, such as Food, Petrol, Housekeeping. * Unreconciled refers to any money transaction for which you have not received confirmation that it has been processed. For example, you may have written a cheque for something, but it has not yet gone through to your bank account. Compare Reconciled. * A full glossary appears at the rear of this book. PAGE 17 Chapter 2 Setting Up Money Matters ------------------------ This chapter will show you how to set up Money Matters on floppy disk and hard disk Amiga systems. * What you should already know. * Preparing to use Money Matters. * Installing Money Matters for the first time. * Starting Money Matters. 2.1 What you should already know -------------------------------- To set up Money Matters on your Amiga, you need an understanding of basic Amiga concepts. Before you begin, you should know how to: * Use icons on Workbench desktop. * Use the mouse to point, drag, click and double-click. * Start and quit from applications using Amiga Workbench. * Initialize and copy disks using the Shell (CLI). * Select menus, pull down menus and choose menu commands. * Scroll in windows, resize and reposition, and close windows. If you are not familiar with any of these terms or processes, see your Amiga owner's guide. PAGE 21 2.2 Preparing to use Money Matters ---------------------------------- Make a backup copy of your master disk. It is important to work with a copy of your Money Matters disk rather than the original. If the copy is damaged or lost, you can go back to the original and make another copy. Before copying the master disk, slide up the small tab in the upper-left corner on the back of the disk so that it is in the uppermost position (the tab will no longer be visible from the front side of the disk). This locks information on the disk, preventing accidental deletion of files and documents. STEP 1 ------ Copy the disk as follows: Switch on your Amiga and insert the Amiga disk titled WORKBENCH. Open a Shell by double-clicking its icon from the SYSTEM DRAWER and type: SYS:SYSTEM/DISKCOPY FROM DF0: TO DF0: and press the Return key. STEP 2 ------ Place the original master disk in the internal disk drive and when prompted, press the Return key. Follow the on-screen instructions. Put the original disk away in a safe place. Now check on the Money Matters disk for a READ.ME file. If it exists, it will contain important additional information. PAGE 22 2.3 Installing Money Matters ---------------------------- You have been provided with a single program disk, you will also need a separate disk to store your information. This is referred to as a "data disk". 2.3.1 Floppy Disk Users ----------------------- This procedure assumes you are using the back-up copy of your program disk (as explained earlier). Switch on your Amiga and insert your copy of your Money Matters disk into the internal disk drive. Double-click the disk icon and then double- click the Money Matters drawer. Double-click the Money Matters icon to start Money Matters. 2.3.2 Hard Disk Users --------------------- You will need about 1MB of free space to install Money Matters on your hard disk. IMPORTANT ************************************************************************ Simply copying the contents of the disk onto your hard disk will not be sufficient for Money Matters to work correctly. You must use the INSTALL MONEY MATTERS program. ************************************************************************ The installation program copies Money Matters onto your hard disk and a selection of sample files into the SAMPLES drawer. STEP 1 ------ Switch on your computer and wait for Workbench to appear as normal. STEP 2 ------ When Workbench appears, insert the disk titled Money Matters. Double- click the icon titled INSTALL MONEY MATTERS. STEP 3 ------ When prompted, click the button titled "On a hard disk", and then click the Proceed button. You will be prompted to select the destination for Money Matters (where you wish Money Matters program and sample files to be located on your hard disk). A message will appear to confirm that the installation has been successfully completed. PAGE 24 2.4 To Start Money Matters -------------------------- The very first time you start Money Matters, you will be prompted to type: * Your name. * The name of your organisation. (If this is not applicable, enter your name again.) * Your license number (this appears at the back of this book, next to the registration card). * Click OK. Once you have personalised the program, your name will appear every time you start Money Matters, confirming that you are a registered licensed user. If you do not personalize Money Matters correctly, you will be returned to the Amiga Workbench. It is necessary to complete each box of the personalization screen. PAGE 24 Chapter 3 Quickstart -------------------- This chapter gives brief instructions for installing and using Money Matters. It assumes a good knowledge of the Amiga computer and general familiarity with home finance programs. If, like many users, you only read the operating instructions in an emergency, at least follow these instructions: STEP 1 ------ Fill in your registration card and send it to Digita (only registered users can receive upgrades and hot-line product support). STEP 2 ------ Refer to Appendix B, "Keyboard Shortcuts". STEP 3 ------ Check on the Money Matters disk for a READ.ME file. If it exists, it will contain important additional information. STEP 4 ------ When you start Money Matters for the first time, you will be asked to personalise the program and when prompted, enter your name, the name of your organisation and your license number. Your license number is located at the rear of the book, next to the registration card. STEP 5 ------ If you already use Home Accounts or Home Accounts2, you'll find it quite painless to start using Money Matters. If, however, you have any problems, press Help. This provides a simple memory jogger. STEP 6 ------ Use the index in the book to look up any specific features which are not obvious to you. PAGE 27 Chapter 4 Tutorial ------------------ In the chapter you'll learn all about Money Matters. It should take you a couple of hours. 4.1 The tutorial ---------------- This tutorial assumes you have: * Successfully installed Money Matters. * Studied the READ.ME file (if it exists). * Personalised your copy of Money Matters. * A blank formatted disk titled Mydata. Started Money Matters. ************************************************************************* Important Follow this tutorial closely and do not try to modify the application until you finish. This tutorial purposely illustrates a wide variety of the features of Money Matters. ************************************************************************* This is what should be on screen See Figure 4-1 Money Matters opening screen If you cannot get this screen, refer to Chapters 1 and 2. 4.1 What's on The screen ------------------------ The requester requests the current date and time. The text box titled "Current date" should be highlighted; if it isn't, click inside it with the Left Mouse key. PAGE 31 STEP 1 ------ For the tutorial to work correctly you should set the date to 1st April, 1993. To do this enter 01041993. As you enter the first number notice that the mouse pointer disappears and the text box changes to / / and indicates you are now in edit mode. When editing, note these keyboard shortcuts: KEY DOES ---------------------- --------------------------------- Left Arrow Move cursor left Right Arrow "" "" right Up Arrow Move to Previous text box Down Arrow or Move to next text box Tab or the Return key Shift-Left Arrow Move to start of text box Shift-Right Arrow Move to end of text box Right Amiga-X Clear text box Right Amiga-Q Restore text box settings Control-Right Amiga-Q Restore box to contents before editing. Backspace Delete character to the left Delete Delete current character F1 Edit contents of text box F2 Toggle between insert and overtype Enter Move to next text box and can be used to select the default button When exiting a requester If you wish to edit an entry simply click in the appropriate box to highlight it and then press F1. STEP 2 ------ Now press the Return key, this completes the entry for the "Current date" and moves the cursor into the "Current time" Type the current time in 24 hour style, hrs:mins:secs (for example, 201500) and press the Return key. *********************************************************************** IMPORTANT Remember, whenever you type information into a box or a requester, you must complete the entry by pressing the Return ket (or Tab key). If you type an entry without pressing the Return key, the entry will be ignored when you exit the requester. *********************************************************************** Click OK, the requester disappears leaving the blank desktop and menu bar. However, the requester will not disappear if you typed an invalid date or time. PAGE 32 4.2 Creating a new file ----------------------- Press the Right mouse key and move the pointer onto the menu bar and choose New from the Project menu. The file requester looks like this: See Figure 4-2 "File selector" requester This is used whenever you create a new file, or open or save existing files. Click the Drawer text box, delete its contents and type MYDATA: (type this exactly as it is written, with no spaces and ending with a colon), and press the Return key. When prompted insert the disk titled MYDATA. If the system continues to ask for volume MYDATA then this indicates the disk has not been renamed correctly. Rename the disk and try again. Click the "File name" text box and type MYFILE and press the Return key. Click OK. The form shown on the screen is an alert box and is used to ask simple questions or give warnings where only a button click response is necessary (requesters are used where more information, such as a date, is required). It provides the option to load an existing configuration from another Money Matters file (you would normally use this to load a configuration from a previous year's file). PAGE 33 See Figure 4-3 Alert box Notice that the No box is surrounded by a black line. This indicates that it is the default choice, and therefore may also be selected by pressing the Enter key. Press the Enter key or click No. When Money Matters has finished creating the new file, your screen should look like this: See Figure 4-4 Money Matters desktop These are the standard icons which appear on the desktop: Printer, Help, Calculator, Types, Markers, Regular, Budget, Investment and Trashcan. 