Welcome to Big Red Book User Guide Version 4

Transcription

1 Welcome to Big Red Book Version 4 Updated: September 2009

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3 Quick Start i Quick Start: Installation and Guide to Demonstration Companies Installation Full details on installing and setting up the Big Red Book are given later on in the Introduction. 1. If you have not already done so, switch the computer on and wait until you get to the Windows Desktop, i.e. the first screen containing the programme icons. 2. Place the Big Red Book CD, printed side up, into the CD drive. (With diskettes use the A drive). 3. Wait for the options screen to appear. 4. Click on the relevant option. Install Big Red Book Accounts will install the full programme. 5. In the box entitled Welcome!, you are invited to install the programme. Press Enter or point-and-click at OK. 6. In the box entitled Select Destination Directory you are offered C:\BRBWin. Unless you have good reason to direct the programme to an alternative directory or disk drive, press Enter or point-and-click at OK. 7. At the prompt Make Backups? press Enter or point-and-click at Yes. (If/when you are re-installing the programme for whatever reason, this action preserves the data which you have already entered). 8. At the prompt Install Icons? press Enter or point-and-click at Yes. 9. When offered the Group Name the Big Red Book in the box entitled Select Program Manager Group, press Enter or point-and-click at Yes. 10. If the small window with the two new icons in it is still displayed on the screen, point-and-click at the X in its top right-hand corner. The Big Red Book icon will be displayed on your Windows Desktop and can be double-clicked whenever you wish to open the programme.

4 Quick Start ii Big Red Book Demonstration Mode The unregistered programme is a working version of The Big Red Book but operates with the following restrictions (among others): 1. All reports can be displayed on the screen looking just as they would do on paper, but they cannot be printed. 2. A maximum of 1,000 records can be entered to each of the 3 featured companies. Along with names & addresses etc., this will provide for several hundred transactions. Demonstration data for 2 fictitious companies (ABC Cooling Systems and XYZ Retailer or, in the UK version, ILLUSTRATION COMPANY and ABC-UK-JUN/MAY) have been included with the programme. The third company is blank and can be used to experiment on how you might set-up and operate your own business. Are you new to Computers or still terrified of them? There is no need to be, because getting around The Big Red Book is really quite easy. You can either use the mouse to get around or, if you prefer, you can use the keyboard or even a combination of the two. So, before we begin a conducted exercise, make sure you can find the following keys on the keyboard: Arrow keys on the bottom, towards the right-hand side Escape key Esc at the top left Enter key there is also one at the bottom right Page Down key PgDn above the arrow keys Page Up key PgUp above the Page Down key Starting off Having installed The Big Red Book the first screen you will see is called Company Selection. The blue highlight bar will be displayed across Company ABC COOLING SYSTEMS (for UK users: ILLUSTRATION COMPANY). You should now either point-and-click at the top button marked Open or press Alt + the key for the letter O Things to look out for in The Big Red Book Irish users: The traditional columnar layout Point-and-click at the picture of the Cheques Journal, near the top-left between Cash Book and Purchases Book. What you are now looking at is a list of cheques already entered for the month. Each cheque (or Direct Debit etc.) occupies one horizontal line and there are columns for Date, Ref, Supplier A/C Code, Name, Total etc. Use the right arrow to move across the page/screen to see the rest of the columns, the last one of which is headed SUNDRY. Then use the left-hand arrow to move back again. (Using the mouse on the slide button at the foot of the page has the same effect).

5 Quick Start iii The ease of making entries First, select the month of December from the tabs near the top of the screen. Now, either point-and-click at the button marked Add (towards the bottom-left), or press the key for the letter A. A blank entry form appears on the screen and you should fill this in as if you were entering a cheque that you yourself had written to pay a Supplier. Proceed as follows: At Date Type and press Enter At Reference Press Enter (accept the Cheque Number offered) At A/C Code Type ARTI and press Enter At Payee Press Enter (ARTIC COMPONENTS LTD) At Detail Press Enter At Total Type 400 and press Enter At Discount Press Enter (no discount this time, unfortunately!) Now press Enter in order to Save the transaction in the Cheques Journal. (Pointing-and-clicking at Save has the same effect). Now press Esc to return to viewing all the cheques entered for the month. The last entry, the one now highlighted, is the one you have just made. The 400 has automatically been entered to the Ledger column because by entering an A/C Code (in this case ARTI) you told the programme that you keep an account for this Supplier (ARTIC COMPONENTS LTD) in the Creditors Ledger.

6 Quick Start iv How much do I owe ARTIC COMPONENTS LTD? Whilst the Cheques Journal for December is still open, proceed as follows: Point-and-click at Lookup (the picture of the magnifying glass) Point-and-click at the tab marked Suppliers ARTIC COMPONENTS LTD, being at the top of the list, is highlighted. Either point at the highlighted line and double-click, or simply press Enter A list of all Purchases from and all Payments to ARTIC COMPONENTS LTD appears on the screen in the form of a ledger card The last line, the one highlighted at the bottom, shows the 400 cheque entry you just made The balance still outstanding on the account is When you have finished marvelling at how easy it can be to keep track of what you owe your Suppliers, press Esc three times to get back to where you started from. How do I stand at the bank? Proceed as follows: Point-and-click at Lookup Point-and-click at the tab marked Bank Accounts Highlight AIB current Account (the default bank account) and press Enter once A list of all cheques and lodgements already entered appears on screen The bank account balance and the total amount still outstanding (not yet presented to your bank) appear at the bottom right-hand side Use PageUp (PgUp) and PageDown (PgDn) to look through the various pages of bank entries Find the 400 cheque you just wrote to ARTIC COMPONENTS LTD and, using the arrow keys, highlight it Point-and-click at the button marked View and you will see the details of your original entry When you have finished admiring what you have done, (you made one entry and it turned up in 3 places), press Esc three times to get back to where you started from. If at this point you wish to return to the Company Selection menu, point-and-click at Exit (the picture of the closed red book).

