What's the big deal?

[jasonwood]

Integrating with Accounting software is such a pain...

why not just use a script in FileMaker to calculate the daily values that would need to be entered into one big general journal entry?

I'm talking like one big honkin' entry that would include total sales for the day, total cost of sales, shipping, taxes, cash payments, credit card payments, change in accounts receivable, etc.

I mean, if your FileMaker solution does all your day-to-day bookkeeping like accounts receivable and so forth, why duplicate all that effort by posting every single transaction separately into your accounting system?

I know of businesses that manually input every invoice into an accounting system, even though accounts receivable/payable is managed in FileMaker - it just seems like such a waste. Am I missing something?

[Reed]

Yeah I don't enter all of my transactions into our SQL server POS system at the end of the month. I do all my day-to-day transactions in filemaker and generate a report at the end of the month that allows me to just put in one transaction for each account at the end of the month. The only reason I'm putting in the information manually at all is that the department won't let me write any data to the SQL server box using anything except their POS program. (Note that POS could have multiple meanings here)

It really wouldn't take much to throw together a script with a couple of execute SQL steps in it to reduce the monthly billing to one click, but oh well.....

[jasonwood]

going from manually entering every transaction to doing a monthly journal entry manually is already a HUGE step forward! Imagine the hours saved every day in even a small business!

[transpower]

If you had FileBooksLink you could post from FileMaker to QuickBooks.

[jasonwood]

FileBooksLink doesn't work on the Mac, and many companies don't use QuickBooks

[Reed]

Compared to what we had when I started working here... paper forms and notebooks with handwritten timekeeping. It used to take a day and a half every month to get my billing together, until Filemaker saved the day.... now it takes me 20 minutes every month and I'm still entering in the data manually to the SQL system.

[LaRetta]

Well, I just had to jump in ...

Last two businesses I've designed for: 1) Huge non-profit using AccPac. I finally talked them in to using FM AR and accepting just the totals be posted back into AccPac (voted on by their BOD). Accountants are a bit anal, I'm afraid (I WAS one, so hear that however you wish). 2) Medium retail company using PeachTree. Would accept totals finally, but now realize there is no need at all because FM does AR and the rest is a simple addition.

And, sadly, many accounting/audit firms don't support QuickBooks (Quicken) in any shape/form. It interfaces nicely with FM. But, in truth, if you have everything in FM, particularly AR, you don't need QuickBooks either, as GL is just a small additional step at that point. AP is easier yet again.

Yes, it is a shame. But with substantial proof of a solid solution, with appropriate audit log, not allowing deletions and a few other tricks, most will agree to totals only; and some (wise ones) won't even waste their time requiring that (after a 3-month double-check period).

LaRetta

[James Medema]

For me, the big deal is NOT trying to keep up with changes in accounting! IMHO, duplicating the functionality of an accounting package can be like duplicating a database managing taxes - it changes often enough that you would be tethered, tied and chained to yearly updates.

Yes, there is the promise of work in the future, but wouldn't we all rather be tackling new challenges?!

I recently finished a massive 65-file (FM v6) solution for sales, purchasing, crm, communications, et al and have integrated it via Applescript with MYOB's Account Edge. My client does one daily data transfer (virtually down to a button click) and let's the scripting fly! The data is transfered from FM to MYOB first and then updates from MYOB to FM last.

The accounting program gets to do all the things it does so well and get updated as often as it wants. We, however, only need to manage the format of the data that we send to MYOB and the parsing of the data it spits out - BOTH of which we have complete control in FM.

Customer's extremely pleased to be able to maintain control of the process regardless of what the accounting package does in it's updates.

[James Medema]

For me, the big deal is NOT trying to keep up with changes in accounting! IMHO, duplicating the functionality of an accounting package can be like duplicating a database managing taxes - it changes often enough that you would be tethered, tied and chained to yearly updates.

Yes, there is the promise of work in the future, but wouldn't we all rather be tackling new challenges?!

I recently finished a massive 65-file (FM v6) solution for sales, purchasing, crm, communications, et al and have integrated it via Applescript with MYOB's Account Edge. My client does one daily data transfer (virtually down to a button click) and let's the scripting fly! The data is transfered from FM to MYOB first and then updates from MYOB to FM last.

The accounting program gets to do all the things it does so well and get updated as often as it wants. We, however, only need to manage the format of the data that we send to MYOB and the parsing of the data it spits out - BOTH of which we have complete control in FM.

Customer's extremely pleased to be able to maintain control of the process regardless of what the accounting package does in it's updates.

[James Medema]

For me, the big deal is NOT trying to keep up with changes in accounting! IMHO, duplicating the functionality of an accounting package can be like duplicating a database managing taxes - it changes often enough that you would be tethered, tied and chained to yearly updates.

Yes, there is the promise of work in the future, but wouldn't we all rather be tackling new challenges?!

I recently finished a massive 65-file (FM v6) solution for sales, purchasing, crm, communications, et al and have integrated it via Applescript with MYOB's Account Edge. My client does one daily data transfer (virtually down to a button click) and let's the scripting fly! The data is transfered from FM to MYOB first and then updates from MYOB to FM last.

The accounting program gets to do all the things it does so well and get updated as often as it wants. We, however, only need to manage the format of the data that we send to MYOB and the parsing of the data it spits out - BOTH of which we have complete control in FM.

Customer's extremely pleased to be able to maintain control of the process regardless of what the accounting package does in it's updates.