[moneytalks] Re: An edit combo for items

Suzanne, I agree with you. I fill out the place to which I wrote a check or 
made a check card purchase in the payee/payer field (walmart, belllsouth, 
etc.) and then put notations such as the check number or deposit or check 
card in the item field. Your logic makes perfect sense. It is the same sort 
of logic I use. I like to know where my money goes.
Synthia M. Greenwell
Program Coordinator
20/200 Fellowship, Inc.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <TheBlindAvenger@xxxxxxx>
To: <moneytalks@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tuesday, December 14, 2004 7:06 PM
Subject: [moneytalks] Re: An edit combo for items



In a message dated 12/14/2004 3:16:14 P.M. Central Standard Time,
rmeredith@xxxxxxx writes:
Suzanne:

The problem is that you are describing pay names, not  items. I think items 
=
are generally numbers. Why do you wish to move pay  name data to the item =
field?

Rob Meredith


Hi Rob,

I suppose the answer to your question is I want to know from where my  money
came and to whom it went. Then, I want to know how it arrived or left. 
Check
Card Purchase, ACH Deposit, etc. fulfill the second portion of this
requirement, while 7 Eleven, Buy For Less, Wal Mart, Sears  Roebuck, 
Oklahoma Natural
Gas, US Cellular, and the like fulfill the first.  This is why I edit the
transactions. Granted, part of my problem may be that I  have never used any 
money
management software and thus have a distorted,  preconceived notion of how
things are supposed to be. This notion is based on  my pre-marriage,
pre-technology, braille Check register and my own sense of  organization.

Here are some examples of why I like my sense of organization, and why  I
will probably keep doing things my way no matter how the software  behaves.

1. I am a private contractor who does both Braille Translation and
technology Consulting work. This year, my income came from 21 sources. I 
would  rather
see the sources of my income in the Payer/Payee field instead of  the word
Deposit. Then I could use the restricted view and quickly learn how  much I 
made
from whom. Currently, this is done in an Excel spreadsheet, but I  am 
falling
in love with this program and would rather do it here. Admittedly,  most of
these transactions will be made manually in the future, because they  are 
not
recurring or consistent.
2. Having Farmers Insurance in the payer/Payee field rather than ACH 
Deposit
for my husband's payroll deposit allows me to identify his income  without
going to the memo field. Besides, I delete the memo field for these 
Entries,
because they splash his Social Security number out there for all the  world 
to
see.
3. If the names Geoffrey or Stephen Tritten are placed in the  Payer/Payee
field rather than Deposit to acknowledge that my sons have made  their car
insurance payment installments, I can highlight either name,  restrict the 
view,
and quickly prove to myself, or one of them if  necessary, whether they are 
on
track or behind in their  payments.
4. Along the same lines, if I place 7 Eleven, Shell Oil, and Texaco in  the
Payer field instead of Check Card Purchase, I can learn how much we spend 
on
Auto Fuel. Then, I could learn just how much of that money was spent at any 
of
the three above-mentioned companies.

By now, even if you see my point, I have left an opening for another
question. Why put anything in the Item field, if it isn't a check number?

The answer to that question is: The terms Check Card Purchase, ACH  Deposit,
etc. let me know just how the money entered or left my accounts.  Maybe I 
like
this extra proof, since I have to fill out self-employment tax  forms. I 
keep
receipts and bank statements, but I cannot see them. Therefore,  the 
notation
in the account grid is my proof.

Suzanne


>>> TheBlindAvenger@xxxxxxx 12/14/04 02:48PM  >>>





=20
Here is a list of the items that appear in the Payer/Payee  field of my =20
imported .qif files. The most common are: ACH Deposit, ACH  W/D, 
Withdrawal,=
=20
Deposit, ATM W/D, Check Card Purchase,  And  Check. I have also seen: Check 
=
Card=20
Refund, Monthly Account Fee,  and Loan Payment.=20
=20
Of course Check appears in the Payer/Payee  field, when a check number =20
appears in the Item  field.=20
=20
These are the things I move to the Item field, when I edit  transactions. I 
=
=20
also use several of these entries in the Item  field, when I manually =
create =20
transactions, and it would be a time  saver if I did not have to enter each 
=
one =20
letter for  letter.
=20
Suzanne
=20
In a message dated 12/14/2004 10:39:16  A.M. Central Standard Time, =20
rmeredith@xxxxxxx  writes:
Suzanne:

We are still trying to find the formal deffinition  of  what an item should 
=
=3D
be. It appears that in most cases,  banks only export  item information =
when =3D
it is a check, and  of course, this is the check  number. Since this is the 
=
=3D
case,  the item field is not useful as it might  be, especially for  =3D
non-check users.

I would be interested to know  what others  are finding in the item field =
=3D
when importing.

Rob   Meredith

>>> TheBlindAvenger@xxxxxxx 12/14/04 10:47AM   >>>
=3D20
In a message dated 12/10/2004 11:15:31 A.M.  Central  Standard Time, =3D20
TheBlindAvenger@xxxxxxx  writes:
Hi.

Since the  item field in the New Transaction dialog  could  contain =
anything  =3D
=3D20
from a check number to  ATM w/d or ACH deposit or  electronic  check, would 
=
=3D
it=3D20
be =3D20
possible to make this field an  edit   combo like so many of the other =3D
fields=3D20
in  =3D20
this  dialog?

The  reason I ask, is that I do most  of my banking  electronically. If I =
=3D
did  =3D20
not  have children who needed money  for band trips, wrestling tournament  =
=3D
=3D20
fees, =3D20
and other  school-related expenses, I  would probably write only  25 checks 
=
=3D
a   =3D20
year.







The reason I asked this  question  last week is this. Each month I may have 
=
=3D
=3D20
about fifty entries in my  bank statement. Six or  seven of these entries =
=3D
will be =3D20
checks. the   remaining forty plus entries will be check card purchases,  =
=3D
check  =3D20
card bill pays, automatic deposits, atm  withdrawals, etc. I would like  to 
=
=3D
be =3D20
able to press  a few letters followed by down arrow to place  the right =
item  =3D
in=3D20
the field rather than enter each transaction's  item  manually. Is =
this=3D20
possible?  Or, since the program is   remembering check numbers, is my =3D
desire out of=3D20
the    question?
=3D20
Suzanne

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