7 Quick Start v A crash course in setting up your own Company From the Company Selection menu, highlight Company Not In Use, then point-and-click at the button marked Open At Create new company? press Enter Accept or change any of the details shown, then point-and-click at OK. It is necessary to give your new company a Start Month, however When you get into the new company, point-and-click at Setup in the middle on the top line You can now fill in current VAT Rates, Analysis Categories, Suppliers and Customers names and addresses etc. by picking each section in turn. For guidance you would do well to first examine all the Setup details which are already in place in the 2 demonstration companies. Retail/Cash businesses should use the XYZ Retailer Company as a model; commercial businesses trading on credit should look at ABC Cooling. Use Help (on the top line) to see the text from the. Any Questions? We are only ever a phone call away at (01)

8 Quick Start vi UK users: The traditional columnar layout Point-and-click at the picture of the Cheques Journal, near the top-left between Cash Book and Purchases Book. What you are now looking at is a list of cheques already entered for the month. Each cheque (or Direct Debit etc.) occupies one horizontal line and there are columns for Date, Ref, Supplier A/C Code, Name, Total etc. Use the right arrow to move across the page/screen to see the rest of the columns, the last one of which is headed SUNDRY. Then use the left-hand arrow to move back again. (Using the mouse on the slide button at the foot of the page has the same effect). The ease of making entries First, select the month of June from the tabs near the top of the screen. Now, either point-and-click at the button marked Add (towards the bottom-left), or press the key for the letter A A blank entry form appears on the screen and you should fill this in as if you were entering a cheque that you yourself had written to pay a Supplier. Proceed as follows: At Date Type and press Enter At Reference Press Enter (accept the Cheque Number offered) At A/C Code Type META and press Enter At Payee Press Enter (METAL PARTS COMPANY) At Detail Press Enter At Total Type 400 and press Enter At Discount Press Enter (no discount this time, unfortunately!) Now press Enter in order to Save the transaction in the Cheques Journal. (Pointing-and-clicking at Save has the same effect). Now press Esc to return to viewing all the cheques entered for the month. The last entry, the one now highlighted, is the one you have just made. The 400 has automatically been entered to the Ledger column because by entering an A/C Code (in this case META) you told the programme that you keep an account for this Supplier (METAL PARTS COMPANY) in the Creditors Ledger.

9 Quick Start vii How much do I owe METAL PARTS COMPANY? Whilst the Cheques Journal for December is still open, proceed as follows: Point-and-click at Lookup (the picture of the magnifying glass) Point-and-click at the tab marked Suppliers Use the down arrow to highlight METAL PARTS COMPANY Either point at the highlighted line and double-click, or simply press Enter A list of all Purchases from and all Payments to METAL PARTS COMPANY appears on the screen in the form of a ledger card The last line, the one highlighted at the bottom, shows the 400 cheque entry you just made The balance still outstanding on the account is When you have finished marvelling at how easy it can be to keep track of what you owe your Suppliers, press Esc three times to get back to where you started from. How do I stand at the bank? Proceed as follows: Point-and-click at Lookup Point-and-click at the tab marked Bank Accounts Press Enter once (you are going to examine the Current A/C which is already highlighted) A list of all cheques and lodgements already entered appears on screen The bank account balance and the total amount still outstanding (not yet presented to your bank) appear at the bottom right-hand side Use PageUp (PgUp) and PageDown (PgDn) to look through the various pages of bank entries Find the 400 cheque you just wrote to METAL PARTS COMPANY and, using the arrow keys, highlight it Point-and-click at the button marked View and you will see the details of your original entry When you have finished admiring what you have done, (you made one entry and it turned up in 3 places), press Esc three times to get back to where you started from. If at this point you wish to return to the Company Selection menu, point-and-click at Exit (the picture of the closed red book).

10 Quick Start viii A crash course in setting up your own Company From the Company Selection menu, highlight Company Not In Use, then point-and-click at the button marked Open At Create new company? press Enter Accept or change any of the details shown, then point-and-click at OK. It is necessary to give your new company a Start Month, however When you get into the new company, point-and-click at Setup in the middle on the top line You can now fill in current VAT Rates, Analysis Categories, Suppliers and Customers names and addresses etc. by picking each section in turn. For guidance you would do well to first examine all the Setup details which are already in place in the 2 demonstration companies. Retail/Cash businesses should use the XYZ Company as a model; commercial businesses trading on credit should look at ABC Cooling. Use Help (on the top line) to see the text from the. Any Questions? We are only ever a phone call away, and we would love to help and advise (0161)