4.3 Asking for Help ------------------- At any time you want information about a command or option, you can ask Money Matters for help. If you are using a single disk drive system, an alert box may appear asking you to insert your Money Matters disk into the disk drive. step 1 ------ Hold down the Alt key and press the Help key. Notice the pointer changes to a question mark (?). step 2 ------ Choose a command from the menu, for example "Add account" from the "Set up" menu. Information appears in a box, which you can scroll through like a normal list box. To the right of the list box are several buttons. The Next and Prev buttons will display the next, or previous topic of Help, and the Topics button will display the topics list. See Figure 4-5 Help list box Click the Topics button, this lists all the topics for which Help is available. Click any topic with which you need help. Click Exit to return to the desktop. You can also ask Money Matters for help by double-clicking the Help icon on the desktop or pressing the Help key. PAGE 33 4.4 Setting Up Accounts ----------------------- STEP 1 ------ From the "Set up" menu choose "Add account". This is used to set up bank accounts, credit card accounts and so on. See Figure 4-6 "Add account" requester STEP 2 ------ The Name box should be highlighted, enter Natwest Current Account and press the Return key. Type 77777 in the Number box and press the Return key. If you wish to edit an entry simply click in the appropriate box to highlight it and then press F1. STEP 3 ------ The box titled Code allows you to enter a 2 character reference code that is used in other areas of the program, such as budgeting or standing orders. Type NC (Natwest Current) and press the Return key. STEP 4 ------ Enter 425.98 in the "Opening balance" box and press the Return key. STEP 5 ------ "Warning limit min" allows a minimum Account balance to be set, if the balance drops below this amount, a warning will be given. Type -500 and press the Return key. PAGE 36 The "Warning limit max" allows a maximum Account balance to be set, if the balance exceeds this amount, a warning will be given. Type 1500 and press the Return key. The minimum and maximum warning limits are currently not active, so switch them on by clicking in the check boxes to the right. A tick indicates that the warning is active. STEP 6 ------ The Type button is a cycle button and may be changed by clicking on the circular arrow. As the name suggests, a cycle button is used to step through a list until the desired item is found. This is currently set to Cash. The Account you have set up is a cheque Account, therefore click the box to select Cheque. STEP 7 ------ The "Icon title" box lets you set the title for the desktop icon, type NATWEST and press the Return key. step 8 ------ The "Reference number" box can be used to type the starting cheque number. Type 765534 and press return. Click the Add button, this adds the Account to your file and displays a second empty requester. Remember, when in edit mode you can use the following keys: KEY DOES ---------------------- --------------------------------- Left Arrow Move cursor left Right Arrow "" "" right Up Arrow Move to Previous text box Down Arrow or Move to next text box Tab or the Return key Shift-Left Arrow Move to start of text box Shift-Right Arrow Move to end of text box Right Amiga-X Clear text box Right Amiga-Q Restore text box settings Control-Right Amiga-Q Restore box to contents before editing. Backspace Delete character to the left Delete Delete current character F1 Edit contents of text box F2 Toggle between insert and overtype Enter Move to next text box and can be used to select the default button to exit a requester PAGE 37 Now type another Account with the following information: Name : Halifax savings Number: 111111 Code : HS Opening Balance: 2500 Warning Limit Min: 500 Warning Limit Max: 0 Type: Savings Icon Title: HALIFAX Cheque Number: 0 Set the "Warning limit min" check box (a tick appears) and click Add. Now add another Account: Name: Access card Number: 5224 2222 3333 4444 Code: AC Opening Balance: 0 Warning Limit Min: -500 Warning limit Max: 0 Type: Credit Card Icon Title: ACCESS CARD Cheque Number: 0 Set the "Warning limit min" check box (a tick appears). Press F10 and the Notepad will appear. See Figure 4-7 Notepad requester PAGE 38 Notepad lets you type up to 8 lines of additional information. Type the following: APPLIED FOR INCREASED CREDIT LIMIT press the return key TO 750, LETTER SENT 24/03/1993 press the return key Notepad is a good example of one requester overlaying another. Sometimes, you may wish to move the requester to view information in another requester behind. You do this by clicking the mouse in the centre of the bar at the top of the requester (in this case titled Notepad). Keep the Left Mouse key depressed and move the mouse pointer. When the mouse key is released, the requester will reappear in the new position. Click OK (or press Enter) to quit the Notepad. Then click Add and when a new requester appears, click Quit. The desktop should now contain three additional icons (Accounts) Natwest, Halifax and Access Card. 4.5 Setting up Income and Expenditure Types. -------------------------------------------- STEP 1 ------ From the "Set up" menu choose the "Transaction types" command. See Figure 4-8 Types window A Type (called Tran) already exists. This is used to transfer amounts between Accounts and you will learn later about this feature. Before entering transactions, you need to set up income and expenditure Types. PAGE 39 Types consist of four character abbreviations and a reference, and are used to describe different categories of income and expenditure when entering transactions. STEP 2 ------ To add a Type, choose add from the Edit menu. Type SAL and press the return key. In the reference box type SALARY and press the RETURN key. Click Add. See Figure 4-9 "Add types" requester Now add the following types and references in the same way. TYPE REFERENCE --------------- ---------------------------- HK House keeping CL Clothes PTRL Petrol MISC Miscellaneous TAX Local tax CARI Car insurance CARE Car expenses CARL Car loan ENT Entertainment CASH Cash withdraw; HOBB Hobbies and interests HOLI Holidays CDS Compact discs COMP PAGE 40 BCHG Bank charges INT Interest GIFT Gifts Click Quit. The types should now appear alphabetically in the window. See Figure 4-10 Types window, showing Types There is no Reference for Comp. To add the Reference, click Comp (to highlight it), then choose the Amend command from the Edit menu. Comp is displayed in a requester ready for amendment. (A quicker way to make an amendment is to double-click the Type.) Press the Return key to move down to the Reference box and type COMPUTER ACCESSORIES. Press the Return key and click OK. STEP 3 ------ Types are automatically displayed in alphabetical order. You can change the order by choosing the Sort command from the Edit menu. The Header cycle button lets you set the heading for sorting. The second cycle button sets the order, either ascending or descending. Click Cancel, and close the Types window by clicking the window closer in the top left corner of the window. PAGE 41 4.6 Setting up Regular Transactions ----------------------------------- STEP 1 ------ Choose "Regular transactions" from the "Set up" menu. See Figure 4-11 "Regular transactions" window "Regular transactions", are transactions that occur on a regular basis, such as, for example, a standing order, direct debit, loan repayment, mortgage repayment. To add a "Regular transaction" choose Add from the Edit menu. See Figure 4-12 "Add regular transactions" requester PAGE 42 STEP 2 ------ Imagine you have a monthly standing order for a car loan, starting on 5th March, 199 for 12 months, for an amount of £51.37, which is debited monthly from the Account Natwest. To set this up type the following: Start date: 05/03/1993 End date: 05/03/1994 Type: CARL (this is the Type you set up earlier) Reconciled: * (this option will be explained later) Frequency: 1 (this is the number of times the transaction occurs, in months, weeks or days, depending on the setting of the adjacent cycle button). Set the adjacent frequency cycle button to Months. STEP 3 ------ The From and To boxes should contain the code for the Account the transaction is being debited From or credited To. When you set up the Account "Natwest current" you used the "Account code" NC. Since this loan is debited from "Natwest current", use the From box. From: NC (Leave the To box blank) Reference: Loan for Mini STEP 4 ------ The Debit and Credit boxes are used to enter the amount to be debited or credited, in this instance the Account is being debited, so use the Debit box. Debit: 51.37 The Marker box is like a bookmark and lets you set your own lookup point. (See Chapter 7.3.5, "Transaction markers" for detailed information.) Leave the Marker box blank and click Add. Set up the following regular transaction. It represents your salary, which is paid every two weeks into your "Natwest current" Account by direct transfer. Start Date: 01/03/1993 End Date: 01/03/2000 Type: SAL Reconciled: * Frequency: 2 Set the frequency cycle button to Weeks. To: NC Reference: Salary Credit: 312.91 PAGE 43 Now click Add. This example illustrates a transaction which is credited to an Account, whereas previously, you debited FROM an Account. Now set up this standing order which transfers £60.00 to "Halifax savings" from "Natwest current" on 15th day of each month. It starts on 15th March, 1993 and lasts for two years. STEP 6 ------ Start Date: 15/03/1993 End Date; 15/02/1995 Type: TRAN Reconciled: * Frequency: 1 Leave the frequency cycle button to the default, Months. From: NC To: HS Debit: 60.00 Click Add. The Type titled Tran is used exclusively for transferring funds be Money Matters. When using Tran, you need to tell Money Matters which Account you are posting from, and which Account you are posting to. Money Matters only recognises the first three characters, that is TRA. The fourth character is discretional. This gives you the opportunity if you wish to analyse several Types of TRAN transactions (for example, TRA1, TRA2). If you leave the Reference box blank, Money Matters automatically enters the details of the transaction. Click Quit. The "Regular transactions" window will now be updated with the new transactions: Close the window by clicking on the close box. Like Types, there is a desktop icon, titled Regular which you can double-click to re-open the window. 