This manual is intended as a general user guide for LinuxLedgers' basic bookkeeping program, "The BasicBooks General Ledger". The BasicBooks General Ledger is a comprehensive general ledger accounting program. The BasicBooks General Ledger is not designed as a personal finance or home management program. It is intended for use by small to medium sized businesses who need an accurate set of financial records for management control and to meet legal reporting requirements (such as tax reporting). It is not necessary to possess extensive accounting knowledge to use The BasicBooks General Ledger. The BasicBooks General Ledger does the ``accounting'' for you. It is sufficient if you simply know the basics of how to keep records based on the checks you write and bank deposits you make. Yet, for the experienced bookkeeper or accountant all journals and ledgers are kept on a double entry basis and the methods used conform to Generally Accepted Accounting Principals, unlike many simplified bookkeeping programs.
To help you understand the difference between such things as assets, liabilities, capital, income, and expenses, brief explanations of these items are included in this manual. See the following sections for an explanation of the functions and procedures of The BasicBooks General Ledger. You should also refer to the Glossary of Bookkeeping Terms, at the end of this manual, whenever you need a term explained.
The BasicBooks General Ledger can accommodate as many companies as you desire. Each company will be assigned a ``Company Code'', a short name for accessing the company. New companies can be set up at any time and each will have a completely separate set of data from other companies. The Chart of Accounts for each company can be completely unique or you may set up a master Chart of Accounts which can be copied to each new company. The BasicBooks General Ledger can also accommodate bookkeeping on either the cash or accrual basis.
When requesting reports you will be given the choice to either store the report in the Company Report Directory or print a hard copy. Options are also provided to view many reports on the screen. The ``PaperSaver'' option allows you to compress report printing to get several report pages on one sheet of paper.
Help is available for most functions by clicking the HELP buttons on the window.