11 Welcome to The Big Red Book simply the easiest-to-use computerised bookkeeping package on the market This has been written in plain English. It is unusual in that all the instructions, notes and hints contained within it have been carefully phrased so as to be understood by anyone. Even those with no formal training in keeping accounts or handling computers can approach each page with confidence. Setting up the system is easy provided you have the alongside. It makes an ideal companion for those who choose to carry out the task alone and at their own pace. In day-to-day operation it should be regarded as an invaluable point of reference, helping ensure that you continue to make the best use of your investment. It has been published and distributed for the sole purpose of providing the users of the Big Red Book with the wherewithal to operate the system to its full potential. The rights to all or part of its text and illustrations remain the property of Big Red Book and may not be used or reproduced for professional or trade purposes without their permission. Third-party registration marks have been acknowledged, namely Microsoft and Windows. The is issued at no charge to each newly licensed user of the Big Red Book and is subject to revision or amendment provided the user is paid-up for the Software Support Service. Big Red Book Rathdown Hall, Upper Glenageary Road, Glenageary, Co. Dublin. Sensible people, who talk plain English Within Ireland - Tel: (01) Fax: (01) Within the UK - Tel: Fax: support@bigredbook.com

12 Introduction 1 Introduction: Installing Big Red Book In this introductory chapter we guide you step-by-step through to the point where you can begin setting-up your own Company. The topics covered are these: Checking the contents of your Installation Pack Preparing your computer to receive the Big Red Book Copying the Big Red Book programme onto your computer Notes on permanently transferring the programme to another computer List of Big Red Book products: Big Red Book Accounts With Creditors Ledger With Creditors and Debtors Ledgers With Creditors and Nominal Ledgers With Creditors, Debtors and Nominal Ledgers With Stock Module Multi-User version Software Support Training On-site In-house Additional Company Slots Additional User Licence Big Red Book Lite Big Red Book Payroll If you are interested in upgrading your Big red Book, please feel free to contact our Sales Team at

13 CD Big Red Book Introduction 2 The CD contains the Big Red Book programme and the data for two Demonstration Companies. Which version of the programme is on your CD depends on your circumstances: 1. Euro version suitable for the Republic of Ireland and other states within the Euro Zone. 2. UK Version If your computer does not have a functioning CD drive and you informed us of the fact when placing your order, a set of diskettes will have been supplied instead. Big Red Book Lite Big Red Book Lite is a special version of the Big Red Book catered for small businesses who would not be entering a particularly large amount of transactions each year. It is the same as the full version of the programme, with the following notable exceptions: 1. The number of transactions allowed in each company is limited to 1,000. A warning appears as the limit is approached. 2. Only one slot is available for company data. The two demonstration companies (ABC Cooling and XYZ Retailer) are present, but it is not possible to delete them or add to them. 3. There is no facility to run a Nominal ledger in the Irish version. 4. It is not possible to allocate particular payments to particular invoices. 5. Exporting reports to other programmes such as Microsoft Excel is not possible. It is possible to upgrade from Big Red Book Lite to the full version of the programme and continue entering data with the added functionality of the latter. However, because of the limitations above, and the changes in the structure of the data files that these differences involve, it is likely that some damage would occur to data which is brought back from the full version of the programme to Big Red Book Lite.

14 Introduction 3 Installing Big Red Book 1. If you have not already done so, switch the computer on and wait until you get to the Windows Desktop i.e. the first screen containing the programme icons. 2. Place the Big Red Book CD, printed side up, into the CD drive. 3. Wait for the options screen to appear. If the options screen does not appear, proceed to Step Click on the relevant option. Install Big Red Book Accounts will install the full programme. Proceed to Step If the options screen does not appear, point-and-click at the Start button in the bottom left-hand corner of the screen and select My Computer. 6. Double-click on your CD Drive to open 7. Click on Accounts.exe or Setup.exe to install the standard Big Red Book Accounts. Click on Lite to install the Lite version; If you do not find the required file please call Big Red Book Support 8. In the box entitled Welcome! you are invited to install the programme. Press Enter or point-and-click at OK. 9. In the box entitled Select Destination Directory you are offered C:\BRBWin. (If your hard disk drive is known by a different letter then it, rather than C, will be shown). Unless you have good reason to direct the programme to an alternative directory or disk drive, press Enter or point-and-click at OK. 10. To the prompt Make Backups? press Enter or point-and-click at Yes. (If/when you are re-installing the programme for whatever reason, this action preserves the data which you have already entered). 11. To the prompt Install Icons? press Enter or point-and-click at Yes. 12. When offered the Group Name the Big Red Book in the box entitled Select Program Manager Group, press Enter or point-and-click at Yes. 13. If the small window with the two new icons in it is still displayed on the screen, point-and-click at the X in its top right-hand corner. The Big Red Book icon will be displayed on your Windows Desktop and can be double-clicked whenever you wish to open the programme. 14. Remove the CD from the CD drive and store it in its case. You may use the CD to install the programme on as many computers as you wish, even on those which are owned and operated by business acquaintances who may wish to examine the demonstration data. Registering Big Red Book After installation, the programme must be registered before it is fully functional. You can register your Big Red Book by phoning You will need to be at your computer to complete the registration process; it takes approximately 5 minutes. If you have several licences to be registered at once, it may be more convenient to fax in a list of the Key ID numbers necessary for registration to us at , and we can return the registration numbers by fax. The Key ID number is a computer-specific figure which is required for the generation of a registration number, and can be found by opening a demonstration company, going to Registration in the File or Utilities menu. Please note that this number may be a minus figure.