4.7 Saving Information ---------------------- When you created this file, you named it Myfile. As you enter information into Money Matters, the information will remain in the computer's memory. Therefore, it is wise to regularly save this information onto your data disk. Remember to do this at regular intervals (about every 30 minutes is ideal). Choose "Save" from the Project menu. PAGE 44 Money Matters has an auto-save facility, whereby you set the time interval between automatic saving. ( See Chapter 7.7.5, Preferences for detailed information.) 4.8 Setting up Budgets ---------------------- STEP 1 ------ Choose the Budget command from the "Set up" menu. See Figure 4-13 Budget window With Money Matters you can set up budgets for each Type. STEP 2 ------ Choose Add from the Edit menu. To set up a budget of £60.00 a month for petrol, paid by Access credit card, type the following: Type: PTRL (this is the Type you set up earlier) Account Code: AC (this is the "Access card" Account you set up earlier) PAGE 46 See Figure 4-14 "Add budget item" requester For each of the months, type 60.00. The cycle button allows you to budget either income or expenditure Types. Leave this set to Expenditure. Click Add. Now set up another budget of £30.00 a month for clothes: STEP 3 ------ Type: CL Account Code: NC Rather than entering the same figure for each month, you can just enter one figure and then let Money Matters copy it into every month for you. To do this, type 30.00 and press the Return key. Now highlight the first month by clicking it and then click Replicate. 30.00 should now appear in each month. Leave the cycle button to the default, Expenditure, and click Add. Now you need to budget for personal cash withdrawals, say £80.00 a month. STEP 4 ------ Press F9. This provides a simple reminder of the Types and their descriptions (you can also press F9 to remind you of the Account Codes). PAGE 46 See Figure 4-15 Types 'reminder' requester From the list you can see that the Type you need is titled Cash. Click Cash. The Type requesters disappear returning you to the "Add budget item" requester. Account Code: ** (This lets you budget over multiple Accounts). Type 80.00 in the first month and press the Return key. Now highlight the first month and click Replicate. Leave the cycle button to the default, Expenditure, and click Add. Now enter the following budgets, leaving the cycle button to the default, using the replication facility where possible. Remember to click Add after each budget. Type Code Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec HK NC 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 TAX NC 0 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 0 HOBB NC 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 30 COMP NC 12 12 12 12 12 20 20 20 20 12 12 12 CARE ** 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 50 HOLI NC 0 0 0 0 0 200 0 0 0 0 0 0 CDS NC 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 12 0 0 GIFT NC 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 80 20 20 ENT NC 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 Click Quit; the budget window will reappear with all the new budget figures. PAGE 47 See Figure 4-16 Budget window If you have made any mistakes, double-click the appropriate budget to make any corrections. ************************************************************************* IMPORTANT Double-check that the figures you have entered correspond exactly with figure 4-16. ************************************************************************* Close the budget window. As before, there is a desktop icon representing Budget . PAGE 48 4.9 The Calculator ------------------ On the System menu you will notice the Calculator command. On the right side of the command appears the keyboard shortcut, <AMIGA>C. This means that you can choose Calculator without using the mouse by holding down the Right Amiga key and pressing C. Many of the menu commands may be chosen this way. STEP 1 ------ Choose Calculator from the System menu, or press Right AMIGA-C See Figure 4-17 Calculator requester Click the the buttons 1 2 3 * 7 + 100 = The top box is the calculator display. The box below shows the history of the last 5 calculations. It's just like a printing electronic calculator. You can also type numbers using the keyboard. Try typing 56 * 24-17 and then press the Return key (or Enter). Click C to clear the display. Now click AC to clear the history window. PAGE 49 4.10 The Interest Calculator ---------------------------- With the Calculator still displayed, click the I button. See Figure 4-18 "Interest calculator" requester This is a simple loan calculator and provides estimates of loan costs. Because credit card companies, finance companies and banks use a multitude of ways to calculate interest, such as daily interest, monthly, compound and so on, it may not be precisely accurate. "Opening balance" is for entering the starting balance for the transaction, Periods is the time period measurement (either years, months or weeks), "Interest rate %" is the interest rate % per period and the Payment is the payment per period. For example, if you had a credit card balance of -600 (that is you owe £600), and you can afford to pay off the debt at £40 a month. The interest rate is 1.76% a month. You want to estimate the outstanding balance after five months. "Opening balance": -600.00 Periods: 5 "Interest rate %": 1.7600 Payment : 40.00 Now click Calc, the calculated balance will be -443.88. This represents the outstanding balance after five months. Click Exit and then Quit to return to the desktop. 4.11 Entering Transactions -------------------------- step 1 ------ Double-click the Natwest icon on the desktop. See Figure 4-19 "Natwest current account" window The entries are postings of the "Regular transactions" you set up earlier. The transactions have been automatically back- dated to 1st March, 1993. Notice the opening balance is displayed in the window title. step 2 ------ Choose Add from the Edit menu. This requester is used to enter the day-to-day transactions which go through your bank Account. In this example, the transaction relates to a pair of trousers costing £24.87 that you purchased using your Natwest Current Account. When entering transactions, enter the date of the transaction, as opposed to the current or system date. PAGE 51 See Figure 4-20 "Add manual transactions" requester step 3 ------ Type the following: Date: 01/03/1993 Type: CL Reconciled: Leave this box blank. The Reconciled box tells Money Matters whether or not a transaction has been reconciled with a bank statement. It may be used in a number of different ways which will be covered later in this tutorial. Reference: New jeans The "Ref number" box is used if the transaction was paid by cheque. You can enter this manually, or press F8 to automatically insert the next consecutive number. Ref number: Press the F8 key. This will insert the cheque number you set up earlier when you created the Account "Natwest current" (765534). Debit: 24.87 Leave the Credit box empty (you use the Debit box to pay out money, or the Credit box to pay in money to your Account). Leave the M box empty (this is for setting your own reference marker). ( See Chapter 7.3.5, "Transaction markers" for detailed information.) PAGE 52 STEP 4 ------ Click Add, and then type these transactions: Date Type Reconciled Reference Chq No. Debit Credit M ---------- ----- ---------- ------------ -------- ----- ------ - 03/03/1993 CASH Cash Machine 20.00 05/03/1993 CARE New Battery 765535 23.67 06/03/1993 GIFT John Birthday 765536 12.94 08/03/1993 HK Housekeeping 765537 50.00 12/03/1993 CDS Compact Discs 765538 10.99 13/03/1993 CASH Cash Machine 20.00 15/03/1993 HOBB Fishing Rod 765539 22.91 18/03/1993 CASH Cash Machine 20.00 27/03/1993 CASH Cash Machine 20.00 Click Quit; The new transactions appear in the window. See Figure 4-21 "Natwest current account" window Amending a transaction is simple. First, click the transaction with the reference "Fishing rod" to highlight it. Then either choose Amend from the Edit menu or click the Amend button. (You can also amend a transaction by double-clicking.) From the requester select the Debit box, and change the amount to 26.91 and click OK. PAGE 53 STEP 6 ------ Choose the Add (Edit menu) and type this transaction: Date: 20/03/1993 Type: BOOK Reconciled: Reference: Great Expectations "Chq number": Debit: 8.95 Credit: M: Click Add. An alert box appears to tell you that the Type Book has not been set up. Click OK. You can set up the new Type from this window. STEP 7 ------ Press F9. See Figure 4-22 Types 'reminder' window Click Add and then enter BOOK and Literature books for the Reference. Click Add and then click Quit. The Types will appear with Book added to the list. Now click the Type Book. The new Type will appear in the "Add manual transaction" requester. Now click Add. PAGE 54 The F9 key shortcut is available in a numbers of areas of the program (such as "Regular transactions" and Budget requesters). ( See Chapter 7.3.6, "Regular transactions" for detailed information.) Imagine this scenario... You visit a store and purchase some motor oil and a bottle of wine (a birthday gift). You pay by cheque. You have purchased two items with one payment, therefore the transaction needs to be split over two Types, namely CARE (Car Expenses) and GIFT (Gifts). Money Matters has a special Type called SPLT, which allows you to do this. Using this example, enter: Date: 21/03/1993 Type: SPLT See Figure 4-23 "Split manual transactions" requester You can