[moneydance] VERY CONFUSED

[Edward Reid]

At 7/13/2009 04:45 PM -0700, s14212 at yahoo.com wrote:
>In any case, after all this, the number of shares in each MD account 
>is correct. The Cost basis is correct. The value of the account, 
>however is screwy.

Investment accounts normally do not reconcile on value (dollars, 
pesos, whatever) but only on shares. The value is purely the number 
of shares times the current share price. Once you have synchronized 
the share prices (as someone else explained how to do), the values 
should be close. They will not be exactly the same unless you can 
arrange to update the share prices in both programs at the same time 
from the same source.

>In addition, there are entries I neither want, need nor understand.

Please give more details about these entries. I've misplaced my 
mind-reader hat today. ;-)

>In addition, the available reports do not permit customization and 
>seem to come as either graphs or charts but not both.

Reporting is definitely a weak point of MD. I've cobbled together 
enough to make do. With Quicken, I was often able to generate exactly 
the report I need. With MD, I usually generate an approximate report 
and create my own report using the numbers. This obviously is not 
ideal, but I don't need to create many reports.

(Like many people here, I liked Quicken -- the Mac version anyway, 
and pre-2000 -- but intensely dislike Intuit, and you can't have one 
without the other.)

>I don't know where to go for a comprehensive instruction manual for MD.

There isn't one, although there are several sources of information. 
Much more than with the giant-corporation programs, you have to put 
the pieces together. However, since you've been using Money, you are 
far ahead of those who are new to computerized bookkeeping entirely.

Edward
-- 
Art works by Melynda Reid: http://paleo.org