15 Introduction 4 Transferring the Big Red Book to another Computer If the transfer of the Big Red Book from one computer to another is to be permanent, e.g. you have bought a new computer, you should proceed as follows: 1. Take adequate Backups of all your Company data. See Chapter 13 for detailed instructions on backing up. 2. Use the latest CD, or the original one and any subsequent update disks, to install the Big Red Book programme on your new computer. Follow the procedure described earlier. 3. Ring Big Red Book, on , to have the registration removed from the old computer and the new computer registered. To register you must have a licence and support contract in place.. 4. Using the Backup discs created in 1. above, Restore all your Company data. 5. In each restored Company, use Book Totals Summary to check that the transfer has been successful. It may be necessary to re-register the Big Red Book if it is moved to a different location on the same computer or network or if one of the hardware components is changed e.g. replacing the hard-drive.

16 Chapter 1: Setting up a New Company Chapter 1 5 When you open the Big Red Book the Company Selection menu is displayed on the screen. Initially three company slots are displayed. Each of the company slots is identified numerically from 001 onwards. The names of any companies that have already been set up, e.g. for demonstration purposes, will appear on the Company Selection menu. The words (Company Not In Use) appear on the menu for any companies that have not yet been setup. Figure 1-1 The Company Selection menu Important Notice The procedures for creating a new company differ according to whether or not your version of the Big Red Book contains the Nominal Ledger. If your version excludes the Nominal Ledger: Proceed immediately to the next page entitled Creating a New Company and follow the guideline notes and instructions until you have concluded Chapter 1. If your version includes the Nominal Ledger: You should first read the early part of Chapter 15: The Nominal Ledger. Only then should you return to Creating a New Company on the page following this one.

17 Chapter 1 6 Creating a New Company 1. Place the highlight bar over the company you wish to set up, then either press Enter or point-and-click at the Open button or press Alt + the letter O. 2. A message will appear on screen asking you to confirm that you wish to create a new company. If you do, either press Enter or point-and-click at Yes or press the key for the letter Y. After a few seconds you will be prompted to fill in basic details about the new company. The following is an example of the next screen you will see. Tips on what to enter are listed below. Figure 1-2 The New Company Setup screen Notes on entering basic Company information Section 1 Company Name, Address, Phone etc. Type in your own company name etc., i.e. the name of the company whose accounts will be maintained in this slot. If you will be using the Big Red Book to print invoices and statements to be sent to your Customers, then your Company s Name and Address as typed here can appear on them. Whilst typing, you can progress from line to line by either pressing Enter, pressing the tab key, or by pointing-and-clicking at each line/box. Section 2 Use Template Company? and Type of Company If you set up a lot of companies, the Big Red Book allows you to make use of the set-up of existing companies as templates. There are three template companies present with the programme. Section 3 Months and Year 1. The box entitled Start Month (Beginning of Financial Year) displays the current calendar month. If the month displayed is the first month of your accounting year, accept it and move on. If your accounting year began in any other month then point-and-click at the box and select whichever month is appropriate. (Highlighting the month and pressing Enter has the same effect). It is very important that this entry is made correctly. The month entered should be the beginning of your Financial Year regardless of when in the year you will be starting to enter data. If in doubt, consult your accountant. This can not be changed afterwards. 2. The box entitled Start Year (Relative to start month) displays the current calendar year. If necessary, change it to indicate the year in which the chosen Start Month falls. If your Financial Year spans two calendar years (e.g. July 2008 to June 2009) you would enter the first year (i.e. 2008).