spread one transaction over a maximum of 20 Types. With the the top Type box highlighted enter: Type Reference Amount ------ ---------- ---------- CARE Oil 7.95 GIFT Wine 6.25 The "Total entered" should be 14.20. Leave the Debit radio button selected. Click OK. 14.20 has been inserted into the Debit box. PAGE 55 Leave the Reconciled box empty. Reference: Hamilton Store Ref number: 765540 Click Add, then click Quit and close the window. Double-click the Access icon and add these transactions: Date Type Reconciled Reference Chq Number Debit Credit M ---------- ----- ----------- ------------ ----------- ------ ------- - 03/03/1993 PTRL * Petrol 12.96 11/03/1993 PTRL * Petrol 14.77 17/03/1993 PTRL * Petrol 8.93 24/03/1993 PTRL * Petrol 17.41 Click Quit. The transactions appear in the "Access card" window. They are displayed in red (only on colour systems), this indicates that the balance for this Account is below zero. Click the window scroll bar to display the right side of the screen. Notice the balance is negative, with a total balance of -54.07. Scroll the window to the left back to its original position and add this transaction: Date Type Reconciled Reference Chq Number Debit Credit M ---------- ----- ----------- ------------ ----------- ------ ------- - 27/03/1993 CARI * Insurance 500.00 Click Add. When you originally set up the "Access account" you set the "Minimum balance" to 500, therefore the alert tells you the Account has dropped below that balance. Click OK, then click Quit. Now delete the previous transaction. Click the transaction (to highlight it) and then choose Delete from the Edit menu. You will be asked to confirm the deletion, click Proceed. 4.12 Setting Transaction Window Display Headers. ------------------------------------------------ With Money Matters you can customise the display to your preference. STEP 1 ------ To remove the "Ref number" column choose "Window headers" from the "Set up" menu. The check boxes allow you to switch the headers (and their contents) on or off. PAGE 56 See Figure 4-24 "Manual transactions window headers" requester STEP 2 ------ Switch the headers "Ref Number" and M off by clicking the check boxes (the ticks should disappear). Click OK; the window reappears in the new style. You can customise every window if you wish and Money Matters will automatically remember the header settings for each Account. However, the information contained in each heading will be retained, although it is not displayed. Choose Sort from the Edit menu. Like Types, you can set the box with which you wish to sort, and the sort order. This is the same for Types, Markers, "Regular transactions", Budget, Investments and "VAT codes". Click Cancel. Previously, when you set up the Access Account, you used the Notepad facility. The Notepad is also available for Types, Markers, "Regular transactions", Budget, Investments and "VAT codes". Click the first transaction and choose Amend from the Edit menu. With the "Amend manual transaction" requester displayed, press F10. The Notepad allows you to make notes for this transaction. Click Cancel, and then click Cancel again to leave the requester Close the window and choose the "Add or amend" command from the Trans menu. Click "Natwest current account". As you can see, this operates the same way as double-clicking the desktop Natwest icon. 4.13 Finding Transactions ------------------------- STEP 1 ------ From the Edit menu choose the Find command. See Figure 4-28 "Find manual transactions" requester STEP 2 ------ In the Reference box type CASH MACHINE and press the Return key. Set the Reference check box to on (this tells Money Matters you wish to search only the Reference part of your transactions). Click OK. Money Matters will now search through all transactions in "Natwest current account" which have the word Cash Machine in their Reference box. STEP 3 ------ The first transaction found is highlighted. To search for the next transaction choose "Find again" from the Edit menu. Repeat this procedure until the screen flashes, indicating there are no more entries. Choose the Find command and from the "Find manual transactions" requester, experiment with different search combinations. This command is particularly useful, especially when you have been using Money Matters for several months and you wish to search through hundreds of transactions. 4.14 Finding and Replacing Transactions --------------------------------------- STEP 1 ------ Choose "Find and replace" from the Edit menu. A box similar to the Find requester will appear. On the right side of the title bar (find) is displayed, indicating that this is where you enter your search criteria. Notice that Money Matters has remembered your last search criteria (when using the Find command). STEP 2 ------ Click OK. Another similar box appears. In the title bar (replace) is displayed, indicating that this is where you enter the information you want to replace. In the Reference box enter Cashpoint machine and set the corresponding check box on. The three radio buttons at the bottom of the requester perform these operations: BUTTON DOES ------------------ --------------------------------------------- Replace once Find first transaction and replace it. Confirm replace Find all transactions, but confirm each replace. Replace all Replace all transactions. Click "Confirm replace" and then click OK. STEP 3 ------ Click Yes to confirm the replacement and the word Cash Machine will be replaced with Cashpoint Machine and the same alert box will reappear to confirm each replacement. Click Yes at each alert. The screen will flash to indicate that no more transactions can be found. 4.15 Reconciling Transactions ----------------------------- Notice that some of the transactions have not been included in the running balance figure. This is because these transactions are not reconciled, and therefore are not included in the total balance. Unreconciled transactions appear without an asterisk (*) in the left column. There are ways to customise reconciliation to suit your personal preference and this is explained a little later in this tutorial. In principle, you should reconcile each transaction as it appears on your bank or credit card statement. You then have a method of monitoring which transactions have cleared and those which are still outstanding. Therefore, you know the TRUE balance of your Account. PAGE 59 To reconcile an individual transaction (when it appears on your statement), highlight the transaction and then use the Amend command (Edit menu), and enter * in the Reconciled box. A quicker method is to press and hold the Alt key and click the transaction you wish to reconcile. STEP 1 ------ Try this with the transaction FISHING ROD . Notice an asterisk (*) appears to indicate the transaction is now reconciled and the balance is updated to reflect the value. Repeat the process, as this is a toggle command, the transaction will revert to being unreconciled. STEP 2 ------ Choose Reconcile from the Trans menu. See Figure 4-29 "Reconcile/unreconcile manual transactions" requester This command is used to search transactions between date ranges and then globally reconcile or unreconcile. You also have the option to confirm each transaction for reconciliation if you wish (particularly useful for bank statements). STEP 3 ------ Type the following: Start Date: 01/03/1993 End Date: 05/03/1993 PAGE 60 The Reconcile radio button should be selected and the check box to "Confirm each one" set on. Click OK and, as prompted, click Yes to confirm each reconciliation. You can also ask Money Matters to calculate which transactions should be reconciled. Your own bank statements, will contain the following information: * The date of first transaction ("Start date"). * The date of last transaction ("End date"). * The Account balance ("Target balance"). * The number of transactions ("Number of transactions"). STEP 4 ------ Choose "Auto balance" from the Trans menu and enter: Start Date: 01/03/1993 End Date: 15/03/1993 Target balance: 322.04 Number of Transactions: 10 Click OK. Notice that some of the transactions are now reconciled. Money Matters has evaluated all of the transactions you entered, between the two dates, and established a combination of 10 transactions that total the "Target balance" figure. Occasionally, a reconciliation may be wrong, particularly if you have several transactions of the same amount. In this case, you use the "Auto balance again" command (Trans menu) and Home Accounts2 will attempt to reconcile again, using a different combination (unless there are no more combinations possible). If the "Auto balance" fails, this is probably because you made a mistake when you entered transactions. (See Section 4.6, "Setting up Regular Transactions" and Section 4.11, "Entering Transactions"). 4.16 Setting Transaction Defaults --------------------------------- STEP 1 ------ Choose "set defaults" from the Trans menu. See Figure 4-30 "Manual transactions default" requester With a program like Money Matters you spend much of your time entering transactions. To make this process as efficient as possible, Money Matters offers many defaults, which you can personalise to your requirements. With the Type, Reconciled, Amount and M (Marker) boxes you have three options : * No default. *Your own Default. * Default to the entry of the previous transaction "last entered" For example, to set the default type to HK, enter HK in the text box and leave the adjacent check box ("last entered") off. To set the default type to the previous entry, switch the "Last entered" check box on. PAGE 62 The Date and Reference boxes have associated cycle buttons and check boxes. With these you have four options : * No default * Your own default * Default to entry of previous transaction ("Last entered") OR * Default to "system date". * Reference default to "Type reference". The "system date" is the date you set when you first start Money Matters. The type reference is the reference you enter for each type. For example, earlier when you set up the type CL, you entered the reference for CLOTHES. Click Cancel. 