18 Chapter The box entitled First Month (First month of transaction entry) also begins by displaying the current calendar month. If necessary, change it to indicate the first month for which this company (in the Big Red Book ) will receive entries. Therefore, if you start to use the system in the middle of your Financial Year but do not wish to enter transactions for all months since the beginning of that year, your First Month will be different from your Start Month. Section 4 Later on in the process of setting up a company you will be asked to enter Opening Balances for Bank Accounts, Suppliers, Customers etc. When entering these balances they should be those relating to the First Month of entry rather than to the Start Month of your Financial Year, if the two are different. Optional Items 1. Credit Note/Journal Ageing is only of relevance if you intend to answer No to Receipts/Payments Manual Allocation? described in 5. below. (If you intend to answer Yes to item 5. below then you can skip this item number 4.) Credit Note/Journal Ageing displays the words Treat as Invoices. Either accept this option or, if required, point-and-click at the box and highlight Treat as Payments. Your choice will determine which formula the programme is to use when handling Credit Notes and Journals (i.e. adjustments). All invoices received from Suppliers and those sent to Customers are automatically aged according to their transaction date. Therefore, whilst an invoice remains unpaid its age can be reported as either Current, 1 Month old, 2 Months old or 2 Months+ etc. However, payments made to Suppliers and received from Customers are not aged even though they carry a transaction date. Unless you intend to use the Allocation method (see 5. immediately below) all payments are applied so as to reduce the oldest balance on an account, i.e. they cancel out all or some of the oldest invoice/unpaid balance. Therefore, if you would prefer all your Credit Notes and Journal adjustments to be treated as Current Month transactions and age gradually, then choose Treat as Invoices. Alternatively, if you would prefer that Credit Notes and Journal adjustments contribute immediately to the reduction of the oldest month s balance, then choose Treat as Payments. The formula you choose will apply to all Supplier and Customer accounts. 2. Receipts/Payments Manual Allocation? displays the word No. This is the correct response if you intend that receipts from Customers and payments to Suppliers simply reduce the balance on their respective accounts. You may be familiar with the term Balance forward to describe this traditional method of keeping a ledger. Point-and-click at the box and change the answer to Yes only if you intend to allocate (i.e. match up to particular invoices) receipts from Customers and payments to Suppliers. You may be familiar with the term Open Item to describe this more detailed method of keeping a Sales Ledger and a Purchase Ledger. For further details on this subject see the chapter entitled Receipts and Payments Allocation. Users who are VAT registered in the UK and who intend operating the officially-approved Cash Accounting scheme must answer Yes to the above. Users who are VAT registered in Ireland may, if they wish to do so, choose Yes to the above. 3. VAT on Cash Receipts? On display is the word No. This is the correct response for all UK business and for those Irish businesses which calculate VAT on invoiced sales. No is also the correct response if you are using one of the Revenue-approved VAT schemes for Irish Retailers and Pharmacists. Point-and-click at the box and change the answer to Yes only if you calculate your VAT on the basis of receipts from Customers during a VAT period rather than on invoiced sales. A fuller description of this facility is contained in a later chapter. Switching between No and Yes whilst using the system will compromise the validity of your VAT statistics. If you are in doubt about your VAT status in respect of Cash Receipts then consult the Revenue Commissioners or your accountant before you begin. 4. Nominal Ledger? displays the word No. (a). If your version of the Big Red Book excludes the Nominal Ledger then this question is greyed out on the screen and answering it is irrelevant. At this point, if you are satisfied with what you have entered to all of the options on the screen, pointand-click at OK. You will then see the opening screen display of your newly created company. You can now move on to the next page entitled Entering Additional Setup Data for a new Company.

19 Chapter 1 8 (b). If your version of the Big Red Book includes the Nominal Ledger then, having read the beginnings of Chapter 15, proceed as follows: Either: Accept No, as displayed, and provided you are satisfied with what you have entered to all of the options on the screen, point-and-click at OK. You will then see the opening screen display of your newly created company. You can now move on to the next page entitled Entering Additional Setup Data for a new Company. Or: Change it to Yes and, provided you are satisfied with what you have entered to all of the options on the screen, point-and-click at OK. You will then see the opening screen display of your newly created company. You can now continue with the Setup procedures as described in Chapter 15.

20 Chapter 1 9 Entering Additional Setup Data for a New Company On display is the blank, opening screen of the newly created company. Notice that the title bar (normally blue) at the top displays the [Name of the Company (its number)] then the version number of your copy of the programme. But before you can enter details of Cheques, Invoices etc. a few more Setup steps are necessary. These include details of Bank Accounts, Analysis Categories (column headings) for each book, VAT Rates, Suppliers and Customers, Product Codes (if required) for Sales Invoices, Opening Balances for Bank Accounts / Cash / Petty Cash, Regular Payments and any Passwords you want to use. To continue with the setting up procedure for this company: 1. Point-and-click at the word Setup (near the top line) or press Alt + the letter S. Figure 1-3 The Setup Menu 2. The screen you should be looking at will be similar to that shown in Figure 1-3, above. To complete the process of setting up the company you should now select each of the items in turn and enter the necessary information. Either point-and-click, or press the key of the underlined letter, or (where available) press the function key, e.g. F2 for Bank Accounts. Guideline notes on what can or should be entered to each item are given below.

21 Chapter 1 10 Company Details General This information will already have been entered when the company was created. Changes can be made as required. Financial Year This information will already have been entered when the company was created. Changes to the financial year cannot not be made after transactions are entered. Electronic Funds Transfer This information is provided by your bank when you setup facilities for direct debit direct credit. and/or Bank Accounts Details on up to forty bank accounts can be maintained in the Big Red Book. You will need the information listed below for each account you wish to use. This list is followed by step-by-step instructions on how to enter this information. A/C Code You must assign a unique code to each Bank Account. Typical codes would be AIB (or AIB1 and AIB2 if you have two AIB accounts), BOI, BOS, NATW, TSB, ULS etc., or CURR (for Current) and DEP (for Deposit). Details e.g. AIB College Street or Savings Account etc. For reference purposes you may wish to include in here the A/C Code which you have just given to this account. Last Chq Enter the last six digits of the last cheque number written prior to starting to use the Big Red Book, e.g. if you are going to record transactions from May onwards enter the number of the last cheque written in April. When, later on, you start entering cheques details into the computer you will notice that it keeps track of the number of the cheque you last entered and guesses that the next cheque you enter will have the next number in sequence. Unless you break the sequence this will save you having to type in cheque numbers. O\Balance It is important to note that you should enter a reconciled (or true) bank balance rather than the balance from your bank statement. The difference lies in any cheques written or lodgements made before starting to use the system which have not yet appeared on a bank statement, i.e. outstanding items. Default Bank Account If you set-up more than one bank account, tick the one you use most frequently. EFT Default Account If you are using Electronic Funds Transfer tick the account used for those transactions. Account Name Bank Account name for EFT purposes. Sort Code Bank Sort Code, used in EFT transactions Account Number Bank Account Number for EFT transactions To enter Bank Account information: 1. Select Bank Accounts from the Setup menu or press F2.

22 Chapter On the screen entitled Setup - Bank Accounts, either point-and-click at Add or press Alt + the letter A. 3. Following the guidelines described above, fill in the form that appears on the screen. 4. Provided you are satisfied with the accuracy of the what you have entered you can now Save it. If you need to revisit one or more boxes you should point-and-click to wherever is appropriate. To erase the entries you have just started to make either use Cancel or press Esc. 5. Repeat steps 2. to 4. to enter details for each Bank Account you wish to set up. You will notice that each Bank Account you add is displayed as a new line under column headings for A/C Code, Description etc. This method of displaying information is common throughout the Big Red Book 6. When you have finished point-and-click at Close or press Alt + the letter E.

23 Analysis Categories Chapter 1 12 This option allows you to enter up to 14 analysis headings for the each of the books into which you will be entering transactions: Cash Receipts, Cash Payments, Sales, Purchases, Petty Cash and the Cheques Journal. In addition to the 14 analysis headings you can, if you wish, set up two User Defined Fields in each book to provide additional sub-analysis. User Defined Fields are explained later in this section. If you have come to the Big Red Book from a hand-written bookkeeping system you can probably retain most of the analysis (column) headings you are already using. Since some of the analysis information is of interest mainly to your accountant you may wish to consult her/him on the headings to use. If you intend to make VAT returns under any of the special Irish Retailer/Pharmacy schemes (outlined in later chapters), then it is important to use headings which will allow you to analyse sales and purchases into the necessary categories. Each book has built-in headings already set up. For instance, the Cheques Journal already has built-in headings for Date, Ref. (e.g. cheque number), Details (of payee) etc.. This means that you do not have to enter these headings as part of the 14 you set up. The built-in headings for each book are described below. Notes and instructions for setting up your Analysis Categories and User Defined Fields are on the pages which follow. Built-in headings in the Cash Receipts Book: Date - shared with the Cash Payments Book Details - e.g. name of Customer from whom payment has been received Receipt Amount - total amount received Discount - i.e. given, if any Ledger - amount posted to Customer s A/C, if relevant A/C Code - of Customer Built-in headings in the Cash Payments Book: Date - shared with the Cash Receipts Book Payment Amount - total amount paid out Details - e.g. Lodgement N o 43, or name of Supplier, if relevant Ledger - amount posted to Supplier s A/C, if relevant Lodgement - amount lodged Discount - i.e. received, if any Bank A/C - code of bank where lodgement paid in A/C Code - of Supplier

24 Chapter 1 13 Built-in headings in the Sales Book: Date - Ref - the number you assign to your invoices A/C Code - of Customer to whom you sent invoice Details - name of Customer Total - total (gross) amount of invoice VAT - total VAT amount on invoice Sales VAT Rates - as set up by you Built-in headings in the Purchases Book: Date - Ref - the number you assign to the invoice A/C Code - of Supplier whose invoice you received Details - name of Supplier Total - total (gross) amount of invoice VAT - total VAT amount on invoice Purchase VAT Rates - as set up by you Built-in headings in the Petty Cash Book: Date - Ref - e.g. docket number Details - relevant narrative Receipts - total amount received Payments - amount paid out ** Note **: The additional columns you set up in the Petty Cash Book are only used to analyse Payments made Built-in headings in the Cheques Journal: Date - Ref - e.g. cheque number A/C Code - of Supplier, if payment is to Purchase Ledger Details - payee, e.g. Supplier name, if relevant Total - amount paid out, e.g. amount on cheque Ledger - amount posted to Supplier s account, if relevant Discount - i.e. received, if any A narrow column headed C appears in all books to indicate the currency code of each transaction in legacy Dual Currency versions. A narrow column headed V appears in all relevant books to indicate the VAT type code of certain transactions, e.g. Domestic, EU, Foreign, Exempt. A column headed Unallocated only appears if you have chosen Yes to Receipts/Payments Manual Allocation?