4.17 Function Keys ------------------ STEP 1 ------ From the "Set up" menu choose "Function keys". See Figure 4-31 "Set function keys" requester This is another time-saving facility. You can program up to 20 common words or phrases. Ten for the key combination Control-Function key and ten for Alt-Function key. You cannot program a direct Function keypress (for example, F3), as these contain keyboard short-cuts for Money matters. PAGE 63 For example, the reference CASH MACHINE may be used regularly, and you can program this word into a Function key so that whenever you wish to enter CASH MACHINE you just press the appropriate Function key combination. STEP 2 ------ In the Control box type CASH MACHINE and in the Alt box enter HOUSE KEEPING. Control-F1 is now set to CASH MACHINE and Alt-F1 to HOUSE KEEPING. To change the Function key (currently set to F1), click the Function key icon and overtype in the appropriate text box. Now click OK. STEP 3 ------ Press Right Amiga-A (or choose Add from the Edit menu). Move down to the Reference box using the Down Arrow, or press the Return key. STEP 4 ------ With the Reference box highlighted, press Control-F1. Money Matters will automatically enter CASH MACHINE into the box. Press the Return key and highlight the Reference box again. Now press Alt-F1, the word HOUSE KEEPING appears. Press the Return key, click Quit and then close the window to return to the desktop. 4.18 Setting up Investments. ---------------------------- STEP 1 ------ Choose Investments from the "Set up" menu. This is a simple way to keep track of investments, such as Company shares, unit Trusts and so on. STEP 2 ------ Choose Add from the Edit menu and enter the following: Reference Quantity Unit Price ----------------------- ------------ ------------------ Acme PLC 100 2.37 Banana plantation 300 8.27 Fiscom PLC 500 1.97 Click Quit; the window will display the list of the investments and their current value. This figure will be included when calculating a "Net worth" report. 4.19 Multiple Windows --------------------- STEP 1 ------ Choose "Transaction types" command from the "Set up" menu and choose Budget from the "Set up" menu. STEP 2 ------ Resize and move the Budget window downwards by dragging its title bar. The Types and Investment window behind should now be visible. Money Matters lets you have many windows open simultaneously. STEP 3 ------ Choose the Add command from the Edit menu, and, as you would expect, since the Budget window is the front-most window, the "Add budget item" requester appears. Now click Quit. STEP 4 ------ Click the front-to-back gadget in the Types window to bring it to the front and choose Add again from the Edit menu. Now the "Add types" requester appears. Click Quit. The menu commands always operate on the active window. 4.20 Arranging Windows ---------------------- Occasionally, if you open multiple windows, the desktop can become muddled. Money Matters has a command which lets you decide the window arrangement. STEP 1 ------ Choose "Arrange windows" from the Options menu. STEP 2 ------ Select "Tiled vertically", and then click OK. The windows will now appear one above the other. Try experimenting with the "Arrange windows" command. Close each window using the window closer. Money Matters remembers the dimensions of each window, so when you re- open a window it will appear the same size as when you closed it. 4.21 Amiga Workbench Icons -------------------------- With Money Matters you have the option to display icons on the desktop for menu commands and Accounts. The default icons are: Printer, Help, Calculator, Types, Markers, Regular, Budget, Investment and Dustbin. As you set up Accounts, further icons appear to represent them: Bank, Savings, Credit Card and Cash. Another icon, Tax, appears if you are tax or VAT registered. You double-click the icon to select the Account or command. Experiment by dragging a few of the icons around the screen, but take care not to drag icons over the Dustbin or Printer icons. Now choose "Clean up desktop" from the Options menu. This command neatly rearranges the icons. 4.22 Setting up your Printer. ----------------------------- Before you can experiment with the reporting options, you need to set up your printer. Choose Preferences from the Options menu. PAGE 66 Money Matters uses the printer preferences as you have set up in your Amiga System Preferences. "Spooler buffer size": This lets you set aside memory for background printing. By default, this is set to zero. If you have 1MB or more of RAM, set this to about 20 (Kb). Background printing, as the name suggests, lets you use Money Matters and print, simultaneously. "Page length": Set this to the number of lines per page for the paper you are using, 11" paper is 66 lines, 12" paper is 72 lines, A4 paper is 70 lines. "Top margin": Set this to the number of lines to feed at the top of each page before printing. "Bottom margin": Set this to the number of lines to skip over at the bottom of each page. "Page width": Set this to the width of your paper (characters), in 10 Pitch you would use 80, or 132 for a wide carriage printer. "Left margin": Set this to the number of characters space for the left margin. "Cut sheet": Pauses printing at the end of each page. "Print quality": Select required print quality (draft or NLQ). Click OK. PAGE 67 4.23 Reports ------------ STEP 1 ------ From the Reports menu choose Types. Whenever you choose a command from the Reports menu, you have the option to view the report on the screen, print it or save the report as a file on disk. You can also change the report layout by clicking the Formats button. With this tutorial, set the radio button to Screen or Printer. Click OK. STEP 2 ------ A list of the Types (for income and expenditure) you set up earlier will appear. Experiment with the Budget and "Regular transactions" reports. The only reports not selectable (they are ghosted) are Markers, "VAT codes", VAT. This is because you have not entered any information relating to these commands. STEP 3 ------ Choose "Account summary" from the Report menu. This reports lists the Accounts and provides two balances: "Reconciled balance": The current balance of the Account. "Unreconciled balance": The Account balance with all transactions reconciled. STEP 4 ------ Choose "Account statement" from the Reports menu and click the graph style you want (list, line graph, or scatter graph). PAGE 68 The two boxes "Start date" and "End date" let you set a date range to search within. STEP 5 ------ Click the Options button. You can define more criteria for your report. To: Screen, Printer or File, Include: Reconciled and Unrecociled transactions, Show Credits or Debits. You can also define specific Accounts, Types and Markers clicking the appropriate buttons. The Reference box lets you search for all or part of a reference. STEP 6 ------ Click the Types button. You can use this list box to select the Type on which you wish to search. Click on individual Types to highlight them or click "Select all". "Reset all" will deselect all Types. If the "All types" check box is selected, then all Types will be included in the search, regardless of the selection in the list box. The same selection principle applies to the Accounts and Markers (the Markers button should be ghosted since no Markers have been set up). Experiment with the various search options. STEP 7 ------ From the reports menu choose "Income and expenditure". PAGE 69 The requester is similar to the "Account statement". Experiment with the various options. You will find this particularly useful to calculate totals for income and expenditure. STEP 8 ------ From the Reports menu choose "Transactions list". This report lists all of the transactions that you have typed into Money Matters. It provides a computer audit trail. STEP 9 ------ From the Reports menu choose "Budget progress". With this report you can compare your budgeted and actual expenditure. At the end of each report, a forecast Account balance appears. STEP 10 ------- From the Reports menu choose Portfolio. This report gives a summary of all investments and their current value. STEP 11 ------- From the Reports menu choose "Net worth". Click the Assets button. You can enter up to 20 assets and their value. Add the following: Reference Amount ----------- ------- House 120000 Boat 10000 Click OK and then click Liabilities. Type: Reference Amount ----------- -------- Outstanding loan 75200 Car Loan 850 Click OK. This report provides a list of all assets (investments and positive Account balances), and all liabilities (loans and negative Account balances). Assets and Liabilities will be automatically saved with your file. 4.24 Set Preferences -------------------- The Settings Menu lets you personalise Money Matters. Create Icons?: Switch this command off if you do not want icons created when you save your file. Icons: To show or hide desktop icons and change their titles. Clean Up Desktop: Arranges icons into a neat order on the desktop. Arrange Windows: Organises, windows into a neat order. File: To set default drawer, default file, autosave, backup file and save projections. Printer: To set the page settings (you covered this earlier). Screen Mode: Choose screen mode (resolution and number of colours). Colours: To select your preferred cocktail colour palette. General: Dates, transaction options, and VAT. Goodies: Sound, clock, and screen saver. You can use the Load, Save and "Save as" commands to store and retrieve various preference settings. There are six demonstration files supplied on your program disk which will illustrate how Money Matters may be configured. They include: DEMO.MM - The tutorial file you have just run through. SINGLE.MM - Single person, living with family at home. MARRIED.MM - Married couple, with own home. BUSINESS.MM - Self employed, small business person. STUDENT.MM - Student living in rented accommodation. TEENAGER.MM - Teenager, living with parents. PAGE 71 Chapter 5 Looking After Your Finances This chapter provides basic guidelines for good financial housekeeping, handling debt and ideas on how to set up and use Money Matters. * The secret to good housekeeping. * Getting credit. * Credit guide. * Tips for better borrowing. * Cancelling a loan. * General tips. * Debt - a survival guide. * Using Money Matters. PAGE 73 5.1 The secret to good housekeeping ----------------------------------- 5.1.1 Plan your Budget, Budget you Spending ------------------------------------------- The best way to ensure that you live within your means is to work out your personal budget. Use Money Matters to budget and monitor all your spending. The money coming in and a budget planner of all your expenditure. Money Matters will work out how much you have left over at the end of each month or week. Remember that you will probably want to spend some of the money 'left over' on other things. If you borrow or get a loan, you will have to pay for it from this available money. If you borrow money, the repayment may mean you cannot afford something else. Remember, if you get behind with repayments on a loan, you'll find it hard to borrow again. Not just to buy things, but for something as important as a mortgage. Most people get into debt because things change. Suddenly there's not as much money coming in and they can't repay their loans. For example, you may have to find extra cash if the interest rates go up. Study this simple checklist... PAGE 75 5.1.2 Budget Checklist ---------------------- Complete this form with your monthly figures. You can then calculate your monthly surplus income. YOUR INCOME AMOUNT ======================================================================== Wages - your pay Wages - overtime Wages - your partner's pay Social Security Benefits Maintenance Payment Retirement Pension Other Pension Any Other Income (for example, from a lodger) TOTAL NET MONTHLY INCOME (A) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- YOUR HOME ~~~~~~~~~ AMOUNT Mortgage/Rent Community Charge Water Rates Insurance SUB TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS (B) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ YOUR BILLS AMOUNT ~~~~~~~~~~ Gas/Oil Electricity Credit Card Telephone Rental Agreements (for example, TV, video) Other (for example, hire purchase) SUB TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS (C) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- PERSONAL EXPENSES AMOUNT ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Food and Clothing Travel/Holidays Savings TV Licence Car Tax/insurance/Maintenance Life Insurance Entertainment (for example, cinema, videos) Others (for example, cigarettes, pocket money) SUB TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS (D) ------------------------------------------------------------------------- (B+C+D) TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS (E) -------------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY AMOUNT NET MONTHLY INCOME (A) TOTAL MONTHLY OUTGOINGS (E) (A-E) SURPLUS MONTHLY INCOME =========================================================================== PAGE 76 5.2 Getting Credit ------------------ When you ask for credit, you will probably have to fill in a form about yourself, your income and your outgoings. Answer honestly. You are doing yourself no favours, and breaking the law, if you make out that you're better off than you really are. You'll be the loser if you take on more credit than you can manage. If you are on a tight budget, make sure your loan is a fixed interest loan, so that you will know exactly how much you will have to repay each month. Shop around for credit terms, like you shop around for the goods. Check there isn't a catch. You may be able to buy more cheaply elsewhere. And take your time - you can't back out of an agreement signed in a shop. Look out for the APR. As a general guide, the lower the APR, the less the deal will cost you. If someone is offering interest free credit, the repayments must not add up to more than the cash. Use Money Matters to add up all your regular outgoings. Allow for extras like presents, holidays and emergencies, such as a car or washing machine repairs. If you act as a guarantor for somebody else's loan, you will have to pay all they owe if they stop paying. Don't be a guarantor unless you can afford the risk. If you agree to be one make sure that you see all the papers. PAGE 77 5.3 Credit Guide ---------------- HP -- You pay a deposit and monthly or weekly payments. The goods belong to you when you make the last payment. Credit Sale ----------- Like HP but you own the goods at once. Credit deals are tricky. Don't just accept what the sales staff say. Ask for a written quotation (you must be given one if you ask). Then read it at home. It will tell you all you need to know and make it easier to compare deals. Credit Cards ------------ The credit card company sends a monthly account for what you've bought. You can pay it off or make a minimum repayment and pay interest. It can be an expensive way of borrowing. Company credit cards: Beware, you may be liable for the debt if the company is unable to pay the bill. Charge Cards ------------ You use it like a credit card but you must pay the bill in full each month. Store Cards ----------- Like credit cards, but for use in a particular store or group of stores. It can be an expensive form of credit. Bank Loans ---------- If you have a bank account, an overdraft can be a quick, easy, but not necessarily a cheap loan. You have to pay bank charges and there may be other costs. Beware of hidden charges, such as arrangement fees. Banks can also offer personal and other loans. The costs of borrowing will vary from bank to bank, so shop around. Building Society Loans ---------------------- If you are buying your home, you might be able to raise cash by increasing your mortgage. If you're not happy with the interest charges, see if it's worth switching your mortgage somewhere else. This can be expensive though. Some societies offer unsecured loans. PAGE 78 Finance Company Loans --------------------- Shops, car dealer and gas and electricity boards may offer to arrange a finance company loan if you're buying a big item. Shop around first to see if you can get a better deal. Mail Order Catalogues --------------------- Saves time and travelling. You usually get at least 20 weeks interest free credit. You may have to pay interest if you want to pay over a longer period for more costly items. Pawnbroking ----------- You leave an article such as a piece of jewellery in return for a loan. You get the item back when you've repaid the loan plus interest over an agreed period. If you don't repay the money, the article will be sold. It can be an expensive way to borrow. Small Moneylenders ------------------ Can be expensive way to borrow because of the cost of collecting the repayments from your home each week. However, it should be cheaper if you pay at the lender's office. Credit Unions ------------- Money co-ops run by people in the same church, club, street or with something else in common. Members save regularly and can get cheap loans. PAGE 79 5.4 Tips for better borrowing. ------------------------------ DON'T ! ^^^^^^ Over-commit your budget before you take out a loan, work out a monthly budget to be sure you are not over- stretching your income. Anticipate a future increase in income. Be pressured to take finance by a salesman. Offer security without knowing what happens if you cannot repay. Take credit on impulse. DON'T SIGN ANYTHING UNLESS YOU KNOW: ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ What the repayments are and how many you must make. The total amount you must repay, including fees. What may happen if you cannot afford the repayments. DO ! ^^^^ Budget your spending: Know how much you need to spend each month and work out how much you will have left. Remember that if interest rates go up, your repayments may increase. Shop around for the best deal. Make sure the lending institution is reliable and has a good reputation. Consider taking out finance insurance. Read the fine-print if you don't understand it, say so. Keep all documentation relating to your borrowing, you may need it. Check your statements to monitor your spending. Tell your finance company if your circumstances change. Find out whether the agreement can be cancelled. ASK YOURSELF - CAN YOU AFFORD IT? PAGE 80 5.5 Cancelling a Loan --------------------- You can cancel some agreements and not others. It is vital to check the credit form. If you can cancel there should be a box titled "Your Right To Cancel" which tells you what to do. You can't cancel if you signed in the trader's shop, office or other business premises such as an exhibition stand. You can cancel if you met the trader to discuss the deal and you signed at home. REMEMBER ^^^^^^^^ * Unless you can see the cancellation box on the agreement, don't believe anyone who says you've got time to think the deal over. * Beware of phone calls. You can't cancel a deal arranged on the phone, even if you signed at home. * If you cancel a loan tying you to buy, for example, double glazing, you don't have to have the double glazing. * You can still cancel after the goods have arrived. * If you've paid a deposit, you'll get it back. Hire purchase: You cannot end an HP agreement unless you're up to date with your payments. You will have to pay at least half of the total amount that you owe. You cannot sell HP goods until the agreement has been paid off. Credit cards: If you use a British credit card to purchase something over £100, you have extra rights if something goes wrong. If you lose your card, tell the card company at once by phone and then in writing. This will limit your liability to £50 if someone else is using your card. Settling a loan Facility ------------------------ If you want to settle early, ask the loan company how much it will cost. This will depend on what you owe, the interest rate and how long the agreement is meant to last. You'll probably have to pay some of the interest you would have paid if the agreement ran its full length. PAGE 81 5.6 GENERAL TIPS ---------------- 5.6.1 Load Insurance -------------------- This offers protection to cover your monthly repayment in the event of illness, accident, involuntary unemployment or even death. If you want this kind of insurance, you might get it cheaper elsewhere. Some policies don't cover self-employed, part-time workers or certain age groups (for example, pensioner). 5.6.2 Annual Percentage Rate ---------------------------- APR stands for Annual Percentage Rate of charge. All lenders must work it out in the same way so you can make a fair comparison. APR doesn't just cover the interest rate, but also all the charges associated with the loan. 5.6.3 What to do if you are Turned Down for Credit -------------------------------------------------- Traders don't have to give you credit or tell you why. They may have checked your details with a Credit Reference Agency. These firms collect financial information about people and businesses. Agencies don't say whether you should have credit, or not. That decision is taken by the trader. Ask the trader in writing which agency was consulted, but act quickly. Ask the agency for a copy of the information they have about you. If there are any mistakes, you can have them put right. Many traders have a credit scoring system. They give you points depending on the answers you give to their questions. You'll get credit if you score enough points. You may pass with one firm but not another. PAGE 82 5.7 Debt - A Survival Guide --------------------------- Don't stop paying. Even if you have a major complaint about the goods, don't stop your payments. See the trader at once. 5.7.1 If you get into too much Debt ----------------------------------- Contact your creditors. Don't ignore their letters or demands. Provided you tell them what's happening, you should find them quite reasonable. Consider their point-of-view. If they hear nothing, you become a statistic, a bad debt. Their legal department takes over. However, if you keep them informed and illustrate that you recognise that there is a problem and that you are trying to sort it out, you should find them accommodating. You should be treated like a person, not a legal statistic. By co- operating with your creditors, you may be able to even pause or re-schedule your repayments 5.7.2 Six step Emergency Plan ----------------------------- * Work out your income. This is how much money you have coming in each month. Include your take-home pay, any social security payments and money from other sources. * Work out your outgoings. Calculate the cost of your essentials each month. Include your rent or mortgage, gas, electricity, food and so on. Don't forget occasional payments like shoe repairs or haircuts. List luxury items like video rentals or cigarettes. Also note your present instalment payments on any hire purchase or credit arrangements. * Compare your income total with the money you have left over to offer creditors. PAGE 83 * Still more going out that coming in ???? * If you spend more than your income, try to cut down. You'll have to make sacrifices. * Is there anything you can sell to pay your debts (do not sell anything on which you still owe money). You could contact a creditor with a view to returning any items being bought on hire-purchase. * Can you increase your income ???? * Are you receiving all the income you are entitled to ?? Are you paying too much tax? Can you claim Social Security benefits ?? Can you get an extra part-time job for a while ??? * Find out how much you owe. List all arrears payments, loans and credit commitments. Some debts can cause more trouble than others. Deal with them first. The priorities are: 1. Rent/Mortgage arrears. 2. Community Charge. 3. Fuel Debts (IE - Gas, Electricity) 4. Hire Purchase. * Talk with your creditors. Send them your budget checklist showing them your income and outgoings. Explain what offer you can make to pay off the debt, but don't make an offer you cant afford. A small but regular payment is better than no payment at all, or one that you cannot keep up. If the first person in a company you speak to is unhelpful, be persistent and go higher up. Don't give up. 5.7.3 Borrowing Again to get out of Debt ---------------------------------------- You may be tempted by newspaper advertisements offering loans to payoff existing debts. Rates of interest for this type of borrowing can be high. Don't do this unless you are sure that you can keep up the repayments. In most cases you have to offer your house as security. If you fail to pay you could lose the roof over your head!!! PAGE 84 5.7.4 Coping with Debt ---------------------- * Never ignore demands for payment. It only means worse trouble. * Tell the lender as soon as you know you are in difficulties and try to work something out. * If you're in serious debt now, consult your consumer adviser. 5.7.5 Loan Sharks ----------------- * Beware of loan sharks. The cost will be sky-high and if you can't repay they'll turn nasty. * Some will use 'press gangs' to threaten you and your family. * Some will try to take your benefit book. This is illegal. * Some will force you to have a second loan to repay the first. Your money problem will become a nightmare. PAGE 85 5.8 USING MONEY MATTERS This section is designed to guide you through setting up your own file and to give some pointers as to how Money Matters can help with specific areas of maintaining your finances. Creating a New File ------------------- Before setting up your file you will need the following information: * A list of headings for your income and expenditure (Types). For example, salary, food, car expenses. * Details of your standing orders and direct debits ("Regular transactions"). * Details of all the accounts you want to monitor (Accounts). For example, bank accounts, credit cards, savings. * Details of any investments, such as unit trusts or shares. Once you have assembled this information you are ready to set up your file. ************************************************************************ Important: Whenever you load Money Matters, be sure to set the current date correctly. ************************************************************************ Before using Money Matters, you will need to have prepared a blank formatted disk. Give the file a meaningful name, and try to include the year in the filename so it can be easily located in the future. For example, Myfile93. IF YOU ARE USING MONEY MATTERS FOR BUSINESS READ THIS If you are tax (VAT) registered, use the Preferences command (Option menu), and from "General Preferences" select the "VAT registered" check box. Then set up code and rates for tax (VAT). PAGE 86 SETTING UP MONEY MATTERS STEP 1 ------ Once you have created your file, set up the following: * Income and Expenditure Types. ("Transaction types" command, "Set up" menu ) * Accounts. ("Add account" command, "Set up" menu.) * "Regular transactions". ("Regular transactions" command, "Set up" menu.) Now set up your budget. STEP 2 ------ Make a list of the headings on which you regularly spend money (for example, motoring expenses, clothing, holidays). Remember to include any "Regular transactions" (for example, mortgage, loan repayments); Then make a sensible estimate of the monthly expenditure of each heading. Now enter this information into Money Matters using the Budget command ("Set up" menu). Before going any further, save your file using the Save command (Project menu). STEP 3 ------ Before entering any transactions, go through the Settings menu and customise them for your needs. STEP 4 ------ Now open each Account window (by double-clicking the Account icon) and configure the window headers for each Account. ("Window headers" command, "Set up" menu.) STEP 5 ------ Set up the transaction defaults to the most suitable for your requirements. For example, if you are entering transactions on a daily basis, set the Date to "System date". ("Set defaults" command, Trans menu.) PAGE 87 General Guidelines ------------------ * Produce reports, such as the Statement and "Budget progress" regularly, so any financial problems are illustrated early. * Use the "Interest calculator" to estimate the interest due on credit card bills, loans and so on. This will help you plan your finances. * During the financial year you may wish to adjust your budget. Use the "Budget progress report" as a guide - it illustrates the difference between your original budget and your actual expenditure to date. * Experiment with what-if calculations on your budget figures. For example, if you are considering a hire purchase, BEFORE you sign the agreement, enter the figures into your budget and see how do the repayments will effect your monthly disposable income. * When you receive a statement for an account (for example, a current account bank statement), use one of the methods provided with Money Matters to reconcile the transactions and check that the statement is correct (banks can make mistakes!) It's also a good idea to produce a statement of "Unreconciled transactions" to make sure that a transaction is not taking an unreasonable time to clear (and to remind yourself of any payments you have made, but which have yet to clear). If your statement includes a charge or interest payment, you will need to account for this by entering the amount as a separate "Manual transaction". * Always monitor the "Account summary" and "Budget progress" reports - these provide actual and predicted balances. It should provide a timely warning if you are getting into too much debt. * Use the "Income and expenditure" report regularly - this will illustrate the total you are spending and receiving by Type. It provides a quick method of seeing if, for example, you are paying to high bank charges. * If you are tax (VAT) registered, produce a VAT report at the end of each VAT period - this should provide the totals to complete your VAT Return. PAGE 88 What to do at the end of the year --------------------------------- Month by month, Money Matters will accumulate every transaction to add. This means, after about one year, the data file will be quite large, At this time, it is a good idea to create a new data file, A NEW FINANCIAL YEAR. When you wish to start entering transactions for a new financial year, create a new file for the year using a new blank formatted disk. (New command, Project menu.) You will be asked if you wish to load an existing configuration from another file. Click Yes and select the previous year's file from the requester. When the new file has been created, it will include all the previous year's information, except "Manual transactions". You will need to reconcile the remaining transactions in the old file as your Account statements arrive. Adjust the opening balance of the Accounts in the new year accordingly. It is a good idea to keep a copy of the old file so that you can use Money Matters year-to-year comparative facility ("Open comparatives", Project menu). PAGE 89 Chapter 6 General ----------------- This chapter gives a detailed explanation of the on-screen items. * The desktop and menus. * The requesters. * Editing windows. * The Notepad. * The file selector. PAGE 93 6.1 The Desktop --------------- See Figure 6-1 The desktop (with Right Mouse key depressed) 6.1.1 The Menu Bar ------------------ The Menu Bar is shown at the top of the screen when the Right Mouse key is depressed. To choose a menu, move the arrow pointer over the appropriate menu (Project menu, for example). The full menu list will pop down. See Figure 6-2 Choosing commands, pop-down menus PAGE 95 With the full menu list displayed, move the pointer downwards over the command required. Each command will be highlighted as the pointer moves down the list. Release the Right Mouse key to choose the required command. 6.1.2 Icons ----------- When you create a new file with Money Matters, these icons appear on the desktop. ICON PERFORMS ------------- ------------------------------------- Printer Print command Help Help command Calculator Calculator command Types "Transaction types" command Regular "Regular transactions" command Budget Budget command Dustbin Delete command See Figure 6-3 Default icons These icons provide an alternative way to choose the menu commands. As you create your own Accounts, for items like your bank Account, for example, these icons will appear (the Tax icon appears if you set your preferences to tax registered): PAGE 96 Tax Tax, or VAT command Cheque Cheque Account Savings Savings Account Credit Card Credit card Account Cash Cash Account Markers Transaction marker command Investment investment command See Figure 6-4 Additional icons An icon will appear for each Account you set up, the title of which you decide when you create the Account. You can arrange all of these icons to your preference. To do this, highlight each icon and then drag it. Alternatively, choose "Clean up desktop" (Options menu) and the icons will be arranged automatically. You can hide or rename the icons by choosing Icons-Preferences command from the Options menu. THE "CREATE ICONS" COMMAND (SETTINGS MENU) IS INDEPENDENT TO THE DESKTOP ICONS. PAGE 97 6.1.3 Dustbin ------------- The Dustbin icon appears at the lower left of the screen and works in a similar way as the trashcan on the Workbench. You can set Money Matters Dustbin to remember its contents (General- Preference command, Options menu). Then, if you need to retrieve anything, you simply double- click the Dustbin and drag the item out of the Dustbin window (if the item is a transaction, it will be replaced automatically into the Account from which it was originally removed). If the Dustbin contains information, it will look like this: See Figure 6-5 ~Full~ Dustbin icon The contents of the Dustbin will not be SAVED with your file and will be emptied if you choose the New command, or open another file. To empty the Dustbin, choose "Empty Dustbin" from the Edit menu. You can hide or rename the Dustbin icon by choosing Icons from the Settings menu. PAGE 98 6.2 THE REQUESTERS ------------------ To move a requester click the white bar at the top and drag the box to the new location. You normally move between items on a requester using the mouse. However, you can also use the keyboard shortcuts by holding down the Ctrl key and then pressing the letter which is underlined in the title of the item you require. 6.2.1 Text Entry Boxes ----------------------- These are boxes into which information can be typed. Delete and Backspace can be used as normal along with the left and right arrow keys. If the box is highlighted, whatever you enter will replace the contents. If you wish to edit the contents of a highlighted box, press F1 KEY DOES ---------------------- --------------------------------- Left Arrow Move cursor left Right Arrow "" "" right Up Arrow Move to Previous text box Down Arrow or Move to next text box Tab or the Return key Shift-Left Arrow Move to start of text box Shift-Right Arrow Move to end of text box Right Amiga-X Clear text box Right Amiga-Q Restore text box settings Control-Right Amiga-Q Restore box to contents before editing. Backspace Delete character to the left Delete Delete current character F1 Edit contents of text box F2 Toggle between insert and overtype Enter Move to next text box and can be used to select the default button to exit a requester 6.2.2 Radio Buttons ------------------- These are groups of buttons where only one may be selected. Selecting another radio button will deselect the previous one, similar to the buttons on some radios, hence their name. They are used for presenting a variety of options, only one of which may be selected. For example, the date format in the General command (Settings menu). When clicking radio buttons it is unnecessary to position the pointer precisely over the button. You will notice that clicking the title is just as effective. 6.2.3 Check Boxes ----------------- These are small, square boxes which can be turned on or off by clicking, their status being shown by a check (tick) mark within the box. For example, the VAT registered option in the General command (Settings menu). 6.2.4 Cycle Buttons ------------------- These are buttons which show their currently selected format and, when clicked, cycle through a sequence of format options. For example, the Header and Order boxes in the Sort requester (Sort command, Edit menu). 6.2.5 List Boxes ---------------- These are large boxes which present a list from which a selection is made by clicking on one item. If the list contains more items than can be shown, you can scroll through the list using the scroll bars and scroll arrows on the right of the list box. For example, the Help requester (System menu). In some list boxes, you can select an item and perform a command at the same time by double-clicking the item. For example, if you double-click a file from the list box in the "Open file" requester, Money Matters will open the file. Some list boxes, mostly those which appear in the report options, let you make several selections. For example, using the "Account Statement" command, you can configure the report to print from several Accounts by selecting each Account from the list box. See Figure 6-6 Help list box PAGE 100 Requesters may have other buttons which can be clicked to perform certain operations. One of these buttons will have a double border, which is the default. The default button can be selected either by clicking or pressing Enter. The Cancel button will always close the requester and will disregard any information entered. 6.2.6 Alert Boxes ----------------- Alert boxes appear to display warnings, errors or simple questions which require a simple response. For example, "Warning file already exists do you want to overwrite?" PAGE 101 6.3 Editing Windows ------------------- In many parts of Money Matters, a window appears which lists the current transactions or entries See Figure 6-7 An Account window These windows all operate in the same way. ACTION DOES ---------------------- ------------------------------------------ Single click Highlight Entry Double-click Edit Entry Shift-Double-click Add Entry Down Arrow Scroll Down Up Arrow Scroll Up Shift-Down Arrow Scroll Down a Page Shift-Up Arrow Scroll Up a Page Alt-single-click Toggles entry reconciled or unreconciled (Account windows only) To move a window, click the bar at the top and drag the window to the new location. When you close a window, Money Matters remembers the size and position. If you re-open the window, it appears the same size and in the same location as when you closed it. PAGE 102 6.4 The NotePad --------------- A Notepad facility is provided so that you can enter extra information. For example, you may wish to add a few notes about your bank Account (the manager's name, phone number and so on). Notepads are available by pressing F10, whenever you Add or Amend: Accounts "Transaction types", Markers, "Regular transactions", Budget, Investments, "VAT codes" The Notepad requester appears. See Figure 6-8 notepad requester Up to eight lines of information may be typed for each Notepad. One Notepad is provided per item. You can call up the Notepad by pressing F10. To print a Notepad, when printing a report, click the Format button and from the Body requester select "Show Notepad". PAGE 13 6.5 The File Selector --------------------- See Figure 6-9 ~Open file~ requester The large list box shows all files and drawers (subdirectories, labelled (Drawer)), in the currently selected drawer. Below are three boxes, Drawer and File. At the bottom are four buttons: OK, Volumes Cancel and Parent. To select a file click the filename in the listbox, this will update the File box. Clicking a Drawer in the list box will show the contents of that drawer and the Drawer text box will be updated to show the disk and drawer names separated by a colon (:). Further drawers may be accessed in the same way and will be separated by a slash (/) when added to the Drawer text box. To move back to the previous drawer level click the Parent button. Another way to select the drawer or filename is to type the drawer and filename directly into the appropriate boxes. In the File text box you type the name of the file you wish to open. However, you can insert a filename automatically by clicking the name you require in the list box. If you double-click a filename in the list box, Money Matters will automatically open the file. When you open a file, Money Matters will check if any "Regular transactions are due and process them if necessary. If, as a result, an Account exceeds the minimum or maximum balance warnings, you set, a warning will appear. PAGE 104 Chapter 7 Menu Commands ----------------------- This chapter gives a detailed explanation of each menu command , in logical order from left (Project-About) to right (System-Open a New Shell). * Project menu. * Edit menu. * "Set up" menu. * Trans menu. * Reports menu. * System menu. * Settings menu.