25 Chapter 1 14 Your particular attention is drawn to the fact that there is no column headed VAT in the Cheques Journal or in the Cash Payments Book. This is because all invoices received for goods/services bought by the company should be entered into the Purchases Book. It is only in the Purchases Book that a VAT analysis can take place, and it is from here that your periodic VAT liability will be calculated. Analysing VAT in a manuallywritten Payments book as and when invoices are paid is not an option that can be carried into the Big Red Book. Therefore, only the Purchases Book need contain Analysis Categories for the range of goods and services you buy from Suppliers. Meanwhile, the Cheques Journal and Cash Payments Book only need Analysis Categories for what you pay out to third-parties who are not Suppliers and who do not submit invoices, e.g. payments for Wages, PAYE, Petty Cash etc. Also, the Cheques Journal is different from the other books in that you need to set up appropriate Analysis Categories for each Bank Account that you have created. Most transactions, on being entered to a book, can only balance in bookkeeping terms if you place a corresponding amount or amounts in one or more analysis columns. For this reason, the programme will not open a book for you until/unless you have set up one or more Analysis Categories. As in a traditional, manually-written (red) book it is recommended that your last Analysis Category in each book be titled SUNDRY, or something similar. In addition to the 14 Analysis Categories, each book has two User Defined Fields available for sub-analysis of any transaction. Even though they can contain figures (which could be monetary amounts) they are memorandum only and are not part of the programme which keeps your books in balance. Their use is best described by examples: When entering/analysing some of your Suppliers invoices in the Purchases Book, you might as a matter of routine wish to record the Job N o, Machine N o, Dept N o or Vehicle N o etc. for which the item was intended. When entering/analysing Sales Invoices, you might wish to record the Sales Rep Code and/or the date when the Warranty expires etc. When entering/analysing receipts (e.g. cheques) from your Customers in the Cash Receipts Book, you might wish to record the Receipt N o if you are in habit of issuing them. If you have regularly to pay for goods in, say, US Dollars you might wish to record the $ Equiv value of each payment in the Cheques Journal. The actual transactions will, of course, have been entered in your own currency. The titles of your User Defined Fields, and what you enter to them, appear in all the relevant screen displays and reports and are available as search criteria. The titles of User Defined Fields can be up to 10 characters long and what you enter to each of them can contain a maximum of 40 characters. If at this point you feel you are in a position to set up your Analysis Categories and User Defined Fields then, before doing so, please take a few moments more to read the notes entitled Making Changes to Setup Data at the end of this chapter. To enter information on Analysis Categories and the User Defined Fields: 1. Select Analysis Categories from the Setup menu. 2. The screen you should be looking at will be similar to that shown in Figure 1-4, below.

26 Chapter 1 15 Figure 1-4 Setup Analysis Categories screen (Sample entries are shown on the next page). 3. Notice that under the heading CATEGORIES there are 14 blank lines/boxes awaiting a description. Which book these 14 belong to is indicated by which of them is highlighted, e.g. the Cash Receipts Book in Figure 1-4. Place the cursor in the first blank line and type the word(s) of your first Analysis Category (column heading) for this book. Press either Enter or the tab key to progress down the list. 4. When you are satisfied with what you have entered to the Cash Receipts Book as Analysis Categories, consider whether you wish to use either or both of the User Defined Fields (near the bottom right of the screen). If you do, either press Enter or the tab key to get through the unused lines until the cursor gets to Field 1. Then type whatever title is required. Pressing Enter or the tab key then takes you to Field 2, if required. 5. Then point-and-click at the name of the next book, e.g. Cash Payments, and repeat steps 3. and Do the same for each of the books listed. When you have completed your entries for all the books pointand-click at Save. Analysis Categories as used in Demonstration Company ABC Cooling Systems Cash Cash Sales Purchases Petty Chqs Jnl Chqs Jnl Receipts Payments Book Book Cash Curr A/C Dep A/C SUNDRY SUNDRY REFRIG COUNTERS SHELVES KITCHENS SUNDRY RESALE STATNRY ADVERTG L/HEAT PHONE INSUR REPAIRS LEASING CAP.EQUIP SUNDRY CANTEEN POSTAGE SUNDRY WAGES ACC/TRAV PAYE/PRS VAT PAY BANK CHG PENSION PTY. CASH TO DEP. SUNDRY BANK CHG SUNDRY FRN CURR Analysis Categories as used in Demonstration Company XYZ Retailer Cash Cash Sales Purchases Petty Chqs Jnl Receipts Payments Book Book Cash (Single Bank A/C) GROCERY MEAT F/VEG DELI FRZ/FOOD CIGS SUNDRY COUPONS B/VOUCH DEBTORS S/(OVER) REFUNDS LD S/(O) WAGES N O T I RESALE RATE/INS WRAPPING ADVERTG CLEANING REPAIRS PHONE N O T I WAGES BANK INT BANK CHG VAT PAY PAYE/PRS RETD/CHQ SUNDRY

27 VAT Rates Chapter 1 16 With this option you set up the VAT % rates used to record the VAT you pay on invoices from Suppliers and the VAT you collect on invoices you issue to Customers. The steps involved in setting up VAT % rates are listed below. In the case of VAT on purchases you may need to use two types of rates: one to record VAT on Purchases for Resale and another set of rates for Purchase Not for Resale, e.g. Telephone, Stationery, Light & Heat etc. Some businesses, in the service sector for instance, may not have any Purchases for Resale. If you buy goods from another country you should set up a rate of 0% to accommodate entry of invoice details for these purchases as appropriate. To enter VAT Rates information: 1. Select VAT Rates from the Setup menu. Figure 1-5 The VAT Rates screen in Setup 2. The screen you should be looking at will be similar to that shown in Figure 1-5, above. If your business does not make Purchases for Resale you can ignore all of column one and only use column two. This will simplify the task of analysing the VAT content of all purchase invoices when entering them into the Purchases Book. 3. With regard to the Notes above, proceed as follows for each column appropriate to you: Point-and-click at the words Rate 1. and then enter the VAT rate you use most often. This could be the Standard VAT rate, e.g. at the time of going to press 21.5 for Ireland or 17.5 for the UK. Point-and-click at the words Rate 2. and then enter the other VAT rate. If you entered the Standard VAT rate in Rate 1. above then you would enter the Reduced VAT rate here, e.g or 8 etc. Point-and-click at the words Rate 3. and then press Enter to accept the figure of 0.00 Notice that even though the figure is 0.00 there is a tick in the box to indicate that this rate is in use. For Sales Vat Rates you can also tick the Default column on one rate the one most often used for Sales this is that rate that sales transactions will default to. If, at Setup, you have more than two VAT rates you would enter the third and fourth into Rate 3., Rate 4. etc., then conclude with the 0.00 Zero Rate. Alternatively, those businesses which trade predominantly in goods or services which attract VAT at the Reduced rate or Zero rate might consider taking the opposite approach, namely to use Rate1. for the Reduced or Zero rate. 4. Point-and-click at Save when you have finished.

28 Chapter 1 17 Figure 1-6 The VAT Rates screen after Setup If one or more of the VAT Rates were to change, e.g. following a Budget, it is most important that the existing rates in the programme are not changed or deleted. The new rates must occupy the unused rate boxes, which is why six have been provided in each column. Further notes on this subject are contained in the section entitled Making Changes to Setup Data at the end of this chapter.

29 Chapter 1 18 Suppliers and Customers Before you can enter purchase or sales invoices, or details of receipts from Customers or payments to Suppliers, it is necessary to enter basic Supplier information into your Purchase Ledger and Customer information into your Sales Ledger. By setting up a Supplier (or Creditor) you are creating a Purchase Ledger Account which is used to keep track of amounts owed and payments made to Suppliers. Similarly, by setting up a Customer (or Debtor) you are creating a Sales Ledger Account which is used to hold details of sales made to and payments received from your Customers. The steps involved for setting up Suppliers and Customers are almost identical and will be dealt with together here, with any differences noted. To set up Suppliers and Customers you will need their business Names and Addresses (and the Contact Names, Telephone and Fax numbers etc. if you wish to use them). You will also need a list of the opening balances on your Supplier and Customer accounts. If you answered No to Receipts/Payments Manual Allocation? then you may, if you wish, age analyse the opening balances. Guideline notes on how to enter the age analysis are contained in these pages below. If you answered Yes to Receipts/Payments Manual Allocation? then age analysis is not an option. You will need to itemise each balance according to its VAT content. Guideline notes on how to itemise each opening balance are contained in the later chapter entitled Receipts and Payments Allocation. Account Code You will be asked to specify a unique code for each Supplier and Customer. Each code can be up to 8 characters long and can consist of all numbers, all letters or a combination of both. If you are already using a coding system you may wish to retain it. If you wish to set up new codes the following suggestions are offered: If intending to use purely numeric codes then use 01, 02 etc. or 001, 002 etc. rather than simply 1, 2 etc. If you have a small number of Suppliers/Customers then consider using the first three or four letters of the Supplier/Customer name as a code e.g. GUI or GUIN for Guinness. Beware of two or more accounts with similar names e.g. Infomart Ltd. and Infodata Ltd. With a larger number of accounts a combination of letters and numbers works well, e.g. G001 or GA01 for Gainers, G002 or GR01 for Groves & Co., G003 or GU01 for Guinness etc. Our Code You can If you wish keep a record of the code by which your Supplier/Customer identifies you in his/her accounting system. It is for memorandum purposes only. Opening Balance (These can be set up later if you do not have them to-hand). For each Supplier and Customer you set up you should enter the opening balance for their account as of the First Month of entry. For instance, if May is the first month for which you will be entering transactions, then for each Supplier and Customer you will be prompted to enter their total opening balance as of May 1st. If you entered No to Receipts/Payments Manual Allocation? you are also prompted to enter a breakdown of each opening balance by how old it is, i.e. an aged analysis. Doing this will help you get accurate reports of how long you have owed money to individual Suppliers (and how long you have been owed money by Customers) as soon as you start entering transactions. The categories for ageing are Current, 1 Month Old, 2 Months Old and 3 Months Plus. If you do not wish to age each balance you should enter the total balance in the Current box. Please note that the ageing of amounts should done with reference to the month prior to first month of entry. If your first month of entry is May, you should enter the opening balance as of May 1st and the aged break-down as of April 30th. Bank Bank details for Direct Debit or Direct Credit payments.

30 To set up a Supplier: Chapter Select Suppliers from the Setup menu or press F3. Figure 1-7 Setup a New Supplier 2. On the screen entitled Setup - Suppliers, either point-and-click at Add or press Alt + the letter A. The screen you should be looking at will be similar to that shown in Figure 1-7, above. 3. Following the guidelines described above fill in the form that appears on the screen. 4. If you are not going to enter the Supplier s opening balance at this point (or if his/her balance is zero) then, provided you are satisfied with the accuracy of the basic details you have entered, you can now Save them If you need to revisit one or more boxes you should point-and-click to wherever is appropriate. To erase the entries you have just started to make either use Cancel or press Esc. When the opening balances are to-hand you can enter them to each account using the Change routine. If you are going to enter the Supplier s opening balance at this point then, having completed the basic name and address details etc., point-and-click at the button marked O/Balance. Following the guidelines described above fill in the additional form that appears on the screen, as shown in figure 1-8. When satisfied with the accuracy of the balance either point-and-click at OK or press Alt + the letter O, followed by either Save